drchris

We are visiting a friend who lives near London Stansted airporti n late April and are trying to decide whether to fly to Dublin on Ryanair from Stansted or take the train/tube to London City Airport and fly on British Airways. (We could also fly from Heathrow or Gatwick to London but those are longer and more expensive trips from Chelmsford and I've read that Heathrow is a nightmare.) Ryanair is obviously closer and cheaper than British Airways but we are wondering about travelers' experiences using these airlines. Which would you recommend? We're aware of luggage restrictions on Ryanair and would book a ticket that allows a 20 kg checked bag plus cabin bag, which is still cheaper than British Airways.
Thanks for your feedback.

margo_oz

As long as you understand their rules, Ryanair is not that bad. I've flown them a few times, without problems. Complaints are from those who didn't read and/or understand the terms and conditions. Yes, they are restrictive, but easily managed. Pay for what you need.
Certainly, their fares are usually good and their planes are just fine.

KTtravel

It's such a short flight that even if you don't get any frills, it should be fine. I would choose Ryanair.

Seamus

Have used RyanAir a few times for intra-European flights and they were fine. Not posh, but got us where we needed to be without hassle. As long as you are aware of and can comply with the various fees required things it's probably your best choice.

dfourh

Yes, not posh, but if you spring for Priority boarding and the bulkhead or exit row seats it is right pleasant.

bilboburgler

watch the rules, I've stood in line while the rules are enforced ahead of me at boarding... hard to imagine, but bag size is critical, 10mm too big is way to big. Also check what is insured of your property.

balthy

It would be silly not to travel on RyanAir since you’re so close to Stansted. It’s a real trek from that area to Heathrow or Gatwick.

Baggage allowances are strict but I’ve often been in lines with people having enormous amounts of cabin luggage, clearly larger than allowed and they have not been stopped, not that I suggest anyone puts that to the test.

drchris

Thanks to all for your feedback. We did buy tickets on Ryanair and then sadly my friend had a stroke and isn't up to having company. Wish we'd bought refundable tix but they weren't expensive so it wasn't a great financial loss.We were able to change our United tickets to fly into Dublin instead of London with no penalty and we'll have time to visit Northern Island, too. We now have a good reason to plan another trip to London when my freiend recovers.

drrummer

I dont' fly with Ryanair anymore for one specific incident I had with them. Having said that, I agree with sentiments here above. If you read what your buying, it really is a no frills setup, do don't expect much else.

As an alternative, and imho more pleasant experience, try AerLingus. They are not much pricier than Ryanair.

A true alternative, you might wish to consider, is the Rail+Sail option. It takes a bit of time, but might afford you an interesting trip.

Let me know if that sound like your type of thing and I can give you more information.

dfourh

I was Platinum on Delta for the last 10 years or more, but now living in Germany my next few trips are booked on Ryanair. No more free lounge, no more Fast Track queue, no more elite phone number for easy resolution of issues, no more boarding first, no more instant bulkhead or exit row seats and automatic upgrades. BUT these trips are costing about 100 Euro round-trip including onboard or checked bag. Observations from the trip just completed:

* They specialize in quick turnaround of aircraft; this means passengers queueing up in bunches and waiting like cattle to be suddenly released to (usually) walk across tarmac to the planes and board front and back minutes after the arrival passengers are cleared; about 75% of pax, thanks to their current booking formula, this last flight were "Priority", which meant they had a bag to be put in the overheard - - those with just a small underseat bag, are "Non-Priority" - - since we all wound up in the same cattle pen "Priority" meant very little. This cattle call arrangement, with plenty of standing and waiting, is the most taxing aspect versus flying a major carrier, particularly with status, though, to be honest, the bus scenarios at CDG or AMS are not much better.

* The next most stark differences are barely tolerable seat pitch, paying for any beverage on board, and those hoary interiors on the aircraft - - those lurid yellow seat backs on Fisher-Price plastic are the stuff of nightmares.

* Other than that, very nice experience. Predictable (cattle-car) efficiency, gets you where you are going without any fanfare. I'm very happy. Just book your luggage options carefully (I did carry-on with "Priority" outbound, and checked bag full of olive oil and pecorino sardo on the return - - had to book the outbound and return separately to do this). My next flights are over 2 hours so I paid for exit row aisle. People tend to throw up their arms and suddenly get skinflinty when they see you have to pay over 10 Euros for an exit row seat - - but you need to look at the grand scheme of things in terms of pricing - - the difference is like night and day. Just get the better seat.

drrummer

Precisely what dfourh has said.

Man_in_seat_61

Or take Rail and Sail for around £50, from London Euston to Holyhead by train and ferry to Dublin, https://www.seat61.com/train-and-ferry-to-dublin.htm

Much more fun, you see much more, and no airports or flights needed! It's the way I've always gone.