James Rowe: Is this the year that we finally get rid of the phrase low-cost airlines, given that going all in with Ryanair or easyJet may cost you more than flying with Jet2 or British Airways?
Hello, I'm James Rowe and welcome to Which? Shorts, the podcast that gives you a free weekly insight into our magazine. Today, I'm bringing you a piece that Trevor Baker wrote for the March/April issue of Which? Travel magazine, where he revealed the results of our annual survey of the best and worst airlines.
Whether you're flying short-haul or long-haul, you might want to make sure the customer experience is friendly, the fares are reasonably priced, and that if something goes wrong, the staff will be there to help you out. Our analysis will give you the answers to which airlines you should and shouldn't fly with. Here is Trevor's piece, adapted for the podcast this week, read by Kat Cereda.
Kat Cereda: Let's get straight to it. The cost is no longer low if you want to fly with a low-cost carrier and take much more than just a handbag. We checked hundreds of cabin bag prices last year, and to take a cabin bag rather than an under-seat bag on easyJet was typically around £60 for a return flight. With Ryanair, you can't be confident that you'll be sitting with your travel companions unless you pay, and that's around £40 for a couple on a return flight.
You probably won't be surprised to learn that 75% of people we surveyed said they thought a cabin bag should always be included in the fare. Luckily for you, five of our six top-rated airlines in our survey allow you to do just that. They'll also try to make sure you're sat next to your travel companions without paying for the privilege. And if something goes wrong, decent customer service means you shouldn't be left in the loop.
Before I tell you about our recommended airlines, let's compare Ryanair and easyJet with Jet2 and British Airways. You see, prices for Ryanair and easyJet cabin bags have become so expensive that flying with Jet2 or BA can be cheaper. One example we found was the route between Gatwick and Alicante in Spain. You might at first be put off by Jet2's £118 headline price and British Airways' £126. But both of these include a cabin bag. Compare that to Ryanair and easyJet. At first, their headline prices of £106 and £74 look quite appealing, but if you want to add a cabin bag, then both will cost more than Jet2 and BA. If you need two bags, the difference is even more pronounced. So it's always worth comparing prices with Jet2 and BA for your next flight to make sure you really are getting that best price.
Speaking of Jet2, the carrier is our only short-haul Which? Recommended Provider. Last autumn, Which? asked over 5,500 members of the public who had taken an economy flight from a UK airport about their experiences of flying in the year prior to the survey, and Jet2 came out on top with a customer score of 76%. Jet2 cancelled far fewer flights at the last minute than most rivals, and clinched four stars for customer service, value for money, and the booking process. Compared with other budget airlines, Jet2 gives you a generous luggage allowance, which makes such a difference, one person said.
More than three quarters of passengers said there were no problems with their flights. When delays do happen, Jet2 was also much more likely to have people around to explain what's going on. In the past 10 years, Jet2 has expanded hugely with more bases and routes, but it's as good as ever.
At the other end of the scale was Ryanair, with a customer score of just 55%. You aren't treated like a customer, but as an inconvenience, complained one Ryanair passenger. And the seats are uncomfortable compared to easyJet. They added Ryanair's pricing is no longer competitive. That last comment should worry an airline that has over the past decade put up the price of taking a bag, sitting next to companions, and just about everything else.
The worst thing with Ryanair is how it treats passengers when something goes wrong. And this is important because over a third of its customers said something did go wrong. Despite Ryanair's reasonable punctuality – 70% of all its scheduled flights departed from the UK within 15 minutes of time due, according to the Civil Aviation Authority – the biggest complaint was delays, perhaps because it's less likely to have staff around to help during delays than rivals such as Jet2. 67% of Ryanair passengers said there were staff available at least some of the time during delays. For Jet2, that was 92%. Fly with anyone else, if you can.
If you're going long-haul, aim to use Emirates or Virgin Atlantic. They are two Which? Recommended Providers this year. Singapore Airlines actually has the highest customer score of 81%, but we can't give it WRP status because of one complaint about Singapore and most other long-haul airlines: its no-show clause. Miss your outbound flight, even if it's not your fault, and it'll cancel your return flight. You have to pay a fee to avoid losing the whole cost of the flight.
Meanwhile, a superior no-show clause is why we recommend Emirates for eastbound flights. It matches Singapore for its smooth booking price, seat comfort, food, and value for money. Its customer service is good too. The service was exceptional, one person told Which?, adding that it felt like I was flying first class even though I booked economy.
If you're tall, you might appreciate that, according to seat pitch data from analyst AeroLOPA, you get an extra inch of legroom on Emirates compared with many other airlines. Its punctuality was also excellent, and Emirates has the edge over Singapore on last-minute cancellations. Fewer than one in 200 flights were cancelled less than 24 hours before departure.
Virgin was one of only two airlines, along with Singapore, to get the full five stars for customer service. The staff just seem nice, said one flyer. There's a better atmosphere on board when you have staff who actually seem like they care. Virgin's result is notable when you see how its transatlantic competitors – Aer Lingus, American, Delta, and United – sit at the bottom of our table. It beats all of them for food and drink, cabin environment, and value for money.
Another reason to fly with Virgin, or indeed BA, is that you get stronger consumer protections, even when flying from the US. An American airline doesn't have to compensate you for long delays or cancellations when flying to the US. A British or European one does.
