RYANAIR IS offering Munster rugby supporters a €100 “losers’ bonus” if they cancel the flights they booked to the Heineken Cup final in Edinburgh to free up space for Leinster fans.
The airline has also added two extra flights between Dublin and Edinburgh to cater for demand from Leinster fans – at a cost of €349 return. The flights depart on May 23rd, the day of the final, and return on May 24th.
Aer Lingus is charging just under €350 for a flight the same weekend to Edinburgh.
Ryanair has also put on extra flights to Prestwick airport, over 100km from Edinburgh, for the cheaper price of €199.
Meanwhile, hundreds of tickets for the final against Leicester Tigers have gone on sale on eBay and other ticket websites for prices of €100-250 and upwards. However, Munster fan websites are also busy with supporters selling tickets and travel packets at face value, or with a small mark-up for charity.
According to Ryanair, Munster fans who had booked to fly from Dublin to Edinburgh or Prestwick can claim the refund on the airline’s website up to 5pm tomorrow.
Optimistic Munster fans had booked their flights to Edinburgh long ago.
Said a Ryanair spokesman: “Most of our flights to Edinburgh and Glasgow for the Heineken Cup final were heavily pre-sold to Munster fans long before the end of the pool matches at fares of €80 to €100 return.
“Since many of these couldn’t bear to watch the Leinster ‘Ladyboys’ in Edinburgh we offer them the chance to cancel their flights and get a refund of up to €100 return,” the Ryanair spokesman said.
The 14th Heineken Cup final takes place at Murrayfield in Edinburgh at 5pm on May 23rd. The public sale allocation of 45,000 tickets to the match, available through Scottish Rugby and Ticketmaster, sold out in January. Some 35 per cent of these tickets were sold to people with Irish addresses. However, 15,000 more were retained to be divided among fans of the two finalists.
According to the European Rugby Cup, which organises the competition, these 15,000 tickets will be divided between the two teams. The clubs will distribute them through their normal channels, starting early next week.