Ryanair and Easyjet continue to offer fantastic deals for hopping around Europe, but make sure to pay careful attention  to the details while booking or it will cost, sometimes a lot more.  Remember the golden rule of budget carriers: nothing is free.

Here are five issues to be aware of when flying on budget carriers, specifically Easyjet and Ryanair, that will help you avoid paying extra when you don’t need to.

Issue number 1:  Research where the airport is and how much time and money it will take to get there.

Budget airlines have been great for a lot of lesser known airports which generally do not have the same convenience in terms of transportation.  For the traveler this means more travel time and fewer options for reaching the airport.   Sometimes these airports take longer to reach than the flight takes to reach your final destination.

In Paris there is an hour difference in travel time between Orly, the Easyjet hub, which is a 30 min bus ride and Beauvais, the Ryanair hub, which takes about 1.5 hours to reach.  The cost of transport via OrlyBus to Orly is €6.50 while the ticket to Beauvais is €13.00.  Another issue to consider is that transport service between Paris and Beauvais is basically limited to bus service while Orly can be also be reached by Paris’s RER .  A cab to Beauvais runs greater than €120 but only ~€20 to Orly.

Comparison table between Paris Beuvais and Orly airports

Issue number 2:  Baggage is a revenue opportunity for the airline.

This is not an issue if you can pack less than 25lbs (10kg) into a carry-on, but after a purchase or two this does become something to consider.  Keep in mind that there will be a charge for exceeding allotted weight.  Don’t take it personally and get angry because this charge means revenue for the airline and the ticket agent must charge.  If you think you might need more bags then book them online because it will be less expensive.  A confusing term that Easyjet uses, for people from the US anyway, is “Hold Baggage”, which means “Checked Baggage” and not to be confused with “Carry-on.”  When booking on Easyjet remember that it is NOT necessary to  claim any baggage if you only have a carry-on. While Easyjet might use some confusing wording they are more flexible (’within reason’ is their term) about the carry-on weight while Ryanair will check to see and if it is over 10kg to charge the difference.

Issue number 3: Be prepared for the extra charges, there will be some.

Ryanair charges for not checking in online even if your citizenship does not allow you to.  Easyjet tacks on a fee for using credit cards.  So no matter what the ticket that advertised itself for €10 may turn out to have easily doubled and there is nothing to be done about it.  When booking with Ryanair, if  not an EU citizen, than you must prompt the “Airport Check-in” in the drop-down box which will add €5 to the ticket.  If you decide to tempt fate then you can claim to be an EU citizen but airport check-in will be necessary which assumes the risk of either having your ticket canceled (rare but possible) or more likely having to pay a €10 “change fee.”  This fee is refundable if you take the time to send in the refund and fill out the rudimentary yet annoying paperwork.  Another consideration is that just because you were not charged for something in one place does not mean that you will not get stuck with the same charge at another airport, especially if you are flying through Dublin, Ryanair’s home base.  On my last flight through Dublin all five of my traveling party got hit with extra baggage and check-in fees even though none of us were charged upon departure.  I feel that it is a safe bet to expect Dublin to be letter of the law, so if you are flying there and are not jazzed about using Ryanair then try Aerlingus, sometimes they compete with very similar rates.

Table comparison between Ryanair and Easyjet for extra costs

Issue number 4: Customer service

Calling customer service is not free so make sure to be careful while reserving.  Booking tickets on the wrong date (i.e. make sure the month is correct) is more common than you might think and changing the ticket many times is not cost effective.  Easyjet charges about  €0.15 per minute while Ryanair has different rates depending on the country ranging from €0.15 and maxing out at €0.87.  This includes the time you are on hold no matter how long.

Issue 5: Be prepared to be cramped and for a free-for-all.

Seats on Ryanair and Easyjet do not recline, which is good for the person behind you, because taking away this function allows for extra few rows and thus more capacity per flight. These budget airlines usually fill their flights to 90% or more capacity, so don’t expect your row or even the seat next to you to be empty.

The free-for-all occurs because there is no assigned seating which can create an uncomfortable bottleneck of passengers shoving themselves onto the plane.  This does not happen as much when there is a bridge but I have seen it get pretty intense when passengers are bused to the plane.  One strategy that can be used when being bused is to position yourself closer to the door so you are among the first off the bus and then onto the plane.

Finally, as with all travel these days just be prepared for the something unexpected and try to have a good attitude about it.  After all, if you are getting to take one of these flights chances are that you are going to a fantastic place and will hopefully experience new and exciting things and the flight is just bringing you there.  By preparing for your trip with these five issue in mind I am sure the process will be much smoother and enjoyable.

Happy Travels,

Chris

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