Flying Ryan Air have for many years been a big nono for me. But God did I have the wrong idea about them? For a short 1,5 hours flight the ain’t to bad even if their are things that disturbs me. But let us make a brief customer journey.
Booking and check in.
Just as with Wizz Air Ryan Airs booking process is more about adding x-sale then making a smooth customer journey. Every step is followed by a choice to buy some extra service. I know it’s a part of their business model, but its still irritating. And if you ain’t careful you will find out that the price first shown have trippled without any problems. But if you are awake and can resist al the sale attempts its okej. Just be careful so you don’t buy anything by accident.
The sale attempts continue during the check in. Once again its al about making sure you pay for some extra. It can be extra luggage, sitting with your travel companion or geting a seat with some extra legroom. One of the sale attempt that really irritates me is that they ask i you want to check in your return ticket as well. But if its more then 24 hours before, they want you to pay for it or their idea that you should pay extra to sit with your companion. Its only in Ryan airs world that friendship have a price.
Boarding and in-flight experience on Ryan Air
Ryan Air usual fly to more distance airports or have remote gates at the bigger airports. On my home airport in Copenhagen it’s an easy 15 min walk to the gates while the airport in Kanus mostly looking like a big barn. On the other hand, Ryan Airs love for quick turn around makes their passenger stand as cattle in animal shelters before they can board the plane.
When you have succeeded to board the plane you will see the most ugly cabin ever. The yellow seats looks so cheap and plastic that you think their cleaning is made by high pressure sprayer. However the seat pitch 30″ is actually okej even if I’m 192. But after an hour or so the seats starts to feel hard and uncomfortable. Even if Ryan Air is a no thrill airlines the difference between traditional airlines is not so big. Actually most times its cheaper to buy a ticket on Ryan Air and a cup of coffee on the airport then buying a ticket with a traditional airline.
For me the biggest difference was that Ryan Air still makes a duty free sale on board and after that tries to make you take part in their lottery. That makes the crew walk thru the cabin three times and if you have an aisle seat its two times too much. Otherwise its as boring as any other Intra-European economy flight.
Conclusion
Flying Ryan Air was not as bad as I thought it should be. Maybe the great flying weather made me extra happy. Yes I need to walk far to the gate in Copenhagen and the terminal looks like a barn with animal shelters. But the in-flight experience is good enough for some hours flight and as always you get what you pay for. In the same time, if I would fly with luggage or have some seats with a little better pitch I would compare the price with the more normal airlines.
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