Icelandic discount airline WOW—the one with the purple planes—is adding the U.S. midwest to its routes with a 4-a-week service to Chicago. Promo fares for the new service, which will reach O’Hare in July, start at $99 east-bound.
WOW already has service to 9 other North American destinations, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Baltimore, Boston, Miami and Newark. In Canada, it flies to Montreal and Toronto. All these flights are to Reykjavik, WOW’s base, where passengers can transfer to flights to 23 cities in Europe.
The $99 fares ($149 to Europe) match up with west-bound fares that are $169 and $189 respectively. Regular fares will be a bit higher, but still in the ultra-low-cost category. Unless you want to check bags, pick your own seat, get food on board, etc.