# Easyjet Bike Carriage costs



## johnny (5 Aug 2008)

Does anyone know how much EasyJet charge to carry a bike?


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## rich p (5 Aug 2008)

johnny said:


> Does anyone know how much EasyJet charge to carry a bike?



Yes BTFB does! 

£15 each way I think


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## Tim Bennet. (5 Aug 2008)

I think it's up to £16.50 each way if you pay beforehand. It's substantially more if you wait and pay at the airport.

Seems to go up every time you book.


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## Bigtallfatbloke (5 Aug 2008)

There is an additional cost for the bike payable when you book. Then when you get to the airport you need to buy the bikie box they provide (unless you already have one) . This box I was told was the only diminsion of box easyjet permit. The box cost me 14euros on arrival at the check in desk in addition to the extra bike fee paid on booking the flight.
I was lucky because I called my wife from meersberg and asjed her to book me a flight on line from Basel (two days ride), so I avoided the higher flight cost for airport ticket purchase.
I dont know what the extra bike charge was because she paid it!
The bike box is a good thing because you can fit all your gear in it as well pretty much if you unpack your panniers ans stuff the contents around the bike.
I used a sleep mat to protect the bike further. Tape and scissors were provided by easyjet.


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## Tim Bennet. (5 Aug 2008)

> The bike box is a good thing because you can fit all your gear in it as well pretty much if you unpack your panniers ans stuff the contents around the bike.


A common practice but one that is expressly forbidden by easyJet! Not sure what the penalty would be if they discovered this transgression. Ryanair would just pull it all out and leave it on the conveyor for you to claim.


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## johnny (5 Aug 2008)

Bike box?? Is that a solid plastic box or a cardboard box. Also does it mean that I don't need to invest in a proper bike bag/box? What dimensions was the EJ box?


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## Bigtallfatbloke (6 Aug 2008)

..expressly forbidden...well ok..but that is precisely what i did at Basel airport on the direct instructions of the check in lady.

The box is cardboard. It is big enough for a standard size bike. I have a 64cm galaxy and I needed to remove my front wheel to get it in...had the box been another 3 " longer I would not have had to.

On th eoutward flight with Ryan air my bag was wrapped in a CTC poly bike bag. There were two other bikes on that flight niether were wrapped at all, just hand the bars turned in and pedals off. Both the unwrapped bikes arrived on the flight, but mine missed the flight and was unwrapped and totally searched to the extent that they even took out the seat post and looked inside th eframe. The bike arrived 5 hours later on the next flight after much frantic telephoning etc. The bike was damaged on arrival by Ryan air, the chain was broken in two places and the deraillieur bent....it looked to me like because mine was wrapped they picked on it to seach and in the process damaged the bike and made it miss the plane. So the polybag for ryanair in the event was not needed, in fact it was a positive hindrence.

I still have the easy jet box in the garage...if you need exact measurements let me know and I will venture out there with a tape measure.

I would add that I could not carry my own 'proper' bike box/bag as I was touring and had no idea where or when my return flight would be, so I could not leave a proper bag/box anywhere for the return flight etc. 
If i were in anyway able to I would get a 'proper' bike box and use that when i flew (assuming I would return from the same airport.
BUT check out easyjets conditions...the lady at the checkin insisted that the only box they would allow was the one they provided...my advic ewould be to check with the airline well in advance as to the type of box/measurements etc that are acceptable and get it in an e mail to show the check in staff.

Also...I checked in VERY early at Basel, about 3 hours before the check in actually opened for my flight. This wa smore by accidient than design but in the event it was better because i avoided the nightmare queues I experienced at 4am with ryanair at stansted...which with a bike and all the gear is a nightmare. You would do well to have somebody with you who can help you lug the bike and gear around the airport if possible...at stansted nobody gave a toss about anything except themselves...it was chaos and dragging the gear through hoards of tired selfish chavs wasnt ideal.


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## bigjim (6 Aug 2008)

Does anybody on here think it is becoming a bit too much hassle to take your own bike on a 1 or 2 week tour raher than hiring or buying a cheap MTB and fitting your own tyres, pedals and saddle/rack. I'm sure airlines are happy to price us out of using our own. Cost us £25 each way last time on Rynair for 1 bike. You can rent a good race bike for £80 for a week or buy an MTB from Superstore for less. I have been told by a flight captain that budget airlines are not interested in luggage. They want us on and off with hand luggage for a quick turnaround. Thats why you have such a good hand luggage allowance. A delay caused by luggage removal etc costs them more than any income gained from charging for it.

Jim


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## rich p (6 Aug 2008)

bigjim said:


> Does anybody on here think it is becoming a bit too much hassle to take your own bike on a 1 or 2 week tour raher than hiring or buying a cheap MTB and fitting your own tyres, pedals and saddle/rack. I'm sure airlines are happy to price us out of using our own. Cost us £25 each way last time on Rynair for 1 bike. You can rent a good race bike for £80 for a week or buy an MTB from Superstore for less. I have been told by a flight captain that budget airlines are not interested in luggage. They want us on and off with hand luggage for a quick turnaround. Thats why you have such a good hand luggage allowance. A delay caused by luggage removal etc costs them more than any income gained from charging for it.
> 
> Jim




I travelled to Marseille in June with BA for £81 return with no charge for the bike. I flew out at 6.30 am from Gatwick and was riding by late morning. For a short break it's a no brainer and you get to ride your own bike too.


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## Tim Bennet. (6 Aug 2008)

I think it's wrong to bundle easyJet and Ryanair together. Collectively (amongst the cycling group) we must have flown over 100 times with easyJet and have never had a single problem with the bikes.

The point about BA is well made; headline ticket prices now only contribute a fraction to the 'take of price' when you fly. BA recently has consistently been cheaper than the 'budget airlines' when you factor in taking the bike.

Hiring a bike in situ is highly variable. Whilst some places like Majorca are well served, decent bikes are harder to find in some equally good riding destinations.


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## spindrift (6 Aug 2008)

Ryanair took my bike with no wrapping at all, just the pedlas off and bars turned. No problem at all.


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## Christopher (6 Aug 2008)

rich p said:


> I travelled to Marseille in June with BA for £81 return with no charge for the bike. I flew out at 6.30 am from Gatwick and was riding by late morning. For a short break it's a no brainer and you get to ride your own bike too.


hiya richp!
Did you put your bike in a conventional bike bag?

I ask 'cos I have booked a flight with BA to France next month and was thinking of taking the nice roadbike out there. BA do say they'll take bikes in a bikebag, but I wasn't sure.

cheers
Chris


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## rich p (6 Aug 2008)

Frustruck said:


> hiya richp!
> Did you put your bike in a conventional bike bag?
> 
> I ask 'cos I have booked a flight with BA to France next month and was thinking of taking the nice roadbike out there. BA do say they'll take bikes in a bikebag, but I wasn't sure.
> ...



Yes, it was conventional soft bag - so both wheels off and loosened the handlebars to swivel them round and under. It was pain free TBH. i was worried about taking a carbon bike but nothing terrifying happened!


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## wafflycat (6 Aug 2008)

Can't understand why anyone would want to give any money to Ryanair.


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## AndrewClark (6 Aug 2008)

Just booked a return flight to Geneva for a little Alpine pootle.

Extra charge for the bike - £16.50 each way.

Extra charge for luggage - £6 each way.

Extra charge for paying by credit card £4.95.

Meh


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## CopperBrompton (6 Aug 2008)

User said:


> Personally, I wouldn't take a bike on sleazyJet or LyingAir.


LyingAir only tells half the story: they are properly referred to as Lie'n'Scare.

Ben


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## ASC1951 (8 Aug 2008)

User said:


> Personally, I wouldn't take a bike on sleazyJet or LyingAir.


I've flown with my bike with both, and Jet2, and have never had a problem with damage. 

If you want cossetting, fly BA or one of the other government flag carriers and pay through the nose. Ryanair flew me to Sardinia for 38p return, so I'm not going to complain about being charged £25 each way for my bike.


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## ASC1951 (8 Aug 2008)

wafflycat said:


> Can't understand why anyone would want to give any money to Ryanair.


Because they resent flag carriers being compulsorily subsidised by the taxpayer, don't like protectionist control of landing slots and prefer some choice?


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## srw (8 Aug 2008)

ASC1951 said:


> Ryanair flew me to Sardinia for 38p return,



No they didn't. By the time you'd paid all their add-ons it was about the same price as an airline who cares about your safety.


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## rich p (8 Aug 2008)

ASC1951 said:


> I've flown with my bike with both, and Jet2, and have never had a problem with damage.
> 
> If you want cossetting, fly BA or one of the other government flag carriers and pay through the nose. Ryanair flew me to Sardinia for 38p return, so I'm not going to complain about being charged £25 each way for my bike.



Surely not if you include landing fees etc. My flight with BA to Marseilles worked out at £40.50 each way and included an inflight meal and drink FWIW. Excellent service too.


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## andy_wrx (8 Aug 2008)

We flew Ryanair into Rimini in May, headline rate £9.99 per person per flight, so under-£40 return for two of us ?
- not exactly, it was £190-something by time taxes, two bikes, one hold bag, in-person check-in fees, etc added on.

I can't say I like Ryanair, but they were the only UK airline we could find flying into Rimini non-stop from an airport near us.
We could have flown the shuttle down to Heathrow and then into Rimini with BA but that was £500-odd and involved letting the baggage-manglers at Heathrow get at our bikes...


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## johnny (9 Aug 2008)

So, if i fly with EJ i just ruck up at the airport with bike and panniers, pay a small fee and they give me a big cardboard box to put it in. Do i need to take the bike apart or will it fit in as is? Also do you need to deflate tyres?


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## Dayvo (9 Aug 2008)

johnny said:


> So, if i fly with EJ i just ruck up at the airport with bike and panniers, pay a small fee and they give me a big cardboard box to put it in. Do i need to take the bike apart or will it fit in as is? Also do you need to deflate tyres?



You'll have to deflate the tyres, and probably remove the pedals and turn the handlebars parallel to the top bar.


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## Tim Bennet. (9 Aug 2008)

You need to check with your departure airport. I've never seen anyone packing up their bike in a provided box at Liverpool. I think the facilities you get will be more a function of which baggage handling company is contracted to easyJet rather than a universal policy.

The costs and requirements are standard as detailed on the easyJet website, but the degree of help you'll get (plus the strictness of the enforcement of the rules) seems to vary.


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## Bigtallfatbloke (9 Aug 2008)

> So, if i fly with EJ i just ruck up at the airport with bike and panniers, pay a small fee and they give me a big cardboard box to put it in. Do i need to take the bike apart or will it fit in as is? Also do you need to deflate tyres?



That is exactly what I did at Basel and all was well. I did need to take off my front wheel to fit the bike in the box but I have a 64 frame.

BUT

Tim is correct...check with the departure airport first , do not assume a box will be available. I have been trying to contact Montpellier airport as easyjet refuse to confirm if a box is available at their check in there or not...so I am assuming it wont be. Easy jets website (and their e mail) states that a bag will also be acceptable so i suppose I willcarry the bloody bag again on the bike, the tought of having to ride around montpellier looking for a huge bike box doesnt appeal.
I suggest you contact the airport and get an e mail confirming a box is available then try to buy it in advance and have them put it aside for you at the check in...probably a long shot but that is what I am trying to do at the moment.


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## bigjim (10 Aug 2008)

Re my earlier post about hiring/buying bike when you arrive. I think you have to consider what kind of holiday you are taking. Is it primarily a cycling break where you wish to use your own quality machine on a good relatively traffic free road where you can test yourself and your machine? Or is it the type of meandering/touring break where you will stop often for coffee, meals sightseeing etc? If the latter then I still believe one of my options could contribute to a stress free break. It is not only the cost of transporting your bike but [for me anyway] the packing up into a bikebox, ensuring everything is protected. Humping it eventually to the airport, worring about it in transit and eventually putting it back together at the other end. Then going through the same old procedure in reverse. I've done all of the above. I have never found it a problem to source a bike. I was even offered a nice racing machine at a flea market for £40 which would have done the job admirably for me. There are not many parts of the world where you cannot find a bike if your visit does not require something of the standard that you have at home. Plus it all contributes to the experience. Just a thought of course.

Jim


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