Welcome to the forum! I'm on the other side of the Atlantic from you, but just passed my PPL in April and dealing with similar questions from the wife...
I think the general answer to "is it better off" is a hearty "yes" - no check-in time, don't need to worry about the flight leaving without you, MUCH better view, no cancellation fees if you change your mind about where you're going on the day, and you can take a scenic route and actually enjoy the airborne experience.
But sadly, it's always going to be significantly more expensive mile-for-mile than commercial airlines, so you're going to need to stick to the "quality" argument ...
