Ryanair has suggested it may eliminate checked baggage. Cabin baggage allowance may be 10 kilo. Good idea?

That would be disastrous for most international visitors!

Good idea??? Not.

If Im travelling light with just one 33" case it weighs in at around 28kg, but then again I'd never travel Ryanair - BA is usually cheaper given timings/comfort.

I think I heard the lavatories will be replaced by seats.

GSteed, did you read Travel View in the Sunday Observer? Joanne O'Connor was spot on when she wrote:
"Being a regular Ryanair customer is like being trapped in an unhealthy relationship. They won't return your calls, won't promise to be there for you when things go wrong--in fact, they can't promise anything other than a cheap ride, but, seduced by the lifestyle they offer (the holiday home in France, the week-ends in Italy), you keep coming back for more. When things go wrong, you are left feeling used and angry."

However, the columnist goes on to make some good points about Ryanair...particularly noting the airline seems to be positioning itself as a niche airline for customers looking for a quick week-end break. Apparently, that type of customer already accounts for over half its tickets anyway.

For international visitors, the good news is that Ryanair has forced the regular airlines to be more competitive. You won't find 99p flights on BA, but you can still find some reasonable prices, sometimes on BA, sometimes on Europe's other budget airlines.

Personally I think it's good news. Most times I use Ryanair, I'm just going on a short hop for a weekend and only take a small bag with me. The savings Ryanair make will all be passed on to the customer, so the price of my tickets will be reduced. If I'm going for a longer stay, all I have to do is check if their competitors are less than €50 more expensive as that's what they'll be charging for checked luggage.

"The savings Ryanair will make will all be passed on to the customer..."


Yeah, and there's this bridge in Brooklyn you might be interested in buying, too!

Might one asume that it would be an option to buy a seat for a bag that would have been checked under the "old system"?

At the prices I have enjoyed at the past, I would still fly Ryanair, even if I had to buy a seat for any bag over 10 kilos.

As a corollary, I wonder if they are finding increased demand for commercial freight?

I remain a Ryanair fan.

Best wishes,

Rex

TopMan - ok, maybe not "all" - because they do want their profits to increase, however, the budget airline market is ever-expanding, and traditional airlines have started to compete. It's a competitive market now and Ryanair will need to compensate their passengers for having to pay for checked luggage - otherwise they will go elsewhere. This can only be a good thing for everyone - especially those of us that don't take much baggage for short-hop trips!

I can't stand the idea of baggage limits. Whilst BA has limits they have never once asked me for money when my cases are too heavy. As for handbaggage they don't even bother weighing it.

All these cheap airlines are inconvenient - RyanAir fly to/from strange airports. I predict a downturn in budget travel in line with the poor performing world economies - those with less won't be able to afford to travel even on budget airlines so the top end of the industry will experience a resurgence.

m_kingdom2 - don't give up the day job - I doubt you'd make it as an economist! With the severe downturn in economies over the past few years it has been the budget airlines who have flourished with some of the big names floundering.

MK what fantasy world do you live in? I have a feeling you actually sell meat pies working in an east end stall and live your alter ego through this site. Cop on to yourself.

The truly wealthy are not so gauche to comment on other peoples lifestyles through lack of money, it is bad manners pet. Give up the Hyacinth Bucket act as "occasionally" you actually come through as a real person.

Now get on the plane and granb a seat before someone else does!

Whilst the budget travel industries have experienced an increase in business, their popularity is flagging - hence new measures to increase profits. Easyjet is worth far less when they were first floated on the stock exchange. Luxury travel, I'm talking hotels here rather than airlines, has experienced and upsurge with many more luxury class properties opening in the past few years than any other time.

Luxury airlines per se don't exist so it's hard to comment. Those wishing to fly Business class or better will usually choose one of the big names such as BA who deliver wonderful service at this level (in comparison to other carriers). The whole airline industry has experienced a downturn since September 11th, the major airlines were the ones initially hit, but now the whole industry is suffering.

Plates, SiobhanP - well said.

MK2 the major airlines are hemorraging money. Some of the major airlines have lost up to $5 billon in a year. United Airlines is in bankruptcy. Continental Airlines has been there twice! American Airlines (my FF airline) has been on the verge. Hardly a resurgance! Budget airlines such as Southwest and Jet Blue are profitable.

When I flew to Rome from London this past Feb. I could have flown BA for 143 GBP. Instead, I flew Ryan Air for 38 GBP. I like BA - I flew them to London and Berlin last fall. But, like Rex, I remain a Ryan Air fan and as BTilke points out they have brought competition into the marketplace. This is good for consumers.

I've flown Ryanair in the past and was very pleased. However, NO WAY I'm going to be able to fly from the US (these are never weekenders...always at least 2 weeks) and use an airline that refuses checked luggage and limits carryon to 10 kilos. This simply forces me off that airline. Crap!

And, for international flyers, it isn't only an amount of luggage space issue. There are things we may wish to travel with but can't under current rules carry into a cabin. Guess Ryanair is thumbing its nose at the US travellers.

What I liked was the suggestion that one should buy clothes at one's destination.
Why didn't I think of that?

From what I've heard it's only going to be on selected routes. At the moment over 70% of Ryanair passengers have a journey of 2 days or less. By getting rid of the checked luggage they will firstly save money on not having to pay baggage handlers, and they will also need less fuel. It also reduces their turnaround time. Apparently they estimate the saving will be £5 per ticket, and this will be passed on to the customer.

If you don't like it, don't fly with them - there are plenty of others that will!

I don't know if it would be impossible for them to operate only for weekend travelers -- and businesspeople, of course. The argument that this has to be those with second homes in Europe doesn't make sense. A lot of Europeans like to get away for a long weekend. A lot of people in the US like to do that locally, also. That may be what they want--buseinsspeople.. It doesn't seem such a bad idea to me (from a business point of view), and those using Ryanair for very cheap addon connections to their international trips would have to fly another regular airline. Maybe they just don't want that business.

I think you're all misunderstanding what's going on at Ryanair.

Ryanair believes it's done well because it's clever. Above all, it believes that customers have no idea what motivates customers - but that Ryanair does.

So it flies to remote airports, makes interline flying impossible, provides zero compensation when things go wrong expects you to turn up hours early and provides zero customer service. Is flagrantly duplicitous in how it describes prices. Stuff that gets customers and travel writers furious. But the customers return.

So Ryanair concludes that it knows what motivates customers - and, on 1-2 hr flights, that's price, price and price. Even if it costs more.

Get rid of baggage handlers, or whatever comes next, and customers will put up with that too. There's nothing sophisticated like "targetting weekenders". Just the simple belief that the formula that worked once, will keep on working.

But it never does. Sooner or later, all businesses get hubris. They decide they can tell their customers how to live. And no-one can do that. Customers decide there are lots of other guys who understand them better.

Leary's "let them buy stuff at their destination" is Ryanair's hubris moment. He's got a new plane arriving every two weeks for the next few years. With arrogance like his, lots of those planes are going to be empty.

If you own shares in Ryanair, now would be a good time to bail out.