Can anyone talk me through how stanstead check in works?

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To explain, I believe I’m a masking female Autisitic woman. My daughters are which made me realise. I get stressed at new things and like to overplan a bit. I have no learning difficulties though.

I’m flying for the first time in twenty years, and it’s getting me a little stressed. Ryanair from stanstead. Whilst the info is online I’d be super grateful if anyone could talk me through a little bit what to do, what to expect.

How early should I get there for a 10:30 flight tomorrow?
I have boarding passes printed and on the app, do I just go straight to security if I have hand luggage?
Generally do you have any tips? What will it be like arriving?

A huge thank you if you find the time to answer this! Save me from whiskey to calm me instead 🤣

I'd get there at least a couple of hours early. Is it long or short haul?

If you only have hand luggage then I'd head for security as you only need to go to bag drop if you're checking bags into the hold.

It’s Europe.

We flew RyanAir from Stansted yesterday. I would get there earlier than you think you need to be. It was chaos. You won’t need to go to bag drop. Pack your liquids in a separate bag to decant into the small see-through plastic bags just before you go through security. It’s meant to be one small plastic bag per person. I got told off for having too many.

Hand luggage only means you go straight to security. If you can run to it then book the security fast track, which is about £7 each, and it’s much quicker and easier. There will be less queuing and less people. Just follow the signs for fast track security.
I always have my passes printed and on the app and tend to find the printed ones less stressful.

At security you will need to take out your electronics, like tablets and phone, and put them in a tray along with your hand luggage. Then you step through and get your stuff back. That can be really stressful so I have my bag organised with my electronics ready to pull out.

Once you are through security there is a long walk through all the crap you can buy to the departure lounge where all the cafes etc are. There are screens so you can watch for your gate.

Be aware that Ryan air will get you through the gate as quickly as they can and you will be likely to be stood on the steps waiting for an age.

Download the Ryan Air app as that gives you lots of information.

Have you sorted your liquids for taking on board if you only have hand luggage?

1 clear resealable bag per person max size20x20cm
Each item needs to be in a container of 100mls or less and the bag needs to be able to be sealed.
Liquids/gels/pastes are included

Electricals need to be charged and need to be taken out your bag and put through the scanners separately in the trays

How much earlier would you recommend?

Ive decanted my liquids into small clear bottles and packed them in a small see through bag like a large pencil case but clear.

A small resealable freezer bag is about the correct size so you can sort your liquids out at home.

Get there at 8am so that you have plenty of time. Be prepared for a queue at security.

having the boarding pass to hand is easier than faffing with a phone IMO. Make sure it and your passport are easily accessible at all times from your bag.

you understand the liquids rule I take it? You can’t take anything more than 100ml through security (empty water bottle is fine and most airports will have fountains the other end) . And your toiletries and liquid make up items need to be in a clear plastic bag and usually need to be hoiked out at security, as will belts, Phones an tablets etc. Security is the worst part by far but the staff are generally good at guiding you through.

after that go and sit somewhere and have a coffee and watch the planes for a while. Ryanair will be very unlikely to board before 10 but make sure you’re not late as they won’t wait.

Thank you for the tip about charging, my chrome book was dead

I’ll probably be sitting by the gate like a meerkat 😂

You will need to scan your boarding pass to get into the security area. Queues for security can be quite long, but usually keep moving. As pp said, have liquids in a separate bag and remember there is a max volume of 100ml.
You will need to head to the departure gate around 40 mins before departure.
I think arriving at 8.30 for a 10.30 flight will be fine.

Do you have fast track? If not I would add it , you can usually get on the Stansted website. How check in works depends on whether you have bags to drop . The security are strict and a bit grumpy at Stansted, if you have a hairdryer it will need removing , seen lots of people caught by this .

assuming hand luggage only head straight through security. fast track is on the right of the security entrance , you really can’t miss the surety queue. The departure lounge is always heaving at Stansted but head through the duty free and the mall funnels you around to the left , I would go to the far side , near Leon and Wetherspoons, and then watch the displays for when the gate comes up. Do not rely on the Ryanair app as it’s always on the lag.

Alternatively if you want breakfast or a coffee there’s a place called something like Sunnyside Up on the right, It’s yellow and blue , and their tables are not so jammed in and coffee comes in a proper cup, it’s just past Joe and the juice I think, and we have found it a calmer place to sit.

when you get to the gate they will process everyone pretty quickly and then you will have the obligatory 30 mins wait in the stairwell before they push you out to the plane .

Hope you have a good trip .

Our flight was just after 5 yesterday. We were travelling by train and there was a much reduced Stansted Express service because of the strikes. So I wanted to travel early in case there was a problem with the train. There was a long queue just to get off the platform at Stansted - not helped by people showing their boarding passes instead of their train tickets when asked for their tickets on exit. It took about 30 minutes to get through security. We wanted to have lunch in departures before boarding. There was a 30-min advertised wait for food. We had time to do everything but only because we were very early. They changed the gate last minute and people were stressy and shouty. Staff shouted back. It was not nice. Am not sure what the alternative would have been for us as the only other airline flying here is BA and their cancelled flights put me off booking with them. Have told the kids we are doing inter-railing next summer.

Tbh I’m massively regretting this madness. I usually drive or coach with the ferry, and I’m in control. I think every other time I’ve flown was work- so someone else in control/ a fall back

food wise- can I take stuff like cereal bars onboard?

Wrt the liquids in plastic bags - in case you're unsure, the max size is 100ml per item with a total max of 10 items.

The containers for each liquid has to be 100ml or less; you can't take 100ml in a 300ml bottle.

Creams and toothpaste count as liquids.

If you've no suitable bags, they have them at security so you can get one there.

As you are traveling with Ryanair, make sure that you check in online from home otherwise you will get a fine. You might as well checkin for your return flight at the same time then at least it’s done.
depending on which gate you are leaving from you may need to get the little train that goes to the other part of the airport, so just allow a bit of time for that. If it helps, when I lived abroad I regularly travelled long haul from Stanstead with a baby and a toddler, although that was obviously a bit stressful, it being a smaller airport made it a bit easier.
good luck and enjoy your trip.

Yes you can.

Plus make sure you've printed out your boarding passes as I gather it costs a lot to do it at the airport.

I get there well over two hours before but I like to check stuff and I only fly once a year

Good luck!!!!

You can take a packed lunch onto the plane, including cereal bars. Sometimes they don't allow nuts, if one a passengers has declared a severe allergy, so might be best to avoid nutty things as you might not be allowed to eat them.

You can also take on a water bottle, but it will have to be empty to go through security. So you can either take your own empty bottle and refill it at one of the fountains post security, or buy a drink after security.

Ryanair don't allow you to drink your own alcohol on the flight (although I've seen this rule being broken!)

For a 10.30am flight I would arrive at the airport at about 7.30am. This gives you plenty of time to get through security.

Make sure if you have any liquids they are in containers 100ml or less and they are all in a ziplock back that isn't bigger than 20cm x 20cm.

At security:
Scan your boarding pass
Take out the liquid from your bag and any electric items
Remove any belts and jumpers or jackets
Remove items from your pockets
Put all in plastic box that they give you
Walk through the scanner - if this goes off then you will need to go through an X-ray machine.
Collect all of your items and then head through duty free to find a seat.

Then check your flight on the board. It will tell you the time that the gate will be announced. When it is announced follow the directions to the core gate and join the queue! You may be in the queue for about an hour though.

We flew Ryanair from Stansted on Thursday at around 3:45 for an 6am flight and it was fine. That was including dropping our car at Meet & Greet and queuing to check in a bag.

I have the Ryanair app that shows digital boarding passes but I printed them off too just to be safe.

I booked Fast Track security using the Ryanair app for £8 per person or something and it updated my digital boarding passes to show Fast Track.

The normal security was busy but Fast Track security is clearly signposted and we whizzed straight through then went and grabbed some food from Pret to take onto the plane.

You can take food and soft drinks just not your own alcohol and you can purchase alcohol onboard the plane. The flight is cashless so card only.

We were actually pleasantly surprised at how straightforward it was.

Have lovely holiday!

To scan your pass you need it have the app open with the QR code visible and then you hold it over the screen until the gate opens. Just in case you were unfamiliar with that bit!

It might be too late, but I’ve seen quite a few people at the airport wearing the lanyard that identifies you to staff as being autistic. It means you might be more likely to get help etc? Just a thought.

There is no restriction to the number of items in your bag as long as the bag closes. I take way more than ten small items in my bag.