RyanAir..should we?
 

I am in Toronto, Canada and have been told about RyanAir in Europe. I cn get a flight from Paris to Milan for two for $61.58 Euros?
This beats the night train to Milan! Are they a good airline would you recommend it?

Any input would be great.

Absolutely!

Hi mel,

if you do a text search for "ryanair" you will find that lots of people use them.

They are distinctly low frills - - and the only airline I know that charges you for a glass of water.

Having said that - - yes, I recommend them enthusiastically. They have seats, they have wings, they have pilots, they have landing gear. Nuff said.

Best wishes,

Rex

Rex,

Do they have engines and brakes?

You know, I didn't check. They go up, they fly fast, they come down, I got off. Not one to report on things I didn't see firsthand (wink...)

We flew RyanAir from London to Italy and back. Great & economical choice. But you must realize going in that you will hear them hawking their wares over the intercom (water, drinks, food - overpriced & pretty bad - and duty free stuff), no reserved seats so there is a free for all upon boarding, AND, most important to us as the other stuff merely annoys, they are super strict on size & weight of your luggage. And the fees for overweight are STEEP. A cost center for them. So YES, they are a terrific bargain. And a good ariline as far as we could tell. But read the fine print so you don't get hit with lots of extra costs. Heed the saying, know before you go...! Their bag dimension requirements were about an inch less than many other carriers when we flew them. And they WILL weigh your stuff.

Oops! I typed "cost center" above when I meant "profit center." Bottom line, they make up for some portion of those low fares in what they sell to you in flight and in what they charge when you bring oversized or overweight or just plain too many bags.

I just flew from Paris to Milan on Ryan and it is fine. Beauvais airport is 1 hour outside of Paris however and you have to be at the Ryan Air bus stop several hours before your flight. Make sure that you are careful not to go over their luggage weight limit as they check every bag. Other than that, it was fine and the price was right.

Hi Mel, I live in NY but originally from Ireland. All my friends use Ryan Air to go all over Europe like one would use a bus! And they say that is just what its like, you get on, take your ride and get off. They have the same kind of comments as above, but they all rave about it. I am going to have my first Ryanair experience in October from Shannon to London to Pisa. I am paying about $150 RT. Compared to $500 dollar flights with the big airlines for the same trip they can keep their $350 dried chicken or beef, I will spend the extras in Italy!

Do you have to fly out of or into London with this airline? I guess my real question is - will they fly from Milan to Palermo?

Go to the Ryan Air web site for a complete listing of flights.
I've only flown once with them, from London to Frankfurt. Yes, you must be at the airport a couple of hours ahead of schedule. Our plane was an hour late in departing. "Frankfurt" airport is a 2 hour shuttle bus ride from FRA... there is a fee for the shuttle, etc. If you can live with the inconveniences, then go for it!

One of the ways RyanAir works is that apart from zero frills they fly in and out of airports that are cheaper for them to operate. It will most usually be the more out of the way airport and not the "Ritzy" ones. They do have some direct flights, alot through London (Stanstead), their website is easy to navigate at Ryanair.com.

I liked Ryanair, but you do need to read the fine print. I would NOT fly them if I was making a connection. They will not help you out if they are late or cancel a flight & you can't make your connections. So, they are TERRIFIC at what they do - low cost no frills shuttle. don't ask for more & you'll be happy!

An old SNL skit featured a fictional cheap airline with this motto:

"You'll feel like you never left the ground because we treat you like dirt."

That more or less sums up our opinion about Ryanair. Very cheap, but a huge caveat emptor. If everything goes fine, you'll be glad you took them. But if there are any delays, cancelations or other problems, you are SOL.

If you are considering traveling with Ryan Air you need to think about this. Ryan is just as much a bus company as an airline. Their airports are very distant from the cities they serve and are reached by their bus service which means you spend more time on buses than planes. Most trips on Ryan will require all day to complete given the bus and plane routine. If saving a couple hundred dollars but losing an entire day from your European experience is acceptable to you.....go for it. If your time in Europe is precious as mine is.....seek a better alternative. I think it is a time versus money thing.

Larry J

If it will take you less than 7 hours (the time for the DAY Artesia train service Paris-Milano) from start to finish AND you aren't carrying too much luggae AND you feel very adventurous AND you're bringing along your own water (which they'll ALSO weigh) then go for it.
And please, spare us the complaints in your trip report when you return if something goes wrong, OK?

Has anyone done Ryan Air from Edinburgh, Scotland to Dublin, Ireland? Just how long does that route take? Do you have to do bus service on that one?

Mel - They use Beauvais and Bergamo airports for Paris-Milan flights.

If you don't mind that inconvenience and are travelling light, go for it.

They are the fastest growing airline in Europe - or one of them. (Not surprising really with the fares they charge ...)

Steve

Be sure you check out the emergency procedures of a Boeing 737 on another airline because Ryanair doesn't even stock the seat backs with a safety card!!! And get yourself worked up before you board - you literally have to fight for your seat. First come, first served. That can be a reall pain if you're traveling with kids.

Edinburgh is just the normal Edinburgh airport as I think is Dublin. Most of the airports they use are the normal airport - a fair few smaller towns like Biarritz and Alghero. The real stinker was their "Copenhagen" route which was Malmo - they had to change that after too many complaints, and Bologna is Forli. Malpensa, Milan's main airport is not overly convenient anyway. Frankfurt am Hahn airport is still called Frankfurt so they cannot really change the name on that one even if it is further than the main airport.

Thanks, Travelnick.

Actually, if you're travelling with kids, you will be invited to board first.