Top 10 most out of the way European airports

During the 1970s American carrier Southwest Airlines pioneered the idea of offering flights to small secondary airports that were far cheaper to use than the major city hubs. Despite fierce opposition from the established traditional airlines, Southwest were onto a serious winner.

This may well sound very familiar - 20 years after Southwest took the US by storm, Ryanair took advantage of deregulation of European airspace to do exactly the same thing here. In fact the Irish no-frills giant has taken the whole re-marketing of airports to a whole new level.

While Southwest started out at Dallas Love Field, just six miles from the city's gleaming skyscrapers, Ryanair have recently started flights from the optimistically named 'Paris-Vatry Disney', which is a whopping 97 miles from the Arc de Triomphe et al. It's not just the distance that's remarkable, it's the fact that Vatry's backcountry location means the bus journey into Paris takes over two and a half hours.

The journey time from the airport into the city it purports to serve is the key factor, especially when it can turn out to be longer than the actual flight duration.

Listed below are the top ten most out of the way European airports.

1. Paris-Vatry Disney (XCR) – 2hrs30 from Paris by bus. The main alternative, Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG), is 30 minutes by train from the French capital.

2. London Oxford (OXF) – Two hours from London by bus and coach. Numerous alternatives, all of which are within 40 minutes of central London.

3. Frankfurt Hahn (HHN) – 1hr45 from Frankfurt by bus. Frankfurt International (FRA) is seven minutes from downtown Frankfurt by train.

4. Oslo Torp (TRF) – 1hr45 from Oslo by bus. Oslo International (OSL) is 20 minutes from central Oslo by train.

5. Munich Memmingen (FMM) – 1hr40 from Munich by bus. Munich Airport (MUC) is 40 minutes from Munich by train.

6. Stockholm Skavsta (NYO) – 1hr30 from Stockholm by bus. The main Stockholm Arlanda (ARN) airport is 20 minutes from Stockholm by train.

7. Barcelona Reus (REU) – 1hr30 from Barcelona by bus. Barcelona International (BCN) is 20 minutes from central Barcelona by train.

8. Dusseldorf Weeze (NRN) – 1hr30 from Dusseldorf by bus. Dusseldorf International (DUS) is 20 minutes from the city by train.

9. Paris Beauvais (BVA) – 1hr15 from Paris by bus. The main alternative, Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG), is 30 minutes by train from the French capital.

10. Hamburg Luebeck (LBC) – 1hr15 from Hamburg by bus. Hamburg Airport (HAM) is 25 minutes from Hamburg by train.