Last Updated on December 17, 2025 by Hannah Stephenson
I’m always on the lookout for cheap flights to Cape Town and so when I came across Norse Atlantic Airways, I just had to give them a try.
Their competitive fares made it hard to resist but at the same time, I heard some less-than-stellar reviews online. So after having flown with them twice, is this long-haul budget airline worth it or should you shell out more for a better flight?
Honestly, my verdict is that Norse is fine as long as you know what to expect. So read on for everything you need to know about flying with this airline!
- Who Are Norse Atlantic Airways?
- Why Are Norse Airways So Cheap?
- How Much I Paid
- Norse Airways Pricing Tiers
- How I Booked My Flight
- Hand Baggage
- Check In
- Seat and Comfort
- In-Flight Experience
- Do Norse Airways Fly to Cape Town Year Round?
- Pros of Flying with Norse
- Cons
- Is Flying with Norse Air a Good Way to Save Money?
- Would I Fly with Norse Again?
Disclaimer: this post contains affiliate links. When you make bookings through my links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps to keep The Cape Town Blog up and running. Thank you for your support!
Who Are Norse Atlantic Airways?
Norse Atlantic Airways are a budget long-haul airline. They fly to four cities in the US, seven European capitals, to Bangkok, and to Cape Town.
Why Are Norse Airways So Cheap?
Uh, basically because they skimp on a lot of the extras. While their luggage prices are pretty comparable to other airlines, they also charge you for drinks, snacks, blankets, and headphones. The blanket charge is really what gets me…
How Much I Paid
I paid £680 for a direct return flight from London to Cape Town.
I flew to Cape Town in mid-January, which is peak season. Then, I flew home at the end of February, which is still a fairly popular time.
Now, obviously flight prices fluctuate all the time, but this was by far the best price I found when I booked.
My fare of £680 was a full £400 cheaper than the next cheapest flight I could find. And even an indirect flight with a layover would have cost me £150 more. So basically, booking with Norse was a no-brainer.
Norse Airways Pricing Tiers
There are three tiers you can choose for your Norse Airways flight: Economy Light, Economy Classic, and Economy Flextra.
Economic Light is the bare bones: one personal item, one carry on-item, and no food. I repeat, no food!
Economy Classic is what I would call the “regular” package. You also get one checked suitcase and one meal.
Then, Economy Flextra includes priority boarding and a much more flexible change and cancellation policy.
Alcohol isn’t included in any of these packages, and a glass of wine will cost you about £8. I don’t tend to drink on flights so I wasn’t bothered by this, but if you enjoy an in-flight tipple then flying with Norse might not end up saving you that much money.
How I Booked My Flight
I booked my Norse Airways flight directly through their website. I try to do this wherever possible, as this just makes it easier to sort things out if you do have any issues with your flight.
However, Norse are on price comparison sites like Expedia and Trip so it’s worth checking to see if you can save any money that way. Personally, I only use third party sites if it’s going to save me over £100.
Hand Baggage
Now, I’m a natural born worrier, baby.
Prior to my flight, I heard that Norse are TERRIBLE for measuring bags and charging passengers at every opportunity possible. So, to deprive them of that chance, I took my trusty RyanAir bag as my cabin bag, even though it’s actually small enough to be classed as a personal item.
Yes, the extra luggage space would have been nice if I had taken my regular mini suitcase but I wasn’t about to pay £100 for the privilege.
I will say that I saw staff checking and measuring people’s bags pretty closely on the London side, but they were much more chilled in Cape Town.
Check In
I genuinely think that one of the biggest downsides of flying with Norse is that you have to go from Gatwick Airport.
I hate Gatwick Airport.
Also, Norse Airways don’t offer online check-in, so there was a HUGE queue at Gatwick. I got there before check-in even opened and I still waited for over 1.5 hours.
On the Cape Town side, it took me less than 5 minutes. Cape Town Airport is wonderfully relaxed.
Seat and Comfort
I won’t lie to you, there was not a lot of room on the plane. I actually felt pretty claustrophobic before takeoff, especially as we had to sit on the runway for a while. I’ll be honest, I don’t know anything about plane specs but Norse definitely give you less room than airlines like British Airways or Qatar do.
In-Flight Experience
The flight was… fine?
Norse’s Economy Classic fare includes one meal. It was standard plane fare. I had the option to purchase a second meal both when I booked and once in the air but I never eat the second meal anyway, because I try to sleep until the wheels touch the ground again!
There was food available to buy on board via your personal television but it was pretty pricey. I’m talking £5 for some instant noodles and £3 for a bottle of water. I highly recommend bringing your own snacks instead.
Norse also don’t give you headphones. To be honest, I thought that the in-flight entertainment choices were pretty poor so I didn’t even consider buying any. I just downloaded a bunch of content to my iPad in advance but you could also grab some cheap plane headphone jacks on Amazon.
Again, this was all fine because I knew what to expect. It pays to be prepared with Norse!
Do Norse Airways Fly to Cape Town Year Round?
No, they don’t. They fly to Cape Town between October and April, then cease flying from May to September, which is the off-season.
Pros of Flying with Norse
- It was cheap
- The plane was clean
- I got to fly direct
- The staff were friendly
Cons
- The plane was cramped
- Lots of extra hidden costs – seriously, who charges for BLANKETS?
- No online check-in
Is Flying with Norse Air a Good Way to Save Money?
Yes – as long as you know how to avoid the hidden costs along the way. Hopefully, the information in this blog post might help you save a pound or two (or fifty).
If you don’t let Norse catch you out, then yeah, it does save a fairly significant chunk of change. To prepare for your flight, I suggest:
- Downloading movies and TV shows onto your laptop, tablet, or phone
- Bringing your own headphones
- Packing plenty of snacks
- Buying drinks from the airport after security (this is still cheaper than buying them in-flight)
- Measuring your cabin bags to ensure they comply with Norse’s baggage rules
But if you can’t be bothered with all of that, then you may as well fly with a nicer airline like BA or Virgin.
Would I Fly with Norse Again?
Yes I would, but I wouldn’t be excited about it.
Flying with Norse is a money-saving exercise. I much prefer flying with British Airways, but not to the tune of £400, thank you very much.
However, if I could save several hundred quid with Norse then I’d say that’s worth forgoing a blanket and a little extra space.
Very helpful as looking to book Cape Town next year. That no on-line check in is a total nonsense in this day and age. Presumably that is so they can check your luggage and charge you extra! Sounds like Ryanair mentality and best avoided. You have provided a service. Thank You.
Hey Robin! Yes, you’re right about the online checking, it’s so they can charge people if their bag is a centimetre over their requirements. I recently found a great deal on flights to Cape Town via Turkish Airlines. I have a layover in Istanbul but they include 2 x 23 kg checked bags which is pretty hard to find nowadays.
you are so welcome!
Thanks Hannah, I live in Cape Town and travel to leeds regularly for family visits and was wondering if Norse was too good to be true, so really appreciate you taking the time to write your review and in such a clear no nonsense kind of way. great. Thanks. James
Hi James! Thank you for your kind comment. I’m so glad my post has proved helpful 🙂
Thank you for a balanced review. I’ve just returned from the UK on a last-minute flight booked with Norse, after my flight through Dubai was cancelled because of the war. My single flight to Cape Town cost almost as much as the luxury return flight with Emirates had cost, booked only four weeks earlier.
The plane was not only overbooked, but they even checked in eight more than they could take, so they spent an hour trying to entice people to volunteer for a flight three days later. We therefore left an hour late and made up no time at all during the flight, presumably to keep fuel costs low.
The meal I booked in no way resembled what I chose, and was inedible for me in terms of my dietary restrictions, so I was able to eat not one single mouthful of it. The paid for tea was literally the worst ever, it tasted like an emptied pot had been refilled with water – here I complained and it was replaced with something decent. I tried to view movies I’d downloaded to my phone, but I didn’t have headphones and the engine noise was too loud for me to hear. On a completely full flight the toilets were not all operational, and the aeroplane appeared not to have been cleaned after the previous flight. No hot water in the loos, no cream, no toothbrush or earplugs or mask, no blinds at the windows to cut out the light. For me the worst was the staff – with barely a smile I felt I was being policed rather than hosted. I got one small bottle of water with my meal, plus the aforementioned tea, and nothing else for the flight. I would have to be pretty desperate to choose Norse again.
This is so helpful thank you! We have booked to fly in March and noted on the check in and luggage front!
Can I just ask, the charge for the blanket (absolutely ridiculous!) – when did they charge for this/could you refuse?
Thanks!
Hi Danielle! I think the blanket charge was about £6 but it was optional, so you can always refuse. I didn’t pay for one! Fly safe 🙂
Disagree Cape Town ‘relaxed’ Flew back Feb 12th 26 Nearly an hour queuing after security for passport control as only three staff, so had to go straight to boarding gate missing duty free and food opportunities completely.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I got through passport control in just five minutes last week, it just depends on the day. If you leave the recommended 3 hours then that’s still plenty of time 🙂