For those of you who don’t know, in essence the guarantee is such:
Plus, we promise our fares will be the lowest available on any route with our Lowest PriceGuarantee! If we’re wrong, we’ll refund you double the difference!
That’s right, simply book any flight with easyJet and we promise to refund double the difference in the unlikely event you find the same flight for a lower price with another airline.
This has the potential to be pretty good for you – considering that fares are already low, a nice discrepancy could see you in profit.
On the upside, there are not too many terms and conditions, and they seem to be reasonably clear. The fare needs to be there and back, and flights need to be within two hours. The maximum single payout is capped at 100 Euro, giving a fare discrepancy of 50 Euros. I would say that most fares would fall into this category although likely there may be others outside.
You also have to have a confirmed Easyjet booking – probably to deter scalpers from simply pointing out differences and making the cash. Indeed, it’s likely that profits are going to be very slim on the ground but free flights are not going to be uncommon.
Your best bet on this front is to watch for the Ryanair sales. This can apply to other airlines, but for them to cut fares to a Ryanair-style level is really uncommon. Easyjet really are quite closely priced to Ryanair (as they price with taxes), and with probably the second biggest network of the low-costs, have good economies of scale. However, other airlines to watch are Flybe or Aer Lingus for more domestic routes who often price sectors at around a tenner.
It becomes apparent that Easyjet have avoided much exposure on the promo. There are only a handful of routes that are exactly the same as Ryanair, these being:
Alicante to: Basel, Bristol, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Gatwick, Stansted
Basel to: Alicante, Cagliari, Porto
Bristol to: Alicante
Cagliari to: Basel
East Midlands to: Alicante, Ibiza, Palma Mallorca, Malaga, Faro
Edinburgh to: Alicante, Krakow, Palma Mallorca
Faro to: Stansted, East Midlands, Liverpool
Ibiza to: East Midlands, Liverpool, Stansted
Krakow to: Edinburgh, Liverpool
Lanzarote to: Liverpool, Madrid
Liverpool to: Lanzarote, Alicante, Faro, Ibiza, Krakow, Madrid, Palma Mallorca, Malaga
London Gatwick to: Alicante, Madrid, Marseille
London Stansted to: Alicante, Faro, Ibiza, Palma Mallorca, Malaga
Madrid to: Liverpool, Gatwick, Rome Ciampino
Palma Mallorca to: East Midlands, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Stansted
Rome Ciampino to: Madrid
Malaga to: East Midlands, Liverpool, Stansted
Marseille to: Gatwick
Porto to: Basel
On reflection, there is not a lot here outside the really popular tourist destinations (an indication of how many Brits go to these places). Also quite a lack of flights leaving from London – as Easyjet tend to avoid Stansted (unless there are routes not covered by Ryanair) and until only recently, Ryanair at Gatwick. The next step is to check out the flight timings – they both have to be within two hours for both sectors. The above list is given as flight times change, sometimes regularly and it might get out of date.
I have seen these flights that satisfy the criteria. Note that in summer there may be more matches and at winter, less.
London Gatwick – Alicante
London Stansted – Alicante
East Midlands – Malaga
London Stansted – Ibiza
Liverpool – Madrid (one way only)
London Gatwick – Madrid
Really, not that many to be going on. Although it has to be said on these routes, there is a good possibility of something happening with at least one (or both) of the airlines having good frequencies. Make sure that you take a screenshot of the Ryanair website for comparison after booking. If you have any stories to tell regarding this, just drop us a comment below.
Need a pre-paid card to dodge Ryanair fees? We’ve teamed up with FairFX to offer you their anywhere card – get one for FREE (usually £9.95 for loading under £500). Any currency – anywhere – it’s ideal for everyone.
Related posts:
