11597 Ryanair: £30 charge if you can't fit duty free in your hand luggage

That calls for a protest Group here!!! I don't usually buy duty free but one occasion that I did, it was a large packet of multi coloured and striped pasta at €8. Charge me £30 on top. Eh no I don't think so.

Looking at their website - This fee was mentioned on 20/01 Note third paragraph. How underhanded is this???

[url=http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/news.php?yr=09&month=jan&story=gen-en-200109-2]Ryanair.com - News : No Exceptions to Ryanair's Cabin Baggage Allowance[/url]

We were challenged about duty free last year at East Midlands, but allowed to board with things hanging out of our pockets. Coming back from Pisa however they kept announcing you could bring one bag plus duty free. They dont seem to mind how much you take on board there. Maybe Ryanair has a more "italian"
relationship with the duty free shops!

So what happens if you buy it on the plane?

Good question Pas 55. They probably charge you that £30 on top also!!! If not now, very likely soon. How to get up people's noses even further.

If they are going to charge for duty free bags, then why as much as £30 when a bag put in the hold costs only £12?? Why two and a half times the standard rate eh?

I may be asking a silly question, but why should you bother to buy anything at the "duty free" shops at the airport if you are travelling within the EU. I thought that this was Ancient History since 1999. The only reason I would buy something would be because I had forgotten a present or something like that. I do not think that there are any savings to be made, particularly if you take into consideration the inconvenience to yourself and your fellow passengers. I only take minimum hand luggage and sometimes I would like to kill those around me on board who come with too many bags, etc.
Anyway, I found this information which may be useful:

[url=http://www.heathrow-airport-guide.co.uk/dutyfree.html]Duty Free & Tax Free Shopping Allowances from the EU / Duty Free Allowances from Outside the EU - Heathrow Airport Guide[/url]

Well up until recently Boots The Chemist in the departure lounge sold goods which were cheaper than on the high street. Also you were able to buy goods like laptops from Dixons, considerably cheaper, so it was a good idea to go to Paris for the afternoon to be able t buy that laptop at a excellent saving.

Yes I travel with minimum hand luggage. However with my handbag the case is at full capacity and sometimes I do buy additional products like a bottle of sun tan lotion.

Going back to the charge. Part of my ritual has been stopping off by Pret A Manger at Stansted after security, have a cappuccino and buy sandwiches for the journey. Sometimes a bottle of water too. Am I supposed to shove these in the case to about being charged???

We need some feedback from recent travelers.

I was referring to Stansted Airport. From their website there would appear still to be savings in the retail outlets after security. - [url=http://www.stanstedairport.com/portal/page/Stansted%5EGeneral%5EShop,+eat,+relax+and+enjoy%5EShop/]BAA Stansted: Shop[/url]

I think you've all pretty much sussed what's going on here.

Don't buy your booze/cigs/chocolate/perfume locally. Buy it in flight!

Now I wonder why that might be.

He's a clever Dick ( maybe that should that be Mick) that O'Leary geezer:yes:

and don't we just love him for it!??? lol I will also add this link - [url=http://www.ryanairbuyasyoufly.com/index.html]Ryanair buy as you fly :[/url] I have a feeling you can buy online duty free if you are traveling.. I have to say that some of the goods they do sell are weird and extremely large and too big to include in existing hand luggage. Have a look and enjoy!!! lol

Yes, at East midlands we were expected to shove bottles of water in our hand luggage. And it seems to be so hot on the plane these days that it is impossible to travel without drinking something and I really resent paying their onboard prices for just water.

My employers have been doing some work at Manchester Airport in the past couple of years since the new security regulations came in, as it was obnvious that the shops before you checked in were not going to be used.. everything is being moved to when you have checked in and cleared security. I believed that with boarding card, and securely wrapped these items (which are generally cheaper than the High Street) it was ok to buy items and take them with you separately (you have to shuffle them into your luggage for the return trip). As others have said, smaller airports will want the revenue from these sales, I am a bit surprised (well, not really - maybe surprised that he is getting away with it) that Ryanair has introdcued this rule. Another reason not to fly with them, will it spread to Easyjet and Jet2.com I wonder??

[quote=alma;110223]Yes, at East midlands we were expected to shove bottles of water in our hand luggage. And it seems to be so hot on the plane these days that it is impossible to travel without drinking something and I really resent paying their onboard prices for just water.[/quote]

Slightly off thread but I couldn't believe it when the member of staff at the gate told me to putmy handbag in my bag- I know it's the rule that it has to be carried as part of hand luggage but there was a great big gap in my bag so it was obviously going to go in it and she didn't ask anyone else to do it.

Never seen a "trolley dolly" pushing the perfumes and after shaves down the aisle since Ryanair flew to and from Perugia. Thanks for the link Sally because now I see they no longer sell such desirable items...we are now expected to purchase trusses!!!???

Talking of bags.

Is it true that they don’t do barf bags anymore?

Mr O’Leary is probably waiting to re-introduce them at 30 euros each :laughs:

Honestly what’s a girl to do when she has had too many vodkas at the airport? :laughs:

[quote=Persephone;110293]Talking of bags. ..............Honestly what’s a girl to do when she has had too many vodkas at the airport? :laughs:[/quote]

Probably wet herself.

,

Another almost witty one liner - Alan you are excelling yourself recently!

[quote=juliancoll;110312]Another almost witty one liner - Alan you are excelling yourself recently![/quote]

Shame I can't reciprocate the sentiment

When you can write a one liner like me, then - and only then - blah bah blah

They still had them on the last flight I was on- thank goodness the person wasn't near me. I think you have to ask for them though

I’m pretty fed up of all the moaning about Ryanair. If it were not for them quite a few of us wouldn’t be enjoying Italy in the first place. Many holiday lets would have far fewer customers and I wouldn’t get to see my kids.

As far as ‘duty free’ is concerned I’m with Gala, within the EU there is no longer any duty free. Also the rule is one piece of hand luggage and I have seen the people who have a piece of luggage, bags of bottles, cigarette cartons etc, taking up all the overhead locker space. Or worse still not being able to store them securely. In the event of air turbulence I don’t particularly want to be clouted round the head by a bottle of whiskey, because some selfish person managed to save a few quid on it and couldn’t fit it in their luggage.

Stop moaning if you don’t like it don’t fly with them!

Tin hat ready!!!

And body armour too i suspect:laughs: since nothing seems to get folk going on the forum like Ryan Air

Seems the Italians excelled at that too! :bigergrin:

A Grand Masters suit of armour, ca. 1610-1620, embellished with gold damascening and engraving, made by Geronimo Spacini. Just click the pic to see the detail.

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...and another thing.

Can everyone who has in the form of 'hand luggage' one of those bags on wheels (you know, the ones that used to be the domain of air hostesses only), pleeeeeeese stop crashing them into my ankles in every queue.:Dancing_peevedoff:

I feel like buying one of those (I mean the armour, I did not see your post Persephone) for my next trip on most airlines. In a way, I felt happy with all the restrictions formerly imposed on hand luggage, but it seems as if those have been relaxed to inconvenience those who carry only the strictly necessary on board. I do worry a lot when I see the amount of heavy luggage that some people put in the overhead lockers. It is plain dangerous and should be strictly forbidden.
And I do think that, if you are looking for bargains, you are not going to find them at the duty free shops in the airports. Also, if you have any problems with your purchase it is much easier to make the claim at a place which is near your permanent residence.

P.S. I also agree with you, Persephone, regarding those wheels... they are a nuissance.

As I said there are excellent deals on electrical goods especially laptops and ipods.

The designer pasta I found at Ciampino caught my fancy. Why pay £30 to avoid carrying it in my very small suitcase and damaging it in the process.

What about magazines or newspapers??? Sure put them then in your one piece of hand luggage, but think of all the hassle during the flight for those around if people want to access them.

No. I think the rule stinks.

What about flower??? You have been able to carry them to date. Are they too now subject to being shoved in your case???

But why would anyone want to carry flowers on a plane? You can get flowers in Italy if you would like to give them as a gift. If they were a gift for you, surely they would be given to you on arrival and not departure.

I think there are two things to think of

1 Ryanair makes it’s money and is therefore able to offer cheap flights by making quick turnarounds; a plane is only earning money when it is in the air. If everyone obeys the rule and only takes one piece of hand luggage, then the luggage can be stowed safely and people can board and deplane more quickly and easily.

2 The charge is not to raise revenue but to discourage those selfish passengers who put their own greed above the safety and comfort of everyone else.

The solution is simple, if you don’t want to pay an extra £30, don’t carry anything that doesn’t fit in your hand luggage. And if you don’t like Ryanair fly with another airline.

I just had a look at Ryanair’s secret forum……I think there is a move afoot to charge extra for people who use their service but moan about it all the time on internet forums!!!lol

P,S. JC thanks for the loan if the body armour.:laughs:

Ryanair carries freight in the hold and therefore discourages passengers' suitcases. The British all seem obedient with one bag of hand luggage but I am still amazed at what the Italians bring on board. They cannot possibly have been asked to put their bag through the "measuring" thingy. Small bulky, hardbacked suitcases, that won't fit overhead are taken away and stored by the air stewards during the flight. No one bats an eyelid! There is no consistency and perhaps that's just as well...I still love them for flying to Perugia.

[quote=Nielo;110358] JC thanks for the loan of the body armour.:laughs:[/quote]

Get lost - I need it myself - going to Naples in a couple of weeks. :bigergrin:

[quote=Sally Donaldson;110216] Part of my ritual has been stopping off by Pret A Manger at Stansted after security, have a cappuccino and buy sandwiches for the journey. Sometimes a bottle of water too. Am I supposed to shove these in the case to about being charged???[/quote]

Why shouldn't O'Leary ban you from eating or drinking anything other than what he provides ?

After all, many pubs in England and bars in Italy have signs indicating that you should only consume their food and beverage.

I would be happy to eat his food if it were of the quality and prices of Pret. You can't convince me - sorry

Why, why, why do people moan so much about Ryanair ? It is not as though they are a monopoly supplier, one can always do as one had to in the old days schlep half the way across the country where you live to your capital city and fly direct, with your national flag waving carrier, to the capital city of your destination and then schlep half the way across that country to your final destination in an over-priced rental car. The alternative was almost the same except that the flag would have been of your destination country.

In fact the old days weren't so long ago - fifteen years? - but back then if you didn't stay a Saturday night the price then would have been ten times the average Ryanair price now! But because of the competition that Easy jet and Ryanair have introduced you can still fly with your national carrier for not much more than Ryanair charge so those who don't like credit card charges, baggage charges, poor customer service can go back to the old days but at a much lower price. Clear case of every customer is a winner.

As for O'Leary's "transparent" charging system - I like it - credit cards clearly invoke a charge for the retailer whereas electron cards may pay them a commission (I don't know). So why shouldn't he highlight/exaggerate that differential and let the customer make the choice? Airports charge for handling bags and for expensive jetways and for allocating seat numbers so why shouldn't he pass those charges on or not offer those services at all? As for priority boarding - isn't that like the old business class without the newspaper and cardboard meal?

The big problem it seems to me for many on this forum who have homes in quite remote places would be if the European government managed to put O'Leary out of business through their stealth measures and their belief that highly subsidised high speed train services are the answer.

So I say long live O'Leary or at least until the train lines are built and trains run on time.:bigergrin::bigergrin:

[quote=juliancoll;110337]Seems the Italians excelled at that too! :bigergrin:

A Grand Masters suit of armour, ca. 1610-1620, embellished with gold damascening and engraving, made by Geronimo Spacini. Just click the pic to see the detail.

[ATTACH]2385[/ATTACH][/quote]

Should amount to a bit of excess luggage methinks....

[quote=Sally Donaldson;110496]I would be happy to eat his food if it were of the quality and prices of Pret. You can't convince me - sorry[/quote]

But what I was saying is that one day he may ban you from eating your own food on the plane - what would you do then?

O'Leary has a business model that seems to work for him despite upsetting quite a few passengers. Do you think if he kept ticket prices the same and waived all the extra charges that Ryanair would remain in business for long?

[quote=sdoj;110494]Why shouldn't O'Leary ban you from eating or drinking anything other than what he provides ?

After all, many pubs in England and bars in Italy have signs indicating that you should only consume their food and beverage.[/quote]

I agree.

Flights from the UK to Italy are not long haul, they are only about two hours, so no real need to eat at all. Even babies manage to go four hours between feeds!!!:eeeek:

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[quote=Noble;110363]Ryanair carries freight in the hold and therefore discourages passengers' suitcases.[/quote]

Hi Noble
Sorry to disagree, but Ryanair do not carry freight, the reason being weight, and the one suitcase rule, means they can turn there flights around that much faster, thereby creating more flights.

I thought when I read the post that I had never seen any freight being loaded but if they could organise a few of those thunderbird two pods it might bring our fares down even further. They wouldn't take long to load and there must be more space in the hold since baggage charges kicked in.

[quote=sdoj;110510]But what I was saying is that one day he may ban you from eating your own food on the plane - what would you do then?
[/quote]

This reminds me of the old lawyer joke.......2 lawyers in a cafe, both bring out there lunch boxes, the waitress comes over and reminds them they cant eat there own food,,,,,,,with out batting an eye, they swop boxes ..............

[COLOR="red"]Hi Noble
..... and the one suitcase rule, means they can turn there flights around that much faster, thereby creating more flights.[/COLOR]

In theory Ricky, in theory. lol

[quote=deborahandricky;110517]Hi Noble
Sorry to disagree, but Ryanair do not carry freight, the reason being weight, and the one suitcase rule, means they can turn there flights around that much faster, thereby creating more flights.[/quote]

D&R I bow to your wisdom afterall you should know. I was told by a Business Analyst studying Ryanair a while ago that they did, so perhaps they did previously. What I found intersting was that Ryanair's business approach/methods where being seriously studied. Why when other companies had taken on "The Customer is King" approach, was O'Leary doing exactly the opposite (M. O'Leary is King), and yet so staggeringly successful etc? Remember when Pilots who where applying to Ryanair where apparently having to pay a significant fee to be interviewed for a job? So now the planes are lighter....well my OH travels back Wednesday and he weighs heavy, especially with all those books in his pockets!

The thing is, I think having to squeeze every little thing into one bag actually holds things up. I dont find it difficult to stay within the ten kilo limit in my small case, but once on the plane have to retrieve my absolutely essential items for the journey (book, water bought at last minute and small handbag as I'm not risking money and passport etc. in the overhead lockers). If I could just carry these on separately in a little plastic bag it would save messing about on the plane.

There are some small bags or pouches with a shoulder or neck strap where you can keep your documents, money, boarding pass, even some small jewels and your keys that you can keep with you throughout the trip. I have a Samsonite one, which is the perfect size and very handy. Then you have all your important things with you at all times.

Can you actually use it on Ryanair? My shoulder bag is very small but I have always (in England) been made to put it in my case. Maybe some entrepreneur could design a special Ryanair Passengers' uniform - sort of like a big old fashioned pinny with pockets of various sizes (I tend to have no useful pockets in summer). It could even have "I Travel With Ryanair" emblazoned on the front if that makes ryanair think it is a wonderful item to wear for advertising! Please remember I need a pocket for my reading glasses and another pocket for my spare ones to find the ones I've just put down.

Great minds, as they say! I had been considering designing one of those builder's dungarees - you know, the sort with a pocket for the hammer, the spirit level, loads of nails, trowel, knife etc. etc. - but adapted to carry water bottles, paperbacks, newspapers, documents etc. etc. to get round the restrictions. Thanks for the suggestion of emblazoning Ryanair on it, I hadn't thought of that!

I have travelled Biarritz/London/Biarritz a couple of times on Ryanair wearing that small bag all the time and nobody has said a thing. Certainly, no problems with international airlines and for longer trips I can manage to fit in a very small compact and a lip liner (pencil one to overcome the liquids on board restrictions).

[quote=alma;110656]Can you actually use it on Ryanair? My shoulder bag is very small but I have always (in England) been made to put it in my case. Maybe some entrepreneur could design a special Ryanair Passengers' uniform - sort of like a big old fashioned pinny with pockets of various sizes (I tend to have no useful pockets in summer). It could even have "I Travel With Ryanair" emblazoned on the front if that makes ryanair think it is a wonderful item to wear for advertising! Please remember I need a pocket for my reading glasses and another pocket for my spare ones to find the ones I've just put down.[/quote]

I am afraid they are one step ahead as always. You know that you now have to take off your jacket and put it through the scanner and then put it back on again. Not any more ... in future all topcoats will have to fit inside your carry on luggage too. I am not sure what they have decided about shoes - I think lightweight shoes will be Ok but heavy or long boots in the bag too.