Cheap flights from London to Recife

Fares on this route are listed for every month of the year, and May comes out as the cheapest month in the data. Late spring and early autumn usually sit between the peaks, while UK school holidays and the Brazilian summer break are when seats fill fastest and connections get tight. Midweek departures, Tuesday to Thursday, tend to cost less than a Friday or Sunday. Book a few months ahead where you can, and price the whole journey rather than the first leg alone.

Nothing flies this route non-stop, so every itinerary is a connecting one, and the airline mix shows it. Low-cost carriers such as Easyjet, Wizz Air UK and Wizz Air Malta usually appear on the short leg, with the long haul on a separate ticket. Full-service carriers — TAP Portugal, Iberia, Air Europa, BA CityFlyer, Condor and Edelweiss Air — can often be booked as one through-ticket, which usually means checked baggage and a rebooking if a delay breaks the connection. Portug also shows up in the results. On the low-cost options, bags and seat selection cost extra, so compare the total rather than the headline fare.

Guararapes International is the only airport serving Recife, so every itinerary ends there, whichever hub you connect through. It sits close to the city, and the usual ways in are a taxi, a ride-hailing app or a transfer arranged by your hotel. Sort your onward transport before you fly, especially on a late arrival, and keep your accommodation address and onward ticket handy for immigration. Allow a little time for immigration and baggage, and keep your first evening's plans loose.

Currency

BRL (R$)

Power sockets

Type C, N · 127 V

Language

Portuguese

Emergency number

188, 190, 192

Driving side

right

Calling code

+55

Internet domain

.br

Population of Recife

1.5 M (2022)

Time zone

UTC-03 (America/Fortaleza)

Country facts: Wikidata

• Pick your London departure airport first — City, Gatwick, Heathrow, Luton and Stansted all appear on this route, and they are not interchangeable.
• Check what a low-cost fare includes, since a checked bag and seat selection are usually paid extras.
• If your connection is booked as two separate tickets, leave a generous gap in case the first flight runs late.
• Confirm passport, visa and entry requirements for Brazil well before you fly.
• Compare May against the months either side of it, since May is the cheapest month in the data.