What is it like to fly Ryanair
I have used Ryanair several times, it is a budget airline that has some good connections from the UK. Even though they charge you for extras it still works out a reasonable price.
I have read bad reviews but I have never had any complaints. Fingers crossed that I don’t jinx my next flights with Ryanair but I have never been delayed and always had a comfortable flight.
This is based on my Bristol to Bucharest flight but I have used Ryanair over 20 times and never had an issue, for the price you pay I am happy for a no frills flight as long as it get me to my destination safely.
Booking online with Ryanair
One of the reasons I love booking with Ryanair is how easy their website is to navigate and find the bes value flight at the time and destination I am looking for.
I have never had any problems with the Ryanair website and this is why I always check the prices of Ryanair and Easyjet when I am planning my trips as they are normally the cheapest.
Check in with Ryan Air
Check in was quick as only a few people in front of me. I am aware of their strict luggage weight limit so make sure my luggage is less otherwise pay extra online as it is cheaper that doing it at the airport.
The crew could interact with both the English and Romanian speaking passengers.
Boarding was from gate 9 which wasn’t a thousand miles away at the other end of the airport. I had priority boarding as I pay the extra leg room seats due to having flight anxiety this reduces my stress levels.
It was a full flight so ask people were checking in they were being asked to put their luggage into the hold I only had a small rucksack so this wasn’t a problem for me and as I had priority boarding I believe I would have had priority on taking luggage on too but I am not 100% sure about that as I say it didn’t affect me.
As soon as everyone was checked in they let us board the plane, everything ran smoothly no delays or unnecessary standing around.
My Journey with Ryanair
I booked seat 16a which I tend to book if available. It is an emergency exit row so has extra leg room. I obviously couldn’t book these seats when I had reduced mobility as you are not allowed to use exit row seats if you do not have full mobility. But I know my own limitations and believe me if I need to get off the plane quickly I wouldn’t be hanging around.
Sitting in Exit Row on Ryan Air
When you board, they explain you are in an emergency row and if you have reduced mobility you will be asked to move seats.
The first time I did this I was like “why are you expecting me to help get all the passengers off” and they said no but may be required to open the emergency door and get off first, so if reduced mobility it could slow the process down.
Also, no children can use these rows. Row 17 is also an emergency row so being in row 16 means I am less likely to get someone kicking the back seat as they have extra room and because children can’t sit there. (No offense to the little peeps but they are normally the ones that kick the seats in front but I know they mean no harm)
This seat is more expensive I paid £9.95 but it includes priority boarding which again reduces my anxiety. More often than not people don’t book these seats so I get the row to myself.
Tips for booking the best seats on Ryanair
Another tip if you don’t want to pay the extra is book 15 or 18 as if the emergency rows are vacant, they will ask you to sit in the emergency row as they must be occupied by at least one person but of course this isn’t guaranteed.
You cannot put luggage under the seat in front everything that you are not wearing needs to be stowed away. Even jackets must be worn or put in the overhead compartments to reduce the risk of blocking the exit if needed in an emergency.
I normally wear something with pockets so I can put anything I might need into my pockets and they let me hold my bottle of water and my phone and I wear my headphones. You can get anything you need from you bag once the plane is in the air but as I sit next to the window I would have to disturb the people next to me so I like to be prepared.
On this particular flight the crew were polite. We were taxying on time and in the air on time so all good. My flight was 3.25hours. They hand the magazine out that has the details of the food rather than having it in the back of the seats. They are really quick at doing this and I normally miss it but I don’t order food on Ryanair anyway as had disgusting sandwich once and have never ordered anything since but I am sure that it has improved.
I noticed they had pasta and sweet and sour chicken but I don’t know the prices of these.
The two seats next to me were vacant and they let a young girl sit on the aisle seat, this was still OK though as the middle seat was still vacant so we had lots of room.
In the emergency seats the arms are static and the table is in the arm. The seat belts are not the most modest but fit round my big tummy, just about!!!
It is no frills so no TV, no radio sockets you are basically just getting the seat which is great for shorter flights. I do miss the inflight magazines though as it passes a few minutes reading. Emergency instructions on the back of seats demo also given by crew before the flights takes off its quick and straight to the point. As soon as the plane is in the air the refreshment service begins. There are air vents above so you can alter the air flow, I like to have air on me although I do understand this is how germs are spread I don’t care I just want to be cool.
Overall, it’s a great way to fly for short distances you get what you pay for so don’t expect free drinks and entertainment and you will be satisfied. Click here if you want to read more about what people think of Ryanair
People complain about Ryanair but I have never had an issue
During September 2017 Ryanair cancelled a lot of their flights claiming it was due to pilots needing to take annual leave. This has left alot of passengers unhappy and has actually made me think twice about booking flights with them at the moment I would only book a flight if I was not relying on it to get me to a destination for transit or work.
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Originally posted in 2017 but updated in 2019 after using Ryanair for more flights
