Ryan Air carry-on baggage policy - Post your experiences here.
 

I hadn't flown Ryan Air since their new stricter baggage policy went into effect. (Only ONE piece that cannot be over 10kg can be carried aboard which supposedly includes purses etc) We wanted to do carry-on since we had a tight train connection to make on arrival in Tours. I chickened-out after finding that we were going to be both overweight and each going to be carrying our luggage plus a light bag. But prior to getting to the airport I found that I could not switch from carry-on to checked as I had already checked in online. At Stansted Insane Asylum, er, I mean Airport, we just went with the flow and decided not to try and check our bags because that would have meant standing in another line there. At Security, they weighed our bags at about 15kgs each and told us we'd probably have to check them at the gate. I figured it was going to cost the same so kept moving toward the gate. Granted our luggage wasn't huge and did fit into their little size checker with a little bit of effort. Arrived at the gate while boarding was taking place and waltzed right on without a problem. Perhaps one thing in our favor, I had opted for Priority Boarding. Anyone else have a similar experience or ?
PS We made our tight train connection by about one minute despite there being zero taxis at the airport at 2pm and having to take a bus shuttle to town center!

We will be flying Ryan Air in October to London Stansted after a big trip in France. So we will have to check bags.

Question: can we check in a 15kg bag and have 10kg bag as a carry on? We have never flown Ryan Air before so have no knowledge of their service.

Yes, you can do that. No problem there.

The procedures seem to differ.

After the 1-piece-only (10kg) rule got established by Ryanair, I had the hand luggage weighed right before security (not at bag drop/check-in, not at the gate); and in another case it never got weighed. I never use/used priority boarding.
Others have reported that the cabin luggage got indeed weighed at the gate.

One thing that first timers like aussie must keep in mind, though, is that the 1-piece-only rule includes also any shopping after security. Those purchases must also fit into your hand luggage. But: Even that latter rule I found not to be enforced. But I would not gamble on it.
I found the 15kg-rule for checked luggage to be enforced strictly at bag drop.

And you have to do online check-in and print boarding passes nowadays to avoid a relevant (around €30) surcharge. Therefore, travelers like aussie_10 must find a place (internet cafe, hotel) to get that done (it can be done 15 days in advance, though).

I think it greatly depends on the airport and the person at the gate. My friend just flew London - Dublin and her friend was charged something like £30 as her purse wouldnt fit into her carryon...ridiculous.

jamikins wrote: "I think it greatly depends on the airport and the person at the gate..."

That's how it is. From what I hear (not being a Ryanair user, I don't have personal experience) you are more likely to be done travelling London-Dublin than going the opposite direction.

When you travel Ryanair, you have to recognise that there is no way they can make a profit on the fares they charge. So they have to create additional revenue streams.

I use R.A. quite frequently. However, I recently flew accompanied by small children from Beauvais. It was a nightmare. The witch made everyone weigh their handluggage and delayed a huge queue. The small children had to stand for 45 minutes, they were becoming unruly and noisy all because of the horrible staff.Everyone was pushing There was absolutely no consideration and our biggest worry was if we would get seats together. I mean what do you do if a 1 year old and a 3 year old have to sit separately. O Leary has children now so he should understand. Politeness costs nothing so let the aged, infirm and small children ahead.

I think marypat describes very well the general attitude you have to accept when flying Ryanair.
There is no "loop hole" for those who usually are a bit late at the airport, have a bit too much luggage, or need a bit more attention.

If you are late, you don't fly.
If you have .1 kg of checked luggage above the limit, you pay.

If you need to get first on board, you pay for priority boarding. Ryanair does not have to be considerate or understanding. It simply costs €3 per person to get ahead of the queue, and it's your choice whether it's worth it or not. If you decide to save the money, you accept the hassle. Cause and effect.

Sometimes if you pay the premium for priority boarding the only priority you get is in getting through the gate and on to the bus. And the bus is a last-on, first-off system.

lol.. true, indeed.
I can hardly believe that I gave some point in defence of Ryanair, because that is definetely NOT my favorite carrier.

If you have a rucksack as check in baggage, you could leave all the straps dangling. They then send you off to hand it in at the oversized luggage checkin. If you were unscrupulous, you could walk around the corner and stuff an extra five kilos from your hand luggage into your rucksack. You could then tie up your straps properly before handing it in.

We recently flew From Milan (Bergamo Orio Al Serio) to Frankfurt. My friend had his art portfolio which was slightly higher than regulations and nobody even looked. And after carefully arranging things so that my backpack with purse inside weighed the right amount (also containing an SLR camera and bag) nobody even weighed it. In fact I saw several people with larger than acceptable carry ons and some which two or even three pieces! So it really all depends on the airport...