Ryanair are now supposedly actively trying 'to stop p*ss*ng people off' according to their 'shyster in chief', O'Leary. It isn't working with me.
I'll try to avoid using Ryanair whenever I can due to numerous past poor experiences of their money-grabbing and poor customer service attitudes.
But I couldn't really avoid using them for a trip starting on 13th October.
I've just tried to check-in online and found that I can't do so and also print off the return (20th October) boarding pass without paying extra for allocated seating. I'm travelling by myself and don't care where I sit. Why can't they just allocate me what they consider to be their worst seat now? Ryanair want me to wait 7 days before the return trip date before I can check-in for that leg. This is obviously something that I don't want to be forced to have to do when I am out travelling. Access to the internet and a printer, and finding time to use it, will be a problem.
Ryanair, you are still the World's most unhelpful airline!
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
7 days, its 24 hrs with BA!!
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
although with BA you can turn up at the airport and check in for FREE!!
I realized seven years ago, after they ripped me off for the final time, that Ryanair's business model depended on "there's plenty more punters where you came from matey" (also known as, "we've-got-your-money-now-f***-off").
Now it seems the supply has finally run out. Good.
Ryanair? I'd rather walk. Fortunately, most of my flights these days are to Geneva, and they don't go there, so the temptation doesn't arise.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Mr Marmot, I understand the irritation with being unable to check in, but it's simply because the sell allocated seating to other people so until they have chose which seats they want they can't allocate one to you. I agree there should be a way around it, maybe allowing you to check in 8 days before the return instead of 7.
I agree that Ryanair are pretty shocking in many respects, but at times we tend to forget that we may only be paying tuppence ha'penny for the flight in the first place.
After all it is free
After all it is free
^+1
I fly Ryanair three times a year or so and have done so for the last 10-12 years. I've been delayed once in that period. Their planes are modern, clean and prompt. If you play by their rules it's a pain free cheap experience. As foxtrot says they're really cheap. I flew from Shannon to Bristol return for my parents wedding anniversary for £5 a few years back (inc taxes and card fees etc) that was 1p for the outbound leg, £4.99 for the return. I burned more in diesel to get to the airport!!!
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foxtrotzulu wrote:
Mr Marmot, I understand the irritation with being unable to check in, but it's simply because the sell allocated seating to other people so until they have chose which seats they want they can't allocate one to you. I agree there should be a way around it, maybe allowing you to check in 8 days before the return instead of 7.
I agree that Ryanair are pretty shocking in many respects, but at times we tend to forget that we may only be paying tuppence ha'penny for the flight in the first place.
Well they could just automatically allocate me the seat which they are least likely to sell to other people instead of making things difficult. They know they will be allocating a seat to me anyway because I booked weeks ago! Ryanair will never choose the simple way if they have a chance of getting a bit more income even if it means p*ssing off their customers!
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foxtrotzulu wrote:
Mr Marmot, ...we tend to forget that we may only be paying tuppence ha'penny for the flight in the first place.
^^ if only this were true. By the time you've added on all the hidden extras for ski carriage etc., it works out just as 'cheap' to fly with regular carriers such as BA or Swiss. I'd never fly with them - a cr*p airline, run by an arrogant little tw@t IMHO
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
rogg wrote:
^+1
I fly Ryanair three times a year or so and have done so for the last 10-12 years. I've been delayed once in that period. Their planes are modern, clean and prompt. If you play by their rules it's a pain free cheap experience. As foxtrot says they're really cheap. I flew from Shannon to Bristol return for my parents wedding anniversary for £5 a few years back (inc taxes and card fees etc) that was 1p for the outbound leg, £4.99 for the return. I burned more in diesel to get to the airport!!!
Well instead of having just you as a happy customer, they could have me as well, if they weren't so pathetically money-grabbing after they have sucked people in with their low headline rate.
Even when checking-in on-line they attempt to automatically add travel insurance even though I had already told them I didn't need it at the time of originally booking. And the option to again say you don't need their insurance is 'hidden' amongst a list of countries! They so obviously hide it here hoping the unwary will end up taking it by mistake. How pathetically devious but typical of O'Dreary's nasties.
So I paid their unwanted charge of £5 for allocated seating just so that I could print out my return boarding pass immediately, but it also added an extra 10 minutes to the process by having to enter payment card details again and to trawl through pages of unwanted hotel, luggage and car hire offers. The £5 doesn't particularly worry me, but having my precious time wasted does.
And when I checked the outbound flight seat allocation, which I didn't have to pay for, they had automatically allocated me seat that would have cost £10 if I had pre-booked it! Should I be happy? I couldn't give a damn - I'm still annoyed at the extra time and effort I was needlessly required to put in.
Ryanair stinks!
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
So you paid £5 - but saved maybe £150 on a return flight because without Ryanair and Easyjet, we'd all still be paying BA/Flag Carrier monopoly prices.
I regularly fly 2 Ryanair routes - both cost significantly less today (£150 less per round trip) than they did 25 years ago when BA/SAS had a monopoly and one paid for loads of unwanted things like free coffee, chewey sandwich, rubbery omelette, free drinks which I couldn't have because I'd be driving at both ends of the trip etc etc.
Quote:
The £5 doesn't particularly worry me, but having my precious time wasted does.
You've wasted more time having a rant on here than it took you to book the seat.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Quote:
play by their rules
what about the rule that suckered me into paying extra for an additional bag, only to be told at check-in that this only entitled me to an extra bag and no extra weight? In other words I had paid for the privilege of carrying my paltry 17kg (or whatever) in two bags instead of one?
They used the small print against me but whatever the small print, there is no question that this aspect of their "service" was a trick. Who would knowingly pay to be able to have two small bags instead of one big one?
Oh and if you disagree with them at the desk, they threaten to have you arrested under anti-terror laws, an outrageous abuse of process.
So okay, they fooled me that time. But they will never, ever, get the chance again.
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
quinton wrote:
So you paid £5 - but saved maybe £150 on a return flight because without Ryanair and Easyjet, we'd all still be paying BA/Flag Carrier monopoly prices.
I regularly fly 2 Ryanair routes - both cost significantly less today (£150 less per round trip) than they did 25 years ago when BA/SAS had a monopoly and one paid for loads of unwanted things like free coffee, chewey sandwich, rubbery omelette, free drinks which I couldn't have because I'd be driving at both ends of the trip etc etc.
Quote:
The £5 doesn't particularly worry me, but having my precious time wasted does.
You've wasted more time having a rant on here than it took you to book the seat.
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I think Ryanair have a positive role, by forcing others to reduce prices.
After some experiences (nothing awful, just time-wasting during the booking, loud ads during an early morning flight and trumpet sounds at 6.30 am to announce "another Ryanair flight landing on time"), I decided to let others benefit from the lower prices (for that dwindling number of cases where they are actually lower), and fly with other carriers.
A really cheap return flight might make me reconsider but they're rarely available from Brussels (well, Charleroi) with the kind of last minute booking I usually do.
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Cacciatore wrote:
quinton wrote:
So you paid £5 - but saved maybe £150 on a return flight because without Ryanair and Easyjet, we'd all still be paying BA/Flag Carrier monopoly prices.
I regularly fly 2 Ryanair routes - both cost significantly less today (£150 less per round trip) than they did 25 years ago when BA/SAS had a monopoly and one paid for loads of unwanted things like free coffee, chewey sandwich, rubbery omelette, free drinks which I couldn't have because I'd be driving at both ends of the trip etc etc.
Quote:
The £5 doesn't particularly worry me, but having my precious time wasted does.
You've wasted more time having a rant on here than it took you to book the seat.
Very true, but I properly allocate some of my precious time to the worthy cause of ranting.
I'm using this allocated time to complain about those who charge me for wasting my time
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Pretty sure you can check-in on mobile and save your Boarding Card as an image... I've done it plenty of times with Aer Lingus.
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Read & Obey the Rules then you will not have a problem.
It is Ryanair's attitude and service that I find so poor. So that is a big problem for me, and, it appears many others. Even Mr O'Leary recognises that it has been a problem for many years and he says he is trying to improve things. He's not succeeded yet, in my opinion. The manager of the 'bus' service has no concept of good customer relations.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
I never really understand a lot of these rants about Ryanair. Yes, they treat you like dirt but everyone knows that before you travel. We all make a conscious decision as to whether the generally lower cost and better punctuality outweighs the rubbish service and general attitude. If it doesn't work for you, then don't use them.
I never really understand a lot of these rants about Ryanair. Yes, they treat you like dirt but everyone knows that before you travel. We all make a conscious decision as to whether the generally lower cost and better punctuality outweighs the rubbish service and general attitude. If it doesn't work for you, then don't use them.
+1.
Ryan Air dont make money from selling flights at £29.99.
The ticket is a loss leader.
The profit comes from the baggage charges / check in charges / selling food <etc>
Suck it up or go elsewhere if you really feel that strongly.
Like it or not Ryan are one of the most profitable airlines in Europe.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
foxtrotzulu wrote:
If it doesn't work for you, then don't use them.
It doesn't and I don't.
I've never had a problem with Easyjet and I don't accept that low cost and being treated like pond scum have to go together.
After all it is free
After all it is free
Reports some time ago of uneconomical flights being cancelled, leaving travellers stranded abroad, really put me off, as does the non-transparant pricing so I've choosen simply to ignore RyanAir as an option.
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Meanwhile, over 80 million passengers will fly with Ryanair this year. 80 million - more than BA and the other national carriers could ever have dreamt of.
Pricing is about as transparent as it could be; the ticket costs X, a hold bag costs £15-£20, a pre-allocated seat with priority boarding costs £5 and there's a couple of quid credit card fee.
BA pricing may have been transparent, but did you really know what you were paying for? Out of a £200 ticket, you were paying £20 to a travel agent (as years ago you could never book direct), time to order and collect the physical ticket (you now do this yourself online in 5 minutes), you were paying for all of the empty seats and for all of the time that the planes were on the ground doing nothing; you were paying for food and drinks that were unnecessary on 90 minute hops, you were paying for layers of marketing managers, frequent flyer club managers, catering managers etc. Years ago, if you were a UK taxpayer, you were also paying your share of the subsidy, which millions of people paid without ever getting near to a plane. The Flag Carriers thought that they were there to provide luxury liners to businessmen and the wealthy and made it very difficult for anyone else to travel by air (charter restrictions, dirty tricks against Virgin, monopoly agreements with airports and travel agents etc). Ryanair/Easyjet etc worked out that if you offered a flying bus at reasonable prices, stripped out costs and maximised aircraft usage, millions of people would fly and there would still be a good profit in it.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Fri 10-10-14 15:55; edited 1 time in total
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Flown with 'em quite a few times, always took off from where I was and landed where I was going for a non-unreasonable fee.
On the other hand I've had some shocking train journeys for much more money.
scubadancer wrote:
^^ if only this were true. By the time you've added on all the hidden extras for ski carriage etc., it works out just as 'cheap' to fly with regular carriers such as BA or Swiss. I'd never fly with them - a cr*p airline, run by an arrogant little tw@t IMHO
Not if you're fortunate enough to be north of Watford Gap it doesn't.
ps, not been on here for a while. You wouldn't know though
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
quinton wrote:
Ryanair/Easyjet etc worked out that if you offered a flying bus at reasonable prices, stripped out costs and maximised aircraft usage, millions of people would fly and there would still be a good profit in it.
But this thread isn't entitled "Easyjet still sh*te". I don't accept that low-cost airline and treating customers with the Ryanair touch have to go together.
Last edited by snowHeads are a friendly bunch. on Fri 10-10-14 16:11; edited 1 time in total
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
dogwatch wrote:
quinton wrote:
Ryanair/Easyjet etc worked out that if you offered a flying bus at reasonable prices, stripped out costs and maximised aircraft usage, millions of people would fly and there would still be a good profit in it.
But this thread isn't entitled "Easyjet still sh*te". I don't accept that low-cost airline and treating customers with the Ryan-air touch have to go together.
+1, not comparable, imho, been very happy with EJ on many occasions.
Shame Globespan were left to go out of business, they were handy from Scotland.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Tarquin,
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
quinton wrote:
Meanwhile, over 80 million passengers will fly with Ryanair this year. 80 million - more than BA and the other national carriers could ever have dreamt of.
Pricing is about as transparent as it could be; the ticket costs X, a hold bag costs £15-£20, a pre-allocated seat with priority boarding costs £5 and there's a couple of quid credit card fee.
BA pricing may have been transparent, but did you really know what you were paying for? Out of a £200 ticket, you were paying £20 to a travel agent (as years ago you could never book direct), time to order and collect the physical ticket (you now do this yourself online in 5 minutes), you were paying for all of the empty seats and for all of the time that the planes were on the ground doing nothing; you were paying for food and drinks that were unnecessary on 90 minute hops, you were paying for layers of marketing managers, frequent flyer club managers, catering managers etc. Years ago, if you were a UK taxpayer, you were also paying your share of the subsidy, which millions of people paid without ever getting near to a plane. The Flag Carriers thought that they were there to provide luxury liners to businessmen and the wealthy and made it very difficult for anyone else to travel by air (charter restrictions, dirty tricks against Virgin, monopoly agreements with airports and travel agents etc). Ryanair/Easyjet etc worked out that if you offered a flying bus at reasonable prices, stripped out costs and maximised aircraft usage, millions of people would fly and there would still be a good profit in it.
Most of that I would agree with wholeheartedly. It is an absolutely fantastic concept which has worked extremely well in many ways to the benefit of many people.
Now if only Ryanair could find a way of providing a better customer service and also stop their pathetic attempts to squeeze an extra penny out of customers in annoying ways and so make their pricing truly transparent, then they would surely be almost perfect. Even if they got to 90% perfect, they then might be as good as Easyjet. Surely then they would have even more customers than they do now. I think the number of posts complaining about them on this thread, as well as elsewhere on the internet, is the proof that they are still nowhere near to getting it right. Has any business ever been hated so much by so many?
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Tarquin, I am north of the Watford Gap. Why does that make a difference?
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
While I can see that the inability to check-in for the return flight (as described in the OP) is not particularly user-friendly and could easily fixed by Ryanair, I struggle to see how an airline that flies 80 million passengers from A to B, on time, for a fraction of the price that it would have cost had low-cost airlines not appeared can be described as 'still sh*te'.
Perhaps now that low-cost carriers have been around for 20 years there is a generation who have never experienced the appalling levels of customer service that the flag carriers used to offer, the restrictive legislation that they lobbied for that prevented anyone else challenging their monopoly and the eye-watering prices that they used to charge.
I fly Ryanair, BA and Easyjet regularly and see no discernible difference in the service. Perhaps it is Mr O'Leary that rubs people up the wrong way, but have you ever heard BA's Walsh? I've no idea who fronts Easyjet since Stelios left, but maybe that is the secret - don't have a vocal front man and you won't annoy your customers.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
People that have champagne tastes and beer budgets generally whine the loudest IME
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
I just tried to match my BA flights to Geneva at Xmas by choosing Ryanair's nearest matching flights. (Stanstead to Grenoble)
Great lead in costs totalling £140 for two passengers, but by the time you add on the hold baggage, ski carriage, seat check-in, that price inflates to just short of £400.
Sorry Ryanair.............. I'll still stick with the rather expensive BA that works out to cost less than 50% of your comparable flights.
AND.......... I stopped using you when you demanded £15 for ski carriage when I was returning from Turin. Never used you since!
I just tried to match my BA flights to Geneva at Xmas by choosing Ryanair's nearest matching flights. (Stanstead to Grenoble)
Great lead in costs totalling £140 for two passengers, but by the time you add on the hold baggage, ski carriage, seat check-in, that price inflates to just short of £400.
Sorry Ryanair.............. I'll still stick with the rather expensive BA that works out to cost less than 50% of your comparable flights.
Absolutely - why wouldn't you choose BA in this case. But remember, if the flag carriers still had their monopoly, you'd probably be paying £800.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
quinton, the volume of people using RyanAir doesn't validate their service. As I've found out today, the only way I can fly from Geneva to the north of England directly is via EasyJet. I do not expect to be included in a roll call of satisfied EJ customers simply because I have no other choice.
albinomountainbadger, I remember during from Glasgow to Gatwick as there were no Geneva flights from Edinburgh or Glasgow other than limited charters...
Much better now with Easyjet's network.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Quote:
Absolutely - why wouldn't you choose BA in this case.
under a new name, I do recall it costing us nearly a grand to fly back from England to Belfast with BA when I was a kid. It often worked out much cheaper to take a car and the ferry from Scotland. I appreciate the service that EasyJet and RyanAir have done to everyone by breaking those monopolies, but things seem to be going too far the other way now and some airports are entirely at the mercy of the budget lines' schedules.
Last edited by After all it is free on Fri 10-10-14 17:39; edited 1 time in total
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albinomountainbadger, wrote
Quote:
quinton, the volume of people using RyanAir doesn't validate their service. As I've found out today, the only way I can fly from Geneva to the north of England directly is via EasyJet. I do not expect to be included in a roll call of satisfied EJ customers simply because I have no other choice.
I have to disagree. Ryanair took over a large number of loss-making routes from the flag carriers and introduced countless new routes at a price and quality that people are happy to accept. If it was 'sh*te' then the business would never have got off the ground, or had the impact that it has had on the European travel market. O'Leary doesn't pretend to appeal to everyone but for some reason he attracts a constant stream of commentators on here and other travel websites who claim that they will never use them or only use them under duress.
As for your Easyjet flight - it will get you from Geneva directly to where you want to go, at a price you are willing to pay. You have loads of alternative ways of making the journey, but Easyjet satisfy all your stated requirements. So why are you not expecting to be included on the roll-call of satisfied customers?
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Ski the Net with snowHeads
quinton wrote:
As for your Easyjet flight - it will get you from Geneva directly to where you want to go, at a price you are willing to pay. You have loads of alternative ways of making the journey, but Easyjet satisfy all your stated requirements. So why are you not expecting to be included on the roll-call of satisfied customers?
Because that part of your argument is untrue. Much like people commuting by train don't have loads of ways to make the journey either. My options are to fly with EasyJet, or spend two days driving. That's it. Now it's far from EasyJet's fault that no one else runs the same service in competition with them, but, it doesn't mean I choose to fly with easyjet either.
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
