All passengers traveling with Europe’s number one low-cost airline, Irish Ryanair, should take note: starting November 10, new rules will come into effect for those who must hand in their luggage at the relevant check-in counters, which are located at all airports.
Baggage delivery time
In a statement released in the last few hours, Ryanair announced that, from Tuesday, November 10, its baggage drop service will close 60 minutes before scheduled departure, instead of the current 40 minutes. “Passengers using the airport baggage drop service are asked to ensure that they have dropped off their bags at least 60 minutes before departure,” says Ryanair’s Marketing Director, Dara Brady.
What are the reasons?
This change, announced last April, will give 20% of Ryanair passengers who check in luggage “more time to get through airport security and passport controls, and to arrive at the departure gate before boarding begins – particularly during peak periods,” the company explained in a recently released statement.
In short, this extra time should help reduce the number of passengers who arrive at the departure gate too late and miss their flight. For the 80% of passengers who don’t check in, nothing changes; they simply need to check in online before heading to the airport.
More self-service kiosks
This change in check-in procedures is part of a broader and rapid trend of self-service kiosks at many airports. Travelers can now print their own baggage tags, simplifying the process and saving time compared to using traditional counters where the service is provided by staff.
Boarding pass updates
Another important change, which Ryanair had previously announced, concerns boarding passes: from Thursday, November 12, only digital boarding passes will be accepted. “This means that, from Thursday, November 12, all passengers will receive a digital ticket via the Ryanair app during online check-in, as paper boarding passes will no longer be issued. Online check-in can be done on Ryanair.com or via the Ryanair app,” the Irish airline explains.