Ryanair, Europe’s No 1 airline, today (6 Sep), as part of its “Always Getting Better” programme announced new reduced checked bag fees (and increased check-in bag sizes) to encourage more customers to check in bags and reduce the number of customers with 2 bags at the boarding gates. As too many customers are availing of Ryanair’s improved 2 free carry-on bags service, and with high load factors (97% in August) there is not enough overhead cabin space for this volume of carry-on bags, which is causing boarding/flight delays.
To encourage more customers to check-in some bags and reduce the volume of carry-on bags, Ryanair will introduce the following bag policy changes on all flights from 1st November next:
- The check-in bag allowance will increase from 15kg to 20kg for all bags
- The standard check-in bag fee will be cut from €/£35 to €/£25 for this 20kg bag
- Only Priority Boarding customers (including Plus, Flexi Plus & Family Plus) will be allowed to bring two carry-on bags on the aircraft*
- All other (i.e. non-priority) customers will only be allowed to bring one smaller carry-on bag on board the aircraft, while their second (bigger) wheelie bag must be placed in the hold (free of charge) at the boarding gate.
Ryanair’s Kenny Jacobs said:
“These bag policy changes will cost Ryanair over €50m p.a. in reduced checked bag fees. However, we believe offering bigger bags at reduced fees will encourage more customers to consider checking-in a bag, which will reduce the high volume of customers we have with 2 carry-on bags at the boarding gates, which is causing flight delays due to large numbers of gate bag and cabin bag offloads.
We hope that by restricting non-priority customers to one small carry-on bag – their wheelie bag must be placed in the hold, free of charge at the boarding gate – this will speed up the boarding of flights and eliminate flight delays being caused by not having sufficient overhead cabin space on busy flights to accommodate over 360 (182 customers x 2 bags) carry-on bags.
These lower bag fees and increased bag size allowances will come into play for all bookings for travel after 1st November, and we hope our customers will enjoy the savings of our new simplified bag policy.”
* Priority Boarding can be purchased for just €/£5 at the time of booking or added to a booking for €/£6 and is available up to one hour prior to scheduled departure.
Ryanair’s New Baggage Policy – Media Q & A
Q1. What is Ryanair’s new baggage policy?
A. From November, we will cut the cost of a checked bag from €/£35 to €/£25 and increase the bag size from 15kg to 20kg.
- The check-in bag allowance will increase from 15kgs to 20kgs for all bags
- The standard check-in bag fee will be cut from €/£35 to €/£25 for this 20kg bag
- Only Priority Boarding customers (including Plus passengers) will be allowed to bring two carry-on bags on the aircraft
- All other (i.e. non-priority) customers will only be allowed to bring one smaller carry-on bag on board the aircraft, while their second (bigger) wheelie bag must be placed in the hold (free of charge) at the boarding gate.
Q2. Why is Ryanair making this change?
A. To reduce the number of flight delays caused by too many customers arriving at the gate with 2 carry-on bags.
Q3. Will customers still be able to take 2 pieces of cabin baggage on board?
- Yes for Priority Boarding customers who will still be able to bring 2 bags, 1 normal (55cm x 40cm x 20cm) and 1 small (35cm x 20cm x 20cm) into the cabin.
- No for non-priority customers who will put their bigger (wheelie) cabin bag in the hold (free of charge), and will be able to take their smaller bag into the cabin.
Q4. How will this change be implemented?
A. There will be two queues at the gate: Priority customers 2/bags and non-priority/1 bag only.
Q5. How much is Priority Boarding and can it be added to bookings?
A. €/£5 at the time of the flight booking. It can be added after booking (for €/£6) up to 1 hour before the scheduled flight departure time, via the Ryanair app.
Q6. What about 15kg bag?
A. The 15kg bag will increase to 20kg.
Q7. Will non-priority customers be able to check their normal cabin bag at the check-in desk instead of the boarding gate?
A. No, all cabin bags must be brought to the boarding gate where the bigger one will be placed in the hold, free of charge.
Q8. What about bookings before the new policy was implemented?
A. The new baggage policy will start on 1st November, and will apply to all bookings made before and after 1st Nov, and flights from that date onwards.
Q9. What if non-priority customers refuse to put their bag in the hold?
A. They will not be allowed to travel (without refunds).
Q10. What about customers with infants; can they still bring a changing bag?
A. Yes. A small (5kg) baby bag may be carried by customers with infants.
Q11. Why is there a €/£10 supplement at Easter, Christmas and on longer routes during the peak summer months?
A. The €/£10 supplement reflects the increased handling costs of significant additional checked bags during these busy periods.
Q12. Will it still be cheaper to book a checked-in bag at the time of booking?
A. Yes. The 20kg bag will be reduced in price to €/£25 at the time of booking only. Checked-in bags added after the time of booking or made at the airport will cost €/£40.
Q13. Where can I find the routes where the supplement applies?
A. These selected routes will be highlighted on the website and in the app from today.
Q14. What about customers with waivers for medical items – can they still take them onboard?
A. Yes, subject to contacting our special assistance line in advance and complying with any requirements of our special assistance team.
Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (5 Sep) released August traffic statistics as follows:
- Traffic grew by 1.2m to 12.7m customers (+10%)
- Load factor rose 1% to 97%
- Rolling annual traffic to July grew 13% to 126.2m customers.
|
Aug 16 |
Aug 17 |
Change |
| Customers |
11.5M |
12.7M |
+10% |
| Load Factor |
96% |
97% |
+1% |
Ryanair’s Kenny Jacobs said:
“Ryanair’s Aug traffic grew by 10% to 12.7m customers, while our load factor jumped 1% to 97%, on the back of lower fares and the continuing success of our “Always Getting Better” customer experience programme.
Customers can look forward to even lower fares when they make advance bookings for winter 2017, so there’s never been a better time to book a low fare flight on Ryanair. All customers who wish to book a city break or holiday should do so now on the Ryanair.com website or mobile app, where they can avail of the lowest fares in Europe.”
Ryanair, Europe’s No 1 airline, today (18 Aug) again urged its customers to comply fully with its cabin bag rules, which are being repeatedly flouted, resulting in boarding delays during this peak summer season. Ryanair customers enjoy one of the most generous cabin bag allowances in Europe and may bring one 10kg cabin bag and one smaller bag onboard. However, given Ryanair flights are 97% full this summer, customers have been reminded they must comply with the following bag rules:
Cabin bags – The maximum dimensions for cabin bags are:
- 1 normal cabin bag(55cm x 40cm x 20cm in size and 10kg in weight)
- 1 small bag(handbag, laptop bag, airport shopping bag etc)
Due to overhead locker cabin space limitations, only 90 normal cabin bags (55 x 40 x 20 cms) can be carried in the cabin and any remaining normal cabin bags can be carried free of charge in the aircraft hold. Both carry-on bags must fit in the sizer at the boarding gate and any oversized cabin bags will be refused, or where available, placed in the aircraft hold for a fee of £50/€50.
Priority Boarding:
Customers who purchase Priority Boarding are guaranteed to get their bag on board as they board the aircraft first. Priority Boarding can be added to a booking from just €5. Customers travelling on short 2-4 day breaks who wish to ensure their cabin bag doesn’t go in the hold, are advised to add Priority Boarding.
Check-in bags:
Customers who are travelling on holidays for longer periods and who wish to bring larger than 10kg bags are advised to select checked-in bags and check their luggage into the hold.
Ryanair’s Kenny Jacobs said:
“Despite our repeated messaging, some customers are still attempting to bring larger than permitted bags onboard, which are causing delays at the boarding gate. As advised, customers are permitted to bring a normal cabin bag and a smaller bag onboard.
However, many customers are repeatedly exceeding our cabin baggage allowance and we will be left with no choice but to review our policy should this practice continue.
Many of our flights are full given it’s the peak summer period and we urge customers to ensure that they travel with less carry-on bags where possible. Our aircraft can only carry 90 larger carry-on bags and our gate agents are rigorously enforcing our carry-on policy to avoid flight delays and ensure an enjoyable travel experience for all customers. Customers who wish to carry larger baggage are advised to purchase a checked-in bag.”
Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (17 Aug) launched a new dedicated booking platform in partnership with Erasmus Student Network, offering Erasmus students fare discounts, free bags and tailored travel offers.
Delivered as part of Year 4 of Ryanair’s “Always Getting Better” programme, this partnership offers Erasmus students a dedicated ESN booking platform where they can avail of:
- 15% flight discounts on the Ryanair.com website
- A free checked-in bag with every flight booked
- Weekly travel offers to enable Erasmus students to move more easily across Europe
- Tailored Ryanair in-journey offers on the mobile app
- A new community forum to share travel hints & tips launching soon
Ryanair’s Robin Kiely said:
“We are pleased to launch our brand new Erasmus Student Network platform, offering university students across Europe a range of exclusive flight offers, free bags and tailored discounts to suit their budget. Any Erasmus student with a valid ESNcard can sign up via the “MyRyanair” registration service and save even more while they travel on Europe’s biggest airline with the widest route network and the lowest fares.”
President of Erasmus Student Network, João Pinto said:
“We are excited to see this new booking platform go live, bringing so many travel opportunities to Erasmus students. This cooperation is a game-changer for young people with wanderlust who want to discover Europe during their exchange abroad. We look forward to seeing all those students benefiting from discounts and special offers to make their experience not only affordable, but also more enjoyable.”
For more information visit Ryanair.com
Almost 4,000 Extra Christmas Flights Added Across Europe
Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 airline, today (3 August) launched the countdown to Christmas, adding nearly 4,000 extra flights across its European network for the Christmas holidays. Customers can enjoy even more low fare getaways during the Christmas period, with over 700,000 additional seats added for travel between 17 December and 8 January now on sale on the Ryanair.com website.
Ryanair customers can choose from over 200 destinations across Europe, while enjoying the latest “Always Getting Better” initiatives including connecting flights through Rome Fiumicino and Milan Bergamo, long haul Air Europa flights on sale on the Ryanair.com website, a new partnership with the Erasmus Student Network and an enhanced Ryanair Rooms website – with much more to come.
Ryanair’s Robin Kiely said:
“The countdown to Christmas is officially underway with less than 5 months to go! Ryanair carried over 5 million customers over the last festive period and we’re ensuring even more customers will be flying home for Christmas on the lowest fares once more this year. We’ve added almost 4,000 extra flights across our entire European network for the Christmas holidays, with an additional 700,000 seats now on sale on the Ryanair.com website. Season’s greetings to all our customers.”
Ryanair, Europe’s No.1 airline, today (2 Aug) launched its latest customer experience improvements under Year 4 of its “Always Getting Better” programme which includes Alexa voice recognition – allowing customers to search flights, hotels and flight status on the Ryanair.com website.
Ryanair also announced it had chosen Zodiac to provide new slimline seats on its Boeing 737 MAX “Gamechanger” aircraft, which deliver in Spring 2019, and which have more space (more legroom and overhead lockers) due to Boeing’s redesign of the aircraft to remove the rear galley and relocate the two rear toilets into that space. This redesign combined with these Zodiac slimline seats will allow an additional 8 seats per aircraft (197 v 189) and Ryanair customers will enjoy a roomier 31” seat pitch – more legroom than British Airways and Lufthansa economy seats.
These Year 4 “AGB” initiatives are the latest steps in Ryanair’s journey to becoming the ‘Amazon of Travel’ and follow flight connections being trialled in Rome and Milan, long haul Air Europa flights on sale via Madrid, an exclusive partnership with the Erasmus Student Network, Apple Pay integration in an initial six markets and an enhanced Ryanair Rooms website – with much more to come.
Ryanair also celebrated carrying its one billionth passenger since its first flight took off from Waterford to London Gatwick, in July 1985. To celebrate its latest AGB improvements, and carrying one billion customers, Ryanair has launched a seat sale with 20% off fares on one millions seats for travel in November and December, which must be booked on www.ryanair.com by midnight Wednesday, 2nd August.
In London, Ryanair CMO Kenny Jacobs said:
“As we carry our one billionth guest since our first flight in 1985, we are pleased to announce more customer experience improvements under Year 4 of “AGB”. From today, Alexa voice recognition is available on Ryanair.com, allowing customers to search for flights and hotels, or check on the status of their flights, all through voice recognition technology. We’re also pleased that our new Boeing 737 Max “Gamechanger” aircraft will feature new ergonomic slimlime seats designed by Zodiac, which will further increase legroom to 31 inches.”
20% OFF OVER 1,000,000 SEATS THIS AUTUMN AND WINTER
Ryanair, Europe’s No. 1 airline, today (2 Aug) launched a massive “Thanks A Billion” seat sale to mark carrying its one billionth customer. Ryanair is thanking the one billion customers who have made it Europe’s biggest airline by offering 20% off 1 million seats across its European network for travel between 13 November and 15 December, ensuring even more savings for its customers.
These incredible seat sale fares are available for booking now until midnight (24:00hrs) on Wednesday (2 Aug) and can only be found on the Ryanair.com website.
Ryanair’s Kenny Jacobs said:
“To celebrate welcoming our billionth customer since our first flight in 1985, Ryanair is slashing fares across our European network in our ‘Thanks A Billion’ seat sale. There has never been a better time to book a low fare getaway with 20% off over 1 million seats across our entire European network for travel in November and December. This amazing offer will end at midnight on Wednesday, August 2nd, so customers should log on quickly and bag a bargain break today.”