Ryanair to introduce check-in charge

jonny68

Ryanair to introduce check-in charge
Friday, 24 August 2007 15:17

Ryanair has announced plans to introduce a charge for passengers who use its airport check-in desks.

But the airline says it is also scrapping fees for its online service in a move it says is aimed at reducing airport queues.

Ryanair claims this move is aimed at discouraging passengers from checking in bags and adding to queues at its airport desks.

Currently, Ryanair passengers with hand luggage only can check in online and choose their seat for a fee of €3.

The airline says this fee will be scrapped from 20 September, but a similar charge faces passengers who turn up at the airport without having checked in on the web.

Ryanair admitted that the online charge had discouraged more people from using the facility.


http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/0824/ryanair.html

jonny68

This pathetic airline never ceases to amaze me, what will they start charging for next,if it's not bad enough having to pay for the privlege of having your bag checked in, pay for the so called best seats,pay well over the odds for refreshments,etc,etc.:mad:

RoundyMooney

It sounds like they just don't want to pay Servisair staff to man check in desks tbh.

Another cost cutting measure...

therecklessone

RoundyMooney wrote:

It sounds like they just don't want to pay Servisair staff to man check in desks tbh.

They're gonna have to, they're still accepting checked baggage.

Sounds like they've realised that charging for online check in is a stupid idea and they're just replacing that with a charge to check in the traditional way.

Wouldn't have a problem if they chose not to charge people to check in as well as the baggage charge (i.e. have the baggage charge include your check in fee)

Also, this will penalise those who do not qualify for online:

* Passengers travelling with checked baggage or on the same reservation as a passenger travelling with checked baggage.
* Children aged between 14-18 years travelling alone.
* Passengers travelling with infants
* Passengers travelling with mobility equipment (including children's buggies)
* Passengers with reduced mobility, blind/visual impaired passengers including those travelling with a sighted companion
* Blind/visual impaired passenger travelling with a guide dog
* Passengers who require special assistance at the airport
* Passengers travelling from Italy to the UK
* Passengers travelling on a passport which is due to expire within 30 days from the date of travel.
* When there are more than 9 passengers booked in a reservation

Jakey

Its the usual story Ryan air will get a hammering in the media for their 'cost cutting' and millions will travel with them again this year becuase there cheap as a result of the cost cutting.

They've really brought low cost to a new level, Personally I would avoid them if I can at all.

jmayo

I suppose they would charge for the guide dogs but they would get done for discrimination :rolleyes:
So they really want to make it awkward for people travelling with luggage.
So if you can wear everything you are going to bring then you're alright.

BTW it is not alone Ryanair that screw you regarding luggage. Earlier this year I got screwed for over €100 because baggage over weight on cheap airline flight between Oz and NZ. I did not know weight limitations on low cost carrier as ticket was part of a round the world ticket.
Ryanair are just our own, their counterparts exist arund the world.

lemansky

I have to admit I laughed when I heard that they were bringing this charge in. That was all that I could do!

I avoid them when possible and thankfully that has meant that as of this very moment I have never once gone with them.

r3nu4l

Well not everyone can afford to avoid Ryanair and even many that can afford not to travel with them still do (My wife saw Steve Davis on a flight to Dublin last year ).

I despise Ryanair's policies as a whole but if you're clever and only making a short trip (e.g. to Stanstead) then you can't beat them. I almost never have bags in the hold and only carry hand luggage on Ryanair flights from Dublin to Stanstead. Anyone who can't last an hour on a plane without food or a drink needs help tbh, so I avoid paying €500 for a cup of tea.

Ryaniar normally make the price of the flight and nothing more from me and I suspect many others are the same. I laugh when I see people checking in with wo or more bags, poor fools!

All of that said, I'm not defending Ryanair but it is possible to use them and avoid a rake of extra charges...as has been pointed out already though, this move makes it easier for them to catch a whole load of people that will now be unable to avoid this charge because they cannot avail of the online chek-in...I sense a legal challenge coming on.

smemon

great move imo.. don't know what everyone is complaining about..

this will reduce queue's significantly as the majority of ryanair flights are short haul - therefore plenty of people don't need bags.

i could live for a week on a hand luggage size bag.If everyone could, there'd be no queue's, no hassle, no wheely bags getting in everyone's road :mad:

This way, they're punishing you if you have luggage which is the way it should be.

Luggage is what holds up flights, slows down queue's and crowds out the airport.

This is a step forward people. By charging you to check in online, that was a step backwards and thank god they had the cop on to realise that.

Now all they have to do is increase hand luggage dimensions and ban checked in luggage completely..

this would abolish checkin fee's, baggage handlers fee's, decrease congestion at airports, make it easy to kick someone off a plane if they fail to show up even though they're checked in.. win-win for everyone.

That is the future my friends

jonny68

[Q[/QUOTE]

this will reduce queue's significantly as the majority of ryanair flights are short haul - therefore plenty of people don't need bags

How on earth have you come to the conclusion that people do not need bags because they are on short haul flights?That's the most bizzare thing ive heard in quite sometime:eek:

i could live for a week on a hand luggage size bag.If everyone could, there'd be no queue's, no hassle, no wheely bags getting in everyone's road :mad:

well your in the minority then as most people myself included could not

This way, they're punishing you if you have luggage which is the way it should be.

Are you en employee of Ryanair,it certainly appears to be the case

Luggage is what holds up flights, slows down queue's and crowds out the airport.

Lugagge is not the only thing that slows down flights,you cannot for the most part seriously expect people to fly without luggage

This is a step forward people. By charging you to check in online, that was a step backwards and thank god they had the cop on to realise that.

This is the capitalist monster Micheal O Leary milking people for more money

Now all they have to do is increase hand luggage dimensions and ban checked in luggage completely..

this would abolish checkin fee's, baggage handlers fee's, decrease congestion at airports, make it easy to kick someone off a plane if they fail to show up even though they're checked in.. win-win for everyone.

That is the future my friends

Actually after reading the above ive come to the conclusion that you are either O Leary himself or stark raving bonkers.:eek:

jonny68

guess who's flying Ryanair tomorrow :mad: cant say im looking forward to it either but unfortunately no option but i really do for the most part go out of my way not to fly with this damn airline.

RoundyMooney

Take it easy jonny.

Ryanair is low cost, and they make no apology for it.

Whatever effect they may have had on the air travel experience, at least these days it doesn't cost a weeks wages to get to London.

Like everything else in life, it's a mixed blessing

FlutterinBantam

+1...

:eek: New avvie is a bit severe??

A Dub in Glasgo

smemon wrote:

great move imo.. don't know what everyone is complaining about..

Because people are different with differing needs?

this will reduce queue's significantly as the majority of ryanair flights are short haul - therefore plenty of people don't need bags.

Silly me, I always thought short haul meant short distance not short stay away!!

i could live for a week on a hand luggage size bag.If everyone could, there'd be no queue's, no hassle, no wheely bags getting in everyone's road :mad:

Depends if you only change your jocks and socks each day? Do you realise that by increasing the hand luggage limit and decreasing the check in luggage limit, more people will now bring huge bags onto the aircraft thus increasing the time getting on and off planes and generally the huge hand luggage getting in everybodies way!

This way, they're punishing you if you have luggage which is the way it should be.

Luggage is what holds up flights, slows down queue's and crowds out the airport.

I see, now flying is like commuting... only a daytripper are we?

Now all they have to do is increase hand luggage dimensions and ban checked in luggage completely..

Thus negating every perceived benefit you have listed!!

jonny68

RoundyMooney wrote:

Take it easy jonny.

Ryanair is low cost, and they make no apology for it.

Whatever effect they may have had on the air travel experience, at least these days it doesn't cost a weeks wages to get to London.

Like everything else in life, it's a mixed blessing

Low cost is one thing but ive said it countless times before, good customer service is an absolute necessity and this airline is up there with the worst there is (it's hard to beat NTL on that one), i totally and utterly refute the prosperous "what do you expect when you pay f**k all" crap O Leary is fond of coming out with,it's not even as though they are constantly cheap,i myself have had to pay well over the odds for flights before with Ryanair to Gatwick, and this is weeks in advance as well

If Ryanair treated their customers far better than what they currently do and didn't have all these charges it could actually grow into the most successful airline in the world in time,but all O Leary is interested in is €€€€€€€€€ and lots of it,id love to see him get stranded for 8 hours somewhere without as much as a reason why never mind a cup of coffee.:mad:

Run_to_da_hills

I can see Ryanair leaving us with a rope to board their planes in the near future and then charging us the extra for the privilage of using their boarding steps.

RoundyMooney

Many a true word...

Like I say, it's a double edged sword.

arctictree

I fly a lot with AL and only fly with Ryanair if its easier to get to my destination with them.

Currently I fly to Frankfurt with AL weekly and always use the web checkin. Funny thing is that I have only once seen someone else with a web checkin boarding card printout even though its free and you get to choose your seat. I wonder how many will use Ryanairs?

BTW - My opinion - Ryanair is cheap (not always) and they usually dont treat you very well. Personally, I'd rather pay more and be treated better. Depends on the kind of world you'd like to live in...

A

Andrewf20

I think alot of us are very used to a good thing - i.e cheaper flights relative to 10 years ago. I have flown with Ryanair on many occasions and never had to fork out more than 100 quid for international european travel which I think is excellent. A few euro to check in bags is small fry. In 1997 I remember having to pay 220 irish pounds to fly with London return. Im doing a day trip to Edinburgh in Decemeber with Ryanair. Cost? 2 cent including taxes. I personally have no quams with using Ryanair. Ultimately, there are usually other airlines to take our business too if we are not happy.

Davidth88

People , it's too easy to bash FR in some ways, but here is my opinion for what it's worth.

Most of the travel I do is short notice , within Europe ( at least 2 times a month ) . Now you look at the price of flying FR to Luton on Thursday , returning Friday this week ... then compare it to EI or BM .... they are MORE EXPENSIVE. This is not a fluke , believe me I check virtually every time I travel and they are nearly always more expensive ( I know if you book in advance thats not true )

Also this c**p about , oh you get what you pay for . The attitude of the staff ( that comes from the CEO ) is that their customers are a money tree , and they can treat them like s*it and they will keep coming.

Well , I for one hope they run into a couple of REALLY lean years , then they may realise its the customers that are paying their wages. They seem to have the attitude that they are doing us a favour just by being there. THEY ARE NOT !

FR didn't always act like this, I remember one Christmas eve being at a fogbound STN ( about 15 years ago ) and the staff were fantastic, everyone got home for Christmas.

MOL , needs a reality check , they say pride comes before a fall !