Pros and Cons of Cheap Business Class Flights to the UK and Europe

Last refreshed: 2 July 2026

The cheapest Business Class airfares from New Zealand to the UK and Europe can be less than half the price of a full fare. Here’s an honest look at what you gain — and what you trade — when you book one.

When it comes to deciding whether to book one of the cheapest Business Class flights from New Zealand to the UK and Europe, it’s important to weigh up the pros and cons of the available options. When we prepared our ranking of our Top Selling Business Class Airfares to the UK and Europe, what stood out was that the top sellers were all “premium airlines”. Although we promoted and offered cheaper Business Class options, on balance the benefits offered by the premium airlines outweighed the price savings for many clients. So it’s worth reflecting on the pros and cons of the cheapest Business Class airfares to the UK & Europe.

Cheaper flights aren’t with “low cost” carriers

The airlines we reference in this article offer consistently cheaper Business Class airfares to the UK and Europe — as at July 2026, lead-in fares start from around $5,639 per person return to Istanbul and $6,990 to London. Although these airfares are cheaper than the likes of Emirates, Air New Zealand and Singapore Airlines, these airlines are not “low-cost carriers” in the same vein as a Jetstar. For various commercial and tactical reasons, they are willing to offer Business Class airfares at a greater discount than other carriers. For 2026 and 2027 travel to the UK & Europe, Asiana and China Southern have consistently offered the best priced Business Class airfares.

The Pros

The price

When the cheapest Business Class airfares to the UK and Europe can be less than half the price of a full priced airfare, price is clearly a benefit. Although it’s tempting to think that price is the sole consideration when choosing a Business Class airfare, generally it is value for money that wins out. In many cases, clients are willing to pay more for the value offered by the premium airlines and to avoid the cons below.

Limited networks can also mean that additional flights (or rail) are required to get you to and from your preferred destinations, so the overall price may end up being pretty close to the price of a premium airline that services that airport.

Lie-flat seats

China Southern’s lie-flat Business Class seats aboard the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner

When some of the first airlines to offer cheaper Business Class airfares started flying to New Zealand, we saw an uptake from clients who had previously flown Premium Economy. The reason they gave us was the need for a lie-flat seat for the long journey — and the discounted Business Class fares were around the same price as Premium Economy.

Whether it is to arrive refreshed, or because of lingering back or hip pain, being able to stretch out and sleep on a long flight makes the world of difference. With only very rare exceptions now, all the airlines we work with offer lie-flat beds on all flights to the UK and Europe.

The onboard experience

The onboard experience can be a pro or a con depending on your expectations before boarding. As these airlines aren’t low-cost carriers, they still approach their Business Class offering with the goal of providing a premium experience.

Business Class clients who fly Korean Air for the first time frequently comment that the Business Class meals are the best they have experienced when travelling. On a trip to China one of the Fine Travel team discovered that Hainan Airlines have a dedicated member of the crew who cleans the Business Class toilets after every use.

The onboard experience may not have the consistent polish of the Emirates, Qatar Airways or Singapore Airlines crew, but it is still a genuine Business Class experience.

The Cons

A longer journey

A stopover can become a highlight — Bongeunsa Temple, Seoul

There are two aspects to the first con of cheaper Business Class airfares — forced stopovers and more stops.

Stopovers can be a great way to break up a journey and add a new experience to your itinerary — time to explore a city you might have always wanted to visit (or go back to) without dedicating specific holiday time to it. A couple of days exploring Seoul may be all you’ve wanted to do, but flying all the way there and back just for two days isn’t worth it.

With the cheapest Business Class airfares there is generally a forced stopover at the regional hub, because the flight arriving from New Zealand doesn’t connect with an onward flight to the UK and Europe (and potentially the same on the return). Generally, the airline provides a day room or a hotel room for longer stopovers, and there is the option to take a day tour (the tour may cost extra).

In addition to the stopovers, you may also end up going “around the houses” to get to your final destination. Often this is because the airline needs to fill the aircraft, so flying via Australia before getting to the regional hub and then the UK / Europe is necessary (and then the same on the way home).

Fewer routes into the UK and Europe

With the larger airlines, there are often more routes from their regional hub into the UK and Europe (and a greater frequency of flights). The airlines offering cheaper Business Class airfares to the UK and Europe are more likely to service fewer major cities.

If you’ve got a more comprehensive itinerary (such as joining a cruise or a tour) you might want to fly into (or out of) a specific city — we address these savings in How to Save More with Open Jaw UK / Europe Business Class Airfares. Adding the cost (both in time and dollars) of an additional domestic European flight may not outweigh the benefit of the original discount. The domestic European flights also introduce the complication of transitioning a baggage allowance from an international Business Class flight to a domestic flight.

Availability on preferred travel dates

Often what we see with the airlines offering the greatest Business Class discounts is that they have very strict and detailed restrictions around the dates that the airfares are available. This has advantages if you are flexible, and disadvantages if you are not. With Asiana and China Southern we’ve seen better availability, but the fares generally need to be built in order to access the right fare classes and connections — we explain how booking-class availability drives the price you actually pay in Plan Ahead for Discounted Business Class Flights to the UK & Europe.

Schedule changes

Airline schedule changes are an unfortunate part of air travel, and no matter which airline you choose there are no guarantees that unscheduled maintenance, weather delays or other unforeseen circumstances won’t affect your plans.

In our experience, schedule changes are more frequent with the airlines offering the cheapest Business Class airfares, so some level of disruption or inconvenience is more likely to occur.

Limited frequent flyer recognition

Often the airlines offering the cheapest Business Class airfares to the UK and Europe are not members of either the Star Alliance or oneworld networks — so a cheap Business Class fare may earn you little or no recognition in your preferred frequent flyer programme.

Choosing the Business Class airfare that works for you

Overall, we are fortunate to have a range of airlines that fly from New Zealand to the UK and Europe. This allows us to work with our clients to find the right mix of price and quality to meet their expectations. On our UK & Europe Business Class page we maintain the latest Business Class and Premium Economy specials — from the cheapest lead-in fares through to the discounts offered by the premium carriers. And if you’re wondering whether a discounted fare means compromising the experience, we answer that in Does Choosing a Discounted Business Class Airfare Mean Missing Out?