BA vs Ryanair - no competition
Jun 2, 2017, 11:13 am
#46
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Jun 2, 2017, 11:47 am
#47
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Please don't give them any ideas! Is it true that Ryanair flights advertised to Vienna used to land in Bratislava? I know that FR have always gone for the cheaper provincial airports, but you'd think they should at least land you in the same country as your destination!
Jun 2, 2017, 11:54 am
#48
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Please don't give them any ideas! Is it true that Ryanair flights advertised to Vienna used to land in Bratislava? I know that FR have always gone for the cheaper provincial airports, but you'd think they should at least land you in the same country as your destination!
Some countries are small so arriving in a neighbouring country might be advantageous, like Luxembourg. Some cities, like Vienna or Bratislava are so close that the international boundary between them means less then elsewhere.
Have you looked at Tijuana airport lately. It's in Mexico but right up against the US border. So there's a passageway to get you to the US, with US immigration, if that's where you want to go.
Arriving in the 'wrong country' is good for many.
Jun 2, 2017, 12:07 pm
#49
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Yes, but that only applies for a clued-up traveller who knows exactly what they're getting into and makes that choice accordingly. I can imagine that many tourists would feel put out at taking a flight to Vienna and arriving to see a big sign saying 'Welcome in Slovakia'*, even if it turns out that the distance to their intended destination is not that enormous.
* I'm partly based in the CEE and in Slavic countries you often see signs saying 'Welcome in <place name>' due to overly literal translation from the native language.
* I'm partly based in the CEE and in Slavic countries you often see signs saying 'Welcome in <place name>' due to overly literal translation from the native language.
Jun 2, 2017, 12:43 pm
#51
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Yes, but that only applies for a clued-up traveller who knows exactly what they're getting into and makes that choice accordingly. I can imagine that many tourists would feel put out at taking a flight to Vienna and arriving to see a big sign saying 'Welcome in Slovakia'*, even if it turns out that the distance to their intended destination is not that enormous.
* I'm partly based in the CEE and in Slavic countries you often see signs saying 'Welcome in <place name>' due to overly literal translation from the native language.
* I'm partly based in the CEE and in Slavic countries you often see signs saying 'Welcome in <place name>' due to overly literal translation from the native language.
Jun 2, 2017, 1:24 pm
#52
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Since the introduction of BoB, it has been very easy to make comparisons between BA and LCCs. I thought the same and instead of going on a European city break with BA via LHR, I decided to book a flight to Warsaw direct from NCL with Ryanair.
How wrong I was to think that they're practically the same these days.
The Ryanair planes were uncomfortable, the food was shocking, the coffee was dire and the service was mediocre. For example, when I joined the queue for the toilets on the outbound journey, the most senior member of cabin crew ordered "Move out of my way!" when I forgot to read her mind about where she wanted to be standing to chat to her colleague. After that came the hard sell when it was BoB time - ordering a cup of coffee without buying a snack was unheard of, apparently: "But you need something sweet with your hot drink. Chocolate, maybe?" Obviously their bonus depends on upsetting.
And of course, when we landed, there was another hour in an Uber to actually get to Warsaw, as Ryanair don't fly to the main airport.
BA's service standards set it apart from LCCs and I think I am willing to pay a premium for a more pleasant and comfortable journey. Plus, there isn't an announcement for bloody scratchcards every 10 minutes.
How wrong I was to think that they're practically the same these days.
The Ryanair planes were uncomfortable, the food was shocking, the coffee was dire and the service was mediocre. For example, when I joined the queue for the toilets on the outbound journey, the most senior member of cabin crew ordered "Move out of my way!" when I forgot to read her mind about where she wanted to be standing to chat to her colleague. After that came the hard sell when it was BoB time - ordering a cup of coffee without buying a snack was unheard of, apparently: "But you need something sweet with your hot drink. Chocolate, maybe?" Obviously their bonus depends on upsetting.
And of course, when we landed, there was another hour in an Uber to actually get to Warsaw, as Ryanair don't fly to the main airport.
BA's service standards set it apart from LCCs and I think I am willing to pay a premium for a more pleasant and comfortable journey. Plus, there isn't an announcement for bloody scratchcards every 10 minutes.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Airline_...ritish-Airways
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Airline_...lights-Ryanair
On this site, Ryanair rates at 1.8 out of 10
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.ryanair.com
However, BA is only 1.6 out of 10
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/ww...ishairways.com
If you are flying premium cabins, FR really isn't competitive. And if you have GLD status with BA, again BA is a cut ahead w priority security, lounges, etc.
But I would say for a non-status passenger in Y there's little to any difference that would be noticed.
Jun 2, 2017, 1:28 pm
#53
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Jun 2, 2017, 1:58 pm
#54
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I didn't say FR had premium cabins.
My pretty clear statement was for a Y pax without status most consumers don't see a difference in FR or BA.
Perhaps that in of itself justifies WW/AC in hacking costs and raising fees to FR levels in Y. Without its dominance at LHR it's clear BA would have a hard time competing head-to-head with FR if it just came down to price since consumers don't see much difference.
I think it goes to my comments in another thread quoting WW as saying FR has done a great job of setting very low expectations. On the other hand, BA's communications strategy continues to present BA as some type of premium product in economy class which it isn't. If AC had just come out and said with BOB we're essentially bolting on an FR experience to the back of CW and flying you out of LHR instead of STN - customers might have understood better where BA is heading.
Jun 2, 2017, 2:13 pm
#55
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Even GLA now I see. ^
I last flew FR around 2002 when we had to do the trek to PIK to fly to CRL and DUB. The flights were fine and all on time however getting back from PIK on public transport was a pain and added a couple of hours on to the journey.
If we ever get the chance to use them again from GLA I would have no hesitation as long as the price was right and the schedules suited which they invariably didn't from PIK. That's where the major carriers easily beat the LCC's from the regions.
I last flew FR around 2002 when we had to do the trek to PIK to fly to CRL and DUB. The flights were fine and all on time however getting back from PIK on public transport was a pain and added a couple of hours on to the journey.
If we ever get the chance to use them again from GLA I would have no hesitation as long as the price was right and the schedules suited which they invariably didn't from PIK. That's where the major carriers easily beat the LCC's from the regions.
Jun 2, 2017, 2:14 pm
#56
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Indeed, but the point is, FR isn't just not competitive for premium cabins, FR doesn't have them and is not an option. Essentially, BA is trying to compete with everyone, at the moment successfully but on a cliff-edge from going down the pan. They are trending mostly carefully and only history will tell what happens.
Last edited by navylad; Jun 2, 2017 at 2:24 pm
Jun 2, 2017, 2:31 pm
#59
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Indeed, but the point is, FR isn't just not competitive for premium cabins, FR doesn't have them and is not an option. Essentially, BA is trying to compete with everyone, at the moment successfully but on a cliff-edge from going down the pan. They are trending mostly carefully and only history will tell what happens.
Instead of a bunch of tosh about improving service by offering customers more choice, premium products, not ripping you off like the LCCs -- BA have used BOB to "launch" a new no-frills approach to ET so they could actually exceed customer expectations instead of driveling on pretending that slapping BA on the side of a plane makes the experience premium.
Jun 2, 2017, 2:47 pm
#60
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And my point is BA is doing a bad job of communicating what they are offering in their ET cabin.
Instead of a bunch of tosh about improving service by offering customers more choice, premium products, not ripping you off like the LCCs -- BA have used BOB to "launch" a new no-frills approach to ET so they could actually exceed customer expectations instead of driveling on pretending that slapping BA on the side of a plane makes the experience premium.
Instead of a bunch of tosh about improving service by offering customers more choice, premium products, not ripping you off like the LCCs -- BA have used BOB to "launch" a new no-frills approach to ET so they could actually exceed customer expectations instead of driveling on pretending that slapping BA on the side of a plane makes the experience premium.
As a consumer, I'm pretty informed of what's on offer, I do my research and make my decision, I appreciate your point that others don't. We will see where things go from here. As a prediction, I expect probable a slightly more generious offering again in the next few years, but they are unlikely to undo the likes of BOB as I suspect they feel they can't afford to loose the budget business bookings they currently compete for based on price.