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Ryanair - Balancing the books
A target for abuse
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Eugene Gold Sunday 25 April 2010 |
I sense that when travel columnists get writer’s block and cannot think of anything better to do, they have a go at poor old Ryanair. To be fair, Ryanair do set themselves up as a target for abuse and so are frequently ‘in the news’ so to speak.
Catriona Wells, my colleague here at flights.co.uk, has mentioned Ryanair before with the result that the airline received a lot of positive support. So, let us examine the evidence, as Lloyd Grossman used to say.
Ryanair offer very low seat prices but charge extra for any additional services. Many complain that whilst this is ok if the services are truly separate and additional, it is a bit rum when they are not. There is a second line of argument that some additional services are actually over or unfairly priced. Food and snacks fall into this category where the price for an onboard KitKat chocolate bar is three or four times normal retail price.
Ryanair’s view is that they are an airline and not a catering company. Passengers are fully entitled to bring their own snacks, sandwiches and chocolate bars. For those that do not do so, Ryanair will provide the service at a price. To me, this sounds pretty reasonable and passengers should simply remember to shop before they fly.
One point I will make here is that food and certainly drinks need to be purchased in the departure area as you will not be able to carry liquids through security.
The more contentious issues relate to luggage where the fee for checked in luggage will increase from the current £15 to £20 per item next month. Passengers argue that luggage is part of flying but Ryanair say that every bag that is checked costs them money and it is ridiculous to expect that cost to be shared by passengers who travel light.
The big debate is going to be about plans to charge for use of the onboard toilets. These will be converted to become coin-operated, forcing passengers to pay £1 or one euro to spend a penny (younger readers are advised to ask their parents about this bit of terminology).
Implementing the toilet door charge is not going to happen this summer and, in this correspondent’s view may not happen at all. Ryanair's Stephen McNamara talked about reducing the number of onboard lavatories to make space for more conventional seats and also about changing the toilet behaviour of the passengers. This might be true but knowing Ryanair’s nose for a good storyline, it might also be a flash in the pan.
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Tim Oakins, Liverpool 21 April 2010, 04:48PM | |
Wow, charging to use the toilet in a plane is a step too far. It annoys me that you have to pay in railway stations. What’s next? Ryan Air charging extra for oxygen masks and life jackets? | |
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Catherine, Southhampton 30 April 2010, 05:31PM | |
I agree, these petty additional charges are ridiculous. Ryanair is further rubbishing its reputation with this one. | |
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sharon graham, newcastle 1 May 2010, 04:49AM | |
With the rock bottom prices Ryan Air charge I don't see why anyone would object to the extra charges here and there. If you don't want to pay extra for a kit kat take one with you, if you don't want to pay extra for luggage don't take luggage and if you don't want to pay to use the loo then make sure you go to the toilet before you board. People who complain about everything but continue to buy it just make me laugh. If Ryan Air has such a bad reputation why do people continue to fly with them? Very simple - cost. Everyone wants the best price and thats what they give you with or without the extra Euro for a pee. | |
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Jim Harrison, Wembley 4 May 2010, 08:34AM | |
I just don't believe that they are serious. This is a typical bit of Ryanair self-publicity. Last week BA had a toilet failure on a long haul flight and had to ask passengers to stop drinking. What is going to happen if you must go and can't pay?. No, it is a wind-up. | |
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Jane, Kent 7 May 2010, 01:02PM | |
Ryanair are still going to be one of the cheapest ways to fly even with these ridiculous additional charges. I cannot complain I have no other option but to fly cheap with them. | |
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jan, glasgow 1 June 2010, 12:38PM | |
Toilet charges could be counter productive. Most adults can last several hours unless they are drinking. Faced with the prospect of paying a euro/pound to use the toilet, I would consequently STOP buying any drinks on board, be they alcoholic or otherwise. I can wait for a drink until I get to the other end and so can most people. Once again, it all comes down to choice. As with everything to do with Ryanair, it is all move and counter move. Exorbitant food/drink prices. Don't buy it. Take your own. Ridiculous check in prices. Take hand luggage only. Wear any excess, even if you do look ridiculous. Believe me, everyone who travels Ryanair regularly, has seen this done. PRIORITY check in. It's not - so don't buy it. Once you accept that customer care is not a Ryanair priority, you can relax and enjoy your low cost flight, because they are the cheapest. I know - I have spent many hours trying to find cheaper, but it has NEVER happened. Bon voyage. | |
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TH, London 7 June 2010, 05:03PM | |
Of more concern to me than the toilet charge, is the fact that there will be only one toilet for almost 200 passengers. How can this be legal? It's all very well saying that they want to educate people to use the toilet before and after a flight, but for pregnant women, or people with certain medical conditions or disabilities that's not so easy. Can they really expect this many people to compete for one toilet on a 3 or 4-hr flight? If there is a massive queue for the one toilet, and I am also forced to pay £1 every time I need to use it, it will be impossible for me to fly with Ryanair again. I find it completely disgusting that Ryanair considers this an acceptable way to treat their passengers. | |
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