airBaltic launches its Economy MINI fare

More ticket and fare news from the European skies. This time it’s airBaltic and their new idea: the Economy MINI fare. What is it, and how does MINI differ from the standard Economy BASIC fare? Let’s start with what they have in common: check-in available two days before departure, one loyalty programme point for every euro spent, access to Starlink on board, and no ticket refunds. Now for the differences: with the Economy MINI fare, passengers may only take a small rucksack or other personal item measuring a maximum of 40x30x15 cm on board. There is no specified weight limit. This is a significant difference compared to 1 piece of luggage + a personal item weighing up to 8kg in Economy BASIC. There is also no option to rebook the ticket for a different date for a fee.

Who is the new fare aimed at? AirBaltic emphasises that Economy MINI offers a cheaper way to book tickets for short breaks when you don’t need to take a lot of luggage with you. Unfortunately, the price difference between Economy MINI and BASIC is not very significant, amounting to a few to a dozen or so euros depending on the route, and it is difficult to predict the success of this new fare from the airline straight from the Baltic states.