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WOW air has made waves with ultra-cheap fares to Europe. You can pick up a ticket to Europe for as little as $99. Needless to say, for any low-cost carriers to remain competitive they have to really offer a bare bones service and charge for any extras. It now seems that in their drive to be more competitive WOW has gone a step further; they have cut the traditional free overhead bin carry-on, and have increased some of the fees they charge for other items as well.
Bigger Paid Carry On’s
Previously you were entitled to take a carry-on measuring 16.5 x 12.5 x 10 inches, with a maximum weight of 22 lbs. While this is no longer the case and you have to pay, WOW has increased the dimensions of the carry-on to 22 x 18 x 10 inches, with a maximum weight up to 26 lbs. They have also increased the dimensions of the personal item from 16.5 x 8 x 8 inches, to 17 X 13 X 10.
What is interesting is that even with the price hike, WOW has maintained a different pricing structure for flights from the East coast and those from the West coast to Iceland: East coast fees are $40.99 per leg, and from the West coast $50.99.
For flights to Europe from both coasts that merely connect through Iceland, the fees per carry-on have remained the same at $50.99
Seat Selection Has Gone Up Too
WOW has also increased their prices for seat selection. Standard seats will now set you back between $11.99 – $12.99, XL seats will cost $50.99, and the new premium XXL seats which will make their debut on June 1, 2017, will set you back $60.99. Although so far, little is known about the new XXL seats from WOW Air.
New Fare Bundles
With all the changes the company has announced, they are also introducing some new fare bundles that are designed to be more economical than just purchasing a standard ticket. The 3 new fare bundles are WOW Basic, WOW Plus, and WOW Biz.
- WOW Basic is exactly that, just a seat with one small personal item and nothing else
- WOW Plus is the same as WOW Basic, with the addition of a carry-on, and one checked bag up to 44 lbs. The fare bundle also includes Cancellation protection
- WOW Biz is the same as WOW Plus, with the addition of an XL or XXL seat depending on the aircraft, as well as a “Big Seat” on WOW Air’s new Airbus A330s. The bundle also includes a hot meal onboard, and priority boarding.
Overall
While it is always disappointing when an airline removes a benefit and starts charging for it, WOW air has somewhat mitigated the loss by increasing the size of the bags that you are paying for. Even with the extra add-on fees involved with flying WOW air, it is still a great deal for a hop across the Atlantic. It seems that the competition is heating up between WOW air and Norwegian for the ultra-low-cost transatlantic market.
Source: Travel Codex/James Dozer
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