If you’re planning to go to France, I’ve got an idea for you. First, let’s define our terms. The US airline industry is an oligopoly.
An oligopoly is “a state of limited competition, in which a market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers.” In the US airline market, four airlines control 82 percent of the $194.7 billion market. That’s nice for them. It’s a big pot of gold for them to divvy up. For the passengers, maybe it’s not so nice, because choices are extremely limited. In contrast, the entire European airline market is valued at $67.81 billion, about a third of the size of the U.S. market, and 195 airlines are competing for that market. Just by calculating the basic math, it’s undeniable that the European airline market is many times more competitive than the American market. European airlines are used to competing. They know they have to try harder to please customers, because their customers have many choices.
American airlines don’t have much competition and they don’t have much experience at having to compete to please customers. You take what they give you. So, whenever I have a choice to fly on a foreign carrier instead of a domestic one, I tend to choose the nondomestic carrier. I like to snatch whatever opportunities I find to escape the captive market of the American airline oligopoly. When you’re flying domestically, you don’t have that choice. But when flying internationally many options open up to you.
If I want to fly to France, I have the choice to fly on French bee. The basic fare for New York to Paris starts at an unbelievable $194 one way. The basic is really basic. It doesn’t even allow a carry-on bag that’s big enough to require space in the overhead bin. But it does allow a personal item that can be stored under the seat in front of you. For some people in some situations, that’s satisfactory. And if so, why pay more? If you want to stow a bag, you add $70, and you’re up to $264.
Flights from Miami to Paris start at $218. Flights from Los Angeles to Paris start at $303. San Francisco to Tahiti starts at $365 one way. For comparison, the New York-Paris route on Delta (operated by Air France in a code share agreement) is priced at $706 today as I write this. That would include baggage stowage but, even with comparable amenities, French bee claims it comes in consistently 25-30 percent lower than the competition. And making a rough price comparison, that seems to be a reasonable claim. US airlines make you pay to stow a bag on domestic flights but, on international flights, it must face foreign competition; so it falls in line with them and offers to stow one free bag. It makes you wonder how different things would be if they had real competition in the US market.
A la Carte
French bee (lower case second word) is a low-cost airline based in France. It uses an unusual pricing structure that it calls “a la carte.” That means you pay for precisely what you want, and not for anything you don’t want. The a la carte pricing model allows it to offer more affordable pricing without cutting corners on the level of service.
If you want meals and to stow your bag, you can have those things. But if you want a no-frills flight, you can have that. If you are boarding at 11 p.m., flying overnight and arriving in Paris roughly seven hours later, you may not want a meal when you get on board. You may prefer getting on and going to sleep right away. In that case, you don’t have to pay for meal service. If you do, it’s $25. And that’s for French cuisine and wine. You couldn’t do much better on the ground.
French bee was founded in 2016. Because it’s based in France, it can’t fly between two US cities. It can, however, fly between the US and France. That includes French Polynesia, as well as Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean. If you want to travel to those points, French bee will give you a much better price. For points in the US beyond New York, Miami, Los Angeles and San Francisco, French bee has an agreement with Alaska Airlines to connect seamlessly. On France-bound flights, the airline its air + train offer, the airline connects to 18 destinations within France with SNCF trains after arriving in Paris.
French bee offers three pricing tiers: Basic, Smart, and Premium. From that point, you can add on amenities as you wish. Basic is the fundamental, no-frills economy class passage. Smart is an economy class with extra amenities. Premium is maximum comfort with the most amenities. Basic starts at $194 one way. Smart starts at $239. Premium starts at $489.
If you buy the Basic accommodation, here’s a list of the possible add-ons:
- Checked bag: $70.
- Second checked bag: $100
- Meals: $25
- Travel kit: $12
- Standard seat choice: $25
- Window seat choice: $30
- Maxi leg seat: $65
- Cabin: $45
- Maxi leg seat in cabin: $75
- Sporting equipment: $100
- Large sporting equipment: $130
- Line jump: $25
- Priority boarding: $18
- Priority baggage: $20
- Premium upgrade: $300
- Airport lounge: $55
If you buy the Smart fare, with the starting price of $239, hand baggage, checked baggage, meals, and in-flight entertainment are included in the price. The other amenities can also be added.
If you buy the premium class passage, most of the optional amenities of Basic are included in the price. That includes hand baggage, checked baggage, second checked bag, meals, choice of standard seat, window seat, line jump, priority boarding, priority baggage, and in-flight entertainment.
The airline offers a selection of optional packages of amenities to simplify the purchase. The Express Pack, for example, includes dedicated check-in, line-jump, and priority boarding for $40. The Serenity Pack includes line-jump, priority boarding, and airport lounge.
French bee’s American routes include
New York-Paris, Miami-Paris, San Francisco-Paris, Los Angeles-Paris and San Francisco-Tahiti.
The company flies exclusively Airbus 350 planes. They are wide-body aircraft that compete with Boeing 777s, but are said to be about 25 percent more fuel efficient than the competition, which contributes to French bee’s pricing advantage.
On board, there are two cabins, a premium cabin and an economy cabin. The premium cabin has larger seats, not the standard business class or first class seats, but seats that are wider, more plush and luxurious than economy class. They are comparable to United Premium Plus seats.
Bienvenue en France!
Another advantage of flying French bee not to be underestimated is that you don’t have to wait till you land to begin your immersion in French culture. Once you are onboard, you are already in France. You’re in a French plane with a French crew and staff and French cuisine and wines and champagne (not sparkling wine, but real champagne).
So hey, why delay on the joie de vivre? Might as well get right in it. Life is short.
David Cogswell is a freelance writer working remotely, from wherever he is at the moment. Born at the dead center of the United States during the last century, he has been incessantly moving and exploring for decades. His articles have appeared in the Chicago Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, Fortune, Fox News, Luxury Travel Magazine, Travel Weekly, Travel Market Report, Travel Agent Magazine, TravelPulse.com, Quirkycruise.com, and other publications. He is the author of four books and a contributor to several others. He was last seen somewhere in the Northeast US.