Open Jaw Flights for Europe Fly In One City, Fly Out Another

A Europe trip rarely follows a perfect loop. You may arrive in London, continue through Paris and Switzerland, and finish in Rome. Returning to London only to catch your flight home adds another journey to the itinerary and can take away valuable time that could otherwise be spent sightseeing.

An open-jaw flight can help avoid this backtracking. You fly into one European city and return home from another, while arranging the travel between those two points separately. For example, you could fly into London, travel overland through Paris and Switzerland, and then fly home from Rome. This allows your flights to follow the natural direction of your route instead of forcing you to return to your starting point.

This approach can be particularly useful for multi-country trips where the first and last destinations are far apart. It can also make the itinerary more efficient by reducing unnecessary transfers, overnight stays, and extra travel days. 

Thrillophilia’s destination experts say that open-jaw ticket is not automatically cheaper than a standard return flight, so the total cost and convenience should be compared before booking.

It would be helpful if you book a Europe tour package to avoid the hassles of booking flights. If you prefer a DIY package, it’s better to choose your arrival and departure cities after the route is clear. Once you know where the trip begins and ends, compare open-jaw fares with standard return fares and consider the cost of trains, buses, or short-haul flights between destinations.

Open Jaw Flights for Europe

Open-jaw flights let you arrive in one European city and fly home from another. You arrange the journey between them yourself.

A trip from India could look like this:

Delhi to London > travel through Paris, Switzerland and Italy > Rome to Delhi

The London-to-Rome section can be planned around your itinerary. You could use Europe’s extensive rail network for routes such as London to Paris and Paris to Switzerland, or combine trains with flights where the distances are longer. This gives you the freedom to spend more time in the destinations you are interested in rather than planning the entire trip around a return flight from the same city. 

Thrillophilia offers packages that come with Open Jaw flights. The Wonders of Switzerland and Paris is a 7-day package where you arrive in Paris and leave from Zurich. 

Choosing Open Jaw Flights for Europe

Open jaw flights suit routes that move in one direction. Starting in London and finishing in Rome removes the need to return to London for the flight home.

As per Thrillophilia’s destination experts, this can be a useful approach for couples on a Europe honeymoon package who want to fly into one romantic city and depart from another without doubling back on their route.

They are especially useful when:

• Your first and last cities are far apart
• The itinerary crosses several countries in one direction
• Returning to the arrival city takes a large part of a day
• Your final city has suitable international flight options

Booking Open Jaw Flights for Europe

You can book an open jaw flight through the Multi City option on an airline or flight search website.

1. Select Multi City.
2. Enter your home city and first European destination.
3. Enter the city where the trip ends as the departure point for your flight home.
4. Add your home city as the final destination.
5. Compare the fare with a standard round trip and two separate one-way tickets.
6. Check baggage allowance, airport names and fare rules before paying.

However, to save on time, energy and money, it’s always a better option to book a Europe tour package that comes with flights, accommodations and internal transfers. This way you can focus on enjoying the trip rather than just planning the holiday. 

Travelling Between European Cities

The gap between your arrival and departure cities can be covered by train, short-haul flight, coach or rental car. Compare total journey time before deciding.

• Rail: Useful for cities with direct or convenient train connections.
• Short haul flight: Suitable when the rail journey takes up too much of the day.
• Coach: An option for shorter regional routes when the timings fit.
• Rental car: Useful for smaller towns or countryside stops. Check cross-border rules and one way drop charges.

If you are joining a package, check which intercity sectors are already included before buying separate tickets.

Best Open Jaw Flight Routes in Europe

Routes such as Paris to Rome, Amsterdam to Zurich and Berlin to Budapest work well when you plan to keep moving in one direction. Planning a good route is specifically helpful when you are on a group tour, going as a large group of friends, or as a family where going back and forth is a hassle.

Paris to Rome: Fly into Paris, move through Switzerland or northern Italy, and finish in Rome. This avoids adding a final journey back to France.

Amsterdam to Zurich: Start in Amsterdam, add stops in Belgium or western Germany, and finish in Switzerland.

Berlin to Budapest: Start in Berlin, continue through Prague and Vienna, and finish in Budapest.

Families can also check a Europe family tour package before choosing flight cities. Fewer long transfers can make the trip easier when travelling with children.

Can Open Jaw Flights Save Money on a Europe Trip?

An open jaw fare is not automatically cheaper than a standard return. The saving comes when it removes another train, flight, airport transfer, or hotel night needed to return to the original city.

Compare the total cost of:

• International flights
• Intercity travel
• Airport transfers
• Baggage charges
• Any extra hotel night

If a Rome to Paris return journey is needed only to catch the flight home, include that cost before deciding which fare is cheaper. This comparison matters just as much if you’re pricing a Europe group tour package that already begins and ends in different cities, since the package price alone won’t reflect what you’d otherwise spend closing the loop yourself.

Things to Check Before Booking Open Jaw Flights for Europe

Before paying, review:

• The exact airports
• Baggage limits
• Whether both international flights are under one booking
• Travel time to the final departure airport
• Visa and entry rules for the route
• The timing of the last intercity connection

The Schengen Area follows common short stay visa rules, while countries outside it have separate entry requirements. The UK, for example, is outside the Schengen Area.

Using the Package Route to Pick Your Flights

The first and last package days show which cities fit your international flights. This approach works whether you are joining a fixed Europe group tour or building your own independent itinerary.

Thrillophilia’s 15-day Europe Group Tour starts in London and ends in Rome. It includes the London Heathrow arrival transfer, the London to Paris train journey, intercity transfers through the route, and a Rome Fiumicino Airport departure transfer.

According to Thrillophilia’s on-ground team, testing the package’s first and last cities as your flight search cities, before booking anything separately, is one of the simplest ways to price an open-jaw route correctly. When comparing Europe tour packages, check the first and last cities before searching for flights. For this route, test London as the arrival city and Rome as the departure city.

Frequently Asked Questions