Vueling Airlines review: My disappointing experience with Vueling Airlines

I had a very frustrating experience with Vueling during my flight from Mallorca to Amsterdam. While walking toward the plane, airline staff stopped me and demanded a €60 fee for my child's small suitcase, claiming it did not meet the size requirements — even though it was only about 3–4 cm larger than the standard.

During check-in, I specifically asked about this bag, and the staff member told me it was fine. She marked my boarding pass, which I found odd at the time, but I never imagined they had planned this. I had a 50 kg baggage allowance and could have easily fit the small suitcase inside my larger one, but I was told there would be no problem.

Of course, I refused to pay the fee. Instead, I took out the toys and coloring books and left the small suitcase behind. Once on board, I saw that some passengers had bags under their seats that were nearly twice the size of my child's suitcase — yet they passed without any issue.

So now I'm left wondering: is this actually the airline's policy, or just overzealous staff exploiting passengers?

I'm sharing this story because I want others to avoid being humiliated while simply trying to save a bit of money. Personally, I will never fly with Vueling again — and I hope anyone considering them knows what kind of treatment they might face.