Spirit Air out of BDL?

[momtwoboys]

We have only had the choices of Jetblue and Southwest, and long ago Delta Song.... it seems Spirit Air is now out of BDL also and is open for our April dates. Any helpful info regarding this airline anyone want to share?

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Make sure you understand ALL the extra charges.

Want to check luggage? Charge.
Want to carry on a piece of luggage? Charge
Want to sit with your family? Charge
Forgot to print your boarding pass? Charge
And so on....

The seats are generally viewed as the most uncomfortable in the air and they aren't known for customer service.

I wont' fly them simply because if something goes wrong you are STUCK. Just this week I saw a post on TripAdvisor. Plane was cancelled, next "available" flight, two days later Their schedule is thin and they have no interline agreements.

 

[momtwoboys]

Make sure you understand ALL the extra charges.

Want to check luggage? Charge.
Want to carry on a piece of luggage? Charge
Want to sit with your family? Charge
Forgot to print your boarding pass? Charge
And so on....

The seats are generally viewed as the most uncomfortable in the air and they aren't known for customer service.

I wont' fly them simply because if something goes wrong you are STUCK. Just this week I saw a post on TripAdvisor. Plane was cancelled, next "available" flight, two days later Their schedule is thin and they have no interline agreements.

thank you !

 

[BraveLittleToaster2]

I agree with the PP, I have chosen not to use them for the same reasons. So we stick with Southwest and JetBlue. Once you add up all the add on charges to the base price, they end up being priced above other airlines anyway, at least for us. We bring lots of carry ons and luggage!

 

[katriscari]

We used them out of CLE, but our pickings are slim for non stop flights. We have choices of either United, Frontier or Spirit, and that is pretty much it. We tried Spirit for our May '17 trip, and we had no issues at all on either leg of our trip. Previously we'd only flown Southwest to MCO our of a smaller airport by us, so we were skeptical. They got rid of non stops out of that airport, and I am not willing route through Atlanta on Southwest or fly to Boston, then Orlando on Jet Blue out of Cleveland....especially with a 1 year old. For a 2 hour flight the seats were fine, and it leaves at 8am from our airport..... The free personal item bag is actually quite large. You can fit an entire long weekend of clothes in what is acceptable. I actually fit the entire 10 night trip worth of clothes for my 11 month old in one of them. We prepaid for checked bags, and saved money that way too. To be able to fly 3 paid people and a lap child for under $550 round trip (including trip insurance, the $9 fare club, and checked bag costs) I was happy, escpecially with great flight times. I just got a great last minute deal at the airport for an August weekend trip to Disney (we are AP holders), $44 per person roundtrip. We are using them for our adults only trip in October as well....under $100 per person round trip...would've been less if I went to the airport to purchase them. In regards to charging for food & drinks....most people bring their own snacks on planes if they truly want to eat something...unless you are satisfied with the mini pretzel bag you get nowadays. They charge for any drink, but again, I usually just get what I actually want before we board and have that. Alcohol is also offered, and you have to pay for that on any airline. Also, they do not take cash. So, if you ever choose to try them have a credit or debit card. I had a great first experience, and I hope to continue to have many more. If they weren't around our area, my trip would be limited to once a year....I am already up to 3x in 6 months (May, August, October 2017) because of reasonable flight prices. As a side note...2014-2015 for our 3 trips flying southwest I paid about $750.00 round trip for Southwest out of a smaller airport for 3 people (my baby was not around yet which also had me pay parking for a week or more because I did not want to have someone drive me 50 minutes in one direction for drop off and pick up at that smaller airport. So, add another $60.00 $100.00 onto those prices for that. I can easily get rides to & from the larger airport when we fly Spirit.

 

[momtwoboys]

We used them out of CLE, but our pickings are slim for non stop flights. We have choices of either United, Frontier or Spirit, and that is pretty much it. We tried Spirit for our May '17 trip, and we had no issues at all on either leg of our trip. Previously we'd only flown Southwest to MCO our of a smaller airport by us, so we were skeptical. They got rid of non stops out of that airport, and I am not willing route through Atlanta on Southwest or fly to Boston, then Orlando on Jet Blue out of Cleveland....especially with a 1 year old. For a 2 hour flight the seats were fine, and it leaves at 8am from our airport..... The free personal item bag is actually quite large. You can fit an entire long weekend of clothes in what is acceptable. I actually fit the entire 10 night trip worth of clothes for my 11 month old in one of them. We prepaid for checked bags, and saved money that way too. To be able to fly 3 paid people and a lap child for under $550 round trip (including trip insurance, the $9 fare club, and checked bag costs) I was happy, escpecially with great flight times. I just got a great last minute deal at the airport for an August weekend trip to Disney (we are AP holders), $44 per person roundtrip. We are using them for our adults only trip in October as well....under $100 per person round trip...would've been less if I went to the airport to purchase them. In regards to charging for food & drinks....most people bring their own snacks on planes if they truly want to eat something...unless you are satisfied with the mini pretzel bag you get nowadays. They charge for any drink, but again, I usually just get what I actually want before we board and have that. Alcohol is also offered, and you have to pay for that on any airline. Also, they do not take cash. So, if you ever choose to try them have a credit or debit card. I had a great first experience, and I hope to continue to have many more. If they weren't around our area, my trip would be limited to once a year....I am already up to 3x in 6 months (May, August, October 2017) because of reasonable flight prices. As a side note...2014-2015 for our 3 trips flying southwest I paid about $750.00 round trip for Southwest out of a smaller airport for 3 people (my baby was not around yet which also had me pay parking for a week or more because I did not want to have someone drive me 50 minutes in one direction for drop off and pick up at that smaller airport. So, add another $60.00 $100.00 onto those prices for that. I can easily get rides to & from the larger airport when we fly Spirit.

thanks for the information you shared! We pack light and could easily do it with just the personal item each or paying for 1 checked bag

 

[MillauFr]

Flying Spirit is very risky. When they have mechanical breakdowns and your flight is canceled you are in big trouble. They may offer you a standby ticket for a flight 4 days away. If you prefer piece of mind fly another airline.

 

[momtwoboys]

wish Southwest would extend soon!

 

[solorund]

We've used Spirit several times now, and we've never had any problems. If you are a member of the $9 club, you can save some serious money. We've flown to and from multiple locations with Spirit, and have yet to pay more than $120 per ticket round trip. Sign up for their emails if you've still got time, as they have a new deal introduced almost everyday--often 35%-50% off on top of the already discounted $9 fair rate. With the charge for bags and seats, we still find it all significantly less than any other airlines. You can also cancel your flight for free within the first 24 hours. They've become our go-to airline.

 

[momtwoboys]

We've used Spirit several times now, and we've never had any problems. If you are a member of the $9 club, you can save some serious money. We've flown to and from multiple locations with Spirit, and have yet to pay more than $120 per ticket round trip. Sign up for their emails if you've still got time, as they have a new deal introduced almost everyday--often 35%-50% off on top of the already discounted $9 fair rate. With the charge for bags and seats, we still find it all significantly less than any other airlines. You can also cancel your flight for free within the first 24 hours. They've become our go-to airline.

I did sign up for the specials, but my question is usually for spring break I book now... these sales going on are for travel this fall. Do I wait until way closer to the dates and hope for a sale or book now? I'm used to booking JB or SW on day of release and watching flights just skyrocket from there. We also live about 30 min from the airport and can save by booking in person. Actually we are driving our son to the airport this friday!

 

[solorund]

My experience has been that their deal prices are within $10 of each other year round, so if you look at what the 35%-50% deal they have going on right now (or during the fall, which are being advertised right now), that's probably pretty similar to what you will pay if you wait till the winter/spring. You might have to wait a day or two as I don't know if they actually have a deal right now. When you look at that price compared to what you will pay right now in person, you should be able to get a better idea of how much money you will pay/save and which option might work best for you. Again, it's been my experience that their deals are significantly less than their everyday prices (I'm talking $70-$100 per ticket, so I personally would wait, but that could just be my airport.

 

[solorund]

Best case scenario might be to wait until they have the sell and then go buy the tickets at the counter. That, I would think, would give you the most savings, as I believe the deals are equally applicable online or in person. This isn't possible for me, as I live 3+ hours from the airport we fly out off, but if you are able to take advantage of this, I'd think you could save some serious money.

Here's an article that might help