Airline Post » ryanair fees

Got some change? I have to use the toilet!

Stewart — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 06:00:59 +0000

Prepare to hear this if you’re flying anytime soon with… Ryanair, of course. The Irish carrier seems to be in a competition with itself for introducing the most absurd taxes aviation could ever experience. And when we think they finally won, Ryanair announces a new tax.

Using the toilet on a Ryanair flight will cost you £1 or 1 Euro and you cannot protest before having to pay, since the toilets will be coin operated. Moreover, expect to stay in line before using the toilet, since the officials of Ryanair are also planning to cut to number of on board toilets to just… one. The new rate will be introduced in the fall.

Moreover, the company intends to raise the charge for checked in luggages from £15 to £20, during summer. “We are determined to incentivise passengers to travel light this summer by increasing our checked-in baggage fees for the months of July and August only”, spokesman Stephen McNamara says.

This is clearly a “family tax”, since they are the ones that need luggages. Just imagine going on vacation with a couple of young kids and just a handbag of spare clothes. Does not sound like such a good idea, does it? Therefore, if flying on a Ryanair plane this summer, with a noisy family in the cabin, make sure to ask them if they have a checked-in bag before complaining about the situation. Why? Because they might be the ones whom you owe those low ticket fares you took advantage of.

Ryanair adds payment fee for Visa Electron

Dave — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:22:49 +0000

In an attempt to cash in on almost everything other than an airline ticket, Ryanair will add a fee applicable to those paying with a Visa Electron credit or debit card. Now, a family of four booking a 4 roundtrip tickets will have to pay a staggering £40.

The only way to escape what could be a hefty fee is to use a card that won’t carry a fee; the only card is the MasterCard Prepaid. According to Ryanair, this card is easier to obtain than Visa Electron, which is “phased out” by providers such as Abbey and Travelex.

The new fee will come into effect starting with January 1st, 2010. Until then, you still have a month to pay your ticket using Visa Electron without incurring additional fees.

“We are pleased to announce our new partnership with MasterCard which will enable consumers to save even more when travelling on Ryanair’s unbeatable low fares,” spokesman Stephen McNamara said. “MasterCard Prepaid cards are widely available across Europe.”

In reply, the UK Cards Association said the actual fee for processing a payment made with Visa Electron is less than £1. Ryanair will impose a £5 fee per passenger per flight.

Ryanair to add fee on duty-free items

Dave — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:33:10 +0000

Ryanair passengers with duty-free shopping will have to pay a £28.50 fee for these items on all Ryanair flights. The no-frills airline has decided to introduce this fee for passengers that can’t fit these duty-free items in the carry-on bags.

Passengers that buy perfumes, cigarretes, alcohol or food will have to pay a hefty charge if they can’t fit these items in bags. Usually, airlines would allow passengers to have, apart from carry-on luggage, a sealed bag with items from the duty-free shops in the airport.

Consumer groups were quick to respond to this fee. Here’s that they had to say:

“Charges on Ryanair are getting ridiculous, with fees left, right and centre. With this new rule they’ve gone beyond what’s practical and sensible,” said James Fremantle of the Air Transport Users Council.

This is the latest fee out of a whole series Ryanair has decided to impose. The company has recently decided to eliminate check-in desks at airports and make people check-in online for a certain fee; those who forgot, were “fined” £/€100 at the airport for printing a new boarding card.

Ryanair said this fee was implemented because passengers didn’t abide by rules about carry-on hand luggage and we’re taking more bags then they were allowed to.

How to get a cheap Ryanair ticket

Dave — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:40:20 +0000

Ryanair is notorious for their cheap tickets, some of them practically free. If you’re on a low budget and want to travel around Europe, Ryanair and it’s dirt cheap fares are the answer. But the company never misses a moneymaking opportunity. So we thought we’d share some of our experience on getting cheap Ryanair tickets.

Finding the cheap tickets - Ryanair sometime offers tickets as low as 1£/€ but you might not always find them easily. Subscribe to their mailing list to make sure you’ll be notified when these deals are launched. Also, make sure to check the website daily, preferably after midnight, when these tickets are usually posted.
Connecting two Ryanair flights – The issue most of us come across when dealing with budget airlines is that they are often late so making a connection with another flight can sometimes be difficult. If you’re connecting two Ryanair flights, make sure you buy two discounted tickets. For example, if you’re flying from Dublin to Paris, then Madrid, buy two tickets on the trip to Madrid – one leaving in 2 hours after you land, one later than that. It’s cheaper to buy two tickets than it is to change an existing one.
Not finding discounted return fares - You’re flying with a budget airline so don’t expect to find cheap tickets both when leaving and returning from your trip. Be flexible on your dates, check for less popular flights (early in the morning) or just settle for one discounted ticket. It’s still worth it!
Checking-in your luggage – You’ll find that carrying your bags is often more expensive than an actual ticket. Try only taking one hang bag (which is free) or book a baggage online. Each passenger is allowed to check in up to two bags; the first bag should have a maximum weight of 15kg and will be charged €/£15 online or €/£35 booked through their call center or at the airport. The second bag is charged €/£35 booked online or €/£70 via the call center or airport.
Avoiding extra hand luggage fee – You might often find that your luggage is too heavy to fit with Ryanair’s standards (55cm x 40cm x 20cm weighing up to 10kg). Check this before boarding; if it doesn’t fit, be prepared to pay €/£30 at the gate.
Getting your boarding pass – Ryanair has recently decided to eliminate check-in desks at the airport. This means that you either need to print your boarding card online (€/£5) or ask for it to be reissued at the airport, which costs you a whooping €/£40. Make sure you avoid this fee and check-in online, this option being available from 15 days up to 4 hours prior to your flight.
Getting priority boarding – At some airport, you’ll be picked up by a bus and taken to the aircraft. Speedy boarding means you’re the first to get on the bus, but the last to get off it. If this isn’t the case, priority boarding means you have the chance to sit on the more comfortable chairs, besides the airplane’s wings.
Getting travel insurance – This fee is usually added by default when buying a Ryanair ticket. Make sure to uncheck it and get a cheaper insurance at a travel agency if you really need one.
Avoiding Ryanair’s credit/debit card fee – Paying online might cost you an extra €/£5 per person per flight. In order to avoid this fee, get a Visa Electron Card, a basic type of debit card linked to a bank account & no overdraft.
Avoiding the name change fee – This is the highest fee you could pay at Ryanair – €/£100 online or €/£150 to be paid at the airport if you spelled your name wrong. Before making a booking, double and even triple check your names to make sure they’re spelled correctly.

Remember, if in the end, your trip is more expensive than €/£50, you could check ticket fares at another budget airline or even see what regular airlines have to offer.

How to not pay Ryanair’s boarding card printing fee

Dave — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:22:05 +0000

In recent news, Ryanair announced they will increase the fee passengers that forget to print their boarding card and ask for it to be reprinted at the airport. Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s CEO, recently said his company plans to the charge now at €40 to €100 – a 150% increase, but hasn’t mentioned the exact date for this. We have found a way to get around this fee available at selected airports in Ireland and in the UK.

Printing your boarding card online can be done from 15 days to 4 hours prior to the flight.

An Irish internet company decided to help passengers affected by this fee by offering them a more cheaper alternative.

Surfbox, a company based in Kilkenny, installed kiosks in several UK airports to help forgetful passengers. They said around 100 Ryanair passengers per day are using their machines to print boarding cards at their kiosk located in the Dublin airport. The company has now expanded and installed similar kiosks in Cork, Shannon and Liverpool airports.

So if you’re ever at the above mentioned airports and forget to print your boarding card at home, use Surfbox’s kiosks and save from €40 to €100.

Have a pleasant flight!