Cheap flights from Dublin to Cologne

The expensive stretch runs through the summer school holidays and the weeks before Christmas, when Cologne's Advent markets pull demand from both ends of the route and Irish half-term breaks fill the planes. Work back from there and the year calms down: prices are listed for every month, and March — after the carnival season has passed through the city — is when fares on this route reach their low point. Midweek departures from Tuesday to Thursday usually undercut Fridays and Sundays, and once your dates are fixed, the further ahead you book, the wider the choice at the lower end of the range.

The mix is clear-cut: Ryanair runs the low-cost side of the direct flight, Aer Lingus the full-service side. Aer Lingus and Emerald Airlines sit at the full-service end, where a cabin bag and seat choice usually come with the fare; Ryanair keeps the base price low and sells bags and extras on top. When a direct day does not suit, the connecting options are mostly full-service — Swiss, Austrian, Lufthansa City Airlines, BA CityFlyer and Helvetic Airways — with Pegasus the budget exception and Mokulele Flight Service rounding out the list. Because low-cost fares price baggage and seats separately, compare the total cost of the trip, not the headline fare.

You land at Cologne/Bonn, the single airport serving both Cologne and Bonn, which sits outside the city to its south-east rather than on the doorstep of the cathedral. Getting in needs no car: trains and regular buses run from the terminal towards Cologne's centre and main station, and the trip into town stays short. Because the airport's name covers two cities, double-check that hotel directions and onward bookings point to Cologne and not Bonn before you set off. Travelling light, public transport does the whole job; a taxi mainly earns its keep with heavy luggage or a very early start.

Currency

EUR (€)

Power sockets

Type C, F · 230 V

Language

German

Emergency number

112, 110

Driving side

right

Calling code

+49

Internet domain

.de

EU / Schengen

EU member, Schengen area

Population of Cologne

1.0 M (2025)

Time zone

UTC+02 (Europe/Berlin)

Country facts: Wikidata

• Connections on separate tickets are your own risk, so leave a generous gap in case the first flight runs late.
• On a single-ticket connection, bags transfer automatically and one airline covers any missed-flight help.
• Low-cost fares on this route usually cover only a small cabin bag, so add the price of a checked case before you compare.
• Check the entry rules for Germany for your nationality and that your passport or identity card is in date.
• Dublin has a single airport, so the check is your departure time and enough margin at security.
• Compare the months side by side, because March fares sit well under the summer peak on this route.