Tiny French Airport back to London: Ryanair

After Valerie and my short time in Carcassonne, which is a very cute city, it was time to return to London.  In both Toulouse and Carcassonne, we stayed in pretty generic hotels, and so I don’t have much to report.  This flight was approximately as eventful as the TGV ride to Carcassonne, which is to say, not in the slightest.  Carcassonne has a very small airport, which is served only by Ryanair.  And Ryanair only has a few flights per day, so there is only one gate.

Before security, there is a small café that Valerie visited for a small snack while I waited in line to check in my bag and get my boarding pass.  One of my least favorite things about Ryanair is that non-EU citizens cannot use a mobile boarding pass and have to print off their boarding pass (or confirmation) before coming to the airport.  It’s only one extra step, but it’s not something I’ve experienced on any other airline.

Since Carcassonne Airport is so small, they simply have one or two of everything.  There was one check in desk open, one security line, two passport lines (one for EU and one for all passports), and one gate.  Immediately after clearing security, we went through passport control.  Carcassonne has flights within Schengen, but since there is only one flight at a time, the passport control opens/closes as appropriate.

After security, there was one men’s and one women’s toilet, as well as a couple vending machines.  There was ample seating, and I guess since Ryanair only operates one aircraft type, they know exactly the maximum number of people that will be waiting at the gate.  I had to take a call before takeoff, so Valerie and I found an empty, quiet back corner to sit in. 

In the vending machines, we also found my new favorite soft drink: lychee-flavored Soofty.  So, if nothing else, I call that a big win.

Boarding began shortly after the incoming flight landed.  Valerie and I had seats towards the back of the plane, so our boarding passes said that we’d be boarding from the rear staircase.  Neither of us enjoys sitting on a plane during boarding (especially in economy), so we tried to board as late as possible.  It turns out that this was a good decision because even though we were in the last 10 or 20 people to scan our boarding passes, when we got outside, no one had actually yet gotten on the plane.  And it was very hot outside.

Ryanair only operates two types of aircraft: their massive 737-800 fleet and, more recently, 737 MAX 200 aircraft.  Our flight was operated by a 737-800 (EI-DLD), which has been flying with Ryanair since 2006.  The seats in the planes had definitely seen better days, but since they don’t recline or have seatback pockets, the seats definitely last longer than on a full-service carrier.  That being said, the aisle-side arm rest was noticeably loose, probably from people knocking bags into it constantly on boarding/deplaning.

Legroom on Ryanair aircraft is not amazing but perfectly workable. The main thing about Ryanair is that you know exactly what you’re getting, so it’s not a surprise.  The lack of seatback pocket is also good in this case because it increases knee room slightly. 

The seat was as comfortable as you’d expect for a typical economy seat.  Although it was old, that didn’t affect its comfort unlike on my DAT flight to Helsinki in June.

The flight departed on-time, and then shortly after takeoff, the crew began selling everything.  And I mean everything.  Ryanair flights are just one continuous advertisement/shopping spree.  They first sell drinks and food, then duty-free items, and then lottery tickets.  I’ve been on plenty of Ryanair flights, and it’s always the same.  That consistency is good for an airline to have and is something that many full-service carriers in Europe lack.

About 90 minutes later, we landed at London’s Stansted Airport, which Ryanair dominates.  Despite many airports in Europe being completely overwhelmed with the summer travel volume, Stansted Airport has stood out as one that has been operating as normal.  Our experience was no exception.  The passport line was long but continuously moved at a reasonable pace.  Our bags arrived very shortly after we cleared passport control, and we comfortably made it onto the Stansted Express back to London.  I couldn’t have asked for a more efficient ground experience.

In summary, this short Ryanair flight was exactly what it claimed to be, and we didn’t experience any problems on the ground, which was definitely welcome given the state of travel in Europe in July.  The ground experience at Carcassonne was exactly as expected for a tiny airport served only be Ryanair (i.e. no lounge).  The seat was standard and worn, but that didn’t translate into discomfort.  Food was available for purchase on both the ground and the plane.  Neither of us purchased anything in flight. The service was the standard Ryanair service.  No IFE was offered on the flight, as expected.  In theory, this flight should get a score of 10/20, but I don’t think that’s a fair score to give it because you don’t fly Ryanair to get bells and whistles.  Instead, I think it gets a 18/20.  Specifically, this plane was a bit worn, and I think they could improve the flight by offering Wi-Fi/streaming for a charge.

Ryanair doesn’t have a loyalty program, which, arguably, helps to reduce the price of the flights, since they don’t get to build in the value of the miles earned into the price of the flight.  The only points here to earn were from my Amex Platinum Card, which gave me 5x points/$.