Saturday, November 03, 2012

Looking further into these budget airlines

Looking further into this seat size business, it very much depends upon what particular aircraft you are flying on and you won’t necessarily know that until you get on board.
Jet2.com for example fly Boeing 737-200s with 148 seats, Boeing 757-200s with 229 seats and Boeing 737-800s with 189 seats.
Both the 737-800 and the 737-200 have a seat pitch of 29 inches and a seat width of 17.2 inches. The 757-200 on the other hand has  a seat pitch of 28 inches but has 33 extra legroom seats with a pitch of 36 inches.

As for your hand luggage:

  • On Monarch you can take one bag that measures 56x40x25cms weighing no more than 10kilos or two bags that combined measure no more than 56x40x25cms and weigh no more than 10kilos.
  • On Jet2.com you can take one piece of hand luggage no larger than 56x45x25cm, including wheels and handles with a weight restriction of 10kgs.
  • Ryanair say strictly one item of cabin baggage per passenger (excluding infants) weighing up to 10kg with maximum dimensions of 55cm x 40cm x 20cm.
  • Easyjet say each passenger may carry one item of hand baggage only, measuring a maximum 56 x 45 x 25cm (including wheels, pockets and handles) with no weight restriction (as long as it is safe to stow in the overhead locker).
Top marks go to Easyjet there – my Think Tank roller case would fit their bins and would not be overweight. Whilst I might just squeeze it into one of Ryanair’s, it would be more comfortable in the Jet2.com bin.

Now let’s look at hold luggage:

On Monarch you have a hold baggage allowance of 20kgms which may be charged for. Well now that is helpful!

Jet2.com are a little less cagey, they say the baggage allowance is 22kgs for each travelling customer per bag booked and paid for (excluding infants). When paying for additional bag(s) per person, the allowance increases by 22kgs per extra bag booked up to a maximum of 3 bags or 66kgs per travelling customer. The charge for each bag is variable depending on your destination and whether you make your booking via our website, our call centre or at the airport.

On Ryanair you can check in up to 2 bags of 15kg online – the first bag cost between £15 and £30 depending on flight – the second bag cost between £35 and £50 online. You can up the limit for your first bag to 20kgs for between £25 and £40. If you fail to check your bag in online then it could cost up to a eye watering £150 to check it in at the gate.

On Easyjet - the maximum volume for hold baggage is 275cm (length + width + height), except for sporting and medical equipment.
For a fee, you can put one bag in the hold weighing up to 20kg. The fee can be paid in one of three ways:
  • online (£9 - £17 per bag per flight, depending on the route and the season)
  • via call centre (£14 - £17 per bag per flight)
  • or at the airport where the fee is £25 at the check-in and £40 at the gate.
If you need to take more than 20kg per passenger per flight you will also be charged an excess weight fee of £10 per kg at each departing airport. You can however prebook excess weight online for £21 per every 3 kg of additional weight per flight.

No comments: