Ryanair is a business built for the stupid.  If you are smart, and organised, you will enjoy cheap flights subsidised by morons, exactly the way business class used to subsidise economy.

Stupid people pay more, far more, and it is from them that Ryanair’s profits come.  They book late and they buy the ‘suggested items’ - overpriced travel insurance, suitcases, in-flight meals and champagne.  Only an idiot would buy these.  These are the people who overpay for all the affiliate services - credit cards, car hire, transfers.

They get their dates and/or names wrong and have to book another flight.  They can’t print their boarding pass and have to pay 40EUR to check in at the airport.  They bring the wrong size bags and have to pay to put their bags in the hold.

Around 30 stupid people always book Priority Boarding, when there are only 12 good seats.

They buy the ‘tax-free shopping’ on the plane, they buy the smokeless cigarettes.  They consume the bulk of the on-board food and drink.

The most stupid of them all buy the ‘charity’ scratchcards on the flight.

The downside is that, as someone who isn’t stupid, all of the pushy selling of these things annoys you.  It frustrates you that ‘admin fees’ and ‘credit card fees’ aren’t included in the price - because you don’t think it fools anybody.  It does.  It fools the fools - and they are the ones paying for your cheap flight.

This isn’t just a Ryanair issue - it’s mirrored by all budget airlines.  And increasingly by other businesses too.  Train tickets (in the UK at least) are now the same.

Now, there’s an argument that this has always been the way.  That smart people have always been able to get the best prices for things.  That’s true.  But I think business models are moving towards the stupid subsidising the smart, and away from the business subsidising the consumer.

Afterthought: The stupid don’t use price comparison sites.  They don’t know how.  They are the most profitable customers for virtually any industry that has been disrupted by the internet - car insurance, credit cards, hotels, and travel agents, etc.