I have flown a lot, but never with them, are the horror stories about hard sell, terrible planes and dreadful service blown out of proportion or are true?

I have seen a flight from England to Ireland for £30 with them.

33 comments

  2. I’ve flown Ryanair far too many times to count and it’s dealt with issues better than any other particular airline. I’ve been abandoned by a few airlines, but never Ryanair yet. Reimbursement paid promptly on every occasion too where relevant.

    They reliably deliver on what they offer and they are very efficient. Their efficiency is likely a reason for their commercial success.

    The people who have a bad experience are often those who misunderstand what Ryanair offer I find.

  3. Well, on the one hand they provide a service to tens of thousands of people every year and probably 100 or so major complaints come through. On the other hand, problems and negativity sells and is addictive to people so it’s no surprise that the negative stories get A LOT of attention. Ryanair is – at best – absolutely fine. You get what you pay for. It’s a fast tin can that takes you to and from your holiday. If you’re looking for amazing service and reliability of travel, it’s not your first choice. For £30 direct to Ireland? I’d take it happily. It’s the same with coaches. Would I like to take a premier Mercedes coach to London? Yes. Do I like spending £9 for a National Express that’s perfectly comfortable. Also yes.

  4. My main gripe isn’t the lack of any fripperies but the way that £30 increases and how they hard sell everything.

    I always choose the cheapest option overall and it’s often to pay £150 and fly out of Heathrow. Factoring in taxis and trains.

  5. No they don’t. I’ve flown with them dozens of times and never had anything go wrong ever.

    They are one of the world’s safest airlines, a spotless record, and they are the most on-time airline in Europe.

    Their planes are some of the newest aircraft you’ll ever fly on and they’re constantly refreshing their fleet, they don’t keep aircraft very long before they’re moved on.

    Their seats are no different from any short haul European airline and you even get an inch more legroom than EasyJet/Wizz.

    Just do what they ask of you and your journey will be fine.

  6. If you just see it as a bus with wings instead of flying then the whole Ryanair experience makes more sense.

    Ye their customer service is shit, there’s loads of additionals, you may see the odd fight or group of people absolutely hammered, and you probably wouldn’t want to be on them for long haul, but it’s getting you to a destination for cheap.

  7. I flew once with British airways and thought it was a hell of a lot worse than ryanair

  8. It depends.

    If you’re used to flying British Airways and have become accustomed to say getting free drinks and snacks on business flights out of London City Airport for example, then yes, they do.

    If you don’t have any other reference point and you’re ok with a no frills service then you probably won’t notice anything you dislike other than slightly tight legroom and the obnoxious yellow headrests on the seats.

    A lot of the gripes fall in to a few specific buckets:
    – Flying in to smaller airports with comparatively poor connections to the city you’re visiting.
    – Restrictions on luggage weight and size and carry-on bags and associated extra fees for everything.
    – Quality of service, punctuality and by extension the impact of delays if using them as a connection to other flights.
    – Poor legroom and having to pay for food and drink on the plane, which for short flights doesn’t matter much.

    If you’re prepared, make sure your bags aren’t too big, pack light, and have a short flight. They’re fine. It’s just like taking a bus that happens to have wings.

  9. I had a 5 hour ish delay on my last Ryanair flight and they refunded me almost the entire cost of the outward and return flights so I rate them pretty highly!

  10. Never had an issue with them. Same shit as any other European airline. Them and Easyjet have done more to reduce flight costs in Europe than BA, KLM etc would have done if left to their own devices

  11. I wouldn’t say it’s a hard sell; it’s not all that different from many other airlines in asking if you want to pick seats, pay for bags, buy insurance, book a rental car, etc. The planes aren’t super comfortable, but England to Ireland is a quick flight. Most of the complaints are from people who didn’t read the Ts & Cs and got caught out. As long as you read them, they’re fine

  13. No.

    Over 80 flights with Ryanair over the last 20 years or so.

    1 cancelled (full refund within days) and 1 delayed flight (bomb scare at the airport, so not their fault). I’ve never had a lost bag or been charged for anything.

    They are the best airline in Europe. They don’t hide anything, and only people who don’t read what they are buying fall foul of their perfectly reasonable (indeed now pretty much industry standard) and clearly publicised rules. There are much, much worse airlines out tjete than Rayanir (Air Asia, Spirit… I’m looking at you).

  15. Of course not. It’s absolutely fine. People just like to make fun of them because they’re cheap.

    Also, 30 quid? Blimey, you’re being ripped off there! I don’t know what airport that is, but East Midlands to Dublin often is only £15!

  16. I don’t like them personally but to Ireland no worries, it’s only a short flight.

  17. I used to fly to Dublin every week on Flybe. After a few months RyanAir took over the route and my heart sunk… But they were much better – much more modern planes, friendly staff, better punctuality.

    As other people have said, don’t expect any freebies and stick to the luggage rules and you’ll be fine.

  19. If you are going alone, or with one person, so don’t need to pay to sit together, and don’t need to check in luggage, so don’t get milked on that, then they’re as competent as any other airline legally allowed in the EU.

    If you have a family with small kids and need two suitcases, it may be a false economy.

  20. People just like to complain. They pay £49 for a ticket and expect the same service and amenities as a £500 ticket. Go figure.

  21. The extra charges and airports some in the middle of nowhere are enough for me never to use them. Bratislava for Vienna, not even the same country.

    Well that and Mr O’Leary, who is a nasty person and a bully.

    The accounts others have given who fly with them are similar to people I know who do.

  22. Dreadful airline. Will happily pay far more and have done, not to fly with them. When things go wrong, they go badly wrong and their staff don’t care.
    The Benidorm of the airways.

  23. I’ve never had any issues

    Yes obviously the costs go up massively if you want to check bags, or pick a seat, but that’s the same with every airline these days, BA short haul isn’t any better

  24. Ryanair is cheap, so it cuts corners where it can.

    If you do not expect too much and you play by its rules as regards luggage etc, it’s fine.

  25. They can be terrible, I’ve had seriously piss poor customer service from Ryanair and EasyJet but you get what you pay for and their flights are cheap

  26. When you fly with a budget airline you expect a certain level of shit. That’s the payoff.

  27. Tbf iv had no problems at all. The only airline I had a problem with was easy jet. They are so arsey. Can’t take a little handbag for water and snacks with you if you have a cabin case. Every other airline has no problem. Well jet2 etc anyway

  28. Flew from Germany back to the uk with Ryanair. Our flight was delayed. We literally saw our plane land, everyone get off, and then they let us on. They didn’t clean the plane at all, and there was quite a mess. But it was very cheap.

  29. Flight from London to Dublin is 1hr 30 supposedly..!
    Never had an issue with Ryanair.
    Like Ronseal – does exactly what it says on the tin

  30. It won’t cost you £30 by the time you get to the end of the booking process.

    Ryan air really is no frills. If you are okay with that, and can find a good price, good for you.

    Oh, and don’t forget to check-in in advance and print your boarding card. Failure to do so will cost you at least another £55!

  31. Not totally but some of the more touristy routes can be a bit dire due to the crowd they attract, same as the cheapest bar in town may be a bit rough

  33. It’s basically Megabus with wings. They’ll get you from A to B but it won’t be the most enjoyable experience.

    I’ve found Ryanair is usually pretty punctual but their seats are uncomfortable and the leg room is non existent. For me, once I’ve factored in the extras, and transport it usually works out about the same to fly with a more expensive airline from a different airport.

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