Ryanair to charge for online check-in

RYANAIR has announced that tickets booked from May 20, 2009, will require passengers to check-in online and they will face a charge of £5 to do so.

The fee will be compulsory as the airline will scrap all its check-in desks and only offer a baggage drop off facility at airports.

Passengers will face a charge of £5/€5 per person, per flight, on new bookings, although promotional fares of 'Free', '€1' and '€5' will include web check in on a free of charge basis.

If people are not able to access a computer or printer, then people will have to rely upon a friend or face a £40 charge at the airport for the printing of a boarding card.

Stephen McNamara, of Ryanair, said: "Passengers travelling without checked in bags have already embraced our online check-in service and the extension of this service to all passengers, including those with hold luggage and those travelling with infants will allow all passengers to forever avoid check-in queues.

"This will also allow Ryanair to lower our airport and handling costs and pass these savings to all passengers in the form of even lower air fares next winter.

"Ryanair’s web check-in service allows passenger to check-in from 15 days to four hours before, and print, or re-print, their boarding card up to 40 minutes prior to their scheduled departure time. Web check-in can be accessed via ryanair.com using booking confirmation numbers or flight details."

Ryanair has also it will no longer accept bookings for unaccompanied minors (under 16 years old) while all new bookings will require passengers, including infants and those people on domestic flights, to hold a valid passport or valid national identity card.

Is this one charge too many from Ryanair? Will it have an impact on your own travel plans or those of potential holidaymakers? Please feel free to leave a comment below.

Related article: Online check-in confirmed by Ryanair

Comments

[Ann Earley]

Not sure what exactly is happening with Ryanair at the moment but they don't seem to be doing Bournemouth to Nantes this year and have suddenly dropped Stansted to Nantes. Can anyone enlighten me as to why? Fortunately we can still go Bristol to La Rochelle but our options are reducing!

[Craig McGinty]

Hi Ann, it all comes down to ticket sales, if Ryanair are not getting them they will pull the service, but rarely tell anyone.

There is a recently launched London City Airport to Nantes service operated by VLM Airlines, more here:
http://www.thisfrenchlife.com/thisfrenchlife/2009/03/london-link-to-nantes-from-vlm-airlines.html

Hope this helps, Craig

[Ann Earley]

Thanks Craig, I'll take a look at that route. The problem is living in the heart of Wiltshire it's quite a trek to get to a larger airport and Bournemouth was sooo convenient. The car park is 30 seconds away from the aorport and it is all so much calmer and less hassled.... still it was good while it lasted so I mustn't grumble!

[Jill Brackstone]

This is definitely one charge too many. What about the many seniors who do not have access to a computer, don't have 'younsters' with one nearby. You have the audacity - and greed, to charge GBP40 to get a printed Boarding pass.
Ryanair will never get another penny (or centime) from my, although I live in France and some of their flights are convenient.
There are other low cost airlines out there.

[English Mum]

The trouble is, you're damned if you do use them and damned if you don't. A Ryanair flight to get us to the UK in November is €120 including the web check in charge but €233 on Aer Lingus. I love Aer Lingus but I just can't afford to pay the difference :(

[Geoff Boud]

Ryanair are a godsend to us. We have just booked flights back to the UK in September. Total cost for 2 people, 4 euros (having used a VISA Electron card for the booking)

[Lindsay]

If I could get another flight close to the area of France I would, RyanAir have to be the worse Airline around at the moment.
Probably the massive losses it is making at the moment is the reason for the route being withdrawn.

[sally Jeanne-Elam]

Whereas I totally agree that ryanair can be totally annoying, I am very aware of the fact that I and my husband can fly to Edinburgh (and back) from Poitier for less than a tank full of diesel! So I put up with the annoying little creep Michael o wotsit.