Not sure what airline to book from Philadelphia (PHL) in November

[Jazzerfan]

Coming to Disney in mid November and still not sure what airline to book from Philadelphia (PHL). I've taken SW, Airtran, and US Airways. I've heard all sorts of things, both good and bad, but still unsure on what to do. Any other PHL travelers out there? Appreciate any feedback to help with decision.

 

[helenk]

I prefer SW. Airtran changes their schedule too many times once you've booked. Usairways is usually more expensive than SW and Airtran. Both Airtran and Usairways charge for luggage whereas SW does not.
I try to see which airline has the best times and cost for when I want to go, factor in the cost of luggage and then make my choice from there.
I do not mind not chosing my seats so I do like SW, some people do not like it but I've never had any trouble with getting our seats together. I do like to use the Early Bird booking for the trip home, this way I do not need to worry about getting to Guest relations at a park or the concierge desk at the resort. For the flight down I just book at the 24 hour mark.

 

[buzzmom3]

I know the feeling! I am trying to decide as well. I think we will go with AirTran, I have flown with them before and was happy.

 

[stanley]

SW is great if you get the whole boarding thing down. We have flown AirTran too with no problems. Advantage goes to SW since you don't pay for luggage.

 

[bookwormde]

Another SW fan.

bookwormde

 

[MinnieGirl33]

We typically frly SWA due to price BUT I can't remember when the last time was that we weren't delayed so as far as I'm concerned it's a toss up between AirTran & SWA.

We are flying AT for our August trip as they were cheaper & had a better schedule for us. We fly with only carry-ons or 1 checked bag so the fees don't have an impact.

The biggest advantage to SWA (IMO) is the ability to change itinerary and/or re-book to get a price adjustment.

 

[wdwnomad]

I go with whoever is cheaper. I also take into consideration any extra fees. I will even go down on one airline and fly back on another.

For the summer Southwest was cheaper so I booked them. I still haven't booked anything for my December trip. Nobody has really anything good right now. I am holding out. Right now Airtran is cheaper.

Also, I wouldn't worry about AirTran changing times on you. They have four or five non stops daily. If they change the flight you are on and the new flight doesn't work for you then just call them and ask to be put on another one. I have done that many times with them and never had a problem. With that many flights there is something that will fit your schedule.

 

[mitsybella]

If cost is a factor the less expensive right now is Airtran, I was waiting to see what rates SW came out with but even with paying for baggage AT was still cheaper for me (I did not have to pay for seat fees because I used AAA for my vacation package and seat fee was free)

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We typically frly SWA due to price BUT I can't remember when the last time was that we weren't delayed so as far as I'm concerned it's a toss up between AirTran & SWA.

We are flying AT for our August trip as they were cheaper & had a better schedule for us. We fly with only carry-ons or 1 checked bag so the fees don't have an impact.

The biggest advantage to SWA (IMO) is the ability to change itinerary and/or re-book to get a price adjustment.

Usually the delay is weather related or just too much traffic in Philly. Every time we're delayed, on any airline and not weather related, we're something like 12th in line for take off. Sometimes we've been delayed leaving MCO b/c of delays at PHL.


I like SWA b/c they don't charge for luggage and you can change/cancel/rebook as often as you want with no fees. They're not a participating airline with DCL's Onboard Check in (ultraconvenient) so when we're flying home from a Disney cruise, we've flown AT but they change their schedule too much and only a few non stops per day.
Next cruise we're returning on USAirways. We haven't flown them in years but we got a decent price very comparable to others, $118 pp one way, and they had many non stop flights to choose from. We'll see how that goes.

For non-cruise flights, we usually choose SW unless another airline is drastically less $ which is rare.

 

[kwsoccerkid]

We went with Air Tran got delayed twice one time for over 3 hours that was in May. Then they started charging for Bags since then I use Southwest and have no problems with them great prices and no delays yet. And now you can check in your bags at Disney Resorts.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We typically frly SWA due to price BUT I can't remember when the last time was that we weren't delayed so as far as I'm concerned it's a toss up between AirTran & SWA.

We are flying AT for our August trip as they were cheaper & had a better schedule for us. We fly with only carry-ons or 1 checked bag so the fees don't have an impact.

The biggest advantage to SWA (IMO) is the ability to change itinerary and/or re-book to get a price adjustment.

Usually the delay is weather related or just too much traffic in Philly. Every time we're delayed, on any airline and not weather related, we're something like 12th in line for take off. Sometimes we've been delayed leaving MCO b/c of delays at PHL.


I like SWA b/c they don't charge for luggage and you can change/cancel/rebook as often as you want with no fees. They're not a participating airline with DCL's Onboard Check in (ultraconvenient) so when we're flying home from a Disney cruise, we've flown AT but they change their schedule too much and only a few non stops per day.

When visiting WDW there's plenty to do if you have to take a different time flight but post cruise, it's most convenient to use DCL's bus transportation back to MCO.
Unlike ME, it's not free nor cheap (almost $300 for fam of 4) and we don't want to have 6 hrs to kill sitting in the airport or trying to find something to do for just a few hours and paying more still to rent a car to go somewhere. (Everyone must be off the ship by 9am at the very latest so no choice there.)

This all just happened last Oct when they changed our flight from noon to almost 7:30 pm so we ended up cancelling DCL bus and lugged our own bags to a rental car at the port and went to Universal for the day. In the end, I was paying AT for luggage fees when I could have just booked SW if I had known it would end that way.

Next cruise we're returning on USAirways. We haven't flown them in years but we got a decent price very comparable to others, $118 pp one way. We'll see how that goes. At least if they change their times, it won't be by several hours since they have non stop flights almost every other hour.

For non-cruise flights, we usually choose SW unless another airline is drastically less $ which is rare.

Sorry, I'm rambling. It's way past my bedtime and just thinking of the whole AT fiasco gets me aggravated.

 

[Disneyhappy]

I fly to FL at least 4 times per year and to other parts of the nation about 12 times per year. I fly USair only when I can't conveniently fly with another carrier. I gave up all the FF benefits (1st class upgrades etc.) when I flew them exclusively years ago because their customer service is awful in my opinion and SW rewards were better. (I'm just not a first class type of gal.) My carrier of choice is SW. Great customer service, no luggage fees for our FL vacations and while their prices have increased, they remain competitive. Another huge benefit of SW is they do not charge a penalty for a change or cancellation. This flexibility is a great advantage. If a fare goes down, I switch to the lower fare and get a credit for a future flight which I can use myself or give to someone else that may be able to use it. If our schedule changes, I can switch flights with no change fee (if the new flight fare is higher, I do have to pay the difference.) My second choice would be Airtran but those luggage fees are getting hefty and they have always changed my flight times, sometimes drastically. They will let you rebook to a different flight if there is a big change but you will need to keep a constant watch and contact Airtran asap. They do not always send out timely emails advising of the flight time changes and by the time you find out, there are no seats left on any of the flights you would like. (Flight changes occur further out and usually not too close to the departure date.)

As far as delays, as a frequent flyer out of Philadelphia, I have to say that the airport is the issue and not the airlines in general. Ask any flight attendant. They do not enjoy the Phila hub because of the time delays. I notice it both flying out of and into PHL. As far as delays, I find USAir to be the worst of the three choices you mentioned.
Good Luck!

 

[Kim&Chris]

Southwest.

 

[skoi]

We usually drive, but when dh isn't with us, we fly- myself and four kids. We prefer SW, but have also flown USAir. I also like that you can change tickets without penalty.