Soloist is refused boarding by Ryanair
NewsFurious message from violinist Mihaela Martin:
Denied boarding by Ryanair after having booked musical instrument as cabin baggage , being told that the violin is too big to take onboard and I should have checked it in.
I explained that violins are never checked in and offered to buy 1 more ticket but the moron of the moron airline said that violins are never taken onboard.I asked him if he knows what a violin is , he said yes, and that they are never allowed in the cabin and that he’ll be sacked if he doesn’t go by the book .
So one more night in Bucharest where luckily they kept my room at the hotel .
Now I have to search internet for a flight tomorrow.
Never ever again the stupid Ryanair with their stupid employees.
Geez. Why are people surprised? I have recently booked a flight with Ryanair for a violinist I invited for a concert and right from the start we agreed with the agent that the extra seat has to be booked for the instrument. The real problem is absolutely elsewhere! Once you have those two seats it is quite a hassle to make sure that both are next to each other, so the passenger can sit next to their instrument.
You can buy two seats together
You have to buy a ticket for the violin (extra item seat) when flying with Ryanair. At least they are clear about this rule. It‘s only strange that they refused to sell the ticket at the counter. Maybe the flight was full.
Ah, Ryanair….. the great leveller
Why would an orchestra allow their soloist to fly on Ryanair?
Because everyone is hard up, particularly the arts, saving money this side of the world at least, and Ryan Air generally do the job very cheaply, often flying to places that other airlines don’t contemplate.
Then don’t hire a soloist from abroad. Lack of funding should be a great opportunity to shine a light on local talent but noooooo the Podunk Sinfonietta need to have Itzahk Perlman
. .because in the world of classical music, the name Itzahk
Perlman, would fill up the concert hall, or if not him, the next best violinist. The same works for football.
Well that’s nice, but I was under the impression that orchestras everywhere were losing money. You’re either losing money or you’re jetting in a big name soloist and conductor, which is it?
You have made up a universal problem, and then criticised this particular orchestra for not being consistent and following your fantasy scenario. You’re an idiot.
Damn bud, super happy you know everything about every orchestra. That’s amazing. This guy should procreate as many times as possible. I bet his floaters swim to their target extra fast.
Next up: Carnegie Hall flies its soloists to NY on Spirit Airlines. (Just shield your violin when the fistfights start!)
Very often this is the fastest and direct route. Ryanair has an extensive network of connections between smaller European airports. I hate flying with them but it is often unavoidable.
I flew with Ryanair recently Belfast- Manchester- not a problem- clean, calm and efficient and cheap
There are full price airlines, there are budget airlines, and there’s Ryanair.
Thrre are well adjusted people, there are narcissistic people and there are orchestra soloists.
Flown with ryanair about a thousand times, always buying a seat for the violin (not always actually using the seat, as unsurprisingly it does fit into overhead bin). Why don’t people check the rules before flying? It’s all there, very clear on the website.
Yes, check the rules!
Mihaela should consider investing in a trinity violin case set. I’ve successfully got mine onboard Ryanair a few times without having to buy an extra seat or check a suitcase in. There’s enough space for concert gear as well as the fiddle. https://trinitycase.com/
The moment Ryanair gets wind of this, it will change the rules to exclude Trinity cases.
I can second this recommendation of the Trinity case. Once, on a small regional jet in Europe, they demanded that roller bags be checked. But when I pulled out the tiny violin case, they relented. The bow case was allowed too… The Trinity case has been a life saver when traveling with my instrument in the UK and Europe.
At least in the US, there’s a law that requires airlines to allow smaller instruments, like violins, to be allowed in the cabin in the overhead bins. The caveat is that the airlines aren’t required to make room for the instruments if the spaces are used up, so musicians endeavor to get “priority” boarding. It’s annoying and adds some cost, but there’s more peace of mind here. One still encounters idiot gate agents, but it can help if you keep a copy of the law in the violin case.
Disguise the violin……
Excellent comment! Very helpful!
More comments like this please–
The Ryanair conditions for musical instruments are very clear. Next time, print them out and show them to employee.
But if you read her comment closely, she booked cabin baggage and when denied boarding offered to buy a seat. Other commenters make it clear that she should have bought a seat at the outset. Thems the rules.
If u ask for the manager. They will tell you he is not
Available. Nothing new. I booked a holiday in italy
Paid for the hotel they tell me they have no room i ask for
The manager. He is not in. They put me into a better
Hotel. The receptionist looked about 15
The moron is the violinist for not checking the dimensions of her case and the rules regarding the transport of musical intruments.
I fly with Ryanair often and I have the small BAM case and a bow case separately. Never had any problems. It just has to fit the dimensions.
Ludicrous. Not as though a violin is a large instrument. My daughter has had similar attitude from other airlines even when she has given notice that her instrument is cabin luggage.
According to their website, a violin is too be to be classed as hand luggage
Ryanair is evil. I dont understand how can they be allowed to operate. They are worse than the scumbacks scaming old people with house sales of shitty expensive vacumcleaners.
Agree wholeheartedly. I had one bad experience with Ryanair about 15 years ago and I vowed then never to fly with them again. And I never have.
I fly with Ryanair and never had a problem, your language is atrocious and reflects the kind of person you are.
Frankly, it’s not just Ryanair — this could happen with any airline, and is not limited to low-cost airlines. However, low cost airlines usually have ridiculous baggage allowances, much smaller than a regular carry-on. So you have to pay and book in advance for a regular carry-on, as their availability is limited. And even then, I do believe that they still have the right to request you to check in your carry-on in some cases. I completely agree with the comment regarding the Trinity Case — the full set of the Trinity Case, which looks just like a regular carry-on, is really the ideal way to travel for violinists as it fits carry-on requirements. This being said, it has become more and more challenging to fly with an instrument, and it is becoming more and more of a tenuous proposition — not to mention possible issues at customs.
She is hundred per cent WRIGHT Ryanair is not a serious company to travel with and their terrible check in staff
Then better fly with the Wright Brothers.
This company it charges you extra for the size of your carry-on luggage, it always has delays and also the employees in charge of check-in are as idiots as the one you describe. I’m not at all surprised that this happens, I think they enjoy giving us a hard time. well know
According to their website, guitars and violins are too big to be classed as hand luggage. Maybe there wasn’t an extra seat to buy on the flight so it had to be checked in?
I believe cellist Gregor Piatigorsky had signed letters from the Presidents of the major airlines of his time that he could show to employees who tried to prevent him from taking his cello on board with him (a different era of air travel to be sure). The cello had its own ticket. Piatigorsky would usually insist that it be served its own meal too.
Ryanair is an expensive luggage carrier but allows the owner to accompany said luggage for a nominal extra charge.
I believe the expression is “self loading freight”
My dear friend, the late cellist and teacher, Christina Zink Hayakawa, regularly booked a seat for her cello. But this is still very sad. Ticket agents should be more aware of the high value of violins as well as the bows.
In the US, FAA rules allow violins if there is room in the overhead compartments. I don’t believe airlines are allowed to make up more restrictive rules. If there is no room, the option is to buy another seat. And always demand to speak to a manager or supervisor. Print out the FAA rules and airline rules ahead of time. https://help.ryanair.com/hc/en-us/articles/12889013645713-What-music-equipment-can-I-bring-on-board-#:~:text=You%20can%20carry%20any%20music,extra%20flight%20ticket%20and%20seat. In the US, *Ryanair can’t pull that BS*: https://www.nashvillemusicians.org/sites/default/files/Media%20Root/Flying%20with%20Musical%20Instruments%2010.29.pdf
I once flew Spirit from FLL to BWI and there was a cellist who sat in front of me. He bought a ticket for his cello but was told to place it overhead. He argued that he was flying Spirit for several years by then and was always allowed to place his cello next to him, but to no avail. So this is pretty much unpredictable. For many years, my wife travelled all over the world including the post-9/11 US carrying her manicure kit in her carry on, but it came to a sudden end in Fiji where she had to take out and toss away the scissors. Of all places, Fiji was the only one alarmed by scissors with roughly half inch blades.
Ryanair, rightly, wouldn’t be long telling the passenger that they are not in the USA and that their FAA have absolutely no relevance or validity in Europe.
Ryanair does fly in the US, so here, they would be subject to FAA rules. Not in EU, agreed. One tiny area USA has better policies than EU…
I literally just took a flight on Delta this weekend, a chamber orchestra boarded and every musician with the exception of percussion and double bass brought their instruments on board without incident, including the cellists who strapped their instruments in the seat next to them. Delta has no problem with musical instruments.
I once flew with a large delicate clock in a suitcase. I bought it a set. The woman demanded to jam it into the coat closet.
SPARE ME. Anyone with enough of a career to justify posting about flight issues, ought to know better than to be flying Ryanair for a performance. If you’re such an important soloist, pay for a ticket on a real airline. The real news here is that Mihaela Martin (who?) flies budget airlines. Hand to mouth, then…
She was obviously performing at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest. Post pandemic, there are few direct flights from Bucharest and many only on budget airlines. The festival usually books the flights that they pay for so she will have had very little say in the matter, and obviously they would try to book a direct flight and not two connecting ones that take much longer and cost more.
Who is stupid?
https://www.airline-baggage-fees.com/flying-with-musical-instruments/ryanair/
I once stood guard over Henri Texier’s double bass at Heathrow airport while he went to the Air France desk to buy a seat for it.
Flew Ryanair with an orchestra some years ago. On the flight out violins were allowed on board, but not on return flight. Ridiculous…
A bad experience but try to see the humour in the situation: it isn’t life or death.
If people put the whole first instead of themselves, not only could Ryan Air be boycott by most travellers but also, highstreets not die of etc but we live in a world of selfish needs and deminishing service for self convenience and outrage later. The customer used to always be right, now it’s only if you have the cash, and the rest be damned.
She could retrain on the piccolo, or triangle.
Hilarious!
Did you know that the captain of your flight has the last word on the subject? I tried it out and it worked a treat.… The Ryanair, moron, collapsed.
Asked if he knew what one was, sounds as if he thought she had a cello. As far as I’m aware musical instruments are far to valuable to be placed in the hold. If she’d had a huge cello she’d have bought a seat for it.
Oh how disconcerting, what with the Chopin and changing of flight arrangements. I suppose in these situations the airline in question has to be answerable for their Paart in proceedings – although they may not a-Grieg. Most planes are squashed at the best of times, without being Cage-d up even more by instruments. I remember once, on a flight to Great Britten from a musical Faure in France, with which airline I can’t remember, where the Handel of my violin case got caught in the overhead lockers – the staff thought another object was perhaps Haydn behind my case – I was told to Telemann about it on landing, but in the end I never got Bach to them – I certainly didn’t Tippet the cabin crew that’s for sure, but instead headed off to the Barber for a haircut (my hand cabin luggage also split and unRavel-led on the same flight).
The best answer in these situations is to find your own Copland mechanism.
LOVE it! Never heard of Paart though?
Bravo
I once boarded a BA flight from Rome. In the seats behind were a lady and a cello, in a case. The case was carefully strapped up to the seat and belt. Across the aisle was some British local authority H&S officer ( he said he was very early in his remarks.)
He called the stewardess and said the cello was dangerous and must be removed. The lady cellist said it was safe, had paid for the seat and had travelled thousands of miles like that. H&S became highly aereated. The stewardess said she was happy. The row escalated and departure time passed. The captain was called. He arrived and told H&S if he did not sit down and shut up, he would be immediately removed from the plane. Loud cheering from all passengers within earshot.
No precious instrument is ever checked in baggage. The handlers don’t care about damaging the instrument. Most musicians purchase an extra ticket for their instrument. This is an outrageous policy by a third rate airline.
Did they actually except a violin which is extremely fragile and valuable to go in the hold? It would have easily fitted in overhead locker or kept with you with no inconvenience to you or them totally stupid and inept airline ran by a moron and seems staffed by employees with no common sense about time everybody boycotted them until they realise they do not have a business without customers.
There is someone on the fiddle.
I would rather walk than fly Ryanair but when this is not possible I just pay a different airline a higher fare. I missed a job interview because the train to Stansted was halted and arrived at the airport just as the 30 minute cut-off point had arrived. The plane hadn’t even started to board. It was the lack of empathy from the staff that really sickened me. This happened 20 years ago and I haven’t flown with them since.
Agreed . When I’ve flown with them twice and booked a seat for my violin , they were rude . I didn’t even bother with customer non service person when I missed a flight from non Paris Beauvais.
If this occurred as described it is absolutely dreadful customer service. I have chose Ryanair many times and appreciate the no frills approach to reducing costs but it is possible to provide a service to respectfully treat passengers with any additional needs for which they are prepared to pay for the additional cost. Hopefully their will be a genuine review of events and a positive contact with this disappointed customer.
Brian Foy
For goodness sake Mr O’ Leary, your staff need educating. Don’t you have supervisors with common sense if your ordinary staff are too scared stiff of you to be creative and be human. Or is that word not in your airline’s vocabulary.
It’s a freakin violin, not a gigantic cello or a bass. What a complete idiot that RA guy. But then you get what you pay for. If you want to pay pennies for travel you also get cheap crappy service. And they don’t care cause the idiots at the top back them up no matter what.
What kind of stupidity to book on Ryanair? May as well take a donkey with her violin.
I have flown with Ryanair for many years and can’t fault them…”the basics meet the basics attitude”.
It not always cheap, but I feel humble and grounded with them. They represent a growing number of old european values, be simple in my ways and remain simple ,as we all a Violin in real terms
Stupid Ryanair. Especially as she offered to buy an extra seat. Inexcusable
I have travelled over a great deal of the world with lots of airlines, fortunately not with Ryanair.Now having booked a holiday offer through the Daily Express I find my wife and I are flying with the said airline.What a terrible experience the whole thing has become.I truly wish I was going. Financially It’s become a sad joke ..Extra for everything except breathing,alongside a complete refusal to convers with me because I had the temerity to book through a package agent and not with Ryanair directly .
I will never ever ever speak text email or deal with them again as they have pre ruined what should have been a late break to Portugal
Delighted to read that this arrogant person lost. Utterly delighted. Not at all surprised – the tag moron more appropriately seems to apply to her
Ryanair is clear about this rule, so you should have read the rule. But the flight was full, so you were too late at that time. And now you complain on the internet because you’re frustrated, but really it’s your own fault.
A bit of give and take . There’s always space at rear of plane .
And should be an honour to take a soloist
Liverpool Phil… we were always allowed to take violins on flight . It was safer in the hands of our van drivers and boxes specially built to take a few instruments . Airlines used to refuse to carry spare strings in case
they were used as a strangulating weapon . Famous cellist always paid for an extra passenger friend ….. their cello .wake up Ryanair