Airtran or Southwest?

[greeney02]

I'm pricing airfare for a trip for myself & DD5 to WDW in April. This will be DD's first flight, as well as my first time flying with a child. We'll be flying out of Chicago.

The best fares I've found are for Airtran ($98 each way) & Southwest ($94 each way) out of Midway. Southwest ends up being cheaper with the free bags, and people seem to rave about their service; Airtran seems to get mixed reviews. My only concern with Southwest is that, since there are no assigned seats, there is a possibility that DD and I will be split up since she will be over 4 years old.

Should I chance DD and I being split up on SW, or go with Airtran so I can choose our seats, pay the extra $ for bag fees and hope for the best service-wise?

 

[shopn24seven]

I hate the idea of paying for SEATS, KWIM?
I always fly SW. THe attendants are so nice and freindly and the snacks are good. LOL.
I have never been split with my dd, 10.
I have flown AT and was not that impressed.
HTH....

 

[jen42002]

I would go with Southwest. If you do online checkin 24 hours ahead you should be able to get the same "zone". That way you will save at least $60 on the bags. I have heard you can pay ahead of time to get zone A if you want as well. My mom flew them on Nov. 30 and had no problem getting zone A when she did online checkin (at the 24 hour mark).

 

[LidoDeck]

I've flown Southwest many times and AirTran a few times. I've been pleased with both. Southwest has the advantage of free bags and AirTran offers the option for assigned seats at a fee. What is more important to you?

If it were me, I'd book Southwest, but would pay the additional $10pp each way fee to add "Early Bird Check-in". Southwest has open seating and boards by letter groups in numerical order. Your position is determine by when you check-in (at T-24), but EBCI gives you an advantage. Some folks don't want to pay the fee and will just check-in at T-24...I like to avoid the hassle.

 

[TrustedTraveler]

AirTran: I'd rather walk. Really!
Southwest: best US airline flying.

 

[katierae81]

I have flown both airlines, and I would definately go with Southwest. It's the best airline IMO if you are flying with kids!

 

[dburg30]

I would go with Southwest. If you do online checkin 24 hours ahead you should be able to get the same "zone". That way you will save at least $60 on the bags. I have heard you can pay ahead of time to get zone A if you want as well. My mom flew them on Nov. 30 and had no problem getting zone A when she did online checkin (at the 24 hour mark).

Just to clarify, unless you are an A-lister or pay for a full fare (business select) you are never guaranteed an A boarding pass... If you pay for the early bird check in, all you are paying for is not having to be somewhere at t-24 to try to nab the best seats.. People who pay for anytime fares will be assigned before those that bought wanna get away or DING! fares, from the SW site..

Is there an order in which EarlyBird Check-in Boarding Passes are reserved?
Yes, Customers who have purchased Anytime Fares will receive priority over other fare types during the initial boarding position assignment.

 

[Buzz's Buddy]

Keep in mind that if you fly AirTran, and are staying on property, you will be able to check your bags at the Resort Airline Check-in desk for your flight home. If you're traveling with a 5-year old, it might be worth the bag fee to know that you don't have to worry about you luggage at the airport.

I believe you can do it with Southwest too, but only if you are staying at Pop or All-Star.

I've flown AirTran numerous times and never had a problem.

 

[erikthewise]

The short answer to "Airtran or Southwest?" is "Yes!".
Both have advantages and disadvantages but they are both great choices.

I am a big Airtran fan because it provides excellent nonstop service (to/from MCO) at perfect times of day from my home airport, whereas I have to drive 75 min to Columbus to get SW. I have flown in business class on Airtran several times for either a modest upgrade fee or by cashing in a small number of "points". (Airtran's frequent flyer program is weird but generous.) Like the previous poster I have flown them about a dozen times with no problems whatsoever.

If one provides nonstop service from Midway and the other doesn't, that should end the discussion. Nonstop is priceless! Otherwise you have to balance the luggage fees versus assigned seats considerations. Paying to reserve seats is strictly optional on Airtran, and at $6 per seat it shouldn't be a major consideration. If it bothers you, just check in online 24 hours in advance and you'll be able to select seats at that time. Either way you will arrive at the airport with assigned seats and boarding passes in hand.

 

[anna1111]

I know we used to use Southwest every year for our trip and we were traveling with young children. SW would call for preboarding for those with young children and for those needing help boarding. I haven't flown SW in about 3 years I'm sure someone can verify that they still do this. Hope this helps. Oh and the other airline we used the last 2 years Air Tran not as friendly as SW and they may change the time of the flight. Last year they charged us $40 x 2bags because they were 1inch over. Used the same bags with the same guidelines in place the year before and they let them go. This year we are using Jet Blue. Just remember to add $21 to Airtran price $15 for the bag and $6 for the seat reservation when comparing to SW or JB.

 

[dburg30]

Yea, non stop is a bonus for sure. One thing that you'll see here sometimes is that airtran does sometimes change flights from non stop to a layover in atl if they feel the need to. SW rarely changes flights once they are posted. Again, that just something to keep in mind, and I dont know how often they really do change non stop to layovers. Also AT has been known to change flight times, again, I dont know how often, but I dont hear too often where SW changes a flight unless it's due to weather or something.

 

[chuckml]

If you book Airtran through kayak.com, you won't have to pay for the seat selections.

 

[DVC Grammy]

Another SWA booster here (also JB, but that's in my airport ). I'd rather make sure I get my BPs 24 hours beforehand than pay for bags (both ways!). As long as you check in around the 24 hour mark, at the worst, you'll get a "B" pass, which will make it no problem for you and DD to sit together. There's a good chance that you'd even get "A"s.
Having just flown Airtran, I was underwhelmed by the service, compared to that of SW (and JB)!

 

[Chelley00]

If you book Airtran through kayak.com, you won't have to pay for the seat selections.

Exactly. DD and I just flew Airtran out of Indy and back . The service was just fine, the flights were easy and there was not worry about us not getting to sit together for her first flight since I had picked our seats ahead of time. It was worth it paying the baggage fee to know we'd definately be seated together, and we got to pick our seats for free.

 

[NancyIL]

I prefer AirTran because it flies out of an airport an hour away, and the airport has free parking. They also have one non-stop flight to and from Orlando several days each week. For me to fly on Southwest, I'd have to drive twice as far to Indianapolis and pay to park.

 

[greeney02]

Thanks for all your input.

I was all set to book w/ Southwest - nonstop flights, Early Bird check-in to increase the chances of sitting together, and we were booked for 7 nights at POP so we could do resort check-in for the return flight.

But then I got one of those coveted pin codes!

So now we are doing a split stay; 5 nights vacation package @ POP and then a room-only for the last 2 nights at AKL w/ a Savannah view!

So, now my thought is to fly SW on the way down, and then Airtran on the way back so that I can utilize resort check-in @ AKL for the return flight. Is there any reason I wouldn't want to do this? Would this work w/ DME? Both airlines have nonstop flights out of MDW at convenient times, so that is not an issue.

 

[dburg30]

Wont be any issues with DME at all. I didnt see when you were going but there is also a chance that SW will be fully participating then (if it's not a close trip). I'm sure you will be happy with whichever flight you take