We’ve all heard the stories about Ryanair’s fees, attitudes, threats to charge for the lav, etc., and it left us a little concerned while planning our first Ryanair flight from Rome to Nürnberg—despite all the reassurances we’ve heard from GarryRF.
So, I’m pleased to say, more than fine.
I paid in advance for a 15kg checked bag; when I realized on the way from the U.S. that our suitcase was a bit over that, I was able to contact them online and easily change it to 20kg for 4€.
I was also pleased that Ryanair seems to have most of its airports covered with cheap ground transportation; Rome Termini to Ciampino Airport for 5€ without having to figure what went where (although the instructions said the pickup was ‘directly’ at Termini, but was actually a block down the road).
And, while there were lots of people headed to lots of places, I thought the Ryanair staff did a better job of getting us queued and loaded than many of my experiences with U.S. mainline carriers.
So…while it may not be everyone’s cup of tea…it was not bad at all!
My reason for boycotting Ryanair is philosophical, rather than the practical considerations you mention and I’m sure I’m not alone. The few times I flew them I had no particular complaints. But at one point, after one more obnoxious attempt to get our attention by the CEO, I resolved that if Ryanair was the only way to get somewhere, I just wouldn’t go there. I can only elaborate by comparing my feelings about the airline to those regarding some hotels. Under no circumstances would I stay in a Trump hotel, even if it was free. I suspect my stance is the same as many others, having nothing to do with good service or the hard-working people who provide it.
Ireland’s Ryanair has overtaken Lufthansa as Europe’s biggest airline by passenger numbers.
Lufthansa’s 109.7 million passengers last year fell short of the 117 million passengers reported by low-cost carrier Ryanair last week, a 15% increase on the previous year, as Ryanair pulled in passengers with low prices.
Any airline that gets me across Europe for $15 US (one way) can be as rude as they like. But Ryanair have always been a courteous and professional company to deal with. Delta and American charge me much, much more and I get the bad attitude free.