Checking in with Ryan air

[sam987]

Hi can anyone tell me if they have left the online check in with ryan air to 48 hours before and gone with the standard check-in ie don't select your seats and don't pay for them.

There is only 2 of us travelling so not bothered if we are not next to each other but would be nice but I don't want to pay an extra £16 or more on top as the seats are £4- £6 each per person for each flight!

Has anyone done it and still managed to sit together?

I normally book in the night before travel.
In the last few years we have never been allocated seats next to each other and we fly on a monthly basis.

Depends on how full the plane is, the only way to guarantee seats together is pay.

We flew home with Ryanair last night, flight was delayed for 15 minutes while several people were arguing with the Air Steward about not sitting together

Some people moved around once the flight had taken off but it's just a ball ache, just factor it into the cost the flights are so bloody cheap anyway.

If you don't want to pay then you'll just have to chance it on the day.

Our flight was also delayed this weekend with people arguing about seats, flight was the worst I have ever been on

thanks for reply, notacooldad, Are you at two ends of the plane?
I resent having to pay for the seats on top. Plus all the seats are different prices!? I can't see why some are £6 and some are £9 and front ones are £13

The better seats will be more expensive, so front seats on exit rows will cost more than a normal seat by the toilets.

Yeah usually!
I went away in January and my friend was on row1 and I think I was on 18. I was asked to move and was put on the emergency seat with more leg room!
Normally we are about to board and nearly everytime one of us has to board at the front and the other the back.
Last month I was given a middle seat and a couple were either side of me so we just swooped do they could sit next to each other.

Some seats will have more leg room so might be more expensive. I guess if you’re at the front there’s a benefit in being first off!

I flew Ryanair recently and did the 48 hr check in - was just given a seat. Perhaps if you check in on one booking there might be more of a chance of being put together or near?

I would almost guarantee you won't be sitting remotely near each other and will probably get centre seats. That's how they get everyone to pay extra. They are not 'randomly' allocated as advertised. It's also definitely a perk to get off first if you pay extra to sit at the front.
Dh and I didn't book seats together and sat separately. I sat next to a very nice woman who also refused to pay to sit next to her husband!

I always leave to the last minute, never pay for seats and always get a middle seat . Quite often no one is in the seat next to me so my husband then moves to sit next to me . If there is someone in the seat , it's no Biggie and we just enjoy the quiet time apart . I fly monthly.

We're travelling on Ryanair in a couple of weeks and we will check in the day before. We don't pay as DP will watch stuff on his tablet and I sleep or read, so we'd rather save the money. If we get sat together, which is unlikely, it's a bonus.

We flew with Ryanair and didn't pay to sit together it was no big deal but I begrudge paying £7 each for a seat .
You do know about the new baggage rules too ?
You have to pay if you want to take a case in the overhead lockers . So it's free if you have one small bag must fit under seat anything bigger £10 each way .

You have to pay if you want to take a case in the overhead lockers . So it's free if you have one small bag must fit under seat anything bigger £10 each way
Can I just add to this, the rule is if you pay for priority you can take a cabin bag on plus a small bag. However beware! Priority sells out. I had planned to book priority a couple of times but left it too late.

Wit regard to non priority not only must you make sure your bag is within the size limits but it must be a soft bag like a sports bag or rucksack. On the last flight we took a few weeks ago a guy in the queue was non priority, like us, and had cabin bag smaller than ours bags but was charged £20 because it was a case.

People may come on and tell you it didn't happen to them when they flew but I'm just saying they do check.
We've always got our bags in the overhead cabin when I've been non priority.

“I resent having to pay for the seats on top.”

You are being silly. Even with paying £16 to sit with your travelling companion £22 is very cheap for a flight.

Priority sells out. I had planned to book priority a couple of times but left it too late

If priority sells out, you can pay slightly more to check that same 10 kg trolley case into the hold, it's a couple of quid each way. That can work quite well because you can then take whatever liquids you need, saving the bother of shopping for them abroad, or paying higher prices for things like suncream.

Even with paying £16 to sit with your travelling companion £22 is very cheap for a flight

Yes, £22 is very cheap for a flight, but many people pay a lot more, the OP hasn't said how cheap her flights were, it's obvious that in order for Ryanair to be profitable, a lot of people have to pay a lot more than £22 for a flight.

For example if you want to go to the Canaries in the October school holidays, it's nearly £300 return and it can often cost more than that.

Two friends and I didn’t pay
Full flight
Three of us given extra leg room seats up front, both ways, that would have cost I think £22 each way if I recall correctly

Take the risk!

I agree Romax. We've also had the extra legroom seats for free more than once because we generally book late and check in late so often take what's left.

Those panicking and booking it all months in advance are doing us a favour.

BarbaraofSevillle I think I might have misunderstood this >

but I don't want to pay an extra £16 or more on top as the seats are £4- £6 each per person for each flight!

I understood this to be that the flights were £4 - £6 each plus £16 for booking. TBH that is still very cheap for pre-booking seats, and something I wouldn't hesitate to pay if sitting with my fellow passengers was important to me.

We always pay extra on flights for extra legroom seats anyway (which costs a lot more than £6 each way), so it's academic.

when i flew recently with ryanair i did the priority boarding which gave obviously on first 2 bags each. i then booked seats which was only about 8 each way. lots of people on the flight were separate. i would pay it if its important to you to sit together.

DH and I have flown a few times with Ryanair this past year. I always check in online 1/2 days before and never choose seats. Sometimes we are on opposite ends of the plane and sometimes we're just across the aisle or row behind so can ask to swap with someone. It seems pretty random to me, although it's usually middle seats.

When you check in 48 hours before your flight you get random seats but there is a message saying if you're not happy with seats you can change one or both. If there's an empty seat next to either of you just pay for a single seat change.
I would also look how full the aircraft is by checking website if price is down they want to fill seats if it's high or no seats available then you are pretty sure the aircraft is full. If there's good availability then moving is more likely to be be possible

Never bothered with paying for seats last twice been given the front row.

Flying tomorrow cost me a massive £21.50. Booked yesterday and that includes £10 to check a bag in. Flew out in Sunday for £50

Can’t really fault Ryanair at all. Only issue will be if the flight goes as there is a french air traffic control strike tomorrow.

We checked in 12 hours before travelling on our last Ryanair flight, took what we were given for free and got 2 window seats 2 rows apart, which we were both happy with. I slept for most of the 2 hour flight anyway. Legroom was pretty decent too, even though they were standard seats.

My experience of Ryanair is that they intentionally seat you apart.
Went on a half empty flight in October, there were 5 of us. We were on rows 1, 4, 7, 9 and 14 ... despite there being seats empty on each of the rows. (Same coming back, with different row numbers).
Obviously, we all ended up sitting near each because we just moved.

My experience is that they deliberately sit you apart to try and make you pay. We flew to Dublin last year, and even though we booked, paid, and checked-in together, me and my sister were sat a few rows apart as were most people from what I could gather. Same on the way back, I know it's only a few quid, but I refuse to pay it especially for a short flight