Cheap Flights to Bavaria, Germany

Munich (MUC) and Nuremberg (NUE) have the only two major airports with regular scheduled flights in Bavaria, Southern Germany. Fortunately, flights are available from both these airports to many destinations while competition on low-cost airlines often ensures cheap tickets and pleasantly low airfares. Frankfurt International (FRA) and Salzburg (SZG) in Austria are also convenient to parts of Bavaria.

Cheap Flights to Munich Airport / Flughafen München (MUC)

Munich Airport / Flughafen München (MUC) is the largest airport in Bavaria and in Germany second only to Frankfurt International. Annually, just over 30 million passengers pass through Munich Airport. Full capacity is around 50 million, which in part explains why Munich Airport has been named Skytrax’s “Best European Airport” for the past three years.

Almost 250 destinations in more than 70 countries can be reached on direct flights from the Bavarian capital.

Munich is in the far south of Germany and as a result, more passengers fly from Munich to other German airports (especially those in the north such as Hamburg and Berlin) than from any other airport in the country. Low-cost airlines have a strong presence at Munich Airport ensuring low airfares and cheap tickets on both domestic and European routes. Intercontinental flights are available to Munich but most long-distance flyers to Germany are still likely to see the inside of Frankfurt Airport.

Munich Airport (MUC) is around 30 km (20 miles) to the northeast of Munich. Frequent trains to downtown take 45 minutes.
Cheap Flights to Nuremberg Airport / Flughafen Nürnberg (NUE)
Nuremberg Airport / Flughafen Nürnberg (NUE) is only minutes by subway train from downtown Nuremberg, the unofficial capital of the Franconia (Franken) region.

Nuremberg Airport is much smaller than Munich but its convenience gives it an edge for travelers to the northern parts of Bavaria. The airport is an important hub of low-cost airline Air Berlin ensuring many European and German routes. Lufthansa and most major European airlines also fly here to offer connections to long-distance flights from other hubs.

Frankfurt International Airport / Flughafen Frankfurt (FRA)

Frankfurt International Airport (FRA) is by far the largest airport in Germany. It handles over 50 million annual passengers arriving from over 300 airports in more than 100 different countries. Frankfurt International Airport sees a particularly high number of intercontinental arrivals.

Lufthansa, which uses Frankfurt as its principle base, frequently have internet only special prices on domestic and European flights that can compete on price with low-cost airlines. However, true budget airlines are rarely seen at Frankfurt International.

Frankfurt-Hahn Airport (HHN), popular with low-cost airlines, is very inconvenient for travelers to Bavaria.
Frankfurt Airport has excellent ground transportation connections. For travelers to Bavaria entering Germany at Frankfurt, it is generally better to continue by rail or road rather than on connecting flights.

Both local and long-distance trains stop at the Frankfurt Airport itself. Direct Inter-City-Express (ICE) trains from the airport reach Nürnberg in two hours and Munich in three and a half.

Major autobahns cross near Frankfurt Airport allowing for fast traveling to many parts of Germany. The Bavarian border is only half an hour’s drive down the A3. It is 200 km (125 miles) to Nürnberg and 400 km (250 miles) to München along blisteringly fast highways.

Cheap Flights to Salzburg Airport / Flughafen Salzburg (SZG)

Travelers to Berchtesgaden, Bad Reichenhall, and the Chiemgau area in the far southeast of Bavaria may find Salzburg Airport (SZG) convenient (and few would regret spending some time in the Mozart City itself while in the neighborhood). Although smaller than the other airports here, Salzburg does have many low-cost flights with the competition on routes to Britain particularly strong, especially in winter.

Salzburg Airport is only minutes by bus from Salzburg Hauptbahnhof (Main Station) from where Bavaria can easily be reached on frequent trains. By car, the German border is just minutes away.

Germany has many alternative airports but on German domestic and European flights, it is hard to beat Munich and Nuremberg airports when traveling to Bavaria.