Tom Bihn Tristar as personal item
 

Will be in Europe for a few months for work - looking to take some personal trips on the weekends and Ryanair seems to have the best pricing/availability for my needs.

The Tom Bihn Tristar 48x33x20 is definitely over but as a shoulder bag I'm curious if it'll pass muster. Does anyone have experience with this bag that can offer some guidance?

One of the flights I'm looking at is operated by Malta Air, I'm guessing same rules apply but curious on strictness.


Thanks!

The make doesn't matter, if it's too big for the sizer there is every chance it'll be gate checked for a fee. Some stations are reportedly more vigilant than others.

Indeed, FR can be sticklers when it comes to baggage, Ryanair fares look very cheap, that is until you add all the extras!

Here are the baggage rules: https://help.ryanair.com/hc/en-gb/ca...9089-Bag-Rules it possible you may manage to get your bag on board but if you deviate from the policy expect that to cost you if your deviant luggage is noticed. The maximum size permitted for the small personal item is 40x20x25cm, which is noticeably smaller than the Tristar’s 48x33x20 dimensions.

The gate-check fee can be as high as £/€69 so it might be best booking the ‘Priority and 2 Cabin Bags’ option, this would make the Tristar bag compliant.

Ryanair makes a lot of its profits from baggage fees and other ancillaries. Think of them as a European version of US budget carriers

That’s way over the 40x25x20 threshold and I don’t think that Tristar bag is flexible enough to be compressed with a couple of belts/packing tape/Furoshiki*

Your Tom Bihn-travelling nomad mind tricks won’t work on Ryanair contracted ground staff.

Here’s what the European kids are travelling with -
Sometimes I wonder if Ryanair has some kind of algorithm that encourages staff to periodically allow passengers to go through with a non-conforming larger size bag. It encourages the expectation in a traveller that they will win the bag check lottery, but actually keeps the penalty fine income trickling into Ryanair’s coffers.

* This is how you know someone regularly flies Ryanair without them telling you they fly Ryanair.

I came to this board from my usual haunts on the BA forum to find out if there was a specific FT recommendation for a compliant bag - thanks for the pointer LapLap! Now to figure out whether the internal size is sufficient for my laptop and bits, without seeing the bag in the flesh…