Flight from Buffalo... which carrier?

[FigmentSpark]

I'm thinking of trying for flights from Buffalo to Orlando this year. This would be my first time. What airlines do you all recommend and why? Are there any pros or cons to your choice?

 

[Disneylover99]

I only fly SW. It’s always cheaper when I price it out. Plus no charge for luggage, ability to change your flight without a fee or get a credit if your flight price drops. We’ve had excellent customer service.

 

[migel]

Have been using Southwest for a few years now, prices are usually quite good, and no issues. Another option is Allegiant Air out of Niagara Airport (close to Buffalo Airport, just across the Lewiston Bridge). Some very cheap flights available, however baggage, seating, etc. is all extra. Somewhat limited weekly flight dates/times compared with SW, but a decent option. Also, Allegiant lands at Sanford Airport, not MCO, but it's only an extra 20 min drive to the Disney area.

 

[gskywalker]

We have always flown with SW, but I have been looking at Frontier for trips now as they are cheaper than southwest even after adding baggage on most days.

 

[Limmer]

We liked the times and price for Southwest. We didn't need to worry too much about sitting together at my kids ages though. We did end up sitting in two groups of two as we checked in online and were in one of the first seating groups though.

 

[dish rag]

I have made 100 or more flights out of Niagara Falls to Sanford Orlando. So much easier than dealing with MCO.

 

[FigmentSpark]

See, it's that Southwest boarding that has me nervous. There are so many families flying out of MCO that it's said if you're not in the family group, you're not getting seats together.

 

[alohamom]

I have flown Southwest, Jet Blue and American Airlines from Buffalo to MCO but it has been a few years.

I am in the minority with JetBlue in that I didnt think the service was spectacular. The plane was old and they broke the wheel right off a brand new suitcase. They did get us there but I personally would never go out of my way to fly with them as some people do.

Southwest used to be great for us as a family when the kids were younger for exactly the concern you state above-they ensure you sit together. I have not priced them out to MCO lately but I feel there is such strategy needed to get a good price with them these days it is almost not worth it. It seems people tend to book when the travel window opens and then watch if the price goes down so you can get a future credit which is great if you are planning another trip with them but not so good if not. But I would fly SW again if the price was worth it.

We had FF points for American Airlines and ended up using them for a quick trip down one year. It was typical of any regular airline service. I would not pay more over the budget carriers for such a short trip.

We have always been a family of four going to MCO and it is the tax savings for four tickets that makes the majority of the savings. However with the exchange I am not seeing as big of a difference with carriers like Southwest and Jet Blue. We flew Frontier about 3 years ago (but out of Detroit, before they starting flying out of Buffalo) and I was very concerned about it because of negative reviews, but the plane was new, the flight was direct and the actual flight itself was excellent. You need to pay for everything on top of the price of the ticket, including carry on that will not fit under the seat in front of you so I just paid ahead of time for one suitcase under and put all of our stuff in it. I think it was an extra $35. The absolute TOTAL PRICE for the four of us round trip to Orlando was UNDER $200 because of a ridiculous Black Friday sale fare and that was with joining the Discount Den and the one suitcase under. I get their emails and they have sales all the time. I think the next time we fly to MCO it will most likely be on Frontier. It kind of seems stupid not to for us.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

If you are thinking Buffalo/MCO I’d check out SWOOP out of Hamilton to MCO. No exchange rate to factor in, prices are excellent. I priced Oct 16-23/19 last week for a possible trip - $234.38 CDN per person all taxes & fees included - you would pay for bags & seat selection but the fees were not outrageous.

Something to consider.

 

[lizzyb]

We much prefer Jetblue!

 

[von Monster]

Basically JetBlue › Southwest › Frontier, but the price follows that. Personally we fly JetBlue or Frontier due to the cattle car loading that SW does. Either pay early bird check-in or don't sit together as 50% of the plane will be filled with disability boarding or family boarding first.

 

[alohamom]

If you are thinking Buffalo/MCO I’d check out SWOOP out of Hamilton to MCO. No exchange rate to factor in, prices are excellent. I priced Oct 16-23/19 last week for a possible trip - $234.38 CDN per person all taxes & fees included - you would pay for bags & seat selection but the fees were not outrageous.

Something to consider.

I looked at Swoop but then I read about the experience @gskywalker had and I will probably think twice about using them

https://www.disboards.com/threads/swoop-experience-hamilton-to-mco.3727933/#post-60114034
It is very possible that this happened because of growing pains with a new service but it is enough to make me think twice.

 

[darwinsrule]

Get the concern over boarding. DW and I started flying SW back in 2001 (pre-kids). Did a couple of flights from YYZ when they were young, but quckly moved back to BUF. Since the kids aged out of the familly boarding, we have paid for EBCI with SW. It adds to the price, but worth the piece of mind. We cruise a lot of FL ports, and checking in at the 24 hour mark just isn't an option a lot of the time. Same thing with the parks however, do I want to be in the parks enjoying things, or on the computer trying to get checked in?

All things being equal I would fly JB over SW. Esp for a longer flight. Things are rarely equal however.

 

[FigmentSpark]

I thought the problem with the EBCI was that more and more people were paying for it, which leaves it with little advantage.

 

[Timhags]

I always fly jet blue outta Syracuse. I love the extra space and the TV. Direct flights preferred, no worries about delays at connections and pricing is great. We don't have Southwest here so can't compare but check flights out of Rochester and Syracuse too

 

[ellbell]

I looked at Swoop but then I read about the experience @gskywalker had and I will probably think twice about using them

https://www.disboards.com/threads/swoop-experience-hamilton-to-mco.3727933/#post-60114034
It is very possible that this happened because of growing pains with a new service but it is enough to make me think twice.

I flew swoop with no issues whatsoever and really like it for the convenience since I live in Hamilton. Swoop is what actually has me considering an annual pass because of price and convenience of location.

That being said I love flying Southwest. The checked bags free is awesome. I never have a problem with boarding but I do use early bird check in so I don't have to worry about it at Disney. I also love the convenience of checking my bags and not having to worry about them until they are in my room. They also have many daily flights which means I can choose what works for me.

 

[darwinsrule]

I thought the problem with the EBCI was that more and more people were paying for it, which leaves it with little advantage.

More and more were. They changed the pricing to a dynamic model about a year ago I believe. High demand routes means it costs more. For this August BUF to FLL it was $25 pp each way. For 4 that was an extra $200, pushing the air from $900 to $1,100. Not great, and we could have done without it for the trip down to FLL which would have saved $100.

We generally book day of release, worst we have ever got is the end of the A group with a couple of us at the start of the B group (we all boarded together under the A group). That was March 2018. For us it adds piece of mind. We don't stress about where we will be, we just go about our business. This way we can enjoy cruise, park, whatever and wherever we are. I think the worst seats we have ever got were late B group logging in at 24 hours. We have never had an issue sitting together. We we have been last row, but we sat together.

We really started thinking seriously about it back in 2012. We were on a cruise coming back from Bermuda, last day couldn't get internet connection. Not only could we not check-in, SW release for March Break 2013 was that day (that cost us hundreds in extra airfare for our cruise on the Fantasy).

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Basically JetBlue › Southwest › Frontier, but the price follows that. Personally we fly JetBlue or Frontier due to the cattle car loading that SW does. Either pay early bird check-in or don't sit together as 50% of the plane will be filled with disability boarding or family boarding first.

Family boarding is not first. It always occurs between the A & B boarding. you don't have to get EBCI to sit together. I have never bought it and we always sit together and I make sure to check in right at the 24 hr mark

 

[alohamom]

More and more were. They changed the pricing to a dynamic model about a year ago I believe. High demand routes means it costs more. For this August BUF to FLL it was $25 pp each way. For 4 that was an extra $200, pushing the air from $900 to $1,100. Not great, and we could have done without it for the trip down to FLL which would have saved $100.

Great info, thank you for posting this.

I have been looking at SW lately as they now have the new routes to Hawaii from the West Coast. Some of the intro fares were extremely inexpensive but when you have to think about this kind of optional up charge it can make a difference.

 

[pigletto]

The thing that soured me on Southwest ( and we have flown with them out of Buffalo many times ) was when people would board with family boarding and then save seats for the giant party they were travelling with. It’s not allowed but nobody said anything. And that happened twice . So here we are paying for the EBCI so we can sit together as I’m a really anxious flyer and prefer to be up front, and some jerk saves 12 seats with hats and sweaters when he boards with his one kid . It didn’t happen every time but it’s not something I want to worry about.
We’ve flown Frontier twice and they were great but you do run the risk of not having as many planes available if there’s a problem.
We love JetBlue , but the price is usually much higher. So in general we try JetBlue, then Frontier and then Southwest.
With exchange we are seeing Toronto and Hamilton being competitively priced , and it’s not always cheaper to go out of Buffalo right now. However I prefer Buffalo airport to YYZ .. it’s just so much easier to get in and out of and to navigate .