Stansted Flights: Bargains and When to Book in 2026
Best time to book flights from London Stansted Airport? Typical fares, the bargains we found and what booking early or late did, one airline at a time, in 2026.
Written By Rick Blyth
Happiest at 36,000ft as the sun rises above the clouds
4 min read
•
Published on 12th November 2026
“In our trip search, London Stansted Airport had more great-value city break destinations* than any other UK airport.”
*Great value: return flights under £150 per person. Europe Unlocked trip search, 12th November 2026. Against the other UK airports our trip search covers, all searched the same day.
154city break destinations*
34countries
109of them under £50 return
143of them in Europe
Here's what we found from London Stansted Airport, in pictures: the bargains, when to book each airline, what return trips cost day by day, what flights to Europe cost, the cheapest months and how long the flights are. It's the London Stansted part of our 2026 study of the best time to book flights to Europe.
The Short Answers for London Stansted Airport ✈️
📅Book Ryanair 4 to 10 weeks aheadThat's when its fares from London Stansted were near their lowest. In the final days they more than doubled (+165%).
🗓️Jet2 cost more months aheadJet2 fares from London Stansted were lowest in the final days, and 6 months out they were typically 81% above that.
💷Ryanair: typically £38One way, when its fares were lowest. 38% were under £30.
From the flights we tracked from London Stansted, March to November 2026. One-way fares per person, each flight against its own fare at its airline’s lowest point. “Near their lowest” means within 3 percentage points of it.
Good News from London Stansted Airport 🎉
What we found when we searched for city breaks from London Stansted Airport: return trips, flights only.
Two cities, one tripTurin and Pescara3 nights in December, from £43 returnMore multi-city tripsTrieste and Bari4 nights in December£43Tirana and Pescara3 nights in December£44Tirana and Bari4 nights in December£44Tirana and Genoa4 nights in December£44
City break in IrelandKnock1 night in December, from £30 return
City break in the UKBelfast1 night in December, from £30 return
Return trips, flights only, per person, from our trip search on 12th November 2026. Fares move, and you book each flight directly with the airline. Compared with the other UK airports our trip search covers, searched the same day: we only say "more" when an airport is well ahead, and "cheapest" when it's at least £5 lower.
When's the Best Time to Book Flights from London Stansted Airport? 💡
Ryanair: 4 to 10 weeks ahead. Jet2 fares were higher months ahead.
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
How fares from London Stansted Airport moved before departure, airline by airlineHow much more fares were than at each airline's lowest point, from 6 months out to the day.
Ryanair+165%
Jet2lowest
Each line is 0% where its airline's fares were typically lowest, ringed. Each point is the typical (median) difference between each flight's fare then and its own fare at that low, among the flights we tracked with a fare at both: 100 or more each, and not the same flights at every point. One-way fares for one person, without bags.
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
How fares from London Stansted Airport moved before departure, airline by airlineHow much more fares were than at each airline's lowest point, from 6 months out to the day.
Ryanair+165%
Jet2lowest
Each line is 0% where its airline's fares were typically lowest, ringed. Each point is the typical (median) difference between each flight's fare then and its own fare at that low, among the flights we tracked with a fare at both: 100 or more each, and not the same flights at every point. One-way fares for one person, without bags.
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
Each airline from London Stansted Airport followed its own pattern. Each figure is how much more fares typically were than at that airline's lowest point, flight by flight.
Ryanair: Fares were near their lowest 4 to 10 weeks out. In the final days they were typically 165% above that, more than twice each flight's own fare at the low. Six months ahead, typically 37% above that.
Jet2: Fares were lowest in the final days. Six months ahead, typically 81% above the final days.
A fall here is what these flights did, not a reason to wait: it varied from flight to flight.
What Return Trips from London Stansted Airport Cost, Day by Day 📈
We priced 87,431 return trips from London Stansted Airport every day for the 12 weeks before they left: a flight out and the same airline’s flight home 2 to 7 days later.
In each chart, the thick line is the typical (median) trip each day and the shaded band is where the middle half of trips sat. The thin line is one real trip that stayed close to the typical one.
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Ryanair: return trips from London Stansted Airport, priced every day for 12 weeksThe typical (median) price each day across 86,519 return trips, the middle half of them shaded, and one real trip.
£9612 weeks out£79lowest, about 7 weeks out£240final days
A real trip: Porto and back, 4 nights, out 15th June 2026
Return trips per person, flights only, without bags, on the flights we tracked from London Stansted, flights out March to November 2026.
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Ryanair: return trips from London Stansted Airport, priced every day for 12 weeksThe typical (median) price each day across 86,519 return trips, the middle half of them shaded, and one real trip.
£9612 weeks out£79lowest, about 7 weeks out£240final days
A real trip: Porto and back, 4 nights, out 15th June 2026
Return trips per person, flights only, without bags, on the flights we tracked from London Stansted, flights out March to November 2026.
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
The typical Ryanair trip was £96 at 12 weeks out, lowest about 7 weeks out (£79), then £240 in the final days.
91% of its 86,519 trips cost more at the end than at 12 weeks out. The thin line is Porto and back, 4 nights, out 15th June 2026.
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Jet2: return trips from London Stansted Airport, priced every day for 12 weeksThe typical (median) price each day across 912 return trips, the middle half of them shaded, and one real trip.
£26112 weeks out£174final days
A real trip: Palma de Mallorca and back, 2 nights, out 3rd September 2026
Return trips per person, flights only, without bags, on the flights we tracked from London Stansted, flights out March to November 2026.
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Jet2: return trips from London Stansted Airport, priced every day for 12 weeksThe typical (median) price each day across 912 return trips, the middle half of them shaded, and one real trip.
£26112 weeks out£174final days
A real trip: Palma de Mallorca and back, 2 nights, out 3rd September 2026
Return trips per person, flights only, without bags, on the flights we tracked from London Stansted, flights out March to November 2026.
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
The typical Jet2 trip went the other way: £261 at 12 weeks out and £174 in the final days.
85% of its 912 trips cost less at the end. That's what these trips did, not a reason to wait: it varied from trip to trip. The thin line is Palma de Mallorca and back, 2 nights, out 3rd September 2026.
The same trips are counted every day: on a day one wasn’t priced, we use its price as last seen. A ring marks the typical line’s lowest day. A real trip is the one whose daily price stayed closest to the typical line, always under £300 and not to Dublin unless that's the airline's only route, and it's shown only where it stayed within 15% of the typical price.
How Much Are Flights from London Stansted Airport to Europe? 💷
Return flights from London Stansted to Europe started at £30, and 102 of the 143 destinations in Europe we found (return trips under £150) were under £50 return.
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Return flights from London Stansted to EuropeHow many of the 143 destinations in Europe (Ireland included) come in under each price, return. Each bar includes the cheaper ones.
Under £3015 destinations
Under £50102 destinations
Under £100141 destinations
All of them143 destinations
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Return flights from London Stansted to EuropeHow many of the 143 destinations in Europe (Ireland included) come in under each price, return. Each bar includes the cheaper ones.
Under £3015 destinations
Under £50102 destinations
Under £100141 destinations
All of them143 destinations
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
The 10 cheapest countries to fly to from London Stansted
The lowest return price we found to each country, flights only, per person, from our trip search on 12th November 2026, for trips from November to April. Fares move, and you book each flight directly with the airline.
Which Month Is Cheapest to Fly from London Stansted Airport? 📅
In the next 6 months, January is the cheapest month to fly from London Stansted Airport in our trip search: across destinations, the typical cheapest return city break is £41, against £68 in April.
A typical city break from London Stansted Airport, month by month, for the next 6 months
Nov 2026£49
Dec 2026£43
Jan 2027✅Cheapest£41
Feb 2027£44
Mar 2027£51
Apr 2027£68
The typical return price of a city break leaving in each month: for every destination, its cheapest return trip that month, flights only, per person, then the middle of those, so half the destinations cost less and half cost more (120 to 144 destinations a month). From our trip search on 12th November 2026, which looks about six months ahead; November counts trips leaving from the 13th.
How Long Are Flights from London Stansted Airport? ⏱️
In our trip search (return trips under £150), 57 destinations from London Stansted Airport are 2 hours or less by direct flight. The cheapest of them: Belfast, from £30 return.
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Destinations by flight time from London Stansted AirportHow many of the 154 destinations we found are in each band of direct-flight time.
Up to 2 hours57 destinations
2 to 3 hours68 destinations
3 to 4 hours22 destinations
Over 4 hours7 destinations
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
2026 fare studyEuropeUnlocked
Destinations by flight time from London Stansted AirportHow many of the 154 destinations we found are in each band of direct-flight time.
Up to 2 hours57 destinations
2 to 3 hours68 destinations
3 to 4 hours22 destinations
Over 4 hours7 destinations
✈ EuropeUnlocked.co.uk
See every destination:
The cheapest destination in each flight-time band, from London Stansted Airport
Scheduled direct-flight times, one way. Prices: the lowest return price we found to each destination, flights only, per person, from our trip search on 12th November 2026.
📬 Free · Every Sunday
The Best Trips from London Stansted AirportEvery Sunday, Fresh in Your Inbox
Each email has the best-value trips from London Stansted for the following two weeks, found and priced for you.
📥 What lands in your inbox on Sunday
📥 InboxExample
✉Rick from Europe UnlockedSundayYour best trips from London Stansted for the following two weeksCheapest trips from London Stansted for the following two weeks.
✉Rick from Europe Unlocked · Last week's best trips from London StanstedLast week
To: you
London Stansted Airport Figures for Journalists 📋
“London Stansted Airport has more great-value city break destinations than any other UK airport.”
Great value: return flights under £150 per person. Europe Unlocked trip search, 12th November 2026, against the other UK airports it covers, all searched the same day.
Trips you can quote
Milan: 2 nights in December for £30 return.
Oslo: 5 nights in December for £30 return.
Ostrava: 2 nights in December for £30 return.
Marrakech, Morocco: 3 nights in December for £32 return.
Flights only, per person, from our trip search, 12th November 2026. Fares move, and you book each flight directly with the airline.
Fare figures you can quote
Ryanair fares from London Stansted Airport more than doubled in the final days.Europe Unlocked 2026 fare study: 12,218 Ryanair flights, March to November 2026, each against its own fare at the airline's lowest point.
A typical Ryanair return from London Stansted Airport: £79 at its lowest, £240 in the final days.Europe Unlocked 2026 fare study: 86,519 Ryanair return trips, each priced every day for 12 weeks, flights out March to November 2026.
91% of Ryanair return trips from London Stansted Airport cost more in the final days than 12 weeks before.Europe Unlocked 2026 fare study: 86,519 Ryanair return trips, flights out March to November 2026.
Pegasus fares from London Stansted Airport rose 57% in the final days.Europe Unlocked 2026 fare study: 380 Pegasus flights, March to November 2026, each against its own fare at the airline's lowest point.
Please credit Europe Unlocked with a link to this page. Figures describe the flights we tracked, not every flight.
About the London Stansted Airport Research 🔍
What we tracked: 18,555 flights from London Stansted Airport, departing 1 March to 7 November 2026, and 31,362,807 price checks on them: one-way base fares for one adult, without bags, on a sample of the flights we track.
How we compared: each flight against its own fare at its airline's lowest point, the stretch of weeks when that airline's fares were typically lowest (Ryanair 6 to 8 weeks and Jet2 in the final days). Typically means the middle (median) of those changes, so each line on the charts starts from its airline's low. Each airline's window is where its fares stayed within 3 percentage points of that low.
Return trips: a flight out and the same airline's flight home 2 to 7 days later, their two fares added up for each of the 12 weeks before the flight out, from the flights we tracked; on a day one wasn't priced, its price as last seen. The typical line is the middle (median) of all of an airline's trips each day, the same trips every day, for airlines with 100 or more. The real trip is the one whose price stayed closest to it.
Our trip search: the good news, the destinations, the months and the flight times come from our trip search, which finds return trips whose flights totalled less than £150 per person, so every count of destinations is a count of those.
Airlines and airports: our fare tracking looks at one airline at a time and never compares airports. The good news and the comparison with other airports come from our trip search instead.
Questions People Ask About Flights from London Stansted Airport 💬
When Is the Best Time to Book Flights from London Stansted Airport?
It depends on the airline. In our 2026 fare tracking, Ryanair fares from London Stansted were near their lowest 4 to 10 weeks out. That's where each flight's fare typically stayed within 3 percentage points of its own fare at its airline's lowest point.
How Much Are Flights from London Stansted Airport to Europe?
It depends on where and when you go. The prices from our trip search, with the day we searched, are near the top of this page: return trips whose flights totalled less than £150 per person.
Do Flights from London Stansted Airport Get More Expensive Closer to the Date?
It depends on the airline. In our 2026 fare tracking, Ryanair fares from London Stansted in the final days were typically more than twice each flight's own fare at its lowest point (up 165%), though individual flights varied. The charts above show each airline.
Can I Use These Figures?
Yes, with a credit to Europe Unlocked and a link to this page. Journalists can also get the press pack.
City break in EuropeMilan2 nights in December, from £30 returnMore cheap city breaksParma4 nights in November£30Oslo5 nights in December£30Venice6 nights in December£30Ostrava2 nights in December£30
City break in IrelandKnock1 night in December, from £30 return
City break in the UKBelfast1 night in December, from £30 return
