‘Secret weapon' lets you beat Ryanair and easyJet luggage rules

Daily Mirror

26-06-2025

Given that the price of a ticket on a low-cost airline is often significantly less than the above fees, it's understandable to want to avoid paying extra for bags
A travel tipster has explained the 'secret weapon' he uses to bump up his luggage haul without paying more for it.
If you've flown on a budget airline in recent years, then you'll know that the cost of hand luggage is no joke. On Ryanair, an extra bag in addition to the one free personal item (40 x 20 x 25 cm) that fits under the seat costs up to £36.
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On easyJet, the dimensions of your carry-on bag—including the handle and wheels—must not exceed 56 x 25 x 45 cm. If your bag is larger than this, you will be charged £40 to have it stored in the hold.
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Given that the price of a ticket on a low-cost airline is often significantly less than the above fees, it's understandable to want to avoid paying extra for bags.
Happily, Australian Instagrammer Punters Politics has a solution. "Punters v corporations in the ongoing battle with dodgy budget airlines! Here is my secret weapon I take onto bat," he wrote alongside a recent video.
Punters showed himself in a European airport equipped with a rucksack that is too big to fit into the easyJet hand luggage sizer. Keen to dodge the £40 charge, he removes roughly a third of the objects in the bag and begins to fit them into a long, sausage-shaped piece of fabric. Once it's full, he zips it up and slings it around his neck.
It forms a travel pillow.
Punters then wanders through the boarding gate and onto his plane, the staff seemingly none the wiser about his dupe.
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"For the punts wondering, I got it from Amazon and my personal backpack is from @wandrd (not an ad, just love the bag—had it for eight years)," Punters explained of his backpack and neck pillow, the latter of which can be found for less than £10 online.
"The secret weapon (neck pillow) is super nice because that little bag can be stored when the trip is over," one of Punters' followers said in the comments.
However, another warned that the neck-pillow ruse may not be long for this world. "Pillow is not an option anymore. Everyone had to pack it inside their backpack during my latest flight with Ryanair," they wrote.
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Let me know if you'd like a punchier version for a headline or social media post!
Tom turned up at Barcelona El Prat Airport at 8:30 am, two hours and 40 minutes before his flight home to Bristol. As Ryanair does not allow passengers to check bags more than two hours before their departure time, he waited until 9:10 a.m. before joining the queue.
"The check-in line was extremely long and badly managed. Staff were calling out other destinations like Ibiza and Alghero for fast-tracking, but never Bristol, even though my departure was only minutes after theirs. I stayed alert and followed instructions, but as I was alone and in a foreign country, I couldn't leave the queue to ask questions or check other desks without risking my place," Tom told the Mirror.
"When I finally reached the desk, I was told it was fine to check in my bag. I paid £34.14 by physical card. Then, just moments after the payment was processed, I was told it was too late and my bag would not be accepted. No warning had been given.
"This left me standing in the terminal with a full suitcase that I had no option but to abandon. The bag was worth around £50. I had to repack my belongings into hand luggage while other travellers looked on, then sprint to the gate with no time to rest, eat, or buy a planned gift for my father."