Ryanair airport check-in and bag drop now close 60 minutes before departure

Since Tuesday 10 November, Ryanair's airport check-in and bag drop close 60 minutes before scheduled departure, instead of 40 minutes. The change, announced by the airline earlier this year, applies at all Ryanair airports.

Ryanair says the earlier cut-off is meant to give passengers more time to get through airport security and passport queues, and to reduce the very small number of passengers who miss their flights because they are stuck in those queues. The airline has also been installing more self-service bag-drop kiosks, which it expected to have at more than 95% of its airports by October; the kiosks work with the Ryanair app to check in bags and print bag tags.

According to Ryanair, the change concerns the 20% of its passengers who check in a bag. The other 80%, who check in online before arriving at the airport and go straight to the departure gate, are not affected. Chief Marketing Officer Dara Brady said they "will be unaffected by this small 20 minute change".

Passengers travelling with hold luggage should plan to reach the bag-drop desk or kiosk well before the new 60-minute cut-off and check the details shown on their booking. The announcement does not describe exceptions for particular airports or routes.