Ryanair passengers who check in luggage now face a stricter airport deadline, as bag drop services at all Ryanair airports close 60 minutes before scheduled departure instead of the previous 40 minutes. The change took effect on Tuesday, November 10.
New 60-minute bag drop cut-off
Travellers using bag drop must check in and hand over their bags at least one hour before their flight. For example, if a flight departs at 10am, the desks will close at 9am with no exceptions.
The rule applies to around 20% of Ryanair passengers who check in luggage, including those with 10kg or 20kg hold bags. The change was announced in April and is intended to give these travellers more time to get through security and passport control and reach their gate before boarding, particularly during busy travel periods.
Impact on other passengers
The remaining 80% of Ryanair passengers who do not check in bags are not affected by the 20-minute change. They continue to check in online before going to the airport and can go straight through security to their gate.
The online check-in window on the Ryanair website or app remains unchanged and closes two hours before departure.
Advice for passengers
To avoid missing a flight, passengers are advised to arrive at the airport car park three hours before departure to allow a buffer for logistics before reaching the bag drop desk.
Ryanair CMO Dara Brady said: “From Tuesday, November 10, bag drop services at all Ryanair airports will close 60 minutes before scheduled departure instead of the current 40 minutes. This small change will give the 20% of Ryanair passengers who check in a bag more time to clear airport security and passport control queues and get to their departure gate before boarding begins, particularly during busy travel periods when airport queues can be longer. We remind passengers using airport bag drop services to arrive at the airport in good time and ensure they have checked in and dropped their bags before check-in and bag drop closes 60 minutes before departure. The remaining 80% of passengers who check in online and do not check in a bag are unaffected by this change.”
Passengers are encouraged to check in online up to two hours before the flight to avoid airport check-in fees, download digital boarding passes to their phone’s wallet for offline access, pre-book airport parking with shuttle buses arriving at least every 10 minutes, check traffic alerts before leaving, use a self-service kiosk to print luggage tags, and join the bag drop line before the 60-minute deadline.
