Checking in bags to Spain on Aer Lingus? That’ll be €280 for the family

Aer Lingus has defended its decision to increase the cost of checking in a bag on flights to and from Spain, Italy and Greece by €10 just four months after it imposed a price increase of the same size.

The cost of checking in a bag on some Aer Lingus flights across Europe is climbing to €35 each way. The cost was €15 last October but in November the airline announced a €10 price hike and has now added a second increase which means the cost of checking in bags with on some routes has climbed by 133 per cent since the autumn.

A family of four travelling to Spain or Italy who have checked in just one 15kg bag each will now have to spend €280 on a return journey on top of the cost of the flights compared to a cost of just €120 this time last year.

A spokeswoman confirmed the price increase but said it was only part of the picture and some of the changes it has rolled out this week will see charges fall for the majority of its passengers.

Under the old system there were two route categories - near and far with different rates applying to each. Now there will be a three tier charging system.

A spokeswoman said the cost of checked baggage is now determined by the distance travelled with the three categories labelled Near, Mid and Far. “New baggage fees have been introduced for bookings made from March 28th. While guests travelling to mid and far destinations incur higher baggage fees, guests travelling to near destinations in fact are paying 40 per cent less when compared baggage fees at the same time last year.”

Over 30 destinations qualify as 'near' including all UK destinations, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. "Guests travelling on these routes total nearly six million annually and make up over 58 per cent of our short haul guests total. These 'near' guests will pay just €15 for 15kg bag. Guests travelling on 'mid' routes to the likes of Alicante, Lisbon, Rome etc. will be charged a higher fee or €35 for 15kg bag. Equally those travelling further afield to 'far' destinations such as Corfu, Pula, Lanzarote will pay €50 for 15kg."