Never ever flown EasyJet or RyanAir. Assume I know nothing and gimme tips. Thanks.

[gussyfinknottle]

I'm flying to Crete with preteen and dh in 2019. I've never flown with EasyJet or RyanAir - two most likely options from Manchester. Assume I know nothing about using them although I am a seasoned traveler (old enough to have had a blue passport ).
Please give me booking/seating/eating/luggage tips. Thanks.

Emaline The Pret I referred to is at Manchester Airport. I suppose it still counts as 'down south' if you are in Newcastle or Scotland but its rare that anything infrastructure-wise in Northern England is considered fancy

Really helpful stuff everyone. Much appreciated.

You did, but I'm surprised you were taken aback at others doing it. Seems perfectly sensible to me.

I fly EasyJet every other week or so.

Personally I'm of the opinion that Speedy Boarding (included if you pay for one of the seats in first 10 rows) is worth it. It means you can take a cabin bag and a handbag/laptop bag so no need to check luggage (I hate waiting at baggage reclaim!).

I have also been on three EJ flughts in the past 10 days alone which have been over subscribed. Being at the front of the queue with speedy boarding meant that we weren't the unfortunate ones to lose our place on the flight and have to sit around for hours waiting to be slotted on to another. I'm very happy to pay the £18 each way for that alone (though of course it should never happen in the first place!)

Rarely been delayed with EJ either (unless it was for reasons beyond their control).

Weall, do you have flexi plus? If not, definitely worth it if you travel that often.

EasyJet are the only budget airline that overbooks, so that's not typical.

As it happens, I'm travelling on a 'full service' European Flag carrier (incl free snack and booze!) tomorrow, or I was but I've just found out my flight has been cancelled and I'm trying to get it sorted.

On all the dozens of budget flights I've been on, there's never been a cancellation and only one or two delays of more than half an hour or so, the worst being 5 hours, that I got the EU compensation for.
Ryanair in particular have a very good reliability record, with lower than average delays and cancellations. The only airline that has ever lost my luggage has been KLM.

The poster that says non budget are just like budget these days is correct. Look at all the problems BA have had over the last few months.

The worst airline I have experience of for delays and cancellations is Flybe, or FlyMaybe as it's known round here.

Actually, Flybe all round is poor. Not that cheap, the app is dreadful, and there is no customer service at all over the weekend. Rebooking cancelled flights via the website is difficult/impossible and if the second leg of a connecting fight is cancelled the website makes you rebook the entire journey.

I've found this thread really helpful, too, as we're going on our first plane holiday this summer with Easyjet.
Thank you, everyone!

There are some Ryanair tips in this article and some in the comments below the article (although most of the comments are just people moaning about Ryanair):
www.theguardian.com/money/2017/sep/09/how-fly-ryanair-without-paying-extras-baggage-policy-priority-boarding

Although not all of the tips in the article have worked for me - for example the one to check-in at the last minute before online check-in closes - have always done this and never got the 'premium' (extra legroom) seats.

Also the one to buy 2 to 3 months in advance - I booked flights to Tenerife 4 or 5 months in advance and out of curiosity checked the price about 3 weeks before I flew and the price was about the same (£5 cheaper).

I have also seen them drop prices (use Google flights tracking feature to get email alerts) a month or even 2 weeks before a flight - I guess they have sold less than forecast so they do a big drop to boost sales (often to just £9.99 or £12.99) - although this may only last a few days.

Really grateful for all the tips. Glad it's been helpful to others too.

I've never flown Ryanair, but have only had good experiences with EasyJet. I would pay extra to go EasyJet over Ryanair if I had the choice, they tend to have better flight times, better customer service, and the colour scheme hurts my eyes less

OTOH I would pick Ryanair over travelling a second time with the airline described on Wikipedia as "the most punctual airline in the UK [citation needed]" (Flybe)

If you will only be carrying hand baggage then budget will be cheaper but if you have hold luggage then I would recommend double checking the prices on all airlines - the last time I flew short haul I did EasyJet there and BA back, and BA was cheaper because of the hold luggage charge on EJ.

I fly solo and never bother paying for a seat, just check in as early as possible and grab the best free seat left! I usually eat something at the airport and just take drinks and a few snacks on the plane.

Great tip about BA . Thanks.

I love easyJet! We get a pret sandwich and drink before boarding and we’re good to go

Not quite relevant to the original question, but if you are flying from Heraklion, the catering options after going through security are very limited. I was there yesterday, and very pleased to have brought a picnic!

Cheers, Not.

That wasn't teenage sarcasm . I was actually thanking you!