Ryanair sets date for allocated seating
Ryanair will introduce allocated seating on all flights from February 1.
Passengers will be able to select their preferred allocated seat either during the booking or when checking in online with three seat options available:
– Premium seats – Rows 1-5, 16 & 17 or 32 & 33 – giving customers priority boarding, extra legroom and/or faster disembarking for a fee of €10/£10 (the same fee as Ryanair’s current reserved seat fee)
– Standard seats – Rows 6-15 & 18-31 – where customers can pre-select their preferred window or aisle seats or ensure that they sit together for a fee of €5/£5 (priority boarding can be added for a supplement of €2/£2)
– Allocated seating. Ryanair customers who do not wish to pre-select their seats can check-in during the period from 7 days to 2 hours prior to their flight and they will be assigned an allocated seat at no cost. (Free allocated seats will not be available prior to 7 days before each flight departure).
Customers who have already purchased priority boarding for flights departing after February 1 2014 can select a standard seat free of charge when checking in online.
The move follows other major changes by Ryanair in its bid to improve its customer relations.
Last weekend it relaxed baggage rules and reduced charges for passengers who don’t print out their own boarding passes.
At the end of this month, Ryanair will introduce a ‘My Ryanair’ passenger registration system on its recently revamped website, claiming this will speed up bookings further.
From January 5, it will reduce standard airport bag fees from €60/£60 to €30/£30 at the bag drop desk, and from €60/£60 to €50/£50 at the boarding gate.
Ryanair is also developing new business and family products, but has not yet given details.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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