Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I recently traveled to Leeds from Malaga by Ryanair ,when boarding there were two queues , one for "regular" and one for "priority" travelers ,the priority travelers had to pass through the regular travelers queue to get to their queue causing disruption then they had to join the back of the checked in regular`s queue once their boarding pass had been checked :rofl: what a scam, 8,00 euro pp I believe , my advice ,save your money or you will be very *issed off.

"A fool and his money are easily parted'

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Are you a Ryanair "Virgin"?
We travel regularly to Malaga/Seville from the UK. The Ryanair scams are legendary. Dont fall for the on board food drinKs service. All priced in Euros but if you pay in GB£ they charge you the same ( ie 1euro= 1GB£), and there are more, but life is too short. My wife and I are counting the days to summer 2012 when we can move into our wee house and all of our family can have the problems when they visit us!
Pete.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Well, what can I say

From Alicante to Birmingham:

We were put in the priority queue and then taken down to the boarding gate on our own. Then our coach loaded just us priority boarders and took us to the plane. Then the coach went back for non priority borders

From Birmingham to Alicante we were taken through first, and as the plane was only boarding through the front door the non priority came along behind us and boarded after us.

I have to admint, I have been in the position before a while ago when the non and priority loaded on the same coach and ended up getting to the plane mixed together. But in general now, the last few times we used them the priority was worth it, especially when you see harrassed people getting pon later and not getting seats next to each other

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

From the way I have seen "priority" treated (is forming a queue and standing for 30mins really "priority"?) I have never bothered.

However, last year had a bad leg and stayed seated in the airport until the last minute, last on the plane, helped by the stewardess to get a seat near the door as she wanted to get everyone seated asap. A reverse form of priority but at least I was seated for 40mins instead of standing in a queue

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

What is the point in paying extra for priority, when you don't want to sit down the front near the kids and you don't want to sit near the exit...often by being faily near the front of the general queue you get to sit where you want, everybody gets a sit and almost all get a seat with the people they are traveling with....priority bookers look the stupid ones that think they can buy something the rest get for free.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Prority works for me.
We get on the plane, hand luggage immediately overhead, sit down and read the papers while the plane gets loaded and the boarders get more and more irritated searching for seats and overhead space.
I don't think I would bother if I was travelling on my own as I would not have any hand luggage, but for some reason not understood by me my wife needs to take "things" over. I would also be last on the 'plane.
As I have written on other threads if I had the option of travelling with a traditional airline I would willingly pay the extra. Unfortunately not possible into Valencia.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Not so. if you think standing in a queue for 2 hours just to get near the front of the queue is worth it good for you. I always pay priority booking with Ryanair so I can arrive as late as possible in the departure lounge and then get on first.

However I would pay anything to fly with any another carrier than Ryanair but like a previous poster I fly to Valencia and is not possible unless I drive many hours to get to Gatwick.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Mick O'Leary's dream is for everyone on the flight to pay for priority boarding then he will bring in the option of a pre-booked seat for €20;)

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

20,00 euros just for a seat next or it will be standing room only:rofl:

I wish I could afford to employ him , even for a month:thumbsup:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

from the Mail but also reported in the Guardian Monarch Airlines scraps booking fees for debit cards "Conrad Clifford, chief executive at Monarch, says: ‘In these difficult economic times there is no justification in advertising one fare, then stinging customers with hidden excess charges.
The purpose of our review of card fees was to provide an upfront, transparent and simple to understand charging policy.’

what a shame they don't do the Stansted - Granada run

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

The debit/credit card charge (unlike the on-line booking fee) is voluntary.

I simply use a prepay caxton card and pay no debit credit card fees. Since you can load this card immediately with a debit card its quick and easy.

Go get one if you fly Ryannair.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Never flown Ryanair but have with Easyjet. What annoys me if I am flying alone is all those couples who leave the middle seat empty and pretend they are not together. I like to see the look on their faces when I plonk myself down.

Prefer BA and they are sometimes not more expensive by the time you compare all the add-ons. Although I realise some do not have that option.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I prefer Monarch's system of paying for a pre-booked seat chosen online at time of booking.

Due to medical problems, I have to have an aisle seat and extra legroom. It is worth it to me to pay €19 for this.

I would rather fly into Stansted than Luton but Monarch do not go there so I am stuck with Luton.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

You have to be a UK resident to get one - not an option if you live in Spain:p

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I may not be a great fan of budget airlines, but they have enabled millions to travel abroad more frequently than they could otherwise afford.
In respect of the add-on charges, surely we all know that the headline ticket price is not the final price paid.
My current ticket, booked only a few weeks ago for next week, was c.£53 inc. priority boarding.
At those prices there is little cause to complain. you cannot get a RR for the price of a mini!

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

You can if you have UK accounts / cards ,residency dose not come into it with all of the card companies.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I had never flown with Ryanair before last year, but took a chance with a very cheap return flight from Malaga to Valencia and found nothing to criticise at all. I wouldn't pay for priority boarding - on a short flight, whether we're travelling as a couple or alone we don't really care where we sit, and at least if you can choose from those seats which are unoccupied you stand some chance of being able to avoid being squashed into a seat next to some 25 stone person or seated next to a screaming baby.

We're going to Zaragoza later this week with Ryanair - 2 return flights for a total of 53€, debit card booking fee included. That'll do for me!

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I know it's not Ryanair but Easyjet have a similar service. With them the key advantage was a dedicated check-in with no queues.

That can make a big difference to your planned journey to the airport.

Yes, you got on board quicker but that is not necessarily a big deal.

The best option, and it's free, is to claim that you are an invalid and need special services - you might even get a buggy to take you to the boarding gate.

When we flew back to Spain from the UK about three years ago we were the only priority customers but there were a pair of "priority invalids" with us. They made it across the tarmac (little airport) faster than we did - crutches waving like a helicopter!

Luckily, these days, I rarely have to submit myself to "modern" air travel - that's a real blessing as far as I am concerned!

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I have noticed that with every flight I take the numbers of "disabled" are increasing.

Yes as someone said it is the low cost airlines who have kept the price down for everyone. Monarch, BA etc. wouldn't be as cheap if they didn't have to compete with them. We all benefit whether we use them or not.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Judging by the number of disabled cards I see in the UK compared to other countries it appears that Brits are by far the sickest and most unhealthy ppl on the planet.
I look forward with interest to the day in the not too distant future when 95% of Ryanair passengers have to be wheeled across the tarmac and given loading assistance.
I don't think it will do any favours for their much famed turn-around time. :ohmy: ;)

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

There was a story quite recently in the papers, where a budget airline refused to carry a disabled person as they already had their 'quota' on board. They DO set limits, fortunately for the rest of us, for health and safety reasons in the event of an emergency:eek:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

People who ask for wheelchair assistance at the airport when they don't really need it can cause problems for those of us that do need it.

I flew out of Alicante on 10th May. I pre-booked a wheelchair (yes I do need it as I cannot walk long distances or stand for any length of time. I also cannot use stairs or escalators).

When I got to the airport I was told there were no wheelchairs available. They said that since the new terminal had opened they had so many people asking for assistance they did not have enough chairs to cope.

We nearly missed our flight. A wheelchair became available just in time.

If you do not need a wheelchair, please do not ask for one.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

The service provided to the disabled and wheelchair users at Malaga seems to be excellent. They even have seats anyone can use if, like me, you have mobility problems (arthritic knees etc) but not registered disabled.

Remember a flight from Stansted to Belfast where the attendents make a sows ear of the loading of 2 disabled, the 6 young mothers with their pushchairs were complaining about the delay.

As I have found after being almost hyperactive for many years, things like anno domini, arthritis and blood pressure can hit you out of nowhere and suddenly start to understand about life for the elderly and disabled.

So saying, paying for "priority" with Ryanair and having to stand in a queue for over 30mins isnt an option

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Well you can fly with Iberia. Just means changing planes in Madrid. But it does mean flying with a traditional airline.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

The poster you replied to did not mention his UK location so that suggestion is probably not an option.

Iberia ....London to Valencia via Madrid next Monday is 680GBP one way:thumbdown:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Oh I know it is more expensive; but the option he requested is available if he is going to the UK albeit for a price.
As much as we dislike we just suck it up; it's only two hours after all.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

It is an option. But would anybody in their right mind turn a 2hr Ryanair journey into a 6hr traditional flight. It's called balance.
I also noticed a couple of weeks ago on my airmiles account they were advertising Swiss Air flights London City (my favourite airport) to Valencia. In expectation I logged on to the Swiss Air website only to discover it was via Geneva, so again no go for me.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

We used Ryanair Sevilla to Stansted regularly a couple of years ago (daughter was at University in Sevilla) and arriving for what was the last flight out of Sevilla on a Sunday night, I was surprised to find the departure lounge full of Iberia passengers who were due to fly back to Heathrow via Madrid that morning - unfortunately Madrid was snow-bound! For once, Ryanair won the day. Those poor Iberia and BA passengers had been sent through security and just left ... no representatives or anyone to tell them what was going on, or dish out meal vouchers etc. Just 'delayed' on the departures board!
Moral of the story is, if you can get there without changing, always do so:thumbup:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

The Caxton card - don't you have to load it with Euros, so could end up costing more than the credit card fees you have avoided? If you could load it with £sterling and there is no fee, that would be worthwhile as the card I use (ICE) charges 2% to load it.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I travel with Ryanair frequently and travel priority all the time, i agree there are no seats when you are in the priority queue but why not do what i do i use my suitcase as a seat!

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

No.

I've got the Caxton (Global Traveller))card. I load it with pounds at no fee, using my UK debit card, and spend pounds on ryannair with no fee. I think there might have been an initial fee, but not much.

I must admit i have not used it for any foreign transactions as the Halifax clarity reward credit card is better exchange rate, and gives you a fiver when you spend over £300 in a month.

In fact the clarity card is best for cash withdrawals as well 'cos it only charges 1% a month. You can even avoid that if you pay off the bill early and not wait for the statement.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Well, I didn`t even think Cryanair would make you bring your own bloody seat. :rofl:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Just going thru my bank statement and because I made a booking with Easyjet in Euros to fly back from Malaga Lloyds TSB have charged me £1.00 for an "Overseas Transaction"

Every one is getting into these charges ! !
:thumbdown:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

don't give that nice man O'Leary any more ideas - he will have us cleaning the plane before we get off next ......OOPPS

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

When I book Ryanair to fly from Seville to the UK I use my La Caixa debit card and don´t get charged a fee.

With regard to the disabled passengers our friend was coming back last week and the plane was sitting on the tarmac for 40 minutes waiting for a disabled passenger. Unheard of. I have also seen "disabled" passengers who are wheeled on in a wheelchair and then when the other side get up and walk off. Disgusting.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Don't judge them so harshly, Not everyone who boards in a wheelchair is completely unable to walk.

I can walk short distances with my walker. I am not allowed to take that into the cabin of the aircraft so I have to get around the airport and onto the plane by chair. When I get off, assuming there is an air bridge, I can walk the short distance to where the wheelchair is waiting.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Perhaps I am a sceptical bugger! The woman certainly didn´t look like she had a problem. Especially as they got so many people to move around the plane so she could get the seat she wanted.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

Would not want to fly with RA out of choice, still I would not pay for priority boarding, once it was a bus to the plane, all the priority got on the bus first. The last on the bus got off the bus first, so the 'free loaders' non payers got to walk up the steps first.:lol:

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

They already expect you to clean the toilet before you sit down... Oh no, that's the blokes who don't bother putting the seat up...and the women who squat and splash! Sometimes the toilets smell so bad it makes you retch.

Re: Ryanair Priority Scam
 

I usually travel alone, and ryanair do the job perfectly for me. i can understand theyre not suitable for everyone. But for a quick weekend break back to the UK, especially in the winter, i've had some bargains in the past. Theyve also allowed my friends and family to come out and see me for next to nothing too, giving them a bit of time in the sun.

Most importantly though, they have yet *fingers crossed, god forbid etc* binned any of their aircraft. Impecible safety record they have.

Ive been stung a few times, but my own fault in a way. £60 for 3kg overweight luggage. and had some problems taking a bicycle with them which ended up expensive. £50 for a bike bag £40 for the bicycle, £35 for the accessories that go with the bicycle as only the bicycle can go in the bike bag.. grrr.