Aer Lingus has decided to introduce a charge to take cabin bags on board their flights. People will have to purchase priority boarding to bring their luggage on board, which is the same as their main Irish competitor, Ryanair. This starts at €5.99, so it’s not a huge amount of extra money.
Those not wanting to pony up the extra cash have the option to have their cabin baggage checked in at no cost. Of course, that means a wait at the other end in Baggage Claim, but may be fine for some. A €35 fee will apply for those who bring a bag to the gate without buying priority boarding in advance.
Many People Get Cabin Bags For Free
There are a whole lot of exemptions from the fee. Members of the Aer Lingus frequent flyer programme, AerClub, who have Silver, Platinum or Concierge status will be able to bring a bag on board for free.
Anyone who is connecting onto or off of an Aer Lingus transatlantic service will also avoid the fee. Considering how important the connections are over Dublin, this is a good move.
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- Do you mind waiting at baggage claim after a flight?
Also, people who purchase a Plus, Advantage or AerSpace fare on European flights will also find the cabin bag included. Considering these cost more, that is a good move.
Essentially the only people who have to pay to bring the bag on board are those booking the cheap Saver fares on Aer Lingus. That will only impact a certain demographic really. Just to note, a small bag like a laptop bag or purse can still be brought on board at no cost, no matter which fare type you have.
Overall Thoughts
This is aimed squarely at people like me, who book cheap Saver fares and bring only a carry-on bag on board. That being said, this news has zero impact on me, because I always buy priority boarding when flying Aer Lingus.
It’s certainly no big deal at all, as people who don’t want to pay can still check their bag into the hold. I imagine those going on holidays for a few days won’t mind spending a few extra minutes at baggage claim to save a few Euros.
What do you think of this change by Aer Lingus? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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I am disappointed by this move. This is the only type of fare that I (and probably many others) would ever really book on Aer Lingus for intra-European travel. As much as I am rooting for Aer Lingus, It’s a money grab.
It’s certainly an interesting choice. I’m curious as to how they’re going to monitor it – will the boarding passes say, “Cabin Bag Permitted”/”Cabin Bag Not Permitted” – how are they going to know at the boarding gate? I’ll be curious to see how that aspect is implemented at any rate.