I'm looking at arriving on US 70 in SNN scheduled at 8:30 and departing on RyanAir to Paris BVA at 10:55. I will have no checked bags on US but will have to check my rollaboard on RyanAir.

Is that a reasonable connection when considering immigration, normal lateness of US flights, the size of the terminal, etc.? RyanAir has only the one flight per day and I haven't been to SNN in 20 years, so I figured I should ask.

Thanks in advance,

A connection to Ryanair is never reasonable :rolleyes:

Still, 2 1/2 hours will be fine - SNN is an easy airport to use

A connection to Ryanair is never reasonable :rolleyes:

My very honest advice would be to be VERY careful when relying on Ryanair for a connection. Even seeing it as a connection is wrong, really. They are a budget carrier and have no agreements with any major airline for baggage transfer, through-checking etc, so you need to collect your bags, go landside, and checkin on your Ryanair tickets. All being well, 2 1/2 hours should be OK, though Ryanair run a very tight timetable and delays/cancellations are common.

I flew from Liverpool to Dublin for my brother's wedding last May. This is a 35-minute flight. We had a cancellation followed by a 3 hour delay going out, and a 4 hour delay on the return. It didn't quite spoil the occasion, but it was a hell of a lot more tiring.

European budget airlines are great... clean, cheap, modern planes. But because they turn their planes around in a matter of minutes to save costs, any delay creates a domino effect across the whole system. Personally, I'll put up with the risk to get to the South of France from Liverpool for £29!

I agree that 2.5 hours should not be a problem whatsoever, even if the US flight is delayed. SNN is a relatively small airport by US standards. Immigration was a snap when I was there, and there is only one terminal building.

that should be enough time. but if anything goes wrong, it will go very wrong. note that ryanair has a HARD cutoff of 40 minutes for checkin. if you get to the counter inside 40 minutes, they can and will refuse to check you in. they may not be there at all. they may offer to sell you a "standby" ticket at full fare.

any time you're using ryanair as part of a larger itinerary, you need to know your alternate plan. when i used them between london and shannon, i'd just buy tickets on multiple flights -- they were so cheap that it was worth having the extra options. SNN-BVA is more expensive and less frequent, so that doesn't look like a great plan. but you should have something in mind.....

I'm also making the connection from SNN, but then going onto London. I have a 3 1/2 hour window on which to get from my US Airways flight onto my ryanair flight. I'm confident this won't be a problem... the thing I'm concerned about is what happens if my SNN-LGW flight gets canceled for some reason. Am I going to get refunded my $15 fair and have to rebook at $200 per person? Or does ryanair accomidate you by putting you on the next flight out? I personally don't care if I get to londor 4-5 hours later than planned but don't want to pay the standby price if it's an error on their part.

I'm also making the connection from SNN, but then going onto London. I have a 3 1/2 hour window on which to get from my US Airways flight onto my ryanair flight. I'm confident this won't be a problem... the thing I'm concerned about is what happens if my SNN-LGW flight gets canceled for some reason. Am I going to get refunded my $15 fair and have to rebook at $200 per person? Or does ryanair accomidate you by putting you on the next flight out? I personally don't care if I get to londor 4-5 hours later than planned but don't want to pay the standby price if it's an error on their part.

If I were you I wouldn't worry too much, 3 1/2 hours should be more than ample. In the worst case scenario, though, Ryanair would put you on the next flight BUT charge you the difference in fare for the new flight. They may waive this in certain circumstances but that's up to them and, in my experience, Ryanair almost never waive additional fees.. that's why they're Low Cost..

Just a question.. an error on whose part? Your booking with Ryanair is a separate contract. If you miss the flight due to a delay on US, they are entitled to charge you the fare difference as if you were booking a new flight with them.