Spain’s second largest airline, Vueling is part of the International Airlines Group (IAG) that also includes British Airways and Iberia, Spain’s largest airline and flag carrier, among others. Based at Barcelona El-Prat Airport where it’s the biggest operator, it also has hubs in Rome, Florence, Paris and Amsterdam.
Vueling is a low-cost carrier and comes with all the confusing options, add-on fees and minimal amenities that implies. Yet I’ve always liked its branding and Spanish flair, and have consistently found it one of the better budget airlines in Europe. And as I’m in and out of Barcelona often, I fly with it regularly.
Fleet and network
Aside from Europe, Vueling also flies regular routes to the Middle East and North Africa. Thanks to its parent company, IAG, it has codeshare partnerships with British Airways and Iberia, which extends its reach substantially. In 2023, it ferried nearly 37 million passengers around the world, its 100+ Airbus planes flying some 300 routes to more than 150 destinations in 50 countries.
That Airbus fleet consists of A319s, A320s and A321s dating back to 2015, meaning they’re modern and reasonably up-to-date facilities-wise. They cater perfectly well for the short-haul destinations it largely serves but can be a little more testing for the slightly longer-haul stops like Senegal, Tunisia and Algeria. Especially if you’re tall.
The airline has a fun policy of inviting customers to name its planes. While that admittedly sounds risky, it has resulted in some great ones. While I’ve flown before on the amusing ‘Vueldone,’ I’m most keen to one day board ‘Air Force Juan.’
Connections
Somewhat unusually for a budget carrier, and partly thanks again to its parent company, Vueling offers connecting flights to some major European destinations. You can book connections through Vueling directly to Barcelona, Paris Orly and Rome airports, using its partner airlines.
This is useful because it brings with it the assurance of booking your entire journey in one go. Your baggage will be carried directly from the origin to the final destination. And missed connections caused by delays are covered by your booking, as long as Vueling is operating the flights.
The airline has also launched Vueling Global, a venture with partner provider Dohop, which creates budget long-haul connections via a range of second-tier airlines around the world. Though it usually involves self transfers – so you’ll need to manage your luggage accordingly – it does include guarantees should delays cause you to miss a connection.
Fares and classes
True to its budget status, Vueling is a class-free airline. Everyone is in Economy together, although it does include a range of grandiosely-named seating choices to give a slightly smoother, roomier experience. Once upon a time, Vueling marketed this as a kind of Business Class it called Excellence, which included seats in the two front rows with the middle seats removed. At just four seats per plane, it was certainly exclusive but also widely derided as a rip off and soon dropped.
Today there are three fare types – Fly Light, Fly and Fly Grande. These are a relatively new introduction from the previous four fare tiers (Basic, Optima, Family and TimeFlex). While the idea may have been to simplify things, Vueling has not succeeded. Instead, it has also introduced four seat types, some of which come with luggage and priority boarding, creating a smorgasbord of choice that’s more confusing than convenient.
A note on hand luggage: size and weight checks at the gate vary a lot, and I’ve seen passengers charged for exceeding both on several occasions. In my experience, Spanish and Italian Vueling ground staff seem quite relaxed while in the UK and France, they’re a bit more strict. As always, unless you’re willing to pay the price it’s best to stick close to the dimensions as fines are high.
Fly Light
The Fly Light fare is the basic, most affordable. By choosing Fly Light, you'll get only the essentials for your trip, without any extras. It includes just your ticket, a standard seat and one small 16 in x 8 in x 12 in cabin bag. As with all low-cost carriers, Vueling lets you add a raft of paid-for extras so you can customise to your heart’s content.
Alongside adding individual services, you can also add packs – bundles of extras at a slightly better price than if you buy them separately. The Luggage pack includes a 55 lbs (25 kg) checked bag and seat selection. A Fast pack includes a 22 lbs (10 kg) cabin bag, seat selection, priority boarding and Fast Track through security.
As a dedicated hand-luggage-only flier, I’d never go for the Luggage pack. The Fast pack is worth considering though, especially if you’re flying to and from a tourist hotspot in peak season. If you don’t add a selected seat, you’ll get one allocated randomly and can check in online from seven days before you fly.
Fly
The next option adds seat selection and a 22 lbs (10 kg), 21.5 in x 16 in x 8 in cabin bag, usually for what I consider to be far too high an added fee. Seat selection includes Space seats, which have more legroom than standard seats. You can also swap the cabin bag for a 55 lbs (25 kg) checked bag, but you’ll have to pay for it of course.
Fly Grande
Vueling’s premium fare is the Fly Grande, which comes with most of the airline’s bells and whistles services. Cabin and checked bag, Space seat selection, priority and Fast Track. It also allows for unlimited flight changes and free cancellation (with a flight credit refund) up to 48 hours before you fly. As a result, Grande is much more expensive and best suited to business travellers who may need flexibility on flight times.
Onboard – seats, legroom and facilities
Alongside the three fare types, you’ll find four seat types – Front/Rear (“for thrifty passengers”), Space, Space Plus and Space One. The standard front/rear seats are not what you’d call spacious. The A319 offers a 30-inch pitch (legroom), the A320 and A321 are less generous at 29 inches. Widths are equally tight at 17.7 into 17.9 in – one reason I’d suggest to never book a middle seat on a Vueling flight.
Space seats add 10-20% more room. These are just the emergency exit seats given a cool name, and as such aren’t available to children and certain types of passengers – for example, if you’re pregnant or have a pet with you. Space Plus and Space One take you to the front four rows of the plane with the same leg room as Space seats, but with priority boarding and two pieces of hand luggage also included.
This effectively creates yet another fare bundle, as you can book a Fly Light basic fare and add Plus or One seats to get extra luggage and priority boarding. It’s a bit convoluted and makes it harder to work out the best value depending on your needs. But if you really want to sit at the front of the plane for quick de-boarding, an included cabin bag is a handy add-on.
Elsewhere, it’s the basics you’d expect of a budget airline. There’s no onboard entertainment, but Vueling has now rolled out paid WiFi and power sockets to most of its fleet. Food and drinks come at a cost from a trolley and are nothing to write home about, although they do at least have a Spanish flair to them. They even sell a specially branded Cacolat Go!, my all-time favourite chocolate milk. Delicious.
Vueling Club
Vueling’s membership and rewards club is worth joining if only to collect and use Avios points, also redeemable with British Airways and other IAG airlines. If you’re a Club member and super regular Vueling flier (more than 20 return flights a year), you’ll be automatically upgraded to a premium member and get a range of benefits, from free cabin bags to Fast Track.
Airport experience and lounges
The Vueling airport experience is comparable to most other low-cost carriers but does depend on the airport you’re in. At the hubs, and in particular Barcelona, you’ll find more desks, more staff and newer facilities – but also more passengers. Most have self-check-in and bag drop machines alongside the standard under-staffed desks. At the smaller airports, expect just one or two desks but bearable queues.
Thanks to its long-haul network connections and partner airlines, Vueling offers a VIP Lounge service in many airports around the world. These aren’t Vueling branded but rather use regular paid-for lounges incorporated into certain fares and addable during booking. Oddly, Vueling tickets don’t give you access to the likes of British Airways’ lounges despite their multifaceted partnership, so don’t expect premium branded lounge services despite that VIP moniker.
This KAYAK-commissioned article is presented as-is, for general informational purposes only, and may not be up to date. The opinions contained in the article are original to the author and reflect their authentic experience, which may vary significantly from the experience of others. Find more perspectives in our user reviews below.
