Ryanair – is it really as cheap as chips?

Hardly a week goes by when Ryanair hits the headline. Despite criticism, their passenger figures continue to fly high. Here EWN reporter Heidi Wardman asks Britons in Spain what they think about the low cost airline.

 EWN asked readers how they feel about Ryanair’s latest revelation to introduce a ‘Ryanair Cash Passport’ via a prepaid Mastercard which would allow travellers to save on admin fees.

Senior Forensic Scientist, Jody Griffiths who lives in Malvern, said “I have only flown with Ryanair once and it was a complete nightmare.

My Father-in-Law had agreed to take my Husband and I to the airport but they changed it from Birmingham to East Midlands with very little notice, which was much too far to expect him to travel at night. In the end we were forced to cancel the flights as we could not get to the newly appointed airport, and although it was Ryanair’s change of itinery rather than ours it took months of angry emails to get any compensation.”

“After that we vowed that we would never be tempted to “go cheap” again because it wasn’t worth the aggravation in the long-run, and when you account for all of the additions that keep mounting up then you probably don’t make a huge saving anymore anyway!” he said.

Translator and Interpreter from Torrevieja, Rafael Rodrigo-Morgan, said: “this is just another one of Ryanair’s money grabbing schemes that helps to justify a totally ridiculous pricing structure that wishes to claim to be a “no frills” airline but in the long run can cost as much as some of the lower budget charters once all the hidden costs are tallied.”

Meanwhile, 43- year old Barmaid, Faye Spencer from Playa Flamenca said that “People opt for Ryanair because when you initially start trawling for flights they appear to be the cheapest.

“I don’t always notice all of the additional charges until its too late, or I’ve reached a point where I’ve spent so long in-putting my personal information I just cannot be bothered to start the process again with another airline. So I just go with it.”

“Either way I’ve never really had reason to complain about the service so the admin fee isn’t going to put me off.”

Computer Programmer from Las Filipinas, Steve Monk-Dalton, stated that “I think we get things quite easy with the cost of flights. Ryanair is still a cheap option, although the hidden charges are annoying.

If they were up-front about these on the initial quote, it wouldn’t be a problem! Let’s face the facts here, it is often cheaper to fly to Spain from the UK than to travel half the length of the UK by rail or by car!

“You must account for the fact that Ryanair is a budget airline, so it is pretty basic. But it gets you there!“

Secondary School Teacher from Villamartin, Kate Sloan, revealed that “I used to use Ryanair a lot when I was making regular trips between Spain and the UK.

I don’t think that there are “hidden costs” as there is plenty of publicity about their extra charges.”

“If people choose not the read the small print before starting to book that’s their choice! At the end of the day, even with all the “added extras” Ryanair are normally still the cheapest airline for the journeys which I make, so I am happy to travel with them.”

She went on to admit that “I did get an electron card when that was the free method of payment, then a prepaid Mastercard after that and no doubt I will apply for their prepay card.”

Builder, Daniel Sampson from Cabo Roig, commented that “I’ve read about the card on their website, and think it sounds like a good idea.”

Finally, Retired Accountant, Colin Finlay from Torrevieja, stated that “Why do the Brits always have to find something to complain about? €10 surcharge is really not the end of the earth if you ask me.

We all have a choice of who we fly with, so at the end of the day if you don’t like Ryanair or some of their policies then you don’t have to fly with them.”