Review: Delayed Flight, Lost Bags, and Poor Communication- Our Forgettable Experience with Ryanair

Background

On a recent trip to Morocco, my family and I were scheduled to fly via Ryanair from Fes, Morocco, to Marrakesh, Morocco.  For those of you not familiar with Ryanair, they are the Spirit Airlines of Europe and the pioneer of the low-cost carrier model. When you book Ryanair, you should be informed that you’re getting a bare-bones flying experience at a very low cost to get you from point A to point B. They operate a very successful business due to their cheap airfare and vast network that has them operating several routes with little to no non-stop competition. I knew of the horror stories regarding Ryanair since the internet has Reddit pages and YouTube videos of travelers giving details about their experiences. Ryanair is the only airline that serves non-stop flights between Fes and Marrakesh, and it has prioritized expanding its service within Morocco. Had there been a competitor (I’m shocked Royal Air Maroc, the national airline of Morocco, does not serve this route), I would have paid more or redeemed more miles to avoid flying Ryanair. These two cities don’t link via high-speed rail yet, so that was not an option. Unfortunately, this left us with two options: take the seven-hour car ride with three kids or book with Ryanair and incur the risks of using their service. The tickets for the one-way flight were only 17 Euros, so even after paying for two checked bags and priority boarding, it was still a great deal. I thought it was a risk worth taking.

Checking-In

On the day of the flight, we got to the airport about 3.5 hours before departure and were the first passengers in line to drop off our luggage and have our passports scanned. Ryanair opens its check-in counters exactly three hours before departure. For flights originating in Morocco, Ryanair requires you to print your boarding pass at home and charges you if it has to be printed at the airport. We had ours printed and ready. Once our passports were scanned and bags were tagged and collected by the agent, we were ready to go. Or so we thought.

Security and Waiting at Terminal 1

Getting through customs and immigration was a breeze at Fes. It took about 15 minutes from when we dropped off our baggage to when we reached our gate. Fes has a relatively small airport, and domestic flights take off from Terminal 1. The terminal only has about four or five plug outlets, and countless people need one, so I strongly recommend bringing a portable charger if you’re flying from Fes. If you incur a long delay, you’ll have a dead phone. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 8:40 p.m. and the boarding time was scheduled for 8:10 p.m. We waited and waited; before we knew it, it was 8:40 p.m., and we were still sitting at the gate. There was no word from Ryanair gate agents about the status of our departure, the incoming aircraft’s status, or the reason for the delay. Ryanair was having a brutal day leaving on time this particular day. Eight of the 12 flights they had scheduled from Fes had significant delays. The weather was not an issue in Fes or Marrakesh, with both places being warm and sunny. The most unsettling part was that I couldn’t even find a Ryanair employee to flag down and inquire until it was nearly 9 p.m. Finally, when I did find a gate agent, he told me that the aircraft had arrived late and was taxiing to the boarding area of the tarmac near the exit doors.  Once the aircraft was parked in view, an announcement was finally made to board around 9:15 p.m.

Boarding

The boarding process for this flight was horrid. Since we were traveling with three kids, I paid extra for priority boarding to ensure overhead space and get extra time to settle. As soon as the gate agent started his boarding announcement, it was a mad dash to the boarding area with no recognition of the boarding sequence. Group 5 and Group 6 passengers were lumped in with Group 1, with no announcement that boarding would occur via sequence on the boarding pass and no sense of order. This responsibility falls on Ryanair. If you upsell a ticket and charge people to board early, you must ensure that you hold up your end of the bargain. I’m pointing this out for anyone planning to fly Ryanair: You may pay for something you may not receive. In the grand scheme of things, this was an annoyance but a minor one since we were mainly happy to be making progress at that point. At Fes Airport, there is no jet bridge at Terminal 1, and we had to walk out the door and onto the tarmac to board the plane. Ryanair boards from the front and back of the plane, shortening the time it takes everyone to get onboard.

Flight

Once on the plane, it was pretty clear that in their haste to get the plane in the air as soon as possible, tidying up the plane and cleaning had been neglected. I used facial tissue to wipe the mess of potato chips left on my assigned seat from the incoming flight. Shortly after we reached cruising altitude, flight attendants came out with carts full of duty-free items. Since this is a big part of their business model, much time was spent on it. Ryanair has no complimentary snacks and beverages, and they started their paid beverage and snack service about 35 minutes before landing. This proved a problem since customers had to put up their tray tables about five minutes after being served since the pilot had announced they were beginning their descent into Marrakesh. It was another minor nuisance (they’re adding up, aren’t they?), but again, nothing catastrophic. As for the comfort of the flight, the lack of complimentary beverages was exactly what I expected, so I have no complaints. Minimal leg room, seats that don’t recline, and stickers that demonstrate airline safety are plastered on the seatbacks. This was all part of the expectation, so I had zero complaints about any of this.

Arrival and Baggage Claim

We landed in Marrakesh, went through passport control (Marrakesh requires this even for domestic flights), and headed to the baggage claim. One of our two checked bags was on the belt. We waited for 45 minutes, and the second never came. That was the most important one since it had all the clothing for the boys and my wife.  This was not a minor nuisance or annoyance but a significant problem. We immediately headed to the office of Swissport, the company that handles baggage for Ryanair at Marrakesh Airport. Upon walking in, a family from Spain on a different Ryanair flight pleaded with the baggage agent to file an incident report since their bag was on the conveyor belt, unzipped and open. We commiserated about our situations, and sadly, the baggage agent was very unhelpful to them. Once their situation was deemed resolved by the baggage agent, he turned to assist me. He radioed employees to see if my bag was left behind at the luggage loading area, which was negative.

I called the following day at 9 a.m., and the Swissport employee told me they had located our bag in Karlsruhe, Germany. This made sense since that flight departed at 7:51 p.m. from Terminal 1 after a delay. This put us in scramble mode in Marrakesh as we had to purchase clothing, toiletries, and other items in our limited time there. The soonest they could deliver the bag to Marrakesh would be Saturday afternoon, while we were scheduled to depart Marrakesh Saturday morning. I informed them they were just better off shipping it back home to the USA. Of course, they did the opposite and shipped it to Marrakesh, only to discover we were no longer there.

Return to the USA and Follow-up Calls

We had no idea where the luggage was for the next two weeks. Every call would be met with some variation of “it is being processed in Germany” to “it is being held in London.” There was one call where the phone representative informed us that the case had been closed. We told her we still had not received our luggage, and she had to re-open the case again. According to the Montreal Convention, luggage that is delayed and not returned after 21 days is considered lost, and the airline is responsible for paying the value of the contents inside the luggage, as well as the luggage itself, up to a certain threshold. Fifteen days after we returned home to Central Illinois, and 17 days after that flight, we got a phone call from Ryanair saying that the bag was at London Stansted Airport. They would deliver it to the larger airport in the city, London Heathrow. From Heathrow, it would be shipped back to the U.S. via DHL Express. They clearly did not want to stretch this to 21 days. On day 20, the bag arrived, allowing Ryanair to beat the 21-day window. We had baggage delay protection since we booked the airfare with AMEX Platinum. They would have covered the difference if our luggage had been lost and Ryanair hadn’t covered the cost of everything in the bag. Since the clothes we purchased for the kids were inexpensive, I had no desire to haggle with Ryanair for reimbursement, given my experience during this ordeal.

Thoughts

Losing luggage is a significant inconvenience, especially when traveling with kids, but it happens when flying. No one is perfect, and people make mistakes. When that happens, the airline’s response can either build goodwill between the customer and the airline or end that relationship entirely. The response can also make or break your trip. We were fortunate that this happened on the last leg of our journey and not on our arrival in Morocco. Several years back, American Airlines never loaded our suitcase on a New York City (JFK) flight to Madrid, Spain. We informed them that we were only using Madrid as a gateway into Spain and would be in Granada the next day. American Airlines expedited our suitcase to Granada the next day, sparing us from purchasing new clothes for the trip. Some airlines have invested in technology to scan the bag as it is being loaded and update you on the mobile app when it is loaded and when it is being unloaded, as well as which baggage claims to collect your bag after arrival. Ryanair is probably years away from that point.  If they decide to do business with Swissport and Swissport loses the bag during the handling process, it is still Ryanair’s responsibility to resolve the issue. They refused to expedite the bag from Germany to Marrakesh when there was a clear window, didn’t take into account our departure date from Marrakesh, thus shipping into a foreign country after our departure, and closed our case before anything had been resolved. Just an awful experience all around. I can’t tell you that I won’t fly Ryanair again in the future, since they operate so many niche routes as the only non-stop option. However, this ordeal has me better prepared if I have to fly them or another airline that struggles with baggage handling.

Tips

• Put an Apple Air Tag in each piece of your checked-in luggage. The airline may not know the whereabouts of your luggage, but at least you will.
• If you depart from Morocco on Ryanair, your boarding pass must be printed. Do not lose your boarding pass; it’s the first thing the baggage agent will ask for, and your situation will worsen without it.
• If your luggage is lost, do not leave the airport without getting a Property Irregularity Report (PIR). This report will have a claim number that Ryanair and Swissport will use if they are handling baggage. If you try to return the next day, you may be out of luck.
• If your baggage didn’t arrive on your flight, you have 21 days to make a claim, but I strongly suggest you do so as soon as possible. After 21 days, the baggage is considered lost, and you can request compensation for the contents of your belongings as well as the value of the bag.
• Pack clothes for two or three days in a bag that’s small enough to fit under the seat in front of you.
• Take note: Your overnight luggage that barely fits under the seat in front of you on Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines will not fit under the seat on Ryanair! Spirit and Frontier have a maximum bag dimension of 18 x 14 x 8 inches. Ryanair has a maximum under seat bag dimension of 15.7 x 7.8 x 9.8 inches (40 x 20 x 25 cm). Anything more than a bookbag that isn’t jam-packed will not fit underneath.

Claims Process for Ryanair

Ryanair has a maddening and ridiculous claims process. They require an itemized receipt for any item you want to claim compensation for. That random top you got from Nordstrom six years ago? Receipt required. Clothing that was gifted from grandparents to grandchildren? The suitcase you purchased at Samsonite 13 years ago that still holds up well? The Dyson hairdryer you got for your birthday? These are examples of items for which an itemized receipt is required for compensation, even if it doesn’t make sense to have it. If you’re flying Ryanair and checking in luggage, just understand that this is the mountain you must climb to claim lost items. In our case, had the luggage been lost entirely, we were fortunate that a lot of the clothing for the trip was purchased online in the months before the trip, so the receipts were in my email. I didn’t have the receipt for my Briggs & Riley suitcase, a workhorse we’ve used for seven years. I knew I purchased it online from Macy’s, so I called their customer service, and they were able to find a record of the purchase and email me a copy of the receipt. Fortunately, I never had to use it. Ryanair doesn’t operate many flights out of Fes, yet their office was packed with lost luggage. If you’re checking in a bag with Ryanair, you should consider digging up old receipts.