This spring, my trip to Europe wasn’t just a visit to Paris, France; I also explored other countries by flying with European budget airlines like EasyJet and Ryanair. How does flying on a European budget airline feel? Are the facilities and comfort levels comparable to budget flights in Indonesia? After flying four times on European budget airlines, I would pick EasyJet over Ryanair. Curious about what went wrong with Ryanair?
FIRST TIME ON A EUROPEAN BUDGET FLIGHT
Actually, this year wasn’t my first time on a European budget flight. My experience started back in 2016, the first time I visited Europe. I chose my destinations on a whim. When I was in Paris, I suddenly wanted to go to Rome. Using free WiFi at McDonald’s, I bought an EasyJet ticket from Paris to Rome, Italy. For my second experience, at the end of that same Europe trip, I flew from Rome to Brussels, Belgium, on Ryanair for my return leg to Jakarta.
This year, I also decided randomly to go to Portugal because I wanted to avoid overly cold destinations. Portugal wasn’t even on my original itinerary when I left for Europe on Emirates. Since Portugal is in the far southwest of Europe, a flight was a must, as trains or buses would take too long. But after becoming somewhat nervous about flying since last year, I felt anxious. Still, with no other options, I bought a European budget flight ticket. I flew EasyJet from Paris to Lisbon, and from Porto back to Paris, I flew Ryanair.
EASYJET BUDGET FLIGHT REVIEW
This trip to Portugal was very last-minute. Checking flight prices on Google Flights (my go-to for finding flights to Europe), I found a cheap ticket from Paris to Lisbon for only €88.05. I immediately bought my European budget flight ticket on the EasyJet website. The next day, I took the metro to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. The flight to Lisbon was 1 hour and 40 minutes long and was quite smooth, with no turbulence. By 2:15 PM, I was already in Lisbon, switching to the subway to reach Lisbon’s city center.
What I like about EasyJet is that both times I flew with them, they were on schedule. Although I’ve heard from Europeans that EasyJet can often experience delays, similar to budget airlines in Indonesia, I must have been lucky—no delays for me. Secondly, EasyJet’s check-in system is very efficient. I could simply check in on the EasyJet app and scan the barcode on my boarding pass when entering the departure gate. No time wasted lining up to print a boarding pass!
However, the downside is that the ticket I bought didn’t include luggage—no 7 kg cabin allowance like on domestic flights in Indonesia. Their policy is similar to that of some American airlines, like Delta Airlines. I could only bring one small bag to fit under the seat (maximum size of 45 x 36 x 20 cm). But since the flight had empty seats, I managed to put my bag in the overhead bin. So, what if you need to bring a big suitcase? You’d need to purchase additional baggage.
In terms of comfort, this European budget flight was pretty standard, but the seats were well-maintained, without signs of wear or tear. Service-wise, there were no issues at all.
RYANAIR BUDGET FLIGHT REVIEW
While searching for a return ticket to Paris, I hoped to find a ticket on EasyJet or another airline—just not Ryanair. I remembered my previous delayed flight to Brussels and Ryanair’s less-than-stellar reputation, which made me feel uneasy. But as the return tickets to Paris were expensive (and it was just a day before), I reluctantly bought a Ryanair ticket for €110 from their website. The departure was from Porto, not Lisbon, so I had to take a 3-hour bus ride to Porto, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise because Porto is beautiful.
Unlike EasyJet, Ryanair’s check-in process is more complicated. While I could check in online, I still had to print my boarding pass and exchange it at the check-in counter for a Ryanair-issued one. It felt a bit odd—probably a way for them to check if passengers had more than one bag and could charge additional fees. This policy meant I had to allow extra time to wait in line at the check-in counter. Another thing that irked me was the “NON PRIORITY” label printed in large letters on the top right corner of my boarding pass. Why write it so prominently? It feels like they want to make non-priority passengers feel less valued.
The most frustrating part of the Ryanair flight was the delay, which went unannounced. When it was time to board, we all lined up in the waiting area. But after standing for 10, 20, up to 60 minutes, the doors still hadn’t opened. Worse, there was no announcement over the speakers or any display on the screen indicating a delay. Everyone was left standing for no reason! If this had happened in Indonesia, people would have been outraged. Surprisingly, the Europeans around me were calm, even though time is money, right? After an hour of standing, we were finally allowed to board.
Fortunately, the flight itself was smooth, and after 2 hours and 5 minutes, I landed at Paris Beauvais Airport, which is outside of Paris. Now I’ve flown in and out of all the airports in Paris: Charles de Gaulle, Orly, and Beauvais. Once I left the airport, Adrien and his father picked me up, and we continued our journey to Rouen, Normandy.
So far, I’ve only tried EasyJet and Ryanair for European budget flights; I haven’t flown other airlines like Vueling or Wizz Air. From my experience, I’d definitely choose EasyJet for European budget flights. What about you—who would you pick?