I flew budget carrier Norse Atlantic Airways from Europe to New York. It’s a great value if you follow strict bag rules.

This particular trip required me to take more than my normal carry-on and personal item combo, so I opted to check a bag even though it would add time to check before flying and collect it after landing.

However, Norse’s Gatwick operation does not offer an online check-in option and requires all passengers to get their documents checked manually by an agent at the airport — meaning I’d have to go to the ticket counter anyway.

Being forced to stand in line regardless of whether you have a checked bag is one of the pitfalls of Norse, and it was the reality of flying from Paris, too.

One thing everyone needs to understand about flying on low-cost carriers — they make their profit from ancillary revenue, like bags, food, and seats. Bags are lucrative, with the world’s largest airlines securing an estimated $33 billion in luggage revenue in 2023.

Unsurprisingly, that makes airlines strict on the size and weight restrictions. I’ve seen customers pay hundreds at check-in for personal items that are actually the size of carry-ons, for example.

Gatwick has several Priority Pass lounges, which I can access via my Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card. It costs $550 a year, but I find it is 100% worth it.

Gatwick’s lounges, however, are often full during peak season. While I could pre-book access for about $8, I put my name on the waitlist for No1 Lounge and got in about 45 minutes later.

I enjoyed what I came for — free breakfast and coffee away from the crowds and chaos of the terminal.

In the past two years, I’ve flown long-haul economy on American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, and Virgin Atlantic Airways, and Norse’s seats were easily comparable in terms of space and comfort.

In fact, the padding on Norse was noticeably better than the slimmer seats on many of the US’ Big 3 widebody planes. Norse seats also offer headrests and good recline to make sleeping easier.

By comparison, the premium economy seats offer around 43 inches of pitch and 19.5 inches of width. Each also has a legrest and a footrest.

I can imagine sleeping would be made even easier in the bigger seats, but the minimum $310 to upgrade to premium economy for my flight wasn’t worth it, personally.

Bring your own wired headphones if you plan to use the seatback screen. Unlike mainline airlines, Norse charges for a set instead of giving it out for free — one of the many ways it makes ancillary revenue.

The same goes for linens. A “comfort kit” that comes with a blanket, a neck pillow, earbuds, and an eye mask costs $9, or you could request just a blanket for $6.50.

I could choose between chicken teriyaki and a pasta dish. I went with the chicken, which came with bread, chocolate pudding, and a non-alcoholic drink.

The flavor and fullness made it easily one of the better meals I’ve had on an airplane. It was comparable to Delta but better than British Airways and United.

I will note that most mainline options provide two meals — one after takeoff and a lighter one before landing. I’d have to purchase the second one on Norse, but I found the one filled me enough until landing.

For travelers connecting to another airline, you must clear customs, collect any checked luggage, and re-check it before clearing security.

Also, all of the terminals at New York-JFK are separate, so be mindful of connection times.

Norse has smartly focused on point-to-point flying rather than shuttling people to European cities via a hub.

For example, I can fly nonstop from New York to London, Athens, Berlin, Oslo, Paris, and Rome. Only London is available from Orlando and Las Vegas, though Norse’s Miami and Los Angeles operations each offer three Europe routes.

By comparison, Iceland’s Play Airlines requires a stop in Reykjavik, while Spain’s Level flies via Barcelona, with onward flights on partners. French bee does the same as Level, but through its Paris-Orly Airport hub.

JetBlue is the closest budget competitor in terms of network, and it beats Norse in comfort, too. The US airline offers nonstop flights from the East Coast to London, Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin, and Edinburgh, Scotland.

Norse doesn’t fly every route daily, so passengers could wait days for the system to catch up if a flight is canceled or severely delayed. Further, while it partners with other low-cost airlines for onward connections, Norse doesn’t have the same robust international agreements (or loyalty benefits, for that matter) as its mainline competitors.

Fortunately for Norse, monthly traffic data shows the airline completed 98% of flights in July — which is good considering the IT meltdown and the Olympics impacted its operation. However, its on-time performance was below the 80% industry standard outlined by travel data provider OAG.

Despite its limited operation, Norse is a good bang for your buck for price-sensitive travelers looking for an alternative to the more expensive mainline airlines — so long as you don’t show up with too much luggage.