Ryanair Luggage Allowances
Ryanair have become the leaders of the "extra charges" when booking your
flights and charging to place luggage in the hold is one of them. If you can
manage with their generous 10kg hand luggage then that's the way to go.
However,
if you must place luggage in the hold then you'll have to pay per bag (maximum
15kg) for each leg of your journey. Be sure to pay the bag fee when booking as
it's more expensive at check-in. And be sure to check in online (for which
there's another fee) as checking in at the airport is more expensive again.
Ryanair Cash Passport - November 2011
Ryanair used to accept the Visa Electron card as a
way to avoid fees but then moved on to accepting various MasterCard
Prepaid Debit Cards. However, they have again moved the goalposts by
introducing their own “Ryanair Cash Passport" as the only way to avoid booking fees.
This prepaid Mastercard costs £6 but each cardholder receives a £6
Ryanair travel voucher. Beware, however, of the card’s
terms and conditions
which include:
-
£2.50 per month ‘inactivity fee’ if the card if not used for six months
-
·
5.75% foreign transaction fee
-
· a
£2 foreign ATM charge
-
· £2
fee for using UK cash points
-
· 50p
per transaction at a UK shop or restaurant (free until April 2012)
-
·
Card holders will need to load the card with a minimum of £150
The key to using this card is to make sure that you make at
least one purchase every six months within the UK. This only costs 50p and
avoids the ‘inactivity fee’ whilst allowing you to avoid Ryanair booking fees of
£6 per person per flight.
Please take a look at the
Ryanair website directly for an explanation of all their fees and luggage
allowances as we cannot keep up with them here!
And remember ... When Ryanair states a limit of 15kg this doesn't mean that
when travelling as a couple one can carry 20kg and the other 10kg. "All baggage allowances are
personal and cannot be combined". This nonsense is being enforced to the
extent that people are having to repack at the check in desk so that each
individual bag conforms to the weight limit (particularly a nightmare for
families with young children).
The result is long waits at the check-in desks as people juggle the contents
of their luggage between bags. Just what the airline claim they are trying to
prevent! Strangely, having checked in online you still have to wait in the same
queue to drop off any bags so online check-in is of no advantage if you have
hold luggage (well that was certainly our experience at Bergamo airport
recently).
One thing to remember in their favour is that if you travel light and book
early you can get some incredible bargains.
Flights to Spain
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