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Good news! Ryanair will NOT make you use coins to enter their bathrooms
We'd forgive you if you accused us of being pro/anti Ryanair (depending on what you read). In the past week we broke the news that the Ryanair CEO was considering introducing coin operated bathrooms on his flights.
Then we reported on remarks of a Ryanair spokesperson who claimed the esteemed Ryanair CEO was just screwing with us. Thankfully the official reply is out - Ryanair will NOT be introducing coin operated bathrooms on their flights.
They will be credit card operated.
That's right, According to Ryanair, they have actually asked Boeing engineers to design a credit card operated lock that can be installed on the bathroom doors. That pretty much removes all concerns about not having enough change, or any worries about currency issues.
According to Ryanair, if 20% of their passengers use the bathroom on each flight, and they all pay 1 Pound for the right to pee or poo, they'll earn an additional 15 Million Pounds a year (21 Million Dollars).
As usual, there is something smelly about this plan - the extra income does not take into account the cost of installing the actual credit card operated doors, or the extra manpower required to transfer all these transactions to some kind of computer at the end of the day.
Nor do they seem to worry about the possibility that the equipment will break down, and sooner or later someone will break it when they can't get the damn thing to accept their hotel loyalty card as a valid method of payment.
We are already on our third installment of this silly idea, but I can't help feel we are being involved in a funny hoax by the airline. Either way, Mr O'Leary and his airline are clearly masterminds at creating free PR - almost getting themselves on the same level as that other brilliant airline PR guy, Richard Branson.
I just hope Ryanair understands what they are getting themselves in to - many of our commenters already said they'd rather take a dump in the vomit bag than pay the airline.
Update: O'Leary has finally admitted that the whole thing was indeed a cheap PR stunt.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Justin Glow Mar 6th 2009 12:07PM
I only wish the US airlines would be more like this. Really.
If I can fly 1,000 miles across Europe for next to nothing on RyanAir, I don't mind paying for things like snacks or toilets. But the same distance will cost several hundred dollars at best in the U.S.
If you don't want to fly on a plane with pay toilets, that's fine. But you'll pay a lot more than if you would have just used the $1 toilet.
Martino Mar 6th 2009 12:56PM
That's £1 to pee/poo. OK, got that.
But, if you pay with credit card, that will be £3 extra, debit card is £2 extra. If you don't bring your own toilet paper, you can buy some from the crew at £0.50 per 10 sheets.
phishhead90 Mar 6th 2009 2:35PM
why was my post deleted that time? I definitely had content pertaining to the article.
you guys don't like criticism do you?
Eva Mar 6th 2009 2:57PM
Hey, you know who doesn't carry a credit card on an airplane? Kids. Do persons under 18 pee free?
@Justin For me (having been screwed by Ryanair on multiple occasions), their affordability is an illusion. Sure, the ticket is cheap -- but when they abandon you at an isolated airport without a refund or a rebooking or any effort to accommodate you, you wind up paying far more than you would have for any other airline.
TravelNomad Mar 6th 2009 4:54PM
8 years ago, after being laid off after 9/11, I was sitting in a bar with friends, all laid off airline employee's like myself, after a few drinks, we started predicting what cost cutting measures would happen in the future.
When I said pay toilets, and charging for food and snacks, everyone said, you have gone too crazy, they will never do that. Well, I think the CEO's are nuts.
But it is happening. As an older diabetic now, who goes to the lav often on flights, this is going to add up.
My other prediction was the airlines would be charging for overweight passengers. We shall see!
Fuzzyfreaker Mar 6th 2009 9:22PM
Greetings! I'm here to predict the future!
After Ryanair actually puts this plan into effect, Gadling will publish an article describing an incident, that a customer frustrated with this practice will instead defecate in the aisles.