Ryanair ends long-running dispute with On the Beach in 'transformational' deal

27 February 2024 , 13:13

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Ryanair has agreed to a deal with On The Beach to offer its flights on the holiday platform (Image: PA Archive/PA Images)

Ryanair has made peace with holiday company On the Beach, ending a row between the two travel firms.

On the Beach's shares soared by 13% on Tuesday morning after the low-cost airline announced the partnership. Ryanair had been arguing with online booking sites, which it called "pirates", for selling its flights without permission and adding hidden extra costs.

There was also an issue with customers' contact details not being shared, making it hard to give them updates about their trips and sort out refunds. The Irish airline had pointed the finger at companies like Trip.com and lastminute.com, and last year accused On the Beach of "knowingly and deliberately overcharging unsuspecting consumers" for Ryanair flights.

On the Beach denied these accusations and said Ryanair was stopping competition in the market by preventing passengers from booking through online travel agents. However, on Tuesday, Ryanair announced that its deal with On the Beach would make sure customers aren't overcharged when they book through the site.

Ryanair’s marketing, digital and communications director Dara Brady said: "On the Beach customers can now book Ryanair flights, seats, and bags as part of their holiday package with the guarantee that they will have full price transparency of Ryanair products (without any overcharges or hidden mark-ups), and that they will receive any information regarding their flight directly from Ryanair as well as having direct access to their booking through their myRyanair account."

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On the Beach's chief executive Shaun Morton, was excited about this arrangement calling it a "transformational" agreement and said: "Importantly, this agreement enables both parties to move on from outstanding litigation and we look forward to working closely with our new partner."

Just last year, there was a legal fight in the High Court, where three companies from the On the Beach Group won £2 million after they took Ryanair to court. They said that Ryanair owed them money because they had to give customers their money back when Ryanair cancelled or changed flights a lot.

However, it's not just On the Beach that Ryanair has teamed up with; they've also agreed to work with Tui, loveholidays and Kiwi.com to help sell flights. Mr Brady has made it clear that Ryanair is more than happy to work with online holiday sellers, as long as they stick to Ryanair's rules.

Lawrence Matheson