Doesn't their website give you the specific rules and restrictions (size, weight, number of items)?

Of course it does -

http://www.easyjet.com/EN/Planning/baggage.html

- scroll down to 'Hand baggage'.

Yes they are different than major carriers.

I took Easyjet in the summer.....only ONE item allowed as hand luggage
I had to stuff my purse into may carry on.

There is size limit but no weight limit. The stipulation is you should be able to put it into the overhaed bin without assistance.

I'm fascinated by which airlines these "bigger" and "major" carriers are.

Just two airlines in the world have ever carried more international passengers than Easyjet did last year: Ryanair and Lufthansa.

Easyjet carries about twice the number of international passengers minor, US domestic centred, carriers like American do, and more than real global airlines like Air France, KLM or BA. No other US airline caries even a third the number of international passengers Easyjet do.

The significant question is "how do the weird policies of US airlines differ from real airlines like Ryanair or Easyjet?"

There is size limit but no weight limit. The stipulation is you should be able to put it into the overhaed bin without assistance.>>

they have special measuring gauges next to the departure gate [and elsewhere]. i fell foul of this once when the wheels of my carry-on bag meant that the bag wouldn't fit, and they made me pay to put it in the hold. so I am now very careful about measuring any bag it make sure it fits.

however easyjet are generally very easy to deal with - eg unlike Ryanair you can "pool" your baggage allowances [ie if there are two bags between 2 of you, you look at the total, not what each of them weighs] and once you're on the plane, no-one cares if you've got two or more bags.

When I flew Easyjet , ther were no seat numbers assigned
I guess one has to pay extra for it or feel like you are on a train to Calcutta.
Cannot say I enjoyed the experience.

Easyjet are now offering allocated seating on some routes. Recently flew from Glasgow to Paris and were offered it. They are a pretty good airline anyway, infinitely superior to Ryanair.

That's very interesting, I never would have thought they carried more international passengers than Air France, etc. Because Air France not only has long-haul flights from North and South America (and maybe other continents, don't know), but also many international flights in the same sense Easyjet does, such as to Spain or Italy, etc.

IN any case, they do have smaller airplanes and that could be pertinent to this question. I've flown Easyjet and liked them a lot. And they certainly do have fewer planes than "major" airlines like Air France, so it is amazing they can carry more passengers if they have a smaller fleet than many other airlines, and smaller planes.

If you go over the weight or size limit, do they charge you more on the spot or refuse to let you fly?

What are the typical excess costs if they allow you to fly?

I decided It would be safer to pay the baggage check fee of 14 Euros. If bags are to big at the gate it will cost 40 Euros. Given how inexpensive the flights are, it is a small price to pay.

Thanks for all of your help!

14 euros is cheap for a bag check.

Reviving this thread to see if anyone can answer. Our carryon bags seem to be 2 cms too big if I go by Easyjets carryon size of 56 cms. Is this enforced? We are booking flights and would rather pay the checked baggage fee now rather than at the gate. But if our bags will pass, I would rather not pay it.

Thanks.

It really depends how sticky they are being. I have never had to measure my carry on, but they do have the means to do so at the check-in gate so if they ask you to I suppose they could force you to check it...sometimes it comes down to who is serving you and what kind of day they have had.

I've never had to use the check-in gauge and I've never seen anyone forced to check it, these are sensible people not Ryanair. The gauge seems to align with the overhead locker (in the US the lockers are much bigger as the floor of the planes are lower.). So the critical measurement is the long dimension (i'd call it the height when parked ready to be pulled around), if they cannot force the door closed they have a problem and it needs to go in the hold. I've not seen what happens then.

One trick I've pulled is to not load it like they ask (which is handle to the centre) but handle to the outside, that seems to give around an extra 20mm or so due to the curvature of the aircraft body allowing the handle to tuck out the way. No promises but that works for me.

Hope all that mindless detail helps

Have you left yet?

If you don't have soft-sided, crushable carryons, buy them, or mid-size backpacks. They don't have to be expensive because they don't need to be terribly durable or long'lasting. Since you are already paying to check a bag, and are unlikely to go over what you paid for, before you take your Easy Jet flight, stuff as much stuff as you can into your checked bags so that the crushable carryon bag will absolutely fit in any "measurement" box.

Thanks for all the information-I just paid the fees for checking four bags-it s worth the peace of mind of not worrying whether the bags will fit.

Hi, I found the no seat designation at check in really weird. Really, at that point didn't see why not. Also my husband pointed out that in case of a disaster that a confirmed seating arrangement is very useful.

When boarding we found out that while no seats were reserved, there was an alternate line for those who paid more to enter first and therefore have first choice of seats. Again weird. But damn cheap so there you are.

I flew Easyjet this summer, I prepurchased luggage check in, just in case, used it too,( didn't want to carry bag really ) Its always cheaper to pre pay on discount airlines( I have used Vueling too). I didn't give a hoot about seat assignments, since our tickets from Barcelona to Paris were 50 euros ( and that included the fee checked bag !) I hardly found it like being on a plane to Calcutta like one poster said, wow, it was a male, but frankly that sort of post makes me think of a "princess " attitude. Plane was clean and on time. what more does a person want when taking a cheap flight?

lucyp: "Hi, I found the no seat designation at check in really weird."

You must not be from the States. For instance - Southwest flights never have assigned seating. Even when you pay extra for early check in or full 'business' fares.

Easyjet are introducing allocated seats on all flights from November 2012. Until now, they thought that allocating seats made boarding slower, and their timetables are very tight with short turnround times between flights - usually 45 minutes or so.

Our carryon bags seem to be 2 cms too big if I go by Easyjets carryon size of 56 cms. Is this enforced? We are booking flights and would rather pay the checked baggage fee now rather than at the gate. But if our bags will pass, I would rather not pay it.>>

I have to disagree with bilboburger when he says that easyjet don't enforce their carry-on size restrictions. I got caught at Bristol airport when they rejected my carry-on bag at the gate because the wheels took it slightly over-size, and had to pay double to put it in the hold. however on the return trip from Barcelona, they didn't give a fig for the size of the bag but were jealous about enforcing the "one item of carry-on" rule, even applying it to cameras!

I would put the bag/s in the hold; it means that you can take an extra bag on board, and don't have to worry about its all fitting into the one case. and don't worry about the "no allocated seats" - you just walk on and find a seat, like on a train or bus!

annhig, I'm sure we are both right. I've never seen it, you have and I have no idea what percentage attract the staff's attention.

They do certainly enforce the one bag rule, I has to stand behind some guy (I'm sure he was really nice) who could not understand that one bag meant "one bag" and had turned up with three. Still I get frustrated when I have to force my "bum-bag" into my carry on.

Bilbo - they are certainly not consistent, as my experience in Bristol and Barcelona demonstrates, and I'm sure that yours is equally valid. I hate having to squeeze my handbag into the carry-on too, and prefer to put my main bag in the hold; almost invariably, by the time we've cleared passport control, the bags have arrived on the carousel.

I just flew them from Bordeaux to Madrid and they were very serious about the one carryon rule. Some young woman somehow didn't believe them (I have no idea why not, some people are clueless) as they tell it upon checkin and of course, you should find out when you buy the ticket. So she made the mistake of having a super large "purse" which was really the size of another large tote/carryon, plus a 20 inch suitcase or so that was already stuffed to the limit. She was there at the desk desperately trying to stuff it all in the bag but it wouldn't fit, of course, as they wouldn't let her by with two. I think somehow she managed by taking some stuff out and wearing it (I think she had a very large jacket in the suitcase).

I don't understand that rule exactly, but I guess it's to avoid arguments over what is a purse versus "personal item" as I know on many flights I'm on, some people carry large totes/backpacks and want to call them a personal item when they are maybe 10 times as large as an average purse. At least this way, one item is one item.

I don't understand that rule exactly, but I guess it's to avoid arguments over what is a purse versus "personal item" as I know on many flights I'm on, some people carry large totes/backpacks and want to call them a personal item when they are maybe 10 times as large as an average purse. At least this way, one item is one item.>>

Christina, mainly, i think it's to speed up boarding. it's much easier if people have only one bag to stow in the cabin which is a known size or smaller. it also increases revenue from checked baggage as people who want to take more than a small case have to pay to put a bag in the hold.

Hi all, im a backpacker traveller. I have not bought any hold lugage. But i have a backpack with me, can i know if it consider a hand lugage which allow me to bring onboard by hand carry? If i need to buy the check in lugage, but have already bought the ticket online with standard not flexi ticket, can i still add in and purchase check in bag online?
Thanks alot.

You need to look at the size and weight restrictions on the airlines website and ensure yours fits these.

Count on the rules being enforced. The surprise to deny you boarding I think would most likely not be worth 14E, would it?

I really fail to understand how these questions arise when it is stated very clearly on the website. Why would anyone believe an answer on a forum that does not reflect the company's policy?

Obviously, maybe sometimes it has not been severely enforced.. but when it IS..

fan123: Welcome to Fodors. Instead of tacking your question on to an old thread you probably should start a new thread w/your own question. What may happen (and looks like it happened here) folks don't notice the dates and answer the original question and don't see yours.

I personally am not sure about buying bag check on line later since I've never tried it. Start a new thread and ask again.

until you start a new thread I believe you can add luggage until a few hours before departure. Go and try to do so.

Fan123 it is cheaper to prepurchase online your luggage check in, yes, you can buy it at airport, it will be at least 2x as much though.
It all comes down to size and weight, measure you bag, if its too big its too big and doesn't matter if its a backpack , hand bag, rolled suitcase etc. Measure well.

If your size it too big, go online and buy checked bag. I would . Easyjet website is easy to use .