
Finnair’s inaugural Airbus A330 arrives at San Francisco International on Thursday (Photo: Peter Biaggi / SFO)
This week two rare birds touched down in the Bay Area. Both are offering super cheap transatlantic fares for summer trips.
On Thursday, Finnair landed at SFO, flying in from Helsinki, Finland. Over at Oakland, a brand new airline called Level arrived from Barcelona.
Finnair is flying into SFO with seasonal service– three times a week during summer months only. Currently the lowest roundtrip economy fares between SFO and HEL are running about $1,200 to $1,500 for peak summer flights– not a bad deal for the 11-hour flight. Business class fares are about $2,900 roundtrip.
Here’s what Finnair business class looks like:

Finnair business class on an Airbus A330 (Photo: Finnair)
Next up, we have Level, which breezed into Oakland from Barcelona on Friday with some of the cheapest fares we’ve seen this summer. Its A330 holds 314 passengers and economy and premium economy configuration (no business or first class).

A Level A330 arrives at Oakland International from Barcelona (Photo: Port of Oakland)
Level is a new low-fare subsidiary of IAG, which owns British Airways and Iberia, and is offering some remarkable fares on the first ever nonstops between the Bay Area and Spain.
For summer trips, it’s offering startlingly low fares of just $400 round trip (seriously!) all the way through August! Get ’em while they are hot! Note that you’ll pay extra for checked bags, seat selection and food- see this. The cheapest premium economy fares we could find this weekend for summer trips are in the $1,200 to $1,500 range– a very good deal for a bigger seat, better service, and fewer fees!
What’s it like to fly Level? Good Trip Report here.
More about this bird and all of Oakland’s cheap new flights to Europe here.

A Picasso-inspired inaugural cake served at the gate at Oakland Airport (Photo: Port of Oakland)
If you are interested in a cheap trip to Europe this summer, now’s the time to pounce on these new flights– to fill seats, airlines have lowered fares to levels rarely seen before for deep summer trips.
Take a ride on these new birds and report back to us at TravelSkills about your experiences!
NOTE: The fares mentioned here are available on Saturday, June 3 and subject to change. We use Google Flights to find low fares.
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