We reveal the city in Spain with the cheapest flights from the UK
You can fly to beautiful Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain for just £98 return on average, new Which? Travel research has found.
The historic city, famous as the destination for pilgrims and hikers walking the Camino de Santiago trail, is the cheapest place in Spain to fly to from London airports.
We analysed millions of fares throughout the year from Skyscanner, across all airlines and 20 Spanish airports.
At £98 return, Santiago de Compostela is nearly half the price of the most expensive Spanish destination, Tenerife.
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Which is the cheapest Spanish holiday destination – Alicante, Barcelona, Malaga, the Balearics or the Canaries?
Barcelona is the cheapest of the popular holiday towns. Return flights average £108 compared with £115 for Malaga, £134 for Alicante, £169 for Gran Canaria and £173 for Ibiza.
The Costa Brava, to the north of Barcelona, was also the cheapest Spanish destination for package holidays when we looked earlier this year.
When’s the cheapest month to fly to Spain?
Our comparison focused on average prices across the year, but for some destinations you could save hundreds by avoiding an August flight. It’s £222 cheaper to fly to Gran Canaria in January than August, despite January still having average high temperatures of 20°C and seven hours of sunshine.
If you’re after great food and scenery rather than hot sunshine, you can fly to the Costa Brava airport Girona for just £30 return in February.
For other destinations it’s Christmas that sees flights rocket. Flights to A Coruña in Galicia are only £60 on average in November but shoot up to £265 in December. It’s £99 to visit Ibiza in February, but £291 in December. Many early December flights to Spain are cheap – and it’s specifically the Christmas period when airfares soar.
Spanish cities with the cheapest flights from the UK
City | Annual average (return ticket) | Cheapest month | Most expensive month | Price in August |
Santiago de Compostela, Galicia | £98 | £41 (November) | £136 (Aug) | £136 |
A Coruña, Galicia | £99 | £60 (November) | £265 (Dec) | £125 |
Barcelona, Catalonia | £108 | £48 (January) | £153 (Jun) | £147 |
Bilbao, Basque country | £109 | £69 (November) | £150 (Apr) | £140 |
Madrid, Madrid | £113 | £61 (January) | £137 (Dec) | £128 |
Girona, Catalonia | £115 | £30 (February) | £158 (Aug) | £158 |
Malaga, Andalusia | £115 | £54 (January) | £158 (Aug) | £158 |
Average prices provided by Skyscanner, based on bookings made for return economy flights from London in 2023.
How to save on flights to Spain
It’s important to remember that the prices above don’t include luggage or seat selection. Some airlines, such as easyJet and Ryanair, charge extra to put cabin luggage in the overhead locker.
When we looked at flights at Easter, we found that British Airways and Jet2 could be cheaper on some routes, once you took the extras into account.
Price isn't the only consideration. See our guide to the best airlines – and our comparison of whether easyJet or Ryanair is the best airline for your flights this summer.
