Ryanair Boeing 737-800 Manchester-Gran Canaria

Background

The Manchester - Gran Canaria route is fiercely fought over by no fewer than four airlines (Ryanair, Jet2, easyJet and TUI).  Ryanair is usually cheapest and it has a great product offering.  So when an opportunity arose to get some winter sun in January for just £25, who was I to refuse!

Whilst yes, I do prefer flying Jet2 on this route, this is purely down to Jet2 using either an Airbus A321 or Boeing 757 and because both of these aircraft types have some rows of just 2x2 seating, so flying on my own is made that much more comfortable (I rarely have anyone sat next to me on those rows).  

That said, when the Ryanair 737MAX arrives on this route (at the moment it's a 737-800 route), also with its 2x2 seating on some rows, it'll be difficult to remain with Jet2 given the significant price difference.

As with arch rival easyJet, Ryanair offers several fares types which come with a range of included benefits such as a pre-assigned seat, fast track security or more ticket flexibility, all at a discounted packaged price.  Or, you can just build your own itinerary, as I do.

..as with any fare types/combinations, you can still add a meal onboard!

Check In

The Lounge

Ryanair doesn't offer lounges on any of its fares and as I indicated in recent videos on my YouTube channel, Manchester Airport itself has become increasingly hostile towards Priority Pass in recent years to the extent that I no longer try to use my card at this airport's lounges.  

Readers should note that at other congested Priority Pass lounges, such as at Birmingham and Gatwick, Priority Pass holders can pay £5 in advance to guarantee entry.  Manchester does not, at the time of writing, offer this facility.

If you really want to guarantee lounge access at Manchester, the only way to do is to book direct, with prices starting from £23.

Boarding

Boarding was as usual with Ryanair, a wait on the stairs inside the airport, before a short walk to the aircraft across the apron, using the aircraft's own stairs.

Ryanair does occasionally use air bridges but the majority of flights that I take with them don't.  I presume this saves Ryanair airport fees. 

The Flight

The cabin and my extra legroom seat on today's flight

Pushing back five minutes ahead of schedule, I was seated comfortably for todays four hour flight down to the Canaries, with good weather forecast the whole journey.  

As a bonus today and thanks to Ryanair's impressive app, I had paid in advance for the mid-cabin emergency exit beforehand, but changed my actual seat a few hours before departure as since booking a couple had booked the seats next to my original allocation.  In doing this, I managed to get a whole emergency exit row to myself. 

My seat in the emergency exit row was noticeably noisier today than on my recent Jet2 flight.  This was due to the former being sat over the wing, versus on the Airbus, one of the exit rows is forward of the engines.  

Once airborne, the crew were quick to start service and it was done professionally and with a smile.  The crew worked really hard the entire duration of the flight and whilst I balked at the idea of paying €3 for a bottle of water, everything else seemed reasonably priced, especially getting a litre of duty free Jameson's for just €20.  

With that out of the way, I settled down to watch a film on my laptop.  Readers should note that Ryanair does not offer any form of wifi or entertainment onboard.  

Food and Drink

Ryanair, as with every other airline on this route, offers a buy on board service.  Whilst unlike Jet2 you cannot book your hot meal in advance, the Ryanair offering is excellent and well ahead of easyJet and TUI's menu. 

As usual, I chose my favourite Ryanair hot meal, the Pasta Bolognese.  Whilst no low cost airline that I have ever flown with offers five star gourmet meals, I must say that this one really hits the spot and this must be the tenth time I've ordered it.  What also impresses me on Ryanair is that sheer choice of substantial hot meal choice.  Like Jet2, this is a real winning proposition for me.  On the flip side, this is what lets easyJet and TUI down - their menu is disappointing, especially when you consider that this flight can be up to five hours long.

Arrival

With an early arrival today, we were quickly through Spanish immigration and in the hire car within 20 minutes of landing.

Readers should note that in recent months, some Canarian islands have chosen to stop stamping passports and instead use e-gates (usually the preserve of EU residents post-Brexit).  

Whilst my passport was stamped today, on a previous visit some weeks earlier to Lanzarote, they have clearly chosen the e-gate route.  Critically, if you are stamped in, you must get stamped out, otherwise it may cause difficulties for you entering the EU in future trips.

In early 2024 the EU will introduce a simpler Visa Waiver style immigration process, known as ETIAS, however this has been beset by delays and it will be at least mid-'24 before  the system becomes mandatory to non-EU residents.

Verdict

You've got to hand it to Ryanair, you can see why they came, they saw, they conquered.

Today's flight was exceptional.  I paid just £52 for the flight which is usually the lead-in price on other airlines on this route.  Today though that £52 bought me the flight, an extra legroom seat, a meal and priority boarding with two cabin bags - TUI doesn't even offer the latter option although in practice it's rarely enforced in my experience.

Ryanair, by its own admission, has struggled with punctuality in recent months although they blame most of this on air traffic control restrictions.  However, my flight today arrived early, having completed the flight sub-four hours which is unusual, especially in January.

There are some who refuse to entertain Ryanair for reasons that I don't understand.  Ryanair works tirelessly to achieve market leading punctuality, with a modern fleet of jet aircraft and you can make your journey very comfortable for not much money.

Highly recommended.