Having just returned home after a quick trip to the English Lake District, I thought it would be the perfect time to talk about the differences between Ryanair's Boeing 737-800 and the Boeing 737 MAX. Before I get into it, though, I would like to say a little bit about Ryanair in case you are not familiar with the airline or how it operates.

Based in Dublin, Ireland, Ryanair is a low-cost, no-frills budget airline. According to the aviation data and statistics website ch-aviation, Ryanair has a fleet of 520 aircraft comprised of the following planes:

• 29 x Airbus A320-200s (in service with the subsidiary Lauda Air)
• 1 x Boeing 737-700
• 89 x Boeing 737 MAX 8-200s
• 401 x Boeing 737-800s

Flying primarily to destinations within Europe and North Africa, Ryanair's longest flight is a four-hour, 27-minute, 2,542-mile jaunt between Warsaw Modlin Airport (WMI) in Poland and Tenerife South Airport (TFS) in Spain's Canary Islands.

Photo: InsectWorld/Shutterstock

Ryanair offers very low fares

Ryanair offers tickets at very low prices, which is why I was able to fly from Alicante, Spain, to Manchester, England, roundtrip for €30 ($32). The way Ryanair makes its money is with add-ons like paying for an assigned seat, priority boarding, luggage, and food and drinks aboard the aircraft. Ryanair also makes money from car rentals, hotels, and travel insurance.

Booking a ticket on Ryanair's website is a little long-winded, as they are always trying to get you to add extras to your ticket. In the long run, it is worth all the hassle as the prices are super low, especially in the off-season.

About Alicante Airport

Located just south of the city on the Spanish Costa Blanca, Alicante–Elche Miguel Hernández Airport (ALC) is a base for Air Nostrum, Ryanair, and Vueling. Alicante Airport boasts a relatively new single terminal that opened in 2011. With every flight arriving and departing from the same terminal, finding your way around is very straightforward.

Photo: Mark Finlay | Simple Flying

I arrived at the airport around an hour and a half before my flight and breezed through airport security in no time, which was not the case on the return flight from Manchester, as I will explain later. My ride for the two-hour 50-minute flight to Manchester was a 13-year-old Boeing 737-800 with the registration EI-EKJ.

Configured in a single-class layout with 189 seats, Ryanair's Boeing 737-800s are the mainstay of the airline's fleet. Because of the low fares, I tend to think of Ryanair flights as like being on a bus in the air, as the seats do not recline and there is no in-flight entertainment. Because I had opted not to pay for a seat, I found myself in the middle seat squeezed between two other passengers, and while not ideal, it was bearable for the less than three-hour flight to England.

Image: GCmaps

After an uneventful, smooth flight, we arrived five minutes early, and it was now time to deal with the United Kingdom's border control. When the UK was a part of the European Union, entering the country was fast and easy; now, however, following Brexit, the lines are long, and everything moves very slowly as the few agents that are working scrutinize everyone entering the country.

About Manchester Airport (MAN)

Located eight and a half miles south of Manchester City center, MAN is the third-busiest airport in the UK and the main international gateway to northern England. Manchester Airport has two runways and three passenger terminals. I arrived at Terminal 3 and, not knowing, assumed that the airport's train station would be located underneath the terminal, similar to how the railway station at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport is. I could not have been more wrong, as the train station at Manchester Airport is a ten-minute mostly outside walk from Terminal 3.

Photo: Manchester Airport

The return flight

Having spent a pleasant two days in Kendal, I was now back at Manchester Airport for my return flight to Alicante. As I was passing through security, I removed my laptop from my carry-on and took off my coat so that it could be screened by x-ray. After my bag went through, I was pulled aside for a pat down and to have my shoes put through the x-ray machine. After this, I went to get my bag and was told I would have to wait as they had found a small roll-on deodorant in my bag, which I had forgotten was there.

They tested the deodorant in a machine, and the result returned positive for explosives. I now had to undergo a second search which included swabbing my hands and waiting for a supervisor to come and ask me numerous questions about my trip to the UK and why I was flying to Spain. Forty-five minutes or so later, I was finally allowed to go.

Unlike the experience in Alicante Airport, which was pleasant, Terminal 3 was so packed with passengers that there was nowhere to sit. Instead, I went to the gate and stood in line for my flight. When checking in for the flight online, I noticed that the plane was nearly full, so I paid €11 for an aisle seat rather than having to endure the middle seat again.

I was flying on a Boeing 737 MAX 8-200

Like most Ryanair flights, there was no air bridge, and we had to walk across the apron to board the aircraft. As soon as I got outside, I noticed the unique winglets and serrated engine cowling, and concluded that my journey home would be onboard a Boeing 737 MAX. Now thinking about Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, I told myself that the issues with the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) had been resolved and that the plane was as safe as any other.

Photo: Mark Finlay | Simple Flying

The aircraft I was flying on was a one-month-old Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 with the registration EI-IFW.

Right away, it was evident that the plane was new and had features I had not seen on the Boeing 737-800. For a start, it felt more spacious and seemed larger than the 737-800. As it turns out, the Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 has eight additional seats.

Photo: Ryanair

Because of the extra seats, Boeing had to incorporate two more emergency exits, which are located between the wings and the rear of the plane. The amount of legroom appeared to be better on the MAX compared to the 737-800, and if I had to choose between the two, I would prefer to fly on the 737-MAX 8-200 as it was a superior product.