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I had a terrible flight with them so I probably wouldn't fly them again.
I remember when my aunt flew up to NY and she had flown on tons of airlines over the years. She had never flown Spirit before and she decided to give it a try. She told us the flight was terrible and the plane was so beat up that she thought it might be her last flight when she saw duct tape holding things together.
C'mon, if you have to wear three sets of clothing to avoid baggage fees, then you shouldn't fly unless it's for a family emergency/funeral/wedding.
If they're only flying for a short trip it makes sense. I guess the toothbrush and charger goes in their pockets. It's one of the easiest ways to save 30 dollars.
It's not counterintuitive. One of the biggest low cost carrier strategies is quick turnaround at the gate. Every airline leases gates at airports. If they're playing a flat rate for the gate, it's financially savvy to get as many flights out of that gate each day as they possibly can. Fast boarding is key to quick turnaround and one of the greatest boarding speed bumps is people stopping to put bags in the overhead bins. Spirit charges less for a checked bag because they want to encourage fewer people to slow the boarding process by shoving big bags in the overhead. It's a successful strategy. They'll get 6-7 flights out of a gate in a day where a legacy carrier like American might get 4-5. The rate they pay for the gate is the same so more turnaround delivers better ROI and that's reflected in ridiculously low (albeit barebones) ticket prices on Spirit.
Interesting, the full overhead compartments are probably my biggest pet peeve because i'm usually group 4 or 5 with my last minute bookings and have nothing but my carry-on which I want to keep near. It happens way too often.
I had a terrible flight with them so I probably wouldn't fly them again.
I remember when my aunt flew up to NY and she had flown on tons of airlines over the years. She had never flown Spirit before and she decided to give it a try. She told us the flight was terrible and the plane was so beat up that she thought it might be her last flight when she saw duct tape holding things together.
I like to try everything once. Southwest was one of the cheaper ones but I don't hear many bad things about them. I have an isle seat and flight is 2 hours so it should be fine.
I'm a Spirit Member: Last year I wanted to start flying to CLE more often from LAX to stay downtown, attend sporting events, and visit my cousins. I am a big CLE fan, but born and raised in So. Cal.
I found a rt flight (direct) on Spirit for about $130. I read everything on their site about how they work.
Here's what I do:
I joined their $9 fare club.
I got their credit card.
Next week is my 6th trip since last Sept. I use points when I can ($133 rt with front row seat). I wait for the best price and if there is something fun in CLE that weekend, I'm gone. I fly the overnight flight on Thursday or Friday and return Sunday or Monday. It's a direct flight (key here).
I take a draw string bag- no extra $ for carry on. I buy the front row seats (recline and are wider).
I joined the club where I always stay downtown and now get to check in early in the morning when I land and get a free upgrade if available.
I have flown about every airline over the years and have noticed no difference in customer service (minus United, which screwed me years ago).
The crew seems friendly all the time, but I'm not on the flight to make long-term relationships so don't care. I get on, put on a movie (laptop) and then sleep.
I do keep a "CLE KIT" at my cousins just in case I do not pack correctly- flew there last Dec. with my daughter and thought my converse would be ok. LOL
It's planning. Wear layers to board. I bring a jacket no matter what (basically a blanket).
My next deal is buying a box that is exactly their personal item size (18x14x8) and load it with items. This will have more cubic space than my normal bag.
I did get my TSA number as well to make security easier- at LAX.
There you go! Direct Flight: easy. I would not take a flight on Spirit if it was connecting due to their airport relationships and how that works. My InLaws trip back to Maine turned into a 24hr + flight.
If they ever quit the LAX:CLE flight, I'll be bummed.
The Spirit CEO once said that they are the most hated airline, and that is why they are the most profitable one. Well, I have no interest in experiencing that airline actually. I am fine with DL or AA most of the time, especially when you have some status with them.
I have flown Spirit a few times and yes, they do nickle and dime you but if you prepare (bring your own water, food, and only bring a backpack) then you'll be fine. I have only flown them a handful of times and each time it has been on one of their brand new plans (yes they recently got an entire fleet of new planes) and it was great. The biggest problem, as stated above, is that they are often very late. Oh and also charge your devices, they don't have plug-ins.
Interesting, the full overhead compartments are probably my biggest pet peeve because i'm usually group 4 or 5 with my last minute bookings and have nothing but my carry-on which I want to keep near. It happens way too often.
Same here. I hate when you cant even squeeze a nickel into the bins. Think about how much time it wastes between boarding and deplaning with everybody stopping to take their maximum sized carry-ons in/out of the bins. Then factor in the gate checking when the bins are full and they've got to throw them underneath. It's a lot of time. For all of the annoyances about flying spirit, bin space is a rare positive. There's always room (which also means you can free up precious leg room by putting your "personal item" in the bin). People also get on faster and off faster.
There's a reason Spirit charges less for checked bags than carry-ons, Southwest still allows free checked bags, and Jetblue was one of the last to charge for a checked bag (and they still make it pretty cheap). The quick turnarounds are how they make their money.
Location: Was Midvalley Oregon; Now Eastside Seattle area
13,072 posts, read 7,508,849 times
Reputation: 9798
Not too worry, the mainline airlines are catching up to Spirit.
A year ago was my first experience with them. I missed one of those opportunities to make a bunch of $$$$ Ticker symbol SAVE.
YMMV
I flew Spirit round-trip from BWI to Orlando for a 3-day stay and had no issues. First, I studied their web site like a hawk and made a list of all the restrictions, etc. I'm lean, so didn't need extra seat room. I carried one under-the-seat-sized backpack with a minimal amount of stuff. Measured the heck out of it before leaving the house...did not want to be forced to check it. For a 2.5 hour flight, lack of refreshments was no problem.
The flight out was packed, but the return flight had empty seats and they let me move from a middle seat to an aisle with no fuss!
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. I missed one of those opportunities to make a bunch of $$$$
Ticker symbol SAVE
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