Ryanair’s Booking Model Under Pressure in Italy as Appeal Looms
Italy’s competition authority AGCM has issued a major fine to Ryanair, saying the airline limited how flights could be sold through online travel agencies between 2023 and April 2025. According to AGCM, these limits reduced chances for travelers to buy Ryanair flights together with hotels, insurance, or transport services. Ryanair plans to appeal, saying direct booking through its website protects travelers from hidden fees and keeps fares lower than when third parties add extra charges.
AGCM argues that Ryanair’s strong footprint in Italy, where it handles a large share of air traffic, meant its choices had wide market effects. The regulator says Ryanair blocked some agency bookings, deleted user accounts linked to agencies, and required extra verification steps for passengers booking outside the Ryanair website. AGCM believes these actions pushed most travelers to book directly, limiting agency flexibility and reducing booking options for bundled services.
“If today’s legally unsound AGCM Ruling and fine is not appealed, then the AGCM proposes to set itself above the Milan Courts in making competition decisions. Ryanair has fought for many years for transparent pricing, and our approved OTA agreements (which have been agreed by almost every large OTA, with the notable exception of one Spanish OTA, who continues to overcharge its customers for flights and ancillary services) are manifestly and clearly pro-consumer."
Ryanair says it prefers direct sales because they offer clearer pricing and faster customer support when schedules change. The airline also claims that dealing with authorized partners prevents confusion over refunds or baggage rules, which often appears when agencies resell tickets without full access to Ryanair’s systems. Ryanair insists that its approach benefits consumers and is confident the fine could be overturned on appeal, describing AGCM’s ruling as misguided and unnecessary.
Changes that could improve trip planning
If the AGCM ruling holds after appeal, travel agencies may once again work with Ryanair fares and restore package options that combine flights with hotels and other travel services. For travelers, this could simplify planning by letting them arrange most of their trip on a single platform, which is particularly useful when demand is high and seats fill up quickly. Package-building tools could return, helping passengers plan complex routes without jumping between multiple websites to secure all the parts of a journey.
What happens next hinges on the appeal, yet the situation hints that travelers could soon have a wider range of booking options again. If Ryanair flights become easier for agencies to sell again, travelers may gain more flexibility to compare deals, adjust plans, and spot alternatives faster when schedules change. Even if ticket prices stay similar, stronger competition between booking platforms could make trip planning less stressful and give passengers more control over how they organize future travel.
