Ryanair Passenger Reviews and Ryanair Customer Trip Reports

My trip to Barcelona was spoilt when we travelled back by Ryanair. We followed the guidelines and the weight was 10kg with handbag as required and when we checked in no one checked this. Handbags were in the cases at that time. Went through security and took handbag out as needed passport and boarding pass and later money. Again no one checked. Purchased a few items from duty free and lined up at the boarding gate in good time. Staff checked the passport etc and marked the boarding pass. Then at the last minute before boarding they tell us that the bag is too big and wanted 50 euros. The bag slid nicely in to their box but as the handbag was out she said we had to pay 50 euros. We did not have any euros and they would not take pounds. Offered to pay by credit card but they would not take this. In the end they let us go without payment but it has left a very bitter taste. There were other people with bigger bags and they were not stopped. We will never travel with them in the future.

Went Stansted to Corfu, 01/11/2012, returned 05/11/2012. Could not fault them. Had my elderly mother with me and they could not have been more helpful. We were hand luggage only and had no problems with our cases. They didn't weigh them or measure them. Seat room was good, much better than Monarch who I flew with the previous week. Was apprehensive having read reviews but could not fault Ryanair.

Have flown many times usually to the Canary Islands from EMA or BHX. We have never had a problem with them at all, always been on time and always felt safe with them. However, from the moment they take off to the moment they land they try and sell you anything and everything.

Will never fly Ryanair again. Our printed itinerary blatantly said we had paid for 1 suitcase for our outward then return journey (East Midlands - Krakow - East Midlands) at a rip off £25 each way, but because 'it didn't show on their system' we had to pay another £100 or lose it! After being made to wait at least 30 minutes, a Manager finally came out and agreed we had paid, but there was nothing she could do? When asked if we would get our money back off Ryanair, she just shrugged. So many people were complaining in the queue and to charge 3 euros for a cup of tea, no wonder no-one was buying anything. The air hostess was rude and aggressive - snatching money out of people's hands and barking orders at passengers - manners cost nothing? We fly regularly and use lots of different budget carriers from around the world and this was by far the worst airline!

Flew 22nd Dec to Tenerife. No delay whatsoever, nice, friendly staff. 1st Jan flew to East Midlands from Tenerife. Again no problems, nice and pleasant staff. Would fly them again.

After hearing all the terrible reviews on this airline I only booked it out of necessity, however, I was impressed that the flight left on time as advertised, aircraft itself was clean, pleasant cabin crew. If people try to test the rules on baggage and beat the system and moan when they get caught out I don't know what they expect if they get caught out. I never booked this flight expecting a 5 star red carpet treatment, I just wanted to get home. I paid £90 for my ticket last minute, which was cheaper than Monarch. Just treat it as a cheap "no frills" means to an end service. I would happily fly them in future.

London Stansted to Maastricht, 30 Dec. Due to fly 7.30am, at 7.40am announcement to say we need new aircraft. Began boarding 7.50am. Lack of communication from ground staff could so easily be corrected. When we checked screens for baggage sent to wrong desk. Were looked after by polite and friendly check in staff, but when we went to the right desk - the staff member was rude. Lack of consistency and communication make for a much less pleasant journey. £167 for flights.

23rd December, 2 Ryanair flights, one from Mahon to Barcelona and the other Barcelona to Liverpool. Both flights surprised me as reading some other reviews before I was prepared for all sorts of drama. They didn't weigh or measure my bag, stewards were friendly said hello and bye and the flights were comfy! Lets hope it is as smooth on the way back to Mahon as it was going. 9/10 ! Ryanair isn't that bad or maybe I just got lucky.

As I said in my Nov review, I was interested to see if the recent improvements in the Ryanair flight experience would carry on into the busy Xmas period. Well, I've just completed Girona to Luton return during the festive season, and I'm pleased to report that things do really seem to be looking up. The boarding process in GRO was fine with no unnecessary bag sizing done. The flight itself was uneventful. No flight from Luton is ever going to be a luxury experience, but bag check in was reasonably quick, and, despite a full flight, there was no hand baggage hassle at all. The boarding process was excellent and only spoilt by a tiresome group of 18 travellers who turned up late and then wasted a load of time demanding to be sat together. But, in any event arrival in GRO was on time, and the in flight service was prompt and, (by FR's standard!) unobtrusive. It does seem that the penny is finally beginning to drop that antagonising customers is not a terribly smart idea.

Yesterday I flew from London Stansted to Katowice. The whole experience was terrible. It started at the check in gate, although my carry-on luggage meets the Ryanair regulation, the lady at the boarding gate made me do the 'cage test'. One day prior my trip to Katowice, I had flown to London from Canada with the same suitcase. I placed the suitcase in and pushed it down half way, unfortunately, this was not enough for her she made me push it all the way. After some of the other passengers helped me fish the bag out, I boarded the plane. Until this point there no greeting from any of the flight attendants. They don't bother to help you with anything, they will go after you if you keep you coat on your laps instead of the overhead compartment. Since, I was traveling before Christmas the flight was not cheap. I paid over £360. Overall, my experience was very unpleasant, and I'd never use this airline in the future.

Lodz Poland to London Stansted on 27th Nov 2012. Flight due to leave at 21.50, flight boarded at 21.30 but by 22:45 we were told there was a problem. Half hour later the "mechanic" was being flown in from Warsaw. At approx 23.30 we were told to disembark the plane and wait in the departures lounge. Where after approx an hour we were give a small bottle of water and a chocolate bar. Lodz airport is brand new and there are no shops airside. Repeatedly fobbed off by ground staff, but the crew had already run for cover and locked themselves on the plane. At 02.00 in the morning we were told to come back at 08.00 on 28th Nov 2012. (They do not fly from Lodz on Wednesday.) 160+ annoyed customers and not a bit of help from Ryanair's customer services on the ground. We were given the names of local hotels but told the chances of getting a room at 02.00 was minimal. Arrived back at Lodz on the 28th Nov 2012 and was met by total apathy from the ground staff. Flight finally left after a 40 minute extra wait on the 10.00 expected departure.

Traveled with them a week and a half ago from Krakow to Dublin. Flight was due at 20.15 local time, but because of the foggy weather conditions it was delayed and then after around 3 hours passengers were moved to another Polish airport in the eastern city of Rzeszow, in buses. Trip took around 2.5 hours. Total delay time was around 6 hours into next day (Monday) and within this time Ryanair did not offer any free meals or drinks or any anything else.

Sunday 16th Dec from Tenerife to Birmingham. Plane was delayed and ground staff were trying to hurry things up. At the gate we were told one bag was too large. We were transferring a little from one bag to the other when we were told pay now or leave bag. Saying that it was not our fault that the plane was late was a waste of time and so we paid the 50 euros excess for our (hold baggage) which was then put into the cabin overhead locker. The cabin crew were great, the ground crew surly, rude and incoherent. This was our first and last time with this airline, we should have listened to the press and read other peoples comments.

Getting to the point of being silly. Was flying London-Vilnius, had very small backpack. Was forced to put it into the baggage measure at gate even though it obviously fit in (not even close). The guy made me take my magazine in my hand, my head phones and mobile phone and put them in the bag. What's next? My wallet and clothes that I am wearing need to fit in the bag too?

Have flown CRL-BTS-CRL several times. With Ryanair, you get what you pay for, nothing more, nothing less. And you have to read every little line on the reservation website very carefully. So if you can do that, and you don't expect business-class service at the plane, Ryanair is the way to go. And if you're annoyed by the uncountable promotions during the flight, then take an mp3 player with you, put some nice music on, and you're flight will be over in no time.

BHX-DUB return 7- 10 Dec. Arrived in Dublin to applause from fellow passengers. Great check-in at both airports. It seems now that most passengers are checking Ryanair's terms and conditions as there were no hold ups.

We travel this airline regularly, satisfied in general with what you get for the price you pay. Particularly like the speed of checking in, but this trip we were a little disappointed with the boarding details at Edinburgh. Being of the older generation, we always watch for the gate number, this time as we waited at gates 1-3, the boarding gate came up as gate 19, which is quite a way away from the terminal main building. Off we went only to find the gate changed to 1e - exactly where we were in the first place. When we did arrive we were at the back of the line and seat selection gone.

Seville to Marrakech in November! Outbound flight delayed 30 minutes. The flight was fine, ample leg room, cabin crew attentive, and arrived without problems at RAK. Inbound flight left on time, and had no problems! Maybe it was because it was Seville but all hand luggage was allowed onboard, although some cases looked somewhat bigger than they should be! We paid 40 euro each for this return flight which is incredibly cheap and had no complaints whatsoever! As long as you know what you're doing re. luggage, printing boarding passes etc, Ryanair offer cheap flights which at the end of the day is what most people want!

24/11/12 - Return to Stansted from Venice Treviso. Due to take off 21.50. Flight was cancelled at midnight due to weather disruption. Whole plane load of us abandoned at Venice Treviso - nobody from Ryanair at airport only 2 Italian Airport staff. No food, no accommodation - nothing! Were told earliest flight back to UK was 3 days later. Found out that our flight had landed at the other Venice airport (Marco Polo) and had returned to Stansted empty. Why they didn't bus us to Marco Polo or at least tell us so we could get out own cabs is a mystery. Had to sleep on airport floor as no hotels had rooms due to an earlier flight cancellation by Ryanair. We were just told - go to website and re-book! Website had crashed. Luckily, managed to get seats on Easyjet flight from Marco Polo next afternoon. Others had to get train 400 km to Milan next day to get back to UK. Dreadful and disgusting way to treat passengers.

Had a great flight from Edinburgh to Lanzarote on 24th Nov and returned home on 1st Dec. The staff on both flights were excellent. This is my fourth time with Ryanair and will continue to fly with them.

Girona to Manchester return. I fly regularly with Ryanair largely because I have little option, and I do have to say that their customer service is recently dragging itself into the "fairly acceptable" category. The queues to check in cases are a lot shorter. The gate staff do appear to be less surly. The preposterous policy of weighing each and every piece of hand baggage however small seems to be a thing of the past, though I suspect that this is merely because the time wasted in thus doing, and consequent delays to their frantic schedule was not worth it. Common sense seems to be coming to the fore as regards sizing of hand luggage, and a big issue is only being made of it on full flights where space is at a premium. Cabin staff appear to be less abrupt. Even the Credit Card fee rip off has been made far more transparent, with the 6€ "admin fee" now included in the headline price. To be fair, Ryanair has always offered a good, convenient, on time service, using modern, reliable planes, but it's been the general hassle and nickel and diming that's put most of our backs up. If they are addressing these issues, then good luck to them. I'll be flying them a couple more times before year's end, and it'll be interesting to see if this improvement continues over the fraught Xmas period!

Liverpool-Vilnius. First time with this airline and my experience was positive, all the negative reviews really baffle me. Boarding speedy enough, staff were professional and the seating arrangements were more than acceptable. It would appear that some people don't stick to the rules, read them carefully and you won't encounter any problems. Will use this airline again.

We flew out to Seville on the 18th Nov, checking in good, we pre booked priority boarding again no problem. It may be a cheap flight but it seems the only one direct to Seville so it was crowded and uncomfortable, our return 3 days later, again priority boarding but sadly even though we had paid for this we all boarded together front and back of plane, I am sure a rugby scrum would have been kinder. When I complained that we had paid extra to get on first I was dismissed by a hostess virtually saying tough as they were running late.

Budapest to Stansted - Saturday 25, 1600. Check in at Budapest - chaos, a great modern and comfortable airport but the Ryanair gate entrance is now a tent! You exit via a normal gate go outside through a caged pathway and stand outside getting wet if it rains to enter a tent with virtually no heating or seating. Ground staff ignored the priority boarding queue and allowed the non-priority one on the plane first. Thought the Stansted system they have was bad enough with a large shed outside but Budapest is a joke! Throughout the flight the staff spent all their time trying to extract money from you. When arriving at Stansted we were held on the tarmac for about 30 mins because another Ryanair plane was boarding, they only use one door to their shed so cannot board and unload at the same time - pathetic!

Alicante to Stansted. Was stopped by Ryanair ground staff to check bag on boarding, fitted no problem as checked when I arrived at airport, the 2 plastic wheels was just above the rim, charged me €50, was told to hand baggage over at aircraft door, when I arrived at the aircraft door was told no need to go in hold, I can take it on board so was charged for no reason. Wrote to Ryanair to complain, received standard response by email, not sure if they even read the letter. Never again, would rather pay more to fly with another airline as Ryanair's aim seems to be to make up for the cheap fares with other charges!