Man.. is SW going to make me try AirTran?

[dburg30]

I know that SW owns AT (or I think that went thru). But out of CMH all the sudden there really arent any good AM saturday flights to MCO. AT has a couple though. Sooooo... I may be looking at AT and am a bit nervous about it.

Granted my flights arent even up on SW, wont be for about 3 more weeks for October, but looking at them now, dont see many flights getting added.

I'm just so familiar with SW kinda dont want to change...

 

[kaytieeldr]

Change is good

 

[dburg30]

Change is good

yes, but I fear change

 

[dburg30]

Does AT use the same side / terminal that SW does?

 

[Scubee]

Does AT use the same side / terminal that SW does?

We've flown both AT and SW into MCO. Unless they have changed, they do not use the same terminal. AT's gates are in terminal B while SW gates are in terminal A.

 

[Traveliz]

We've flown both AT and SW into MCO. Unless they have changed, they do not use the same terminal. AT's gates are in terminal B while SW gates are in terminal A.

Airtran switched to Terminal A (for arrivals and departures) the first of November however luggage pickup, curbside check in is still in B.

Liz

 

[dburg30]

Airtran switched to Terminal A (for arrivals and departures) the first of November however luggage pickup, curbside check in is still in B.

Liz

OK.. at least if they are arriving / departing from the same side as SW I'll know where I am lol.. We use DME luggage delivery / hotel luggage checkin so dont have to worry about that.

 

[Scubee]

Airtran switched to Terminal A (for arrivals and departures) the first of November however luggage pickup, curbside check in is still in B.

Liz

Thanks for the update Liz! We flew in Oct so I wasn't aware of the change.

 

[DebbieB]

Something similiar is happening in Pittsburgh, they are moving some SW flights to AirTran. I think SW is moving planes around to accomodate their entry into the Atlanta market, which was AirTran's main hub. SW is taking some of AirTran's Atlanta routes so they need to take planes from elsewhere.

 

[DizneyLizzy]

I actually have begun to prefer AirTran to Southwest. Ever since Southwest became the only airline to not charge for bags, they have really jacked up their prices. For me, AT is almost always less expensive now (but I do not check bags).

I also like that AirTran allows you to choose your seat 24 hours ahead of time for no additional fee. I can always get a seat next to my husband without having to glue myself to the computer and hit the button at the exact 24 hour mark in order to land somewhere in the A boarding for SW. I find that very stressful!

 

[JerseyTink]

I know that SW owns AT (or I think that went thru). But out of CMH all the sudden there really arent any good AM saturday flights to MCO. AT has a couple though. Sooooo... I may be looking at AT and am a bit nervous about it.

I agree completely!!! There are no good flight times out of PHL on SW but, AT has a couple. However, I am afraid if I buy at AT they will change the flight time. I have heard so many rumors about that happening. Has that stabilized any since SW took over?

 

[Anal Annie]

After only using AT & SW with an occasional JB flight here & there since like 2006 I just booked on United last night for our August trip. I am actually a little nervous about using them since it's been YEARS since we booked on a "major" airline for a trip to FL. Isn't it silly to be nervous about that?! But the SW & AT fares have been crazy high lately. It HAS to have something to do with less competition between them now and the fact that SW includes the checked bag fees in their prices. We got an Owners Locker & started trying to travel in carry-ons a couple years ago after everyone started charging for bags so I am hoping we won't have to check a bag on United but if we do it will just be 1 large shared bag between the 3 of us. Even paying to check 1 bag United was a lot cheaper so I had to do it. On the bright side I got to select assigned seats without an extra fee!! No EBCI to buy. No seat fees so hopefully it's all good. On checking out tho I found that United offered something they called a "priority overhead bin" option where you could pay in advance for priority boarding so you could be sure to get bin space!! I didn't do it though 'cuz it was like $29 or something. Heck, checking a bag would be cheaper!

 

[Fire14]

I personally ran numbers for AT and SW from CMH to MCO and my buddy Sw came in cheaper and had better times plus nonstop flight.
I "deal" with AT for Friend because she wants to fly out of home airport vs big city airport but I personally can't wait for day her home airport flys SW.

I am sure it's just Friend being nice etc but every freaken seat I pick for her 24 hrs out gets changed for one reason or another, I'm to point I'm gonna tell her i just closed my eyes and clicked.

 

[dburg30]

I'll have to see what happens in a few weeks when our dates open up, but the lack of Saturday AM one way non-stop flights from CMH on SW was shocking..

 

[JerseyTink]

I'll have to see what happens in a few weeks when our dates open up, but the lack of Saturday AM one way non-stop flights from CMH on SW was shocking..

I know thw feeling. That is what I experienced from PHL to MCO. The first non-stop flight out of PHL is 2:05. The only non-stop return flight out of MCO is 10:35am. I enjoy having a relaxing breakfast and visiting at least one park on my return day. That sure won't be able to happen with a 10:35 return flight. So, unless they add more flights, it looks like I am not taking SW this year. So sad.

 

[TamaraQT]

I actually have begun to prefer AirTran to Southwest. Ever since Southwest became the only airline to not charge for bags, they have really jacked up their prices. For me, AT is almost always less expensive now (but I do not check bags).

I also like that AirTran allows you to choose your seat 24 hours ahead of time for no additional fee. I can always get a seat next to my husband without having to glue myself to the computer and hit the button at the exact 24 hour mark in order to land somewhere in the A boarding for SW. I find that very stressful!

I flew AirTran on my return trip in 2011 from MCO to PHL. I paid baggage fees for 4 out of 7 passengers. But I also paid the advance seating fee of $6 per seat so in the end, AirTran was NOT cheaper than Southwest. Next time I will weigh all the fees. All in all, the flight was fine. It was a nonstop, on-time and didn't suffer a schedule change.

I know that SW owns AT (or I think that went thru). But out of CMH all the sudden there really arent any good AM saturday flights to MCO. AT has a couple though. Sooooo... I may be looking at AT and am a bit nervous about it.

I agree completely!!! There are no good flight times out of PHL on SW but, AT has a couple. However, I am afraid if I buy at AT they will change the flight time. I have heard so many rumors about that happening. Has that stabilized any since SW took over

I was afraid of a schedule change too. But I was coming back home so it wasn't a big deal if the schedule was changed. However, it didnt and everything was fine. I would use AirTran again, but first I will weigh all of the fees and options before I choose AirTran over Southwest.

After only using AT & SW with an occasional JB flight here & there since like 2006 I just booked on United last night for our August trip. I am actually a little nervous about using them since it's been YEARS since we booked on a "major" airline for a trip to FL. Isn't it silly to be nervous about that?! But the SW & AT fares have been crazy high lately. It HAS to have something to do with less competition between them now and the fact that SW includes the checked bag fees in their prices. We got an Owners Locker & started trying to travel in carry-ons a couple years ago after everyone started charging for bags so I am hoping we won't have to check a bag on United but if we do it will just be 1 large shared bag between the 3 of us. Even paying to check 1 bag United was a lot cheaper so I had to do it. On the bright side I got to select assigned seats without an extra fee!! No EBCI to buy. No seat fees so hopefully it's all good. On checking out tho I found that United offered something they called a "priority overhead bin" option where you could pay in advance for priority boarding so you could be sure to get bin space!! I didn't do it though 'cuz it was like $29 or something. Heck, checking a bag would be cheaper!

Do not be scared of your choice to fly United. Last year, I chose United also. The flights from PHL to MCO was only $59!! I couldnt believe it. The catch was we had to fly from PHL to IAD (Washington, DC) with an hour and a half layover. That flight was on a commuter plane which kinda scared me. But it was fine. It took us about 40 minutes to get to DC. We flew out of DC to MCO on a regular United 757. If I had it to do over again, I would. It wasnt bad at all. Again, I had to pay baggage fees for 4 out of 7 of us at $25 each, but it was still less expensive than anything Southwest or AirTran was offering. I am in the process of planning our July Vacation to MCO. I am still watching fares and havent bought tickets yet. I will go with the most economical option. I plan to look at Southwest, AirTran and United. Enjoy your trip.