New research: Flying isn't the cheapest way to get to Europe

When we talk about climate-friendly travel, one argument comes up again and again: “flights are cheaper”.

It's easy to see why people assume this to be the case. Budget airlines bombard us with adverts promising weekend breaks for the price of a takeaway. And when many of us are watching our spending more carefully than ever, those headline fares can be hard to ignore.

But what if those bargain prices aren't telling the whole story?

At Possible, we're always looking for ways to make low-carbon travel easier and more appealing. We know that flying less is one of the biggest changes many people can make to reduce their climate impact. That's why we created Sustainable Travel Leave – the workplace policy that gives people extra time off to travel by train or coach instead of flying.

Yet one of the biggest barriers to choosing flight-free travel is the widespread belief that it's always more expensive.

Our new report challenges that assumption.

Looking at 50 routes between six UK cities and destinations across mainland Europe, we compared the advertised cost of travelling by plane and by coach. But unlike the eye-catching fares used in airline advertising, we looked at what travellers are actually likely to pay. Because here's the thing - the cheapest airline tickets often don't include what most people need for a trip.

The business model of many budget airlines relies on charging extra for things that travellers might reasonably expect to be included such as luggage allowance. These “optional” add-on fees are so important that they make up a huge share of some airlines' revenues.

For anyone travelling for more than a couple of days, a small under-seat bag is unlikely to be enough. So we compared journeys based on a realistic scenario: one traveller with one suitcase, and the results were striking. Once luggage costs were included, coach travel was cheaper than flying on 43 out of 50 routes analysed – that's 86% of all journeys. On average, travellers could save £45 per person by choosing the coach instead.

The lesson for travellers is simple: don't compare headline fares. Compare the total cost of the journey. And for policymakers, employers and consumer advocates, these findings add to the growing case for greater transparency in airline pricing. If consumers are going to make informed choices, they need to be able to see the real cost of travelling – not just the attention-grabbing number in an advert.

For those of us who want to cut our carbon footprint without breaking the bank, this is good news; the greener option isn't always the more expensive one.

Read the full report to explore the findings in more detail and see how the numbers stack up across all 50 routes.