Rows 12 and 14 are $15.00 seats, rows 15 and 16 are $13.00 seats, and row 18 are $20.00 exit row seats. All will give you boarding zone 1, as long as you paid for those seats. If you choose them for free at the 24 hour mark, you get boarding zone 7. All other seats (except business class, of course) are $6.00. Air Tran boards by zone-usually the only preboards they allow are wheelchairs and Make a Wish Kids, then they board business class and the rest of Zone 1. They then board zone 2, then zone 3, then zone 4, etc. They board in a alternating pattern, back to front, then middle, etc. They will make the announcement that if your party has more than one boarding zone, all members of that party may board with the lowest zone. For example, my mom once had a window seat, I was in the middle, and my husband had an aisle seat, all in the same row. We had three different boarding zones, but were all able to board with my mom, who had the lowest. If you are in boarding zone 7 there is a very good chance there will be no overhead space left and they will gate check your carryons. If you want to make sure you have overhead space and want to be one of the first on the plane, then pay for those $15.00 or $13.00 seats. You pay the $15.00 or $13.00 fee once going and once coming home, no matter how many plane changes you may have to make.
The first checked bag is $20.00, the second is $25.00 and if a person has more than two bags, then it's an additional $50.00 for each bag over two. Each ticketed person is entitled to one free carry on and one personal item. Measure your checked bag though. For some reason Air Tran's maximum size for a checked bag is an inch smaller than industry standard (61" vs 62"). I've seen them measuring bags twice this year. On the other hand their allowance for a carry on is bigger than industry standard (55" vs 45"), but please don't try to carry on a 55" bag. They really don't usually fit wheels first into the overhead and I've seen alot of people have to check them. It's always funny to watch someone trying to squeeze one of those big 55" bags into the overhead. The FA will be standing there telling them it won't fit and they'll gate check it, but the guy just keeps trying to force it in, saying he measured it and knows it will fit. Uh, no it doesn't.
As far as price, I check airfare frequently and know what they run out of my airport to the places I go. Once they fall below that price, I usually grab them. Continue to keep an eye on them though. If the price drops anymore, you can call and get a voucher number for the difference (make sure you apply for an A+ Rewards account, prior to booking). You can then use that voucher to pay for your luggage or seat fees.
