United Kingdom’s air passenger duty for intercontinental flights can be avoided by spending over 24 hours in a different European country before boarding a long-haul flight. Not many airlines allow such long layovers for free, but TAP Portugal does. That means, that if you spend 1–5 days in Porto or Lisbon on the outbound journey, you can fly from London to New York for merely €320 (~£274). While luggage is only included for Star Alliance Gold members, you can book the Basic fare with luggage for €435 (~£372). These prices with stopover can be found between September to January 2025. If you don’t want to do the stopover you can also find flights starting at £321 (~€375).
Our availability calendar highlights all possible flight dates at the lowest price for trips up to 28 days without stopover. It will forward you to Kayak with your selected flight dates.
TAP uses an Airbus A321neo for all of these flights. While quite cramped on the 2-hour flight between Lisbon and London, the 8-hour long-haul flight offers slightly more comfortable seats, on-demand video, power sockets, and USB ports to charge your devices.
Adding a Stopover in Portugal
For the multi-city option, you can find the dates using our calendar above. You can use those return dates as the first and last legs’ dates and set the day for the Lisbon-New York flight at 1-5 days after the first flight from London.
Simply enter everything in TAP’s multicity search:
And voilá, you’re only paying €321 (~£275) for the flights, and get to explore the Portuguese capital:
Search & Book
The fare rules do not state how long this fare will remain valid. There is no minimum stay, but a maximum stay of 12 months applies. Departures are available from September to January 2025.
You can use Google Flights to see the exact available dates. You can then book on TAP’s website but you can find cheaper prices with Kayak. However, booking on OTAs has its downsides.
Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?
More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:
Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.
If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.
This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.
Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.
This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.
Mileage
The tickets are issued in booking class T, meaning that you shouldn’t expect many miles from this trip:
- 1,916 Award Miles + 160 Points on Miles&More
- 828 Miles on Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
- 828 Award Miles on Emirates Skywards
- 828 Miles on Air Canada Aeroplan
- 828 Miles on Egyptair Plus
- 666 Miles on Hainan Fortune Wings Club
- 414 Miles on Azul TodoAzul
At TAP’s own frequent flyer program, the number of miles depends on the fare you selected (e.g. Discount without luggage gets you 0 miles).
Destination
Hotel prices in Manhattan usually start at roughly €115 but can quickly rise to €235 if you want to stay in a good location. Whichever category and hotel you opt for, make sure to get the best price! Our recommendation is to search on booking.com, or even on our own Travel-Dealz hotel search:
Information & Tips for New York
It is THE dream destination in the USA. The 5 districts of New York City offer more than any other metropolis in the world. And due to the high number of flights to New York, it is usually the cheapest way to get to the USA.
The Best Time to Travel
The best travel time with moderate temperatures is from April to June and from September to November. Summers can bring heat waves with high humidity. Winters are often snowy and very cold.
From the airport to the city
New York City is served by three commercial airports: John F. Kennedy Intl. Airport in Queens (probably the most famous), Newark Intl. Airport in Newark, New Jersey (which is not located in NYC, but serves the metropolitan area just like the others) and LaGuardia Airport also in Queens (which is closest to the city).
John F. Kennedy Intl. Airport
Public transport: From Manhattan by subway or LIRR to Jamaica (price varies from $2.75 – $10.00), continue with AirTrain to JFK ($8). Travel time 45 – 60 minutes.
Taxi: To Manhattan $62.50 (+ $5.50 toll), 45 – 90 minutes depending on traffic.
Newark Intl. Airport
Public transport: Almost $20 with a combination of AirTrain Newark and NJ Transit to Penn Station. Almost 45 minutes drive.
Taxi: To Manhattan $50 – $70 (+ $8 toll), journey time 35 – 60 minutes depending on traffic.
LaGuardia Airport
Public transport: LaGuardia is only served by buses, these are slow and don’t have much space to store luggage, but with $2,75 they are very cheap.
Taxi: To Manhattan $20 – $30, journey time 15 – 30 minutes depending on traffic.
→ All Dealz for New York
Information & Tips for USA
The USA offers many sights, natural wonders and cultural significance. Thanks to numerous airlines offering flights across the Atlantic, it is always pretty inexpensive to get there. Alternatively, you can also cross the Atlantic by boat.
Immigration, ESTA & Visa Requirements
The USA has one of the strictest entry regulations in the world. Most EU citizens, among others, are lucky to be able to participate in the so-called Visa Waiver Program. If you get an electronic entry permit (ESTA) for approximately €20, you don’t need a visa for entry.
The Best Time to Visit
Due to its sheer size, the perfect time to visit the USA varies greatly from region to region. In winter, Florida is very popular due to the mild temperatures. In the summer the West and East Coasts are flooded by tourists which drives up the prices for hotels and flights and during the Indian Summer in late autumn New England is a very popular destination. The hurricane season between July and September can be dangerous in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. Florida and the southern states are regularly struck by these tropical storms. Blizzards occur from the East Coast to the Midwest during the winter months and regularly put air traffic and public life on hold.
Currency
The US dollar is widely used throughout the world and accepted as a currency in most tourist hotspots worldwide. That being said, carrying cash isn’t necessary in the US, all you need is a credit card! These are very common in the USA and are accepted pretty much everywhere without any issues. If you already have a credit card in your wallet, you should make sure that it does not charge a foreign currency fee if possible. Carrying a few dollars in cash doesn’t hurt though. You might need cash e.g. for the bus ticket if you want to buy it directly from the driver. Most of the time you even have to give exact change.
Finding the Best eSIM Plan
We’ve compared various eSIM providers, such as Knowroaming and Ubigi. To see which plan is best for your travel needs, and which network offers the best coverage, feel free to read our detailed guide:
The Best eSIM Plans for the USA 🇺🇸 Compared
→ All Dealz for USA
Cover Picture: Ditmar Lange