Ryanair is trying to stop newspapers describing it as “no-frills” airline.
Robin Kiely, the Irish carrier’s head of communications, has written to various publications, including Telegraph Travel and the website Travelmole, insisting that the phrase be removed from all reports about Ryanair.
“The claim that Ryanair is a “no-frills” airline is entirely misleading and outdated, given that we offer all-leather seats, reserved seating, industry-leading punctuality, online check-in and on-board catering for those who wish to avail of it,” he said.
“Ryanair is a low-cost airline and I would appreciate if you would refrain from describing Ryanair as ‘no-frills’ in the future and amend your article to reflect this fact.”
Mr Kiely was referring to an article entitled Ryanair: still the ‘world’s favourite airline’, published last week by Telegraph Travel. It follows the release of figures by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) which showed Ryanair carried almost 80 million international passengers – nearly 30 million more than any other airline.
Telegraph Travel acquiesced to Mr Kiely’s demand, and has also produced the following table, which illustrates just how many “frills” the airline offers, and how much they cost.
“No-frills” Ryanair
“Fare” | £44.48 |
EU 261 Levy* | £5 |
ETS Levy** | £0.50 |
Web check-in | £14 |
Administration fee | £14 |
Total*** | £77.98 |
“Frills” Ryanair
"No-frills" flight | £77.98 |
Checked baggage | £50 |
Text message confirmation | £1.95 |
Travel insurance | £14.85 |
Reserved seating/priority boarding | £20 |
Sporting equipment/musical instrument | £100 |
Play to win your trip for free "game" | £4 |
Ham and cheese panini (one per flight) | £11 |
Cup of tea (one per flight) | £6 |
Glass of wine (one per flight) | £11.90 |
Grand total*** | £297.68 |
Once the frills have been added, the bill nearly quadrupled to just under £300. And Telegraph Travel declined the offer of airport parking (from £83.99), transfers (from £2.51), smartphone app (£1.75), official cabin bags (from £34), and car hire (from £117.72).
The table would appear to illustrate that while Ryanair does offer plenty of frills, they make them far less appealing.
Your say: No-frills? Low-cost? Budget? How would you describe Ryanair? Leave your comments below.
NB: Prices are for one passenger, flying from East Midlands to Alicante, outbound July 1, returning July 8.
*To cover the cost of compensation for delayed and cancelled flights
**To cover the cost to the European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme.
***When paid by debit card – a 2.5 per cent charge applies to credit cards
