# Ryanair 59 Hacker News commenters recommended Ryanair and 151 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 10 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 10 years (4 owners). **Verdict:** People recommend Ryanair for very cheap, direct, on-time European flights and a safe fleet, though many warn its booking flow is full of upsells and dark patterns. ## Why people recommend it - Cheap fares across Europe (5 comments): "They've a safety record that's beyond reproach, and where else are you going to get flights for ~€50 across Europe?" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47166607)) "Ryanair admittedly wins on price and regulatory setup in EU provides guarantees that planes are safe." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49628593)) "The flights are usually cheap, on time and clicking through the junk only takes five minutes." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48507246)) - Direct point-to-point routes (2 comments): "Ryanair specialises in direct flights. If I can choose between a direct flight with Ryanair, or a connecting flight with a legacy airline, I'm going to choose the former to limit time spent in airports." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46366105)) "The advantage of Ryanair and a lot of the other low cost carriers is that they do a lot of point to point flights" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46367060)) - Strong safety record (4 comments): "They've a safety record that's beyond reproach, and where else are you going to get flights for ~€50 across Europe?" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47166607)) "Ryanair admittedly wins on price and regulatory setup in EU provides guarantees that planes are safe." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49628593)) "Ryanair in Europe (an epitome of low-cost airline) has both decent margins and zero crashes" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45826761)) - On-time, timely flights (3 comments): "The flying experience is trash. RyanAir may be the worst, but just by a little. At least they fly on time" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46381903)) "The flights are usually cheap, on time and clicking through the junk only takes five minutes." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48507246)) "they are also one of the most timely airlines because of this" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48860607)) ## What people warn about - Dark patterns and upsells (5 comments): "Plenty of dark patterns on their website but it is 100% possible to just get the luggage rather than a bundle" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48552458)) "I was able to complain to customer service but it was definitely incredibly user hostile, intrusive and just ridiculous given that I booked directly via their site." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46366942)) "Ryanair Russian Roulette pricing model, where they advertise cheap prices, but have many hidden tripwires that add a multiple of the sticker cost" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49045718)) - Hidden fees at booking (3 comments): "Ryanair Russian Roulette pricing model, where they advertise cheap prices, but have many hidden tripwires that add a multiple of the sticker cost" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49045718)) "one of Ryanair's major profit centres in the past has been that €50 fee they charge to print your boarding pass at the counter" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45877390)) "With a family of 3, it's either 400€ or 900€, so we put up with it." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48518750)) - Hostile customer service (3 comments): "I was able to complain to customer service but it was definitely incredibly user hostile, intrusive and just ridiculous given that I booked directly via their site." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46366942)) "My one and only experience with Ryanair was that they were rude and hostile even in places where they weren't trying to fleece you." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46367035)) "even if they provide no customer support, are actively hostile to their customers, and only respond to lawsuits" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49628270)) - App-only boarding passes (3 comments): "Increasingly more European airlines exclusively accept in-app check in and documentation. You cannot print it. Ryanair's one of them." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48161512)) "I flew with RyanAir several times after they introduced a "mandatory" app boarding pass" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48163298)) "Privacy / dark pattern concerns aside, I used to like having a paper pass in case something happened to my device." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48503111)) ## Where to get it - [Visit the official site](https://www.ryanair.com/us/en) ## Cite as Hacker Approved, "Ryanair", https://hackerapproved.com/p/ryanair/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).