A Ryanair passenger has revealed a clever trick to avoid paying for checked luggage when travelling.
Known for its budget-friendly flights, Ryanair is a popular choice for those looking to explore new places without breaking the bank. However, these low prices often come with additional costs, such as fees for checking in bags.
Those attempting to dodge these charges can find themselves penalised at the gate if their hand luggage exceeds the airline’s size restrictions.
To circumvent these extra expenses, a frequent traveller named Rob, who regularly shares cost-saving travel hacks on TikTok, decided to test how far he could stretch the rules without incurring additional luggage fees.
In a video posted on April 5, Rob is seen vacuum packing his belongings for a trip to Tenerife to fit them into a smaller bag.
“POV: You vacuum packed all your suitcase to fit into a free Ryanair bag so you don’t have to pay for hold luggage” he captioned the video, which shows him removing excess air from his luggage. He then placed each vacuum-sealed bag into the backpack he planned to take on the flight.
After packing, he weighed his bag, which came in at 17.19kg – more than seven kilos heavier than Ryanair’s hand luggage allowance.
Despite the risk, they decided to proceed with their plan, banking on the chance that airline staff wouldn’t check their baggage weight. The group’s journey through the airport was smoothly captured on video, much to their relief.
He breathed a sigh of relief as they made it onto the plane without incurring extra charges, thus avoiding the potential £55 fee at the gate or £13 for each extra kilo over the weight limit, which could have added up to £91.
“Yes the 4.5 hour Ryanair flight to Tenerife was just £15 but that is NOT the point,” he noted in his video post.
Commenters on the video quickly chimed in with their thoughts on the luggage trick, while some questioned how he would manage his return journey.
“How are you getting all the stuff home?” one commenter asked. A fellow viewer responded: “My vacuum bags come with a wee handpump, I thought it’d be a pain but it works no problem just as well!”.
Another suggested resealing the bags using a household vacuum cleaner, though others warned any bag weigh-in could quickly undo their careful packing.
It would definitely be a risk to try the sneaky trick – but as Rob showed, it may just pay off.
