We have need this summer to travel from Paris to Tuscany (Pisa is probably the closest airport to where we are staying with family, but we’re flexible) and then from Tuscany to Amsterdam. RyanAir and EasyJet both seem to have excellent fares and work for our timing, but I’m reading a lot of comments that mention terrible reviews, big add-on charges and other quirks about these airlines that are giving me pause. Would love to hear from folks familiar with these airlines about your experiences – what should we know before booking, or should we just forget about these two and look at different carriers altogether? There will be three of us – my husband, me and our 15-year-old daughter. Thanks in advance!

I have not flown RyanAir, but I have flown EasyJet several times and would fly them again. Yes, there are add-on fees, but so there are for legacy carriers these days. Just don't hit buy until you have taken a hard look at the real bottom line, which will include a fee for using a credit card, and compared it to the alternatives. One time I found TAP cheaper for a flight to Portugal.

If you travel heavy, you might find these airlines more expensive than you expect, I only have one small checked bag. Board with your own food and water, and don't expect much space.

Most of the bad reviews are from people who think rules don't apply to them.

I have flown both Ryanair and Easyjet several times without any problems. Upon reflection I feel Easyjet was the better experience. As has been suggested, it does pay to check the terms and conditions, additional fees etc. And compare fares with a "full service" airline. Also, do check carefully EXACTLY which airports are being used. Ryanair especially, has been known be somewhat creative in naming its routes in the past with some airports being less close to the intended destination than people thought.

First thing the PP needs to know is that Ryanair uses Beauvais, which is >50 miles north of Paris. Not CDG or Orly.

Consider taking a train. May be a little longer time on board but some of that would offset airport and transfer time. Better scheduling, too. I don't know how costs would compare.

Good point about the train. If you're not familiar with European trains start here: http://seat61.com/index.html - cheapest tickets are bought well ahead, just like planes.

Thanks, everyone! I will look very closely and what EasyJet and RyanAir offer. Thanks for the note on BVA, rkkwan -- I did notice that and the location would work out OK for us if that's what we decide to do. I'm more concerned about Amsterdam -- one of those airlines, I can't remember which one, flies into an airport called Eindhoven (sp?) and I'm not sure that's convenient at all. NoFlyZone and thursdaysd, I did look into trains and was worried that it would take too long to get from point A to point B -- but I'll check that again. We are planning to take the train from Amsterdam back to Paris. Thanks, everyone, for taking the time to respond. If you have more information to share, I'm all ears!

Have flown easyJet several times and absolutely no issues. Worth it to me to pay extra for easyJet Plus which avoids the usual looooong lines for bag drop, larger/additional cabin bag, etc.

In the past I've avoided Ryan Air at all costs - but apparently it has improved in the last couple of years. I'm still inclined to avoid them though.

'Most of the bad reviews are from people who think rules don't apply to them.'

That's it.
Easyjet is better in terms of service.
Ryanair is ugly on that level, but they are safe, on time and cheap. Don't expect ANY service, no help, no humanity.

Eindhoven is a city in itself, about 120 kms or 2 hours from Amsterdam.

We flew from Munich to Rome recently on EasyJet and I would just second that you read everything carefully before you buy. You can take ONE thing aboard--not one bag and a personal item. You should pay for that bag when you buy the ticket because it will cost you a lot of money later--especially at the airport.

Would I fly EasyJet again? I would measure time and cost against other transportation. By the time we got from the hotel to the airport and checked in, we probably didn't gain more than a few hours in time. We also had to add in transportation costs to and from the Munich and Rome airports. Even then, it was a little cheaper but a lot more stressful, compared to walking across the street to the hauptbahnhof in Munich.

Have flown easy jet a number of times with checked baggage- just read the conditions - some don't then complain. Enjoyed flying with them.

Thanks, again, for all the good information. Now I've discovered a third airline -- Transavia. Anyone familiar with them? Thoughts?

There are MANY budget airlines in Europe. Use skyscanner.net.

Vueling fly from Orly to Florence.

Transavia have been around for several years, before the days of budget airlines. It's not worth overthinking these airlines on such a short flight.

I always thought I wouldn't ever fly RyanAir but did last fall. It was the only non-stop flight offered so went with them, saving me many hours of travel time . It was on time, no problems. The seats were rather uncomfortable for my two hour flight, molded plastic I believe, but I would book them again. Plus the fare was very inexpensive, no problems at all. I had to check luggage and pay a fee but still was a very inexpensive flight. Think a more budget Southwest!

Thanks, all! We are booked -- RyanAir from Paris to Pisa, Transavia from Pisa to Amsterdam. The times and airports work fine for our purposes, and we're looking forward to the adventure. Thanks to everyone who shared their thoughts!

I've flown Easyjet numerous times and really like them. They are like any other airline to me, but cheaper, I don't understand the complaints. The only slight difference is that they allow one carryon, but that doesn't mean you also get a personal item on top of that. So I just make sure enough room in my carryon to stuff in my purse. But the size of that one carryon allowed is quite large compared to some other intra-European airlines. And yes, baggage is an add-on fee just like it is for a lot of other airlines nowadays.

People who complain don't make any sense to me (and usually they are jsut people who don't bother to read the very clear conditions stated when you book -- you can't book a ticket on them without being given several choices which are clear as to what they include) as the bottom line is the bottom line as to cost, who cares if there are some line items separately if the total is still a lot lower. The plane itself seemed just like any other plane in terms of size and room.

I saw some people at the line for Easyjet at some airport who had one carryon that was overstuffed and then were told they couldn't have two items, so they couldn't fit their super large purse into their carryon. So they were on the floor trying to make it fit, boo hoo. I suppose they would complain but they just didn't bother to read the rules, I guess and were also stretching the limit of their carryon to begin with.