Experience(s) with Airtran out of Phila (PHL)

[Jazzerfan]

Leaning on booking with Airtran for mid-November Disney trip. Although I realize they charge extra fees, their flight times and price seem to be the best out there right now.

Anyone have any experiences out of Philly and if so, positive or negative. My other options are SW and USAir - just don't know which one to choose.

Appreciate any feedback!

 

[Minniemouse07]

I would definitely go w/ Southwest.

They don't add on additional charges and their flight times are reliable (ie they don't switch 20x between when you book and when you fly). I like to know when I book a flight for X date and time...that is the time I'll be flying!

We have used them for our last four trips to MCO and last month was the first time we even had a delay.

They also have a lot of flights each way, every day so it is fairly easy to find one that is right for you and your family.

Definitely Southwest over both AirTran and USAirways!

 

[Buzz's Buddy]

I've flown AirTran from PHL several times and never had a problem.

One time they changed my flight by about 30 minutes, which actually worked out better for me because they switched me to an earlier (more costly) flight for FREE!

They usually have 4 non-stops from PHL to MCO so I wouldn't worry too much about changes to their schedule because you can usually switch to a different flight without any hassle.

I've got nothing against SW, but so far, I have always found AirTran to be cheaper for my flights, even when adding the fees for luggage and seats. Why pay more?

 

[Missytara]

I've flown AirTran from PHL several times and never had a problem.

One time they changed my flight by about 30 minutes, which actually worked out better for me because they switched me to an earlier (more costly) flight for FREE!

They usually have 4 non-stops from PHL to MCO so I wouldn't worry too much about changes to their schedule because you can usually switch to a different flight without any hassle.

I've got nothing against SW, but so far, I have always found AirTran to be cheaper for my flights, even when adding the fees for luggage and seats. Why pay more?

Ditto for me out of BWI; even though I pay $6.00 for a seat assignment and $15.00 for a bag, my total round trip was $40.00 cheaper with Airtran then Southwest.

 

[Dreamer24]

I typically fly SW. I like the that flight attendents provide a more relaxed atmosphere and I enjoy picking my seat when I arrive.

I have flown airtran phl - mco roundtrip. I just feel less relaxed and everyone is trying to load up on carryons so don't expect to have room for anything that doesn't fit under your seat! Most likely, your carryons will be in an overhead far from your seat or gate checked.

 

[carone0318]

We fly out of PHL and when you are paying for 4 tickets, I usually end up going with Airtran because the price (after all the ala cart stuff) is still cheaper. Also since I am OCD I check my flights everyday to see if there has been any time changes. My flight home has changed for our upcoming flight, but they had no problems working with what I wanted. I did not wait to receive an email about the change, I just called once I saw the change in the morning.

Also I book each leg separately so that if the price on one of the legs goes down, I can get a credit. This happened with my flight from PHL to MCO and now I have a $56 credit.

I have to say that I do like the fact that with Airtran I already have a seat assignment. With Southwest, we usually were able to get an "A" slot, but now with the early bird registration (that you have to pay additional for) I'm not sure I would get that.

I like Southwest too don't get me wrong, but can't beat the price of Airtran when you pay for 4 tickets.

 

[wdwnomad]

I've flown on AirTran many times out of Philly. Never had a problem with them. Sure, I've had them move my flight times around. However, since they offer a quite a few non-stops daily if I wanted to get put on another flight it is never a problem. All you do is call customer service.

I wouldn't hestiate to use AirTran in a second. I'm looking at flights for December. AirTran is still cheaper than Southwest even after you include their fees.

 

[Minniemouse07]

Interesting that you found AirTran cheaper than Southwest. We just went down to WDW last month and AT was $30 more expensive round trip...and that was before adding on the extra fees.

I have seen their fares come close to SW at times, but for us it has never been less, especially after adding on baggage fees.

 

[johnnyr]

Flown Air Tran many times out of PHL. Never had a problem. I find if you choose the earliest flight departing and latest on the return, the flight times never change more than a hour. Even with the baggage fees, their prices are in line with Southwest.

 

[guitarob]

I've flown Air Tran out of Philly to Orlando a few times. Only once did I have a problem (non-stop changed to a 1-stop, leaving Orlando much earlier, I switched the flight to Southwest).

On all other occasions I've found Air Tran to be very reliable, boarding and departing easily and on time.

On our next trip we're flying Air Tran because the flight times were better than Southwest, and they were cheaper (including bag and seat selection fees).

 

[carone0318]

Well for me, I waited for the Southwest prices to post before I bought my tickets and at that time that was when Airtran easily had Southwest beat even after the seat fee & the factoring in the baggage fee. I'm sure that Southwest got closer to the price of Airtran after that point with their dings and stuff, but I wasn't waiting for that to happen - because you never really know if it is going to happen!

Interesting that you found AirTran cheaper than Southwest. We just went down to WDW last month and AT was $30 more expensive round trip...and that was before adding on the extra fees.

I have seen their fares come close to SW at times, but for us it has never been less, especially after adding on baggage fees.

 

[Minniemouse07]

Well for me, I waited for the Southwest prices to post before I bought my tickets and at that time that was when Airtran easily had Southwest beat even after the seat fee & the factoring in the baggage fee. I'm sure that Southwest got closer to the price of Airtran after that point with their dings and stuff, but I wasn't waiting for that to happen - because you never really know if it is going to happen!

We didn't decide to go down to WDW until 55 days out so I guess closer to the departure date the fare difference is more pronounced.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

If you can live with the uncertainty of having your flights change, AT is ok. Our last experience with them was last Nov. We had a non stop, noon flight home, post cruise. They canceled the non stop and put us on a connecting flight. My dad has claustrophobia and really prefers non stops. The next non stop was 3:30 and was full so we had to switch to the 6:30pm. It was later changed to 7:20 pm.
Not too horrible but really messed up our plans to exit the ship and head home. Instead of using DCL's convenient transportation to MCO, we were forced to rent a car to kill several hours.
Never again. SWA's schedule is very reliable.

 

[Jazzerfan]

If you can live with the uncertainty of having your flights change, AT is ok. Our last experience with them was last Nov. We had a non stop, noon flight home, post cruise. They canceled the non stop and put us on a connecting flight. My dad has claustrophobia and really prefers non stops. The next non stop was 3:30 and was full so we had to switch to the 6:30pm. It was later changed to 7:20 pm.
Not too horrible but really messed up our plans to exit the ship and head home. Instead of using DCL's convenient transportation to MCO, we were forced to rent a car to kill several hours.
Never again. SWA's schedule is very reliable.

Can you tell me what time in November you traveled?

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Can you tell me what time in November you traveled?

It was 11/7/09, a Saturday.

Not a big deal now looking back, but if I wanted to spend the day in Orlando, humping our luggage on and off shuttle buses, cramming it into the trunk and then into the terminal to wait in line to check it, (all not necessary with DCL transportation and Onboard Check In), I would have booked SW and not had to pay $60 in luggage fees.

 

[PSUGuy]

Nothing but good for us and AT at PHL. The 2 times they changed our flights, both on the return, I got us switched to a better flight, one that would have been more expensive if I booked it on purpose. As another here said, I check my itinerary almost daily and I caught the changes before AT notified me.

Bill From PA