Stansted at a glance
Stansted is London's third busiest airport and Ryanair's biggest base, with flights to almost 200 destinations across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Jet2 and TUI fly package holiday routes, and a handful of other airlines fly to Turkey, the Middle East and beyond.
What it doesn't have is much long-haul. If you want the Caribbean, the USA or Asia without a connection, Heathrow or Gatwick are better bets.
This list covers the main routes for winter 2026/27, checked in October 2026. Airlines change routes and days often, so check the airline's timetable before you plan around a route.
Winter sun
- Canary Islands: Ryanair, Jet2 and TUI all fly to Tenerife, which takes about four and a half hours. There are flights to the other islands too, including Lanzarote.
- La Palma, new: Jet2 starts flying from Stansted to La Palma on 26 October 2026. It's the greenest and quietest of the main Canary Islands, with dark skies and big volcanic walks.
- Egypt, new: Jet2 is adding Stansted flights to Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada this winter, for warm Red Sea beaches and snorkelling.
Our December and January pages show how warm each place really is.
Lapland and the snow
- Rovaniemi: Ryanair flies daily from Stansted between 25 October 2026 and 27 March 2027. That makes it one of the easiest ways to reach Lapland from London without a package. Our post on whether a Lapland day trip is worth it covers the options.
- Innsbruck, new: Jet2 flies every Saturday from 19 December 2026 to 10 April 2027. It's ideal for Austrian ski resorts like St Anton and for a winter city break in the Alps.
Other ski airports, such as Geneva, Salzburg and Grenoble, are served from London airports in winter, but check the current timetables for Stansted flights.
City breaks and Christmas markets
This is where Stansted really shines. Ryanair alone flies to dozens of European cities, often for very little out of season. Popular winter picks include Krakow, Budapest, Prague, Vienna, Porto and Seville.
New this winter:
- Strasbourg with Jet2, home to one of France's most famous Christmas markets. Our post on Strasbourg or Colmar at Christmas compares the two.
- Malmö and Parma with Ryanair. Malmö is a short train ride across the bridge from Copenhagen.
- Glasgow with Ryanair, for a weekend in Scotland.
EasyJet also flies from Stansted, including to Paris Charles de Gaulle.
Long-haul and the Middle East
Stansted's one big long-haul route is Emirates to Dubai, which takes about seven and a half hours. It runs around twice a day, and connects onwards across Asia, Africa and Australia.
The other gateway is Istanbul:
- Turkish Airlines started flying from Stansted in March 2026, up to 15 times a week, with connections to a huge network beyond.
- Pegasus flies to Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen as a low-cost option.
In summer, several Turkish and other airlines add holiday routes, for example AJet to Bodrum.
Getting to Stansted
Stansted is in Essex, about 35 miles north-east of central London:
- Stansted Express: trains from London Liverpool Street, via Tottenham Hale, take a little under an hour.
- Coaches: National Express and other operators run from Victoria, Stratford and many other places, often through the night.
- Car: the airport is just off the M11. Drop-off by the terminal is charged, so check current prices or pre-book parking.
For early flights, our post on how early to arrive at Stansted explains the timings.
Where could you go from Stansted?
With so many cheap routes, Stansted is perfect for short trips. For winter sun, Tenerife is the safe choice, and La Palma is the new, quieter one. For Christmas markets, Krakow and Strasbourg are hard to beat. Our city breaks page has more ideas, and our guide to the best places for a 3-day city break in Europe helps you narrow it down.
If everyone wants somewhere different, our guide to how to decide where to go on holiday shows how to settle it fairly.
