Thanks for the explanations folks he is obvioulsy a very 'focused' man. I'd forgotten about the massive credit/debit card fees, by the time people have got to the final page they have probably lost the will to live and just click submitt. If these companies have the technology to avoid the credit card fee hike it must get right up his nose as that must be a lovely little earner, especially now virtually everyone is frightened to book without one due to the precarious state of the industry.

Hi All,

Anybody know when flights from Nov2012 (onwards) are released, booked the family to fly out in October but cant get them back yet !

Thanks, Chris

Ryanair checked-in baggage charges rise again

Ryanair is to put up the price of checked in luggage in peak periods to discourage its passengers from taking too much baggage.

In June, July, Aug, Sept and Christmas 2012, it will increase checked-in baggage fees from £20 to £25 per bag for all online bookings made from 15 Dec.

Ryanair will also increase its checked in bag fees paid at call centres and airports from £35 to £60 per bag.

In the low season, (October to May) online checked-in bag fees will remain unchanged at 15 per bag.

If that wasn't enough, Ryanair will also increase its 'boarding card reissue penalty' from £40 to £60, from 15 Jan 2012.

It says the move is to 'try to persuade the less than 10 passengers per day who refuse/fail to bring their boarding card (despite email reminders) to their departure airport as 99.9% of Ryanair passengers already do'.

Ryanair's Stephen McNamara said: 'Over 70% of Ryanair passengers will be unaffected by these changes as they already travel with no checked-in bags and instead use Ryanair's free of charge 10kg carry on allowance'.

With permission from Travelmole

Hi,
We have checked in online, so do you go straight to security . We have not done this before and we haven't travelled with Ryanair for years. We also have a checked in bag so presume this goes to baggage drop off. Anything else I should be aware or careful of, apart from measuring and weighing everything. We are flying from Liverpool to Malaga.
Thanks

neknit,

Once you've dropped your bags off, you can go straight through to security using your printed boarding cards.

Darren

Thanks Darren.

Ryanair halves Alicante services over airbridge dispute

Ryanair has cuts its Alicante services by 50% for next year blaming the airport for forcing it to use ‘unnecessary' airbridges.

The airline, which claims the airbridges cost it 2million euros a year in fees, has appealed to the Spanish Commercial courts over the charges which is due to be heard in early February.

Ryanair refutes claims from the airport that the airbridges are a safety issue and that Ryanair's cutbacks were already planned.

It added that if the compulsory airbridge use is withdrawn or if they win the appeal, the Alicante flights, traffic and job cuts will be reversed for summer 2012.

Ryanair's Michael O'Leary said: " AENA Alicante are now proving that inefficient airbridges and higher fees will result in the airport suffering route, traffic and job cuts.

"We call again on AENA to reverse this abusive decision to force Ryanair and other airlines to use and pay for unnecessary airbridges at Alicante."

Ryanair had already cut its winter 2011/12 services at Alicante by 50%.

A new base is being opened in Palma by Ryanair serving 17 new routes and sustaining up to 2,800 Balearic jobs.

The new routes are Palma to Aarhus, Cork, Gothenburg, Haugesund, Kaunas, Krakow, Maastricht, Malaga, Magdeburg, Marseille, Oslo, Paris Beauvais, Poznan, Santander,Santiago, Stockholm, and Tampere.

To launch the new flights, which go on sale tomorrow, Ryanair is having a seat sale from 9.99 euros for travel across European routes in late January and early February 2012.

This ends midnight on December 15th.

With permission from Travelmole

forcing it to use ‘unnecessary' airbridges.

Ryanair might think that airbridges are unnecessary but they are a godsend for anybody with mobility problems or who is reliant on a wheelchair. Ryanair's insistence on trying to avoid using airbridges combined with their reluctance and general sulkiness when they then have to provide ambulifts for wheelchair reliant people or anybody who cannot manage to climb the stairs down to the apron (terminals with airbridges do tend to be greared up to the departure gates being on the 1st floor!) and then up the steps up to the plane just adds insult to injury and is one of the reasons why I no longer use them.

SM

I like their use of the word "abusive", especially as SMa points out this is a real help of the disabled. They have made their views of the disabled well known on the past and I think abusive could be better used describing their comments.

So where are the responses of the other airlines? Anyone else making such a scene about it?

I wonder if Easyjet will go on the turn as well. I used them in and out of Alicante in the summer and can't remember if we got an airbridge or a coach. I hope they have the sense to pay the fees as they seemed to have a lot of flights in and out of Alicante and it would presumably be a bit of a disaster to those who have there own places out there, or those that want to DIY if both stopped using it.

Caught news item today, so wonder how ryanair will counter it

Credit card charges to be outlawed by dec 2012

So if I use my debit card, the most they could add on as a charge might be 20p

Victory over credit card fees

And its ironic, in the photo is ryanair

Ryanair will probably just continue to describe their charge as an admin fee, rather than a debit or credit card fee.

There is a separate topic here on the issue:
http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=152469

David

Well
first flight with Ryanair, was surprised after reading some comments, we were concerned about flying with them, but the price was very good.
The only thing we were surprised about that our son was taken on after all the other passengers had boarded,as he was lifted on the passengers sat behind were asked to leave their seats so he could be lifted in.

Also he was put in the window seat, i did ask why? and was told it was policy.
I said if we need to lift him to the toilet,it would be very diificult to move him across three seats.
He is 21 and does not walk at all so you can imagine it would be difficult.

Apart from that staff were pleasant, and we found the seats comfortable and the flight fine.
It was sell sell sell from the crew,but we bought some sandwiches at airport.
coming back was same last to board, people behind asked to move so son could be lifted on , and window seat again.
At liverpool some considerate person had dumped something next to ambilift, so we had to wait half a hour to get off, but had a nice chat with pilot.

Would fly with them again, now we know what to expect regarding seating and last to board.

I'm afraid the window seat is probably an evacuation issue - if he was on the aisle he'd block two other people and presumably need the help of someone from the other side of the aisle, although if there were two of you with him I don't see why he couldn't have the centre seat.

Hi Steve
Thats what we wondered, as with previous flights with Thomson, thomas cook jet2 etc,
there was no problem if he sat in middle seat between myself and dad, also pre-boarding would be easier as people already sat down would not have to get up from their seats to let him be boarded.

apart from these few things can not grumble as flights were cheap.

hi all,

Anyone any idea when the 2012/13 winter schedule is published ? I'm looking for flights back to Leeds Bradford from Tenerife during November 2012.

Regards Chris

We are off to Tenerife in a weeks time and flights are already booked.

Given the length of the flight and keen to get off the plane early I was looking to reserve seats in either row 1 or 2 given this option is available from 10 January for all flights rather than the current selected few.

This would also mean we would have a less stressless time regarding queuing etc as seats would be reserved.

However on ocassions due to 'loading factors' they keep some front rows empty, presumably they would do the same even if you reserved seats in these possible empty rows.

Has anyone reserved seats in these rows and been moved during the takeoff and landing to other seats due to loading factors ?

If you have surely it makes a mockery of reserving seats at the front if you dont sit there during landing and therefore maybe not get off first ! or do they only do this for takeoff ?

Regards Chris

TFS1 wrote:

Has anyone reserved seats in these rows and been moved during the takeoff and landing to other seats due to loading factors ?

Passengers are moved when loads are light to ensure weight / balance is within limits so the aircraft is in trim. This is flight critical. When the aircraft isn't full, if passengers are seatng in the wrong position, it can put additional stress on the airframe and increase fuel burn unless it's trimmed correctly with weight balanced in the correct areas. That's whay passengers are moved. You won't know if any adjustments will be needed until the day of the flight as it's dependant on the passenger load on the day. If you need to move, there's not a lot you can do about it. If you are moved, you should be given seats towards the front but I'm sure they'll have a system for it once it's introduced.

Darren

Hi Darren,

Thanks for the reply. The system has been inplace, albeit, on a trial basis on a large number of Ryanair flights for some months and is being opened up to all from tomorrow. I was hoping for any feedback but as you say when you have to move you move !

Regards Chris