So on April 20, 2025 we flew from Bari to Catania using RyanAir (FR6191). We had to pay for the weight of our checked luggage (which I was expecting), and they tore the fabric of my wife's checked luggage, so we were a little annoyed with that. It didn't ruin the integrity of the luggage, and we were on the move, so we opted to forego filling out a complaint bc that's happened to a previous bag before, and took 6 months just to get a check for like $150. That said, we had a wonderful time in Taormina, the people were great.
On April 24, 4 days later, we were boarding our flight from Catania to Rome via RyanAir (FR4857), but at very last moment when you give your boarding pass, there is a blue metal stand that has a width limit for carry-ons. If your bag visibly crosses the line (spills over), you now have to pay a fee to check that bag. My wife and my carry-on bags are nothing obnoxious, and there are mainly clothes in there, so these bags can be easily manipulated when storing above your seats. My wife took something out and gave it to her mother to store in her very small bag, but because it was already placed in the "measurement" device, one of the staff members said that she had to pay. Full disclosure, my temper was rising and so my voice was also, but nothing to alarming levels and I tried to be as respectful as possible. I explained to them that our first flight didn't do this measuring procedure, but they responded that it was because that we must have taken a priority-flight but now we are taking non-priority. I explained to them that we took non-priority. They responded that they don't have an answer for that, but we still have to pay. They went somewhere else and another staff-member said that they will charge for just one bag instead of two (so 50 euros instead of 100).
We go to the tarmac and I hand my bag over to one of the crew and I ask them if the bag will be okay (we had souvenirs, wrapped in bubble, then within some clothing), and they just rip the tag off and give me the bag back to load above my seat. And once we get to our seats, the bag fits perfectly. No problem, but I'm out 50 euros.
I don't know if this rule is just a new cash-grab scam that everyone knows about, but the thing that really got be mad was that this carry-on rule was not enforced on our first RyanAir flight. I don't even remember seeing one of those blue metal grift-checks. And I feel that the staff was not understanding or trying to solve a problem and pretty darn rude (except for that particular loading crew - they rock). Just giving a heads up to anyone that is considering using their airlines - be sure to add some padding to your travel budget with them, or find an airline option with better customer service. read more