Why not to fly Ryanair
Feb 2, 2011 | 7:04 am
#91
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 40
If you are not an EU citizen traveling in Europe, you should seriously avoid Ryanair.
Consistent personal experience in Spain:
If sometime during your trip to Spain, and you intend to fly Ryanair, ALWAYS be SURE to get a Spanish entry stamp in your passport when you arrive in Spain. I've learned this the hard way.
For example, if you flew to Spain from say, Germany, there is no passport control, and therefore you would not get a Spanish entry stamp in your passport. If this is the case, go to the Spanish customs office and demand a stamp upon arrival in Spain (but only if you intend to fly Ryanair).
If you are not an EU citizen, you will be required to submit your passport for a "visa check" prior to check-in at the Ryanair counter. One of Ryanair's stupidest rules is that non-EU citizens boarding a Ryanair flight from a Spanish airport are required to have a Spanish ENTRY stamp not more than 90 days old in their passport, or else they will refuse boarding without refund or re-booking. A valid stamp from another EU state (e.g., Germany, UK, Belgium, Italy) is not acceptable. It MUST be Spanish. This has nothing to do with the law. It's another silly "rule" exclusive to Ryanair (no other airline does this).
Consistent personal experience in Spain:
If sometime during your trip to Spain, and you intend to fly Ryanair, ALWAYS be SURE to get a Spanish entry stamp in your passport when you arrive in Spain. I've learned this the hard way.
For example, if you flew to Spain from say, Germany, there is no passport control, and therefore you would not get a Spanish entry stamp in your passport. If this is the case, go to the Spanish customs office and demand a stamp upon arrival in Spain (but only if you intend to fly Ryanair).
If you are not an EU citizen, you will be required to submit your passport for a "visa check" prior to check-in at the Ryanair counter. One of Ryanair's stupidest rules is that non-EU citizens boarding a Ryanair flight from a Spanish airport are required to have a Spanish ENTRY stamp not more than 90 days old in their passport, or else they will refuse boarding without refund or re-booking. A valid stamp from another EU state (e.g., Germany, UK, Belgium, Italy) is not acceptable. It MUST be Spanish. This has nothing to do with the law. It's another silly "rule" exclusive to Ryanair (no other airline does this).
It would be rather interesting to know which country the passport holder is from. We have flown 3 times (US passport and Maroccan passport) from Germany to Spain and back during the last 4 weeks and no Spanish Entry stamp was at any time required. Only the visa check which is stamped on the boarding card after the passport has been reviewed for current Schengen visas at either a special counter or one of the baggage drop-off counters from Ryanair. No problem at all. Airports in Spain were Madrid, Girona and Lleida.
Feb 2, 2011 | 8:25 am
#92
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: PDX
Programs: Don't think it matters...
Posts: 5,255
It would be rather interesting to know which country the passport holder is from. We have flown 3 times (US passport and Maroccan passport) from Germany to Spain and back during the last 4 weeks and no Spanish Entry stamp was at any time required. Only the visa check which is stamped on the boarding card after the passport has been reviewed for current Schengen visas at either a special counter or one of the baggage drop-off counters from Ryanair. No problem at all. Airports in Spain were Madrid, Girona and Lleida.
We plan to visit Spain in March / april.. hope there is no problem because of this , specially since I am not too sure that the Spanish customs would want to stamp our passports when we arrive from another Schengen country..
Feb 4, 2011 | 9:10 am
#93
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: PDX
Programs: Don't think it matters...
Posts: 5,255
Any idea which nationalities have a problem with Ryan air in Spain ??
So, I found a real good deal on Ryan air for last weekend in March.. BTS - Girona - BTS at Eur 97 for 2 persons return including all costs and I hv booked it for a short jaunt to barcelona..
Now , I have read htis thread on Ryan air asking for those Spanish immigration stamps on the passport etc..
My question :
Can anyone share their experience on this and what nationality were those who faced this problem ?
Is this applicable even if the incoming flight to Spain was on Ryan Air a couple of days earlier ??
We are Indian citizens but with EU resident permits ?? Will this crazy stamping thing still be needed since we are in EU for more than 3 months ofcourse as we reside here ??
Basically, I want any inputs / experiences I can get here..
I had to book FR, what to do at those prices it was about 75% cheaper than the next available option
Now , I have read htis thread on Ryan air asking for those Spanish immigration stamps on the passport etc..
My question :
Can anyone share their experience on this and what nationality were those who faced this problem ?
Is this applicable even if the incoming flight to Spain was on Ryan Air a couple of days earlier ??
We are Indian citizens but with EU resident permits ?? Will this crazy stamping thing still be needed since we are in EU for more than 3 months ofcourse as we reside here ??
Basically, I want any inputs / experiences I can get here..
I had to book FR, what to do at those prices it was about 75% cheaper than the next available option
Feb 4, 2011 | 12:09 pm
#95
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: London
Posts: 1,117
jms_uk - no, no-one can do that, because the point is that they're not following their own rules.
More precisely, the ground handling bods in Spain are failing to properly follow the rules laid down by Ryanair, and are instead zealously mis-interpreting them in a nonsensical way. It's a screw-up - it's as simple as that.
The context is that Ryanair want to avoid the hassle and expense of dealing with passengers whose immigration paperwork is dodgy, so they implemented a check-in "document check" for non-EU/EEA pax - the problem is that their people in Spain (well, at one Spanish airport at least) don't seem to understand one of the basic Schengen concepts of a borderless Europe. I'm quite sure that Ryanair's own rules take full account and are compatible with Schengen, it's just that these rules aren't being followed properly locally - which leads to these problems of people being turned away who shouldn't be turned away.
For reference, Ryanair's FAQ about the document check requirement for non-EEA/EU pax is here.
More precisely, the ground handling bods in Spain are failing to properly follow the rules laid down by Ryanair, and are instead zealously mis-interpreting them in a nonsensical way. It's a screw-up - it's as simple as that.
The context is that Ryanair want to avoid the hassle and expense of dealing with passengers whose immigration paperwork is dodgy, so they implemented a check-in "document check" for non-EU/EEA pax - the problem is that their people in Spain (well, at one Spanish airport at least) don't seem to understand one of the basic Schengen concepts of a borderless Europe. I'm quite sure that Ryanair's own rules take full account and are compatible with Schengen, it's just that these rules aren't being followed properly locally - which leads to these problems of people being turned away who shouldn't be turned away.
For reference, Ryanair's FAQ about the document check requirement for non-EEA/EU pax is here.
Feb 4, 2011 | 1:35 pm
#96
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: PDX
Programs: Don't think it matters...
Posts: 5,255
.
The context is that Ryanair want to avoid the hassle and expense of dealing with passengers whose immigration paperwork is dodgy, so they implemented a check-in "document check" for non-EU/EEA pax - the problem is that their people in Spain (well, at one Spanish airport at least) don't seem to understand one of the basic Schengen concepts of a borderless Europe. I'm quite sure that Ryanair's own rules take full account and are compatible with Schengen, it's just that these rules aren't being followed properly locally - which leads to these problems of people being turned away who shouldn't be turned away.
The context is that Ryanair want to avoid the hassle and expense of dealing with passengers whose immigration paperwork is dodgy, so they implemented a check-in "document check" for non-EU/EEA pax - the problem is that their people in Spain (well, at one Spanish airport at least) don't seem to understand one of the basic Schengen concepts of a borderless Europe. I'm quite sure that Ryanair's own rules take full account and are compatible with Schengen, it's just that these rules aren't being followed properly locally - which leads to these problems of people being turned away who shouldn't be turned away.
Feb 5, 2011 | 1:45 pm
#97
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Exile
Posts: 16,064
I had a similar experience with Ryanair's handling agency staff at Kaunas, Lithuania being totally confused by my travel documents - multiple conjoined Indian passports with a Schengen visa issued by the German Embassy in Ghana with the most recent Schengen entry stamp from Bratislava and having arrived in Lithuania from Riga, Latvia and traveling onward to Tampere, Finland. They summoned Lithuanian immigration who chattered among themselves for a few minutes and waved me through.
It is not permitted for a second entry stamp to be affixed for any intra-Schengen passenger. Period.
It is not permitted for a second entry stamp to be affixed for any intra-Schengen passenger. Period.
Feb 6, 2011 | 1:04 pm
#98
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: PDX
Programs: Don't think it matters...
Posts: 5,255
I had a similar experience with Ryanair's handling agency staff at Kaunas, Lithuania being totally confused by my travel documents - multiple conjoined Indian passports with a Schengen visa issued by the German Embassy in Ghana with the most recent Schengen entry stamp from Bratislava and having arrived in Lithuania from Riga, Latvia and traveling onward to Tampere, Finland. They summoned Lithuanian immigration who chattered among themselves for a few minutes and waved me through.
It is not permitted for a second entry stamp to be affixed for any intra-Schengen passenger. Period.
It is not permitted for a second entry stamp to be affixed for any intra-Schengen passenger. Period.
i am also indian with conjoined passports and a EU resident permit and need to avoid these kinda problems in spain..
Feb 6, 2011 | 4:10 pm
#99
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Exile
Posts: 16,064
Feb 7, 2011 | 1:34 am
#100
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: PDX
Programs: Don't think it matters...
Posts: 5,255
a quite a detailed document indeed. need to take out time for this
Feb 10, 2011 | 2:23 am
#102
Suspended
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 1
HIII!!!
Hi all!
why is everyone always complaining about Ryanair and stuff, I mean it's great for people, like me, who wants to travel cheap, even if the service is not the best, but the final goal is achieved "to get to your destination"
I found an excellent website that compares flight offers lowcost/charter airlines if you are interested to see the difference of price and to see how much money you "could" save!!
http://www.liligo.co.uk/
regards, mates!! ^
why is everyone always complaining about Ryanair and stuff, I mean it's great for people, like me, who wants to travel cheap, even if the service is not the best, but the final goal is achieved "to get to your destination"
I found an excellent website that compares flight offers lowcost/charter airlines if you are interested to see the difference of price and to see how much money you "could" save!!
http://www.liligo.co.uk/
regards, mates!! ^
Feb 11, 2011 | 4:31 am
#103
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: PDX
Programs: Don't think it matters...
Posts: 5,255
Hi all!
why is everyone always complaining about Ryanair and stuff, I mean it's great for people, like me, who wants to travel cheap, even if the service is not the best, but the final goal is achieved "to get to your destination"
I found an excellent website that compares flight offers lowcost/charter airlines if you are interested to see the difference of price and to see how much money you "could" save!!
http://www.liligo.co.uk/
regards, mates!! ^
why is everyone always complaining about Ryanair and stuff, I mean it's great for people, like me, who wants to travel cheap, even if the service is not the best, but the final goal is achieved "to get to your destination"
I found an excellent website that compares flight offers lowcost/charter airlines if you are interested to see the difference of price and to see how much money you "could" save!!
http://www.liligo.co.uk/
regards, mates!! ^
Welcome to FT alan60
Jul 20, 2012 | 11:28 am
#104
Join Date: Jun 2012
Posts: 493
Okay, so I'm going to Malaga for 10 days, and need a flight back to London.
It's a Sunday, and everything is real expensive for some reason (Sept 2nd), so it looks like it's either flying Aer Lingus to Cork and changing planes to Gatwick, sitting around the airport for several hours, or flying Ryanair.
Ryanair is non-stop, but from what I hear a horrible airline that charges you ridiculous amounts of money for luggage, carryon if it's over weight (10 kilos?), and the seats are cramped and small. Plus you end up way out of town at Stansted.. which I've never had the pleasure of going to...
So tell me. For $100 more, should I go on Aer Lingus?
What would you do if you were me?
I took a budget flight to Greece once because our regular flight got cancelled and that was all there was, and when they boarded the plane, it was a free for all for seats and everyone did a 50-yard dash, and I ended up squashed into a middle seat and spend the next few hours with my arms practically up in the air... not relishing the idea of that happening again.
It's a Sunday, and everything is real expensive for some reason (Sept 2nd), so it looks like it's either flying Aer Lingus to Cork and changing planes to Gatwick, sitting around the airport for several hours, or flying Ryanair.
Ryanair is non-stop, but from what I hear a horrible airline that charges you ridiculous amounts of money for luggage, carryon if it's over weight (10 kilos?), and the seats are cramped and small. Plus you end up way out of town at Stansted.. which I've never had the pleasure of going to...
So tell me. For $100 more, should I go on Aer Lingus?
What would you do if you were me?
I took a budget flight to Greece once because our regular flight got cancelled and that was all there was, and when they boarded the plane, it was a free for all for seats and everyone did a 50-yard dash, and I ended up squashed into a middle seat and spend the next few hours with my arms practically up in the air... not relishing the idea of that happening again.
Jul 21, 2012 | 4:13 am
#105
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 7,605
Ryanair is non-stop, but from what I hear a horrible airline that charges you ridiculous amounts of money for luggage, carryon if it's over weight (10 kilos?), and the seats are cramped and small. Plus you end up way out of town at Stansted.. which I've never had the pleasure of going to...
I'm assuming you've checked all the other airlines that fly Malaga to UK - BA, Easyjet, Iberia...