RyanAir

[cheesyboy]

I've never had a problem with Ryanair. Quite like that you can opt to save cash by not taking hand luggage or booking seats etc. Short haul is always a **** experience anyway, so I'd rather it was cheap.

 

[CircleFaust]

they are bad but still the cheapest so unfortunately i have to fly with them
the whole random seat allocation is a scam. they know people want to sit together but force you to pay

 

[malachi]

I have never flown Ryanair and probably never will. It's the fact that Michael O'Leary positively revels in being a **** that puts me off as much as all the horror stories. Yet they're a huge company and people still give them plenty of business.

Of course, thats the British for you. Complain about crappy service but still continue to use them because they are cheap.

If you take in the cabin prices, Ryanair isn't the cheapest. I found this out many times with Thomas Cook and Tui.

 

[Jasoncmor]

I have only ever flown once, to malta, and I used ryan air.
Im a big guy, but im not morbidly obese or anything, and i'm 6'3 tall... I was so uncomfortable on the flight, thankfully it was only 3 hours roughly, but my knees were imprinted into the back of the seat in front of me, wasn't a great first impression from flying.

 

[Guest2]

my knees were imprinted into the back of the seat in front of me, wasn't a great first impression from flying.

Surely it was

 

[Jean-F]

saves me even loads by not paying to sit together

£10 on the seats and £30 on not paying for the wife's gin

You did well there Rotty, good luck, many moons ago, before she quit, when smoking was allowed in the rear two or three rows of the plane, she’d be sitting there, while I was as far up ahead as I could get, I hated smoking smells.
On some airlines, you had to pay a couple of bucks for booze, and she’d be knocking back beaucoup vodka and tonics, saying to the FAs, “See my man in 9E.”

Of course, thats the British for you. Complain about crappy service but still continue to use them because they are cheap.

If you take in the cabin prices, Ryanair isn't the cheapest. I found this out many times with Thomas Cook and Tui.

Giving it a modicum of thought, I think that the reason that I and others of a certain age give Ryanair a wide berth, and never miss an opportunity to put them down, is because we began flying years ago.
Regular airlines, BA, TWA, PAN AM, Lufthansa, Air France, TAP etc gave you free booze, a large case each in the hold, generous hand baggage allowance, and when you checked in, seated you and your wife/partner/girlfriend together, every time.
Okay, no frills companies are way cheaper, but all the stuff that was standard for years, is now listed under extras.
This for me is a bitter pill to swallow, and as long as I can afford it, I’ll pay Delta Air prices to Atlanta GA and on to Tampa FL, and travel in relative comfort, albeit paying for wine with dinner, rather than seek a charter flight to Orlando FL or elsewhere.

 

[Ahleckz]

I
if I could make one change, it would be putting the netting back on the back of the seat so I can stick my magazines and pop in it.

They are very clever though, I think the reason for that is to ensure quick turn around times. If there is netting, there's an area the FAs need to check and tidy up. Weirdly, your flights are cheap because there is no netting (along with lots of other reasons). On my flight back from Tallinn last week, I could still see the people walking back into the terminal when our doors were opened to get onto the plane - they turn around astonishingly quickly.

 

[Biz.Kid09]

Flown with them plenty, no issues. However, I will take into account adding a 'typical' hand luggage bag and flight times and sometimes pay a little extra for a different airline but otherwise I go with the cheapest option.

 

[rainbowGuy]

don't think I understand what you mean

what i mean is - people while waiting to go in - just do an agreement of some sort that people with families/kids can sit together despite not having seats together. then other couples could go in after and choose their seats together finally other people can go in and sit wherever. (of course if you have PAID for a seat with long leg room, your seat should be yours)

 

[malachi]

You did well there Rotty, good luck, many moons ago, before she quit, when smoking was allowed in the rear two or three rows of the plane, she’d be sitting there, while I was as far up ahead as I could get, I hated smoking smells.
On some airlines, you had to pay a couple of bucks for booze, and she’d be knocking back beaucoup vodka and tonics, saying to the FAs, “See my man in 9E.”



Giving it a modicum of thought, I think that the reason that I and others of a certain age give Ryanair a wide berth, and never miss an opportunity to put them down, is because we began flying years ago.
Regular airlines, BA, TWA, PAN AM, Lufthansa, Air France, TAP etc gave you free booze, a large case each in the hold, generous hand baggage allowance, and when you checked in, seated you and your wife/partner/girlfriend together, every time.
Okay, no frills companies are way cheaper, but all the stuff that was standard for years, is now listed under extras.
This for me is a bitter pill to swallow, and as long as I can afford it, I’ll pay Delta Air prices to Atlanta GA and on to Tampa FL, and travel in relative comfort, albeit paying for wine with dinner, rather than seek a charter flight to Orlando FL or elsewhere.

True, the allocated seat is the main thing. You could sit where you want without paying extra. One airline started to charge for allocated seats then they all followed.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

About 3 Ryanair flights ago I got on the plane and a woman was in my aisle seat so a verbal battle started which then got sorted by the cabin crew who made this woman go back to her seat.
It ended up she wanted to be closer to her daughter and offered me £10 to swap my seat with her daughter so I said you can buy me a panini and drink instead if I've got to move.
Her daughter was sitting next to my wife but we didn't let on

 

[Flaevius]

I have flown with RyanAir on numerous occasions and I can't recall a time where I have had a major gripe. The level of service is commensurate with the cost of the flight, but if you plan in advance and do everything by the book, you shouldn't be hit by their eye-watering airport charges. My last flight was prior to any untoward seating plan arrangements - and that is something I do not agree with at all, but very typical of the business model of the owner.

Having previously worked at Stansted for a number of years, though, I can fully understand the perception of the airline: there is no middle-ground with RyanAir and many passengers cause their own issues not following check-in procedures. Equally, they are a company that take 'unhelpful' to a new level. I wouldn't immediately choose to fly with RyanAir, and I sure wouldn't work for them, but their services have taken me around Europe for pennies, safely, with some level of professionalism and I can't knock that. They tapped into a certain market and have made certain styles of 'holiday' more accessible and affordable.

 

[ianh]

My mistake, I forgot Ryanair are scum, I was bitten by the new bag rules, all the "carry on" places had been taken so weeks before my flights I HAVE to pay nearly €50 over two flights for a rucksack to be put in the hold that would be free in the cabin on other airlines that were only €20-30 more expensive to start with.

So by trying to save a little its cost me more but, better still, its cost Ryanair me as a future customer and I'll tell everyone to know to avoid them. Hope that €50 tastes good O'Leary you little ****.

Vueling on the other hand were great and I'd recommend them.

 

[wez130]

Flown with Ryanair twice (4 times with returns), not had a major issue with them, they are what they are and they make no secret about it. Somebody above had a good point though, none of the 4 landings were smooth in any way, shape or form! The chap in front of me had his laptop on his lap whilst landing into Manchester and his laptop went flying to the front of the plane from row 9!

 

[neviditelny]

I think a lot of the reason why they changed the luggage allowance was due to a lot of people would bring big bags (as hold all's etc) instead of the ordinary backpack and try to shove them into the overhead luggage. I fly quite often with Ryanair as they fly at decent times to places I go (Sweden, Budapest, Prague etc) and as I live 30 mins away from Stansted it makes it a lot easier and cheaper than to fly with the regular airlines from Heathrow or Gatwick. I'm flying to Stockholm in November and paid £38 for a return flight with allocated seating. I would pay more than £38 just to get to Heathrow if I wanted to fly from there (or Gatwick). I've never had any problems when flying with Ryanair except one cancellation due to snow (December 2017) and a few delays that I can't remember was due to Ryanair or the airport.

 

[hughtrimble]

what i mean is - people while waiting to go in - just do an agreement of some sort that people with families/kids can sit together despite not having seats together. then other couples could go in after and choose their seats together finally other people can go in and sit wherever. (of course if you have PAID for a seat with long leg room, your seat should be yours)

And what a monumental drain on time that would be.

 

[Illusion]

Their business practices are designed to eek every last penny out of you and it is frustrating.

That said they operate on a lot of popular routes out of airports local to me so I end up having to use them quite a lot. As the flights are generally short then I just deal with it (I massively don’t care where I sit though).

If another airline is available for not too much more I would always choose them

 

[JRS]

Has anyone flown with the rapists recently and have any tips to avoid these ridiculous fees?

Sure. Either use them for what they're supposed to be for - dirt cheap short-haul flights - or pony up more money for a different airline if you're going a distance that requires you to carry more than a small bag.

I use the Ryanair flight between Birmingham and Perpignan every year - it's not even two hours long, it's basically just a train ride that happens to be airborne.

What is more believable, the moon landing or a smooth Ryanair landing?

Well, both have happened more than once, so...

Only truly lousy landing I've ever had flying was with BA, when the pilot dropped it on the deck from such a height that half of the people on board started screaming. It almost woke me up.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

Sure. Either use them for what they're supposed to be for - dirt cheap short-haul flights - or pony up more money for a different airline if you're going a distance that requires you to carry more than a small bag.

I use the Ryanair flight between Birmingham and Perpignan every year - it's not even two hours long, it's basically just a train ride that happens to be airborne.

Well, both have happened more than once, so...

Only truly lousy landing I've ever had flying was with BA, when the pilot dropped it on the deck from such a height that half of the people on board started screaming. It almost woke me up.

Top answers:
I've never had a bad landing with Ryanair and must have had at least 40.
It really is sad that grown ups can't read the T&Cs but instead want to blame Ryanair for their own failure.

 

[ianh]

Sure. Either use them for what they're supposed to be for - dirt cheap short-haul flights - or pony up more money for a different airline if you're going a distance that requires you to carry more than a small bag.

Anything bigger than a laptop case costs money now.

So if you're the lucky 50 first people who can carry a "carry on" sized bag then great, but for the other 130+ passengers any "cabin baggage" acceptable by every other airline MUST go in the hold at a cost of €15-30 depending on flight.