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UPDATED: 03/28/2019 | WOW air ceased operations today. So crazy! Although WOW air is no longer in business, this article is still pertinent for other budget airline experiences. Read on, and gather a few tips for your semi-budget travel journey!
It all started when I got an e-mail informing me of an amazing deal to fly to Iceland. Non-stop. LAX to KEF. WOW air. Cheap flights. I pitched the idea to my husband. We had already taken a major vacation earlier in the year…to Hawaii. (It is not lost on us that this was our year for visiting islands!) We made the decision to go for it, and we’re so glad we did! We pressed forward in determination to make some epic semi-budget travel memories in Iceland! Our trip began by flying WOW air to Iceland with kids! Following are some tips and a brief WOW air review of our experience at the WOW basic level of service.
Flying WOW air to Iceland with Kids – Tip #1
Minimize your luggage to minimize your fees.
This is the third major trip we’ve taken (the others were to southeast Asia and Hawaii) where we were able to manage with just two checked bags. Since WOW air charges a fee for every checked bag, fewer bags means fewer charges. This also means, however, that you can’t just buy two of the largest suitcases in existence and fill them to capacity. Weight limits still apply. In our case, each checked bag had a maximum weight limit of 20kg (44.0925 lbs). One of my favorite semi-budget travel tips is to purchase a luggage scale. They’re not very expensive, and they can save you a lot of money in potential overweight luggage fees. So, weigh your luggage before you head to the airport, every time. Pack the luggage scale in your carry-on, so you can use it throughout your trip.
Speaking of carry-ons, WOW basic allows each passenger one personal item. This personal item must fit under the seat in front of you. Otherwise, WOW air charges for using the overhead bins. Yes, it’s true. As a result, I only took my Pacsafe anti-theft purse on this trip, and left my Pacsafe anti-theft backpack at home.
So, plan accordingly. Each additional item will be an additional fee. It’s why WOW air’s initial ticket prices are so semi-budget travel-tastic.
Flying WOW air to Iceland with Kids – Tip #2
Pay a little extra to choose your seat assignments.
For a nominal fee, WOW air allowed us to choose our own seat assignments.
Our non-stop flights from Los Angeles (LAX) to Keflavík, Iceland (KEF) and back were on an A330-300, which has a standard seat 2-4-2 configuration. We paid extra to choose our seat assignments, and we chose two of the 2-seat rows right behind each other. This was great for our family of four! We had two window seats and two aisle seats and no middle seats. Yay!
Interesting Side Note: We actually flew on the same exact plane, in the same exact seats, both ways!
Flying WOW air to Iceland with Kids – Tip #3
Be prepared.
Moms, Dads, aunts, uncles, grandparents…be prepared…for you and the kids. Bring your own meals, snacks, drinks, entertainment, and pretty much everything you might need for a 9-hour flight (pillows, blankets, etc.). WOW air does not give you anything for free…not even water. The WOW air flight attendants will sell you food and drinks, but you will pay top króna for it.
Also, prepare your kids for this WOW air experience. They will not be offered a soda and a pack of pretzels…well, unless you want to pay for it. So, when the cart rolls down the aisle, make sure your kids understand that, even though it’s an international flight, there are no included meals here.
Our family opted to pack “snack meals.” We had individual Cheez-It packs, a variety of granola bars, and trail mix.
For drinks, we stuck with water. Each of us brought a Nalgene water bottle. At LAX, we purchased a couple waters and filled our Nalgene bottles for the flight. While in Iceland, we filled our Nalgene bottles from the tap at our vacation rental and carried them with us each day. (Icelandic water is delicious!) For the flight back, my husband found a water bottle filling station at the Keflavík airport and filled all our Nalgene bottles for free!!!!!
In terms of entertainment options, there’s not even a screen showing a map of the flight path. It was announced that pre-programmed iPads were available for rent, but we didn’t even look into that. If you’re not going to sleep on the flight, or you try to sleep and it doesn’t work out, make sure you have enough to keep you (and your kids) occupied. Books, workbooks, pens, pencils, crayons, markers, stickers, activity books, dolls, toys, stuffed animals, road trip games, electronic devices…basically, whatever you need for the 9-hour flight…bring it with you, but fit it into your personal items. It is possible!
Flying WOW air to Iceland with Kids – Tip #4
Attempt to sleep.
I thought it would be slightly easier for me to sleep on these flights, since there was no food, drink, and/or entertainment to distract me. My MO, especially on long-haul flights, is to do all. the. things. Consequently, I don’t sleep. But, WOW air was giving me a chance to sleep, because no food, drinks, and/or entertainment. Whelp, I took my melatonin, and it didn’t happen. I suppose it didn’t help that, even for the overnight flight from LAX to KEF, the cabin crew never turned off the interior lights…until it was light outside! Wha?!?!?
What’d I do instead? I finished reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (fabulous read!), and we did some homeschooling.
Flying WOW air to Iceland with Kids – Conclusion
Would we fly WOW air again?
Yes, we would. We got the seat assignments that we paid for, didn’t have any huge tarmac delays, and never had a reason to contact customer service. We knew going in that WOW air would be bare bones in many areas, and we were fairly prepared for that. The one thing that surprised us was the boarding and deplaning process. When boarding, for both flights, passengers filed onto the jetway and then stood there in a huge long line for a while, before actually being allowed to board the plane. Then, at the conclusion of the flight, upon arrival at the gate, for both flights, we waited 10-15 minutes just sitting on the plane before the doors were even opened. So, boarding and deplaning were pretty inefficient.
Our flight was delayed out of LAX, but we still arrived in Iceland ahead of schedule. We arrived back at LAX ahead of schedule as well.
All in all, it was a decent experience and met our expectations!
To find flights for your next trip, check out our favorite semi-budget travel planning links.
Have you ever flown on WOW air? Please share in the comments below!
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Ive always wondered about these budget airlines, esp on long haul flights. I guess the moral of the story is to COME PREPARED – I pinned this. I dont know if we have WOW air in NY? We did get just Norwegian and it sounds similar.
Yes, WOW air flies straight from New York to Iceland!
I love love love Cheez-It packs! Thanks for this post. I’m definitely saving it when I have a kid and go back to Iceland!