Anyone Flown Spirit Airlines?

[WiscMomof2]

I found a really good deal for our trip this fall on Spirit Airlines from Chicago O'Hare non-stop to Orlando. I'm a little hesitant to book without doing a little research first because I've never heard of them before. Can anybody that has flown with them or has any information about them be kind enough to share your thoughts or experiences? Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Debi]

I've flown with Spirit many times out of Atlantic City, and have had no problems at all. Only one delayed flight in 10+ trips. They are a "no-frills" airline (no first class, no meals served, etc.), but for the price you pay, you can't beat the service. I've had great experiences with them!

 

[timkin]

Don't expect to be pampered, no e-ticket, no meals, but for a 2 1/2 hour flight you can't beat the price most of the time. I know Spirit flies out of Detroit 2 times a day to Orlando, plus they have many destinations around the country. I have flown spirit a few times with no major inconveniences.

 

[bjakmom]

Have flown Spirit many times with no problems - my only complaint is their strict adherence to no refund or credits for changed flights and their fee to switch a flight last year was $75 per ticket (almost what I paid for the ticket).

 

[WiscMomof2]

Thanks for the info everyone. I think we can deal with the "no frills" aspect as long as they're reputable and get us from point A to point B safely and without any major problems or headaches. The price sure helps too!!

 

[nhpm]

We flew Spirit Airlines from NY to Fort Myers last year and to call it "no frills" is no joke. The back of my husband's seat was broken and he couldn't put it in the upright position. The flight was full so there was no other seat he could move to. The crew were constantly giggling at each other and making each other laugh during the safety instructions and acted in a most unprofessional way throughout the flight. NEVER AGAIN.

 

[Miss Jasmine]

Hi! Please keep in mind that Spirit uses older aircraft that other airlines are unloading. Also, they do not do their own maintenance (it is contracted out as ValueJet did). My opinion, I would spend a little more on another airline.

 

[DeeP]

I fly Spirit Airlines at least 3-4 times a year from Atlantic City to Orlando and I have never had a problem with anything. The crew is always very friendly and professional and the planes are in great shape. I just flew with Spirit over the Christmas holidays and I have my next two flights for May and Sept already booked. My only complaint with Spirit is that you can not get frequent flyer miles. One other thing that Spirit does that not many if any, other airlines do is that if the price of your flight goes down after you have booked & paid for it, they will give you a future flight credit for whatever the difference is. I have gotten quite a few future flight credits this way which come in very handy for my next flight. My flight in May is less than $100.00 roundtrip due to a flight credit I had from my Dec flight!! I love Spirit Airlines and would not even consider flying with another airlines to go to Orlando from where I live. I would have to drive over an hour one way to go to Phila and get a flight to Orlando and then do the same thing coming home. With Spirit, I am at the airport in less than 15 minutes and upon returning I am home in less than 15 minutes, plus I've have always gotten wonderful service! For food they only give you a soda or juice and pretzels or crackers but all airlines with flights that are only 2 1/2 hours no longer give you meals.

 

[bjakmom]

Thanks, DeeP (hey, I grew up in Linwood - small world) - good to know about the future flight credit - I will keep my eye on the prices, as my flight this year is actually a little more than the last time I flew, but it seems to me that most air fares are creeping back up. I have gotten credit for the price difference from US Air and Cont - the only other thing to watch out for at AC Airport is the parking (used to be difficult sometimes to find a space), though at least they have finally paved the lot, they are also charging now.

 

[Cary's Mom]

My Mother, Aunt and Uncle have flown on Spirit out of Atlantic City three times to Orlando in the last two years and have been very happy with them - and if they can keep three senior citizens happy they must be doing something right. I always book them on Spirit since the AC airport is so much easier to navigate than Philly and its closer since my Aunt and Uncle live in North Cape May.

We were in Orlando this past weekend and were at the gate next to Spirit and it looked like they may also have some new planes.

Amy aka Cary's Mom

 

[Disneydenise]

My friend and I are flying spirit out of Atlantic City in April. She and her husband use them frequently. He is a retired traveler and if they can keep him happy I think it must be okay. The price was over $100 less than the flight on US Air who I usually fly. I have to say that I have had more delays than I care to count using US Air.

 

[kel3420]

If you check Travelocity's website, you can find airfare to Orlando RIGHT NOW nonstop for $108.

Jump on this if you can, I wish I could, lol

 

[UltimateWDWFan]

I have flown Spirit from Detroit to Tampa a few times with no problems, and would recommend them for a budget flight. My boss has made the same flight several times and had mechanical problems once that were discouraging enough that he won't let me book him on Spirit anymore. His point: They don't have a lot of planes sitting around, so if you run into a problem, it could delay you significantly (but then the company pays for his flights, so he's not as concerned about $$ as you and I are personally). Although I found Spirit's gate area at the Detroit terminal to be quite off-the-beaten-path, I'm considering flying with them into Orlando when I take my extended family to WDW. My one STRONG suggestion would be to get a direct flight (and I think most of Spirit's flights to FL are non-stop), since trying to make connections increases your chances for a snaffoo (but I feel that way about any carrier).

 

[Tess]

The flight to Ft. Myers was cancelled due to mechanical problems. The next flight out (ours) to Orlando was delayed three hours due to mechanical problems. Detroit runs two flights per day to Orlando and they don't bump people from the 2nd flight to accommodate those left hanging by a cancellation. Further, other airlines do not recognize Spirit's tickets so you have no choice but to wait until your flight goes out OR the next day.

On our return, the landing was so hard pieces of the plane's interior fell apart and whacked us and all near us on the head. There was no reason for such a difficult landing--it was a perfectly clear and calm fall day. The two planes on which we flew were old.

Oh, BTW, the "mechanical" difficulty in our plane turned out to be a lack of crew members to fly the darn plane. They had to delay in order for the pilot to meet his off time requirements.

Spirit out of Detroit (at least this year) have been as high or higher than other airlines. The only possible benefit is the direct flight.

 

[shelbyjosh]

We usually take Spirit to MCO. We have not had any problems with them in the times we have used them. Last March we were delayed what was supposed to be a minimum of 2 hrs. They issued us meal vouchers ($9 per person) and told us to come back within that 2 hr timeframe. We ate and immediately came back and they were already boarding our flight. We were up in the air within that 2 hrs!! We will be using them again 3/13-3/21. We have the 1st flight to Orlando at 7:30 so getting out there 3 hrs ahead will be a bear. That's ok...more time to play at WDW!!! We usually take some snacks to subsidize what they pass out. We paid $210 pp for these tix. Since purchasing, the fare has dropped 2x. Thus, giving us $60 pp in flight vouchers. This will definately make a dent in the next booking!! BTW, the Michiganders that have replied to this post....where are you from??

 

[Disneydenise]

Tess,
Those mechanical difficulties you spoke of happened tous on USAir once when flying home from MCO. I think that it is just another problem they have in the airline industry.

 

[Tess]

We're a small little burg south of Jackson, east of Hillsdale, and west of Adrian just 13 miles north of the Ohio line on 127. We're actually closer to Toledo than Detroit, although we used to fly from DTW because the prices were better--not so within the past two years.

 

[UltimateWDWFan]

This Michigander's from Lansing, so I usually run the numbers (cost) out of both Detroit and Lansing. We fly Northwest more than anything else, and I'm anxiously waiting to see how the new Northwest terminal in Detroit pans out.

I'm not at all excited by how close the parking is to the new terminal; I don't see how they could possibly do an adequate job of controlling the security of every car going in there and parking that close...

Anyway, with my conerns in that respect, it gives me an extra plus in the pros/cons for flying Spirit. I think there's something to be said for patronizing the more obscure little guy sometimes. I'm glad the Feds are taking over security for the Smith/Davey terminals, though, since Northwest (the big guy) won't be there now.

Happy trails! (or is that "trials"?)

Tammy

 

[chelsea&austinsmom]

We've flown out of Atlantic City 2 times with Spirit and never had a problem. We will be flying with them next week. Going to the World and can't wait.