Irish airline Ryanair has long been known for its no-nonsense, no-leniency policies. Things are about to get stricter.
Currently, Ryanair charges £20 to print your boarding pass at the airport. If you forget to check in online the fee is £55. That is all about to change when paper passes are eliminated.
Ryanair phases out paper boarding passes in favour of digital boarding passes
Ryanair boss, Michael O’Leary, announced last October that the airline will phase out physical paper passes by May 2025 in favour of digital boarding passes via their app. The check-in desk is likely to completely disappear. He said this reduces paperwork and will streamline the check-in process.
“Our goal is to eliminate check-in desks at the airport, just like we’ve done with luggage counters. Everything will be managed through the app, making the process fully digital and eliminating paper entirely.”
For many travellers, using the app is second nature. O’Leary points out that as many as 60% of travellers already use mobile passes, and he anticipated this to rise to 80% by the end of last year.
The move means passengers won’t be charged for boarding passes at airports any more however, however the elderly and others not tech-savvy may be deterred from flying with the budget airline.
When check-in desks eventually get phased out, there does not appear to be a backup plan place in the event of an app malfunction.
Yet to be overcome is that airports in Turkey, Morocco, and Albania are not yet on board with mobile boarding passes and printed boarding passes will still be necessary to complete their journey.
Hand luggage changes
Hand luggage rules are changing. Hand luggage can be carried on for free (40 x 20 x 25cm) and must fit under the seat in front. Paid-for larger bags must fit in the hand luggage cabins but those that are larger than the limit (10kg, 55 x 40 x 20cm) will attract a fee of up to £70.00 at the gate. It may be worth upgrading to a Priority fare, which comes with additional luggage perks.