World Cup 2026 Travel Guide, Day 6: France, Argentina, Norway, Iraq & More

Air France — one of the world’s truly iconic flag carriers, a founding member of SkyTeam, and half of the Air France-KLM group (the same group as the Netherlands’ KLM from Day 4). Its hub at Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) is one of the great connecting airports on the planet, and Air France was famously one of the two operators of Concorde.

Air France flies to Paris from a long list of US and Canadian cities, with Delta as its transatlantic joint-venture partner and a deep SkyTeam network feeding CDG. Paris is also a gateway to much of Africa — which matters today, because France faces a former French colony, Senegal, whose own air links still run heavily through Paris. France was the second country I ever visited in Europe when I got bumped from a VS flight in Heathrow, and I’ve been back more times than I can count — it never gets old.

Air Senegal, based in Dakar — a relatively young flag carrier that has grown quickly, positioning Dakar as a West African hub. Its home, Blaise Diagne International Airport, is a modern facility built to make Dakar a gateway between Africa, Europe, and the Americas.

Here’s a fact that surprises people: Dakar is one of the closest African capitals to the Americas, jutting out into the Atlantic. Delta flies nonstop from New York JFK to Dakar (DSS), and from Canada, Air Transat connects Montreal to Dakar — so reaching Senegal can be easier than reaching destinations much closer on the map. Otherwise, Paris is the classic connecting point.

Iraqi Airways — and this is a piece of living history. Founded in 1945, it’s one of the oldest airlines in the Middle East, flying out of Baghdad International Airport (BGW). Its story mirrors the country’s: a proud global network before the 1980s, decades of war, sanctions, and suspended operations, and a steady rebuild since 2003 with modern Airbus and Boeing jets back in the fleet.

No nonstops from North America to Iraq — the routings run over the Gulf hubs (Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi) or Istanbul, with Qatar Airways, Emirates, Turkish, and others providing the one-stop links into Baghdad, Basra, or Erbil. A handful of private Iraqi carriers like Fly Baghdad also serve the regional market. For Iraqi fans, getting to Boston tonight was a long journey through multiple hubs. Iraq is one I haven’t reached yet — but it’s genuinely on my list; the history there is extraordinary.

Norway shares SAS (now a SkyTeam member, as I covered on Day 4) as a flag carrier with Sweden and Denmark — but its most famous aviation story is Norwegian Air Shuttle. Norwegian shook up the industry with cheap long-haul transatlantic flights in the 2010s, growing explosively before pulling back dramatically. Today it focuses mainly on European short-haul, a cautionary tale about the economics of low-cost long-haul flying.

SAS Airbus A321 in Oslo, Norway

No US carrier serves Oslo (OSL) nonstop at the moment, so reaching Norway from North America means connecting — most naturally over a European hub, with SAS feeding Oslo via Copenhagen and Stockholm. Oslo is also a launch point for some of the most spectacular scenery in Europe — the fjords are worth building a trip around if you make it over. I love Oslo and the islands around it — one of those places that quietly works its way up your list of favorites.

Aerolíneas Argentinas — the flag carrier, based at Buenos Aires (Ezeiza, EZE), and a SkyTeam member. The reigning World Cup runners-up arrive with one of South America’s most established airlines behind them, anchoring a domestic network across one of the continent’s largest countries.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Aerolíneas Argentinas, American, United, and Delta all fly nonstop between the US and Buenos Aires, with Miami, New York, and Houston among the gateways. It’s a long haul — roughly 11 hours from Miami, more from the northern US — but Buenos Aires is one of the great cities of the Americas and well worth the flight — I’ve made the trip down to Argentina myself, and it more than earns the hours in the air.

Air Algérie, based in Algiers (ALG) — the flag carrier of Africa’s largest country by land area, with a network heavily focused on France and the rest of Europe, reflecting deep historical ties. It’s one of the larger carriers in North Africa.

No nonstops from North America — the standard routing is over Paris, Frankfurt, Istanbul, or another European hub. Air Algérie and the major European carriers make the one-stop straightforward into Algiers. I have yet to visit Algeria.

Austrian Airlines — part of the Lufthansa Group (like Germany’s Lufthansa and Belgium’s Brussels Airlines) and a Star Alliance member, hubbed at Vienna (VIE). Vienna is a refined, efficient hub and a strong gateway into Central and Eastern Europe.

Austrian flies nonstop to Vienna from several US cities including New York, Washington, Chicago, and Los Angeles, with United adding Star Alliance frequency and the broader Lufthansa Group hubs offering easy one-stops. Vienna consistently ranks among the world’s most livable cities — and having spent time there myself, I get why. It’s a wonderful place to base a European trip.

Royal Jordanian — a oneworld member based at Amman (AMM), and a long-standing, well-regarded carrier in the Middle East. Jordan is at its first-ever World Cup, a genuine milestone for the country, and Royal Jordanian connects Amman across the Middle East, Europe, and beyond.

Royal Jordanian flies nonstop from New York, Chicago, Detroit, and Montreal to Amman, with American and oneworld partners adding connections. Amman is also the gateway to one of the world’s great bucket-list sites — Petra. I’ve been to Amman and made the drive down to Petra myself, and no photo prepares you for that first glimpse of the Treasury through the canyon. A natural trip to combine if you’re heading that way.

Amman, Jordan