3 ms·

The last time I flew with Ryanair (and hopefully the last time I’ll ever have to), I made sure our hand luggage met their cabin size requirements—I didn’t fancy

The last time I flew with Ryanair (and hopefully the last time I’ll ever have to), I made sure our hand luggage met their cabin size requirements—I didn’t fancy waiting around for it at the other end anyway. Only for it to be collected at the gate and put in the hold anyway, meaning we had to wait for it after all. At least they forgot to charge me for the inconvenience, which given the rest of my experience could almost have been considered a mistake from their side. Then there was the return journey: the boarding pass couldn’t be printed until just a few hours before departure, by which time getting access to a printer was tricky. But, as with all things Ryanair, there was of course an option to pay and make the problem go away. Out of sheer stubbornness, I found a workaround. If I factor in the time spent, it probably cost me more—but by that point, I was so utterly fed up with their relentless upselling that I refused to give them another penny. And finally, during a layover before the last leg of our journey, we ended up sat in a grounded aircraft in full sun for 2–3 hours, with small children onboard and barely any information before we could leave the plane. While we waited, another passenger collapsed from what I understood to be severe hypoglycaemia, at which point people started calling out for anything sugary. As far as I remember (this was over a decade ago and I had three young kids with me a few rows back), the person was helped thanks to another passenger who recognised what was going on and acted quickly—not because of any intervention from the crew. If you can avoid Ryanair, do. I’ve no issue with trading comfort for a lower fare—but Ryanair doesn’t feel like a cheaper flight because they’ve cut costs. It feels like they’ve gone out of their way to invent new ways to make life miserable, just so they can charge you for relief.

freeone3000 1y ago
> Only for it to be collected at the gate and put in the hold anyway, meaning we had to wait for it after all. At least they forgot to charge me for the inconvenience, which given the rest of my experience could almost have been considered a mistake from their side. Having to gate-check can happen with more reputable carriers too, from American Airlines to British Airways. Even if every single bag individually fits, on a full flight, not every bag for everyone can fit at the same time. It happens more often with smaller (and older) planes, which have less cabin space per passenger.
- eitland 1y ago
  If it had just been the last ten passengers who were boarding, or if this was the only hiccup along the way, I probably wouldn’t have bothered writing any of this. But as I remember it, the misery was systematic—from the moment we started booking to the moment we left the final airport. At every step, Ryanair seemed to go out of their way to make things unpleasant—unless, of course, we paid an extra £15 here, £20 there, and so on—for each passenger, and for every inconvenience it seemed they’d quite clearly engineered.

freeone3000 1y ago

> Only for it to be collected at the gate and put in the hold anyway, meaning we had to wait for it after all. At least they forgot to charge me for the inconvenience, which given the rest of my experience could almost have been considered a mistake from their side. Having to gate-check can happen with more reputable carriers too, from American Airlines to British Airways. Even if every single bag individually fits, on a full flight, not every bag for everyone can fit at the same time. It happens more often with smaller (and older) planes, which have less cabin space per passenger.

eitland 1y ago
If it had just been the last ten passengers who were boarding, or if this was the only hiccup along the way, I probably wouldn’t have bothered writing any of this. But as I remember it, the misery was systematic—from the moment we started booking to the moment we left the final airport. At every step, Ryanair seemed to go out of their way to make things unpleasant—unless, of course, we paid an extra £15 here, £20 there, and so on—for each passenger, and for every inconvenience it seemed they’d quite clearly engineered.