Ryanair has announced a new partnership with online travel agency (OTA) On the Beach that will see its flights listed on the site only four months after the budget airline was ordered to pay £2m ($2.43m) to the company after a lawsuit on cancellation refunds.
Flights listed on the agency’s website with Ryanair will be posted at the airline’s rates after its campaign against “OTA pirate scams” which it said meant that OTA customers were paying higher prices than they could on Ryanair’s own website.
Dara Brady, Ryanair’s director of marketing, communications and digital, said: “Ryanair is pleased to announce our latest partnership with leading OTA, On the Beach. This new deal will see Ryanair partner with its fourth approved OTA partner – the second OTA we have partnered with this month.
“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).”
The surprising partnership comes after the two companies traded criticism in the wake of the lawsuit, including On the Beach CEO Shaun Morton calling on the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to review anti-competitive behaviour “by certain low-cost airlines”.
While the lawsuit between the companies, which was filed in October 2021, covered refunds for customers who had booked through On the Beach and subsequently had their flight cancelled, it was reflective of the airline’s wider disagreements with OTAs.
Despite this, Morton praised the new agreement and highlighted its role in allowing both companies to move on from “outstanding litigation”, he said: “This will improve the booking and travel experience for our customers selecting Ryanair flights, while ensuring we can continue to provide customers with best value package holidays.
“We will continue our campaign to safeguard consumer choice in the travel sector and the signing of this agreement marks a significant milestone in On the Beach’s journey, as we strive to do the best for our customers.”
