RyanAIr - London to Europe
Aug 26th, 2003, 06:09 AM
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RyanAIr - London to Europe
I would appreciate feedback and/or opinions of the RyanAir flights to European cities from London. Their rates seem excellent and I wondered whether these might be cropduster flights or just a great value. I mean, London to almost anywhere in Europe is under $50 - roundtrip! Makes day (or 2 day) trips for an American tourist in and out of London SEEM (emphasis on SEEM) a reasonable plan.
Thanks for any information,
Ron
Thanks for any information,
Ron
Aug 26th, 2003, 06:20 AM
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Used then from London Stansted to Frankfurt Hahn. No issues with them.
They generally used Stansted for their mainland european flights.
You will have to get a taxi/car or the stansted express to the airport which will add $$. The standsted express was 13 pounds and a private car was something like 80 pounds.
once you get to europe, the airport's they use are generally out from the city and less convenient.
They generally used Stansted for their mainland european flights.
You will have to get a taxi/car or the stansted express to the airport which will add $$. The standsted express was 13 pounds and a private car was something like 80 pounds.
once you get to europe, the airport's they use are generally out from the city and less convenient.
Aug 26th, 2003, 06:34 AM
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These flights ARE a great value. It is true that ryanair does not fly into the major airports, but it still fly's reasonable close in most cases to the city you will be going too. The transporation costs from the airport will still be cheaper then using a different airline. The flights are very nice.....but simple. They are a no frills airline. But hey, most flights in europe are relativly short.
Aug 26th, 2003, 06:51 AM
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Despite the seemingly "too good to be true" fares, Ryanair are a legitimate budget airline, modelling their operation on Southwest Airlines in the US I think. They fly a fleet of Boeing 737's not cropdusters by any means.
They do have stringent terms and conditions so check these out when booking. 15kg weight limit and a requirement to produce photo ID for all flights for example. Be sure to arrive in plenty of time for flight checkin, seats are on a first-come first-served basis. I've flown Ryanair without problems but if things do go wrong staff have a reputation of not always being the most helpful(experience of my friends). But then at the price what have you got to loose.
Be sure to check out the details for your destination on the Ryanair website before booking as some airports can be a bit out of town although a shuttle bus is usually available to meet flights when this is the case (the cost of these buses is not included in your flight ticket but is usually reasonable).
I suggest you check the following links:
http://www.ryanair.com/faqs/travel.html?id=1
http://www.ryanair.com/conditions.html
Have a good trip.
www.vistaphotos.com
They do have stringent terms and conditions so check these out when booking. 15kg weight limit and a requirement to produce photo ID for all flights for example. Be sure to arrive in plenty of time for flight checkin, seats are on a first-come first-served basis. I've flown Ryanair without problems but if things do go wrong staff have a reputation of not always being the most helpful(experience of my friends). But then at the price what have you got to loose.
Be sure to check out the details for your destination on the Ryanair website before booking as some airports can be a bit out of town although a shuttle bus is usually available to meet flights when this is the case (the cost of these buses is not included in your flight ticket but is usually reasonable).
I suggest you check the following links:
http://www.ryanair.com/faqs/travel.html?id=1
http://www.ryanair.com/conditions.html
Have a good trip.
www.vistaphotos.com
Aug 26th, 2003, 06:56 AM
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TO: Jack, Steve and KieranB
Wonderfully informative replies. Found the Stansted Express and will now check out the arriving airports in some cities. Its just amazing...You can fly into almost any European city and catch a flight out for such a pittance! I will have to give it a whirl!
Many thanks from a first-time London visitor,
Ron
Aug 26th, 2003, 07:05 AM
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Two other points about an airline that is, for what it is, excellent. But it has a system, and you can't try to beat their system.
1. It's really rather unusual to find fares such as you quote actually being available for the flight and date you want. Not only can the flight cost a bit more - but O'Leary at Ryanair is brilliant at avoiding mention of extras in the featured price - like tax. Go through the booking process and the price you pay is always different from the first quoted price.You are very, very, unlikely to get a round trip for $50. Indeed it's always worth cross-checking with conventional airlines' prices, unless you're getting a final quote that really is ridiculous
2. One of the reasons they're cheap is they don't offer you any help or compensation. If you're late for checkin, you may lose the seat (and, in practice, your cash). If a flight's cancelled, you just get your money back: getting home is your problem.
All fine, as long as you understand the rules. And if you fall foul of them, don't waste energy complaining. They have practically no "customer care" staff and are totally happy with their aggressive attitude.
But their safety record so far beats any conventional airline, and their punctuality is excellent by UK standards.
1. It's really rather unusual to find fares such as you quote actually being available for the flight and date you want. Not only can the flight cost a bit more - but O'Leary at Ryanair is brilliant at avoiding mention of extras in the featured price - like tax. Go through the booking process and the price you pay is always different from the first quoted price.You are very, very, unlikely to get a round trip for $50. Indeed it's always worth cross-checking with conventional airlines' prices, unless you're getting a final quote that really is ridiculous
2. One of the reasons they're cheap is they don't offer you any help or compensation. If you're late for checkin, you may lose the seat (and, in practice, your cash). If a flight's cancelled, you just get your money back: getting home is your problem.
All fine, as long as you understand the rules. And if you fall foul of them, don't waste energy complaining. They have practically no "customer care" staff and are totally happy with their aggressive attitude.
But their safety record so far beats any conventional airline, and their punctuality is excellent by UK standards.
Aug 26th, 2003, 07:47 AM
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They have a good safety record, however, there have been a number of complaints made about Ryannair pilots being aggressive.
This is due to an incentive scheme (similar to Continental's in the US) whereby the pilots and staff get paid more if the planes depart and arrive on time.
As a result there have been a number of instances of Ryannair pilots ignoring what Air Traffic Control tell them and just being aggressive to the flight controllers and in some cases ignoring them to ensure they land on time.
Nothing bad has happened yet. I believe easyJet pilots were also mentioned as being aggressive but Ryannair were singled out.
In my opinion I would never fly them or easyJet again. Both tend to fly into and out of really inconvenient airports (easyJet does a have a few flights out of LGW) with absoultely no facilities.
I just pay the extra and fly BA...
This is due to an incentive scheme (similar to Continental's in the US) whereby the pilots and staff get paid more if the planes depart and arrive on time.
As a result there have been a number of instances of Ryannair pilots ignoring what Air Traffic Control tell them and just being aggressive to the flight controllers and in some cases ignoring them to ensure they land on time.
Nothing bad has happened yet. I believe easyJet pilots were also mentioned as being aggressive but Ryannair were singled out.
In my opinion I would never fly them or easyJet again. Both tend to fly into and out of really inconvenient airports (easyJet does a have a few flights out of LGW) with absoultely no facilities.
I just pay the extra and fly BA...
Aug 26th, 2003, 07:47 AM
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They have a good safety record, however, there have been a number of complaints made about Ryannair pilots being aggressive.
This is due to an incentive scheme (similar to Continental's in the US) whereby the pilots and staff get paid more if the planes depart and arrive on time.
As a result there have been a number of instances of Ryannair pilots ignoring what Air Traffic Control tell them and just being aggressive to the flight controllers and in some cases ignoring them to ensure they land on time.
Nothing bad has happened yet. I believe easyJet pilots were also mentioned as being aggressive but Ryannair were singled out.
I would never fly them or easyJet again. Both tend to fly into and out of really inconvenient airports (easyJet does a have a few flights out of LGW) with absoultely no facilities.
I just pay the extra and fly BA...
This is due to an incentive scheme (similar to Continental's in the US) whereby the pilots and staff get paid more if the planes depart and arrive on time.
As a result there have been a number of instances of Ryannair pilots ignoring what Air Traffic Control tell them and just being aggressive to the flight controllers and in some cases ignoring them to ensure they land on time.
Nothing bad has happened yet. I believe easyJet pilots were also mentioned as being aggressive but Ryannair were singled out.
I would never fly them or easyJet again. Both tend to fly into and out of really inconvenient airports (easyJet does a have a few flights out of LGW) with absoultely no facilities.
I just pay the extra and fly BA...
Aug 26th, 2003, 08:10 AM
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Your reply seems to make some sense UKUKUK, but I wish I had your money.
Last year two of us flew EasyJet from London Luton to Nice for about 11.50 pounds each. The cheapest we could get (with much trying) on BA was something like 186 pounds each!!! A little inconvenience is worth it to me to save a little over $500 US!!!!
By the way, we were told to take a bus service to Luton, but got Swiss Cottage Cars to take the two of us direct for 35 pounds. Haven't checked them for Stanstead, but I sincerely doubt it is anything like the 80 pounds mentioned above. With two people and going door to door, I suspect that would be my choice over the Stanstead Express. Now there's where I don't mind spending a little extra money!
Last year two of us flew EasyJet from London Luton to Nice for about 11.50 pounds each. The cheapest we could get (with much trying) on BA was something like 186 pounds each!!! A little inconvenience is worth it to me to save a little over $500 US!!!!
By the way, we were told to take a bus service to Luton, but got Swiss Cottage Cars to take the two of us direct for 35 pounds. Haven't checked them for Stanstead, but I sincerely doubt it is anything like the 80 pounds mentioned above. With two people and going door to door, I suspect that would be my choice over the Stanstead Express. Now there's where I don't mind spending a little extra money!
Aug 27th, 2003, 02:00 AM
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Patrick you are right.
I once flew into Stanstead on Ryanair several years ago. It was a Sunday night and the flight got in after midnight. I could not face the prospect of the Stanstead Express, the prospect of the tube not working at Liverppol Street and a long wait for a cab so I took a cab straight to my house in Blackheath from Stanstead. It cost about £80 but did mean I was in bed shortly after 1am. I think I would have been lucky to get home for 3am otherwise. I have taken taxis direct from Blackheath to Stanstead and they cost about £40 if ordered in advance The £80 is if you use a Stanstead taxi - they are a complete rip off!
I once flew into Stanstead on Ryanair several years ago. It was a Sunday night and the flight got in after midnight. I could not face the prospect of the Stanstead Express, the prospect of the tube not working at Liverppol Street and a long wait for a cab so I took a cab straight to my house in Blackheath from Stanstead. It cost about £80 but did mean I was in bed shortly after 1am. I think I would have been lucky to get home for 3am otherwise. I have taken taxis direct from Blackheath to Stanstead and they cost about £40 if ordered in advance The £80 is if you use a Stanstead taxi - they are a complete rip off!
Aug 27th, 2003, 02:03 AM
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Also if you are considering flying to France or Italy read the London Times today = www.thetimes.co.uk
There is an article about that shoddy airline, Air France, having taken Ruyanair to court over the subsidies Ryanair have arranged with airport operators. It sounds as if Ryanair and some of the low cost airlines may end up paying higher landing fees or lose their entitlements to fly into some of these airports. If you buy a ticket and a low cost airline stops flying there you will be lucky to get any compensation other than a refund at most.
There is an article about that shoddy airline, Air France, having taken Ruyanair to court over the subsidies Ryanair have arranged with airport operators. It sounds as if Ryanair and some of the low cost airlines may end up paying higher landing fees or lose their entitlements to fly into some of these airports. If you buy a ticket and a low cost airline stops flying there you will be lucky to get any compensation other than a refund at most.
Aug 27th, 2003, 04:46 AM
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The Guardian recently did a story about how the cheap airlines manage to keep the prices down:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0...021937,00.html
Incidentally, their business pages usually refer to Ryanair as Eire O'Flot.
Never having used either Easyjet or Ryanair, I have no comment.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0...021937,00.html
Incidentally, their business pages usually refer to Ryanair as Eire O'Flot.
Never having used either Easyjet or Ryanair, I have no comment.
Aug 27th, 2003, 08:24 AM
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Count me a staunch Ryanair supporter. Used them three times on our latest trip - - from Graz to London (Stansted), and then from Stansted to Prestwick and back in the same day (a "college visit" to Stirling).
Best wishes,
Rex
Best wishes,
Rex
Aug 27th, 2003, 11:46 AM
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I have used ryanair and you get what you pay for, in other words a seat on a plane and thats your lot. The aircraft are modern 737's and are kept pretty clean and all the staff I dealt with were polite and helpful. Things to be aware of though are the prices qouted do not include airport taxes and also if you do have a problem forget about getting any customer service from them because it is virtually non existent especially if it involves any sort of refund. So it is basically a case of hoping no problems arise. Hope I have been of some help.
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