NFT: Spirit Airlines - are the savings worth it?

but I think they charge for carry on bags (might be Frontier, not Spirit).

But I've yet to hear anyone laud their service. It's usually horror stories.

But the regular coach seats are tight for anyone who is older than a toddler

expect little to no customer service, potential delays and to bank strictly on this being a cost savings play. So keep that in mind and breathe

In comment 13700028 giants#1 said:

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but I think they charge for carry on bags (might be Frontier, not Spirit).

They do, but you can have a "personal item" bag for free like a purse or laptop bag.

they are a nightmare of an airline.

unless you are shorter in the legs....

being tall and flying is such a bitch...even on more traditional carriers. I'm 6-4 and I HATE flying now. Before you could work yourself into a seat with more legroom...but now they rape you for it.

from a safety standpoint, Spirit is (in theory) as safe as any other major US Airline in that the same standards apply. From a customer service standpoint - it's fine as long everything is working well. But if you run into a delay or cancellation, you will quickly find yourself up the creek without a paddle.

From IAD to LAS, I would suggest looking into United's basic economy fare. It was created to compete with the likes of Spirit and Frontier and is a cheaper ticket with no frills (last boarding group, no large carry-ons, etc).

looked into it when my daughter was back and forth from Detroit and one horror story after another. Plus they charge for every little thing and it ends up being almost same cost.

Just had some friends stranded overnight in Orlando this past weekend because their flight was delayed out of New Orleans due to "air traffic control" issues. They gave them a 7 dollar food voucher and because the next flight to Philly wasn't for two days they flew them to Atlantic City at 9PM the next day.

the difference between flying coach on Spirit vs a large carrier (in the back of their plane) is not great enough to justify the additional spend.

It is four hours... just deal with it. Ever sit in Metlife stadium for three hours?

so that's not happening

In comment 13700054 Giants Fan in Steelers Land said:

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Just had some friends stranded overnight in Orlando this past weekend because their flight was delayed out of New Orleans due to "air traffic control" issues. They gave them a 7 dollar food voucher and because the next flight to Philly wasn't for two days they flew them to Atlantic City at 9PM the next day.

See, that's my biggest concern. I honestly couldn't care less about cramped seats, etc - I've flown around the world on fucking C-130s. I can handle that. This flight would have a connection in Dallas, though, and only an hour between flights. I don't want to get screwed if I miss it because the first flight is delayed or something.

In comment 13700060 Greg from LI said:

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so that's not happening

what dates

I'm flying out on the 26th or 27th and back on the 29th or 30th.

is quite as bad as others are making it out to be. Seat space kind of stinks with most economy fairs and if you understand their baggage charge rules you can really save some money.

However (like other posters have said), you have major downside if something goes wrong and there's some sort of delay since there not really a lot of redundancy or contingent planning really built into their network. Since you have a tight window, and a tight connection, you're taking a bit of a risk flying with them in your situation.

much at all. Sure the seat is cheap, but then you add on a lot of things such as a bag, and its not so cheap anymore. The service is no-frills. I prefer to fly a big airline. After all the add-ons the difference isn't much, if any.

no no no no

Usually the cheapest flights around if you join their $9 dollar club. They allow a personal item that fits under the seat but charge for overhead and less for checked, both are cheaper if you are in the $9 club. Small airport so easy in and through security, flights are rarely late because its such a small airport. Parking fee is reasonable. I never pay for seat location, let them choose and we've always been put together. Seats are kind of tight but I have not had an issue for less then 4 hour flight. Their planes are one of the newer fleets. Have been happy the times we flied with them.

In comment 13700075 PatersonPlank said:

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much at all. Sure the seat is cheap, but then you add on a lot of things such as a bag, and its not so cheap anymore. The service is no-frills. I prefer to fly a big airline. After all the add-ons the difference isn't much, if any.

I wouldn't be added anything on. It's a two day trip - I can fit everything I need in a small bag that fits their "personal item" size limits.

Compared to say, Southwest (who are lauded for their customer service), I'd rather take the sour flight attendants on Spirit if it means that I don't have to worry about what seat I'm going to get right up until I sit down.

Direct on Southwest. They're bound to have some internet fares that look good.

I'd avoid Spirit.

If anything goes slightly wrong you’re screwed

They are horrible

12/27-12/30.

That's one way.

Link is below
link - ( New Window )

That's flying out the 24th
Sorry my bad

But that one is overnight, getting in at 12:30 am on the 28th. Eh...possible.

Frontier is similar to Spirit but considered a step up, right? Through Kayak there is a decent fare flying out on American and back on Frontier. That's the one that flies out Reagan and back Dulles, though. It's not really a huge deal - for about eight bucks you can take the bus and train between the two airports to get back to my car, but if I can avoid the inconvenience that would be nice.

In comment 13700136 Greg from LI said:

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But that one is overnight, getting in at 12:30 am on the 28th. Eh...possible. Frontier is similar to Spirit but considered a step up, right? Through Kayak there is a decent fare flying out on American and back on Frontier. That's the one that flies out Reagan and back Dulles, though. It's not really a huge deal - for about eight bucks you can take the bus and train between the two airports to get back to my car, but if I can avoid the inconvenience that would be nice.

Yeah they are a whole level better

In comment 13700136 Greg from LI said:

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But that one is overnight, getting in at 12:30 am on the 28th. Eh...possible. Frontier is similar to Spirit but considered a step up, right? Through Kayak there is a decent fare flying out on American and back on Frontier. That's the one that flies out Reagan and back Dulles, though. It's not really a huge deal - for about eight bucks you can take the bus and train between the two airports to get back to my car, but if I can avoid the inconvenience that would be nice.

Frontier and Spirit are owned by the same private equity company

In comment 13700144 Mike in NY said:

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In comment 13700136 Greg from LI said: Quote: But that one is overnight, getting in at 12:30 am on the 28th. Eh...possible. Frontier is similar to Spirit but considered a step up, right? Through Kayak there is a decent fare flying out on American and back on Frontier. That's the one that flies out Reagan and back Dulles, though. It's not really a huge deal - for about eight bucks you can take the bus and train between the two airports to get back to my car, but if I can avoid the inconvenience that would be nice. Frontier and Spirit are owned by the same private equity company

I think you're confusing Spirit with Republic...

cross-country flight. But then again, I am normal sized human being

I’ve heard people say they’re almost a social experiment to see how much people are willing to tolerate in exchange for saving money.

so the seats will be really tight for him.


But seriously, depends how much you're saving - while cramming a weekend's worth of clothes into a laptop bag sounds disgusting to me... I'm not travelling with you, thank God, so have at it.

Either way, sounds like $130 for Spirit versus your quote of $700 for United... i'd do the Spirit flight 100% of the time. As Brett can attest, you dont become "a rich asshole" by throwing away money. Spirit will be fine.

Several times now and never had any real issues other than the standard issues. A bit cramped yes, no food, not the best customer service, but for the price it was worth it for me.

in return for airfare.

From a safety perspective, they meet the same federal standards as other registered airlines.

If you are looking for travel from point A to point B, they meet the need.

Beyond that it is all about frills.

After travelling on US Air Force Air Mobility Command aircraft for years, and then DoD chartered air cattle cars for countless flights, I find economy airlines to be just fine.

It gets me where I want to be without breaking my bank
account.

I am low frills and low maintenance, so economy works just fine. I save my money what spending once I arrive at my destination, not to be pampered in the air.

Try this site. It's a flight matrix that will show all available flights/rates for all carriers. This updates realtime.

I would NOT under any circumstance fly Spirit.
ITA Software - ( New Window )

You’ll need quarters to get in bathroom !! Coming home from Vegas waited on line over 3 hours then they tell u flight cancelled took Jet Blue next day home they payed . They r a nightmare

to fly to Texas. I was there for 4 days. $93 round trip. Every other airline was over $300.

I literally packed a bookbag of clothes and was able to skip baggage check, and had no other fees.

Seriously, if you're okay with not picking your own seat and are just using it as a way to get where you're going, its a fine airline.

Were on Spirit and Went down in the Everglades, oh wait you can't!

Just kidding:-) not a fan of Spirit, I like Southwest for Vegas. Good luck!

In comment 13700909 Bleedin Blue said:

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Were on Spirit and Went down in the Everglades, oh wait you can't! Just kidding:-) not a fan of Spirit, I like Southwest for Vegas. Good luck!

That was ValueJet. And their equipment was liquidated.

What are you babbling about?

will soon be charging for PSLs.

In comment 13700216 Semipro Lineman said:

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cross-country flight. But then again, I am normal sized human being

If you're the dude with the Rambis rec specs, you're not a normal sized anything.

Here's what pissed me off. I had a connecting flight in Houston. They charged me a $40 checked bag fee twice - once for LA to Houston, and again from Houston to FL. Never had that happen before on another airline. When I checked in at the terminal, I brought it up, and they confirmed that was their policy (but the agent was chill - he knew that was horseshit and he refunded me one of the $40 fees without my really asking).

But now I'm flying back on Friday, and I have to call them in advance to see if I can only get charged a single checked bag fee (like every other airline would without being asked).

The airfares are cheap, but they keep pinging you 10 different ways to get more money. Double checked bag fees, choosing your own seat - all these cost extra.

And here's the thing - if they were just honest about their marketing, I wouldn't care so much. If you want to charge me $80 to check a normal-weight bag on a one-way trip, that's terrible, but at least tell me that upfront so I have the option to say fuck that noise. What I have a problem with is that they don't have the balls to do that - they essentially punish me for taking a cheaper airfare with a connecting flight, and then pat yourself for being the inexpensive airline company.

Thanks for that info.

In comment 13700919 B in ALB said:

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In comment 13700909 Bleedin Blue said: Quote: Were on Spirit and Went down in the Everglades, oh wait you can't! Just kidding:-) not a fan of Spirit, I like Southwest for Vegas. Good luck! That was ValueJet. And their equipment was liquidated. What are you babbling about?

I stand corrected, thought it was Spirit, but I'll babble on that I wouldn't fly Spirit to Vegas. I guess you missed the just kidding part.

In comment 13700997 BlackLight said:

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Here's what pissed me off. I had a connecting flight in Houston. They charged me a $40 checked bag fee twice - once for LA to Houston, and again from Houston to FL. Never had that happen before on another airline. When I checked in at the terminal, I brought it up, and they confirmed that was their policy (but the agent was chill - he knew that was horseshit and he refunded me one of the $40 fees without my really asking). But now I'm flying back on Friday, and I have to call them in advance to see if I can only get charged a single checked bag fee (like every other airline would without being asked). The airfares are cheap, but they keep pinging you 10 different ways to get more money. Double checked bag fees, choosing your own seat - all these cost extra. And here's the thing - if they were just honest about their marketing, I wouldn't care so much. If you want to charge me $80 to check a normal-weight bag on a one-way trip, that's terrible, but at least tell me that upfront so I have the option to say fuck that noise. What I have a problem with is that they don't have the balls to do that - they essentially punish me for taking a cheaper airfare with a connecting flight, and then pat yourself for being the inexpensive airline company.

Wanted to post this update - I called their Customer Service tonight to purchase my checked bag for my return flight to LA this Friday, and geared up to fight them on not getting charged the same fee on each of two legs on the trip.

Turns out I needn't have worried. Without putting on a tone, I literally asked the guy on the phone if they could only charge me one bag fee for my full trip and he immediately said "Absolutely." So it seems they have a 'Just say yes' policy for stuff like this. The bag fee is $10 more expensive if you call them directly than if you buy it online, but if you buy online, they will double charge you, and then you have to call and speak to someone and get one of them reversed. Which, again, they may do without putting up a fight, but you might also decide it's worth the extra $10 to get it settled without the extra step of booking and then calling.