Spirit Air out of Atlantic City

[eangel12]

We will be heading to Disney in August. Out of curiosity, I checked Spirit to see pricing for flights. We live in Philly so AC is about 1 hour away. The traveling party is me, husband, mother in law, 2 kids. We need a total of 5 tickets!

With that said, the flight is currently at 39.00 for our trip down. Now I'm torn. The flight leaves AC at 6:00pm so we would need to book another
Night at Disney but for that flight price, it sounds good to me! We would check 2 bags total and just carry on a personal item per person.

I'm a bit fearful though. I've only flown from PHL. I know PHL. I'm afraid of a cancelled flight or delay too...stuck an hour from home with 2 cranky kids would not be fun.

Anyone have experience with taking Spirit, taking a later flight out of AC?

 

[eangel12]

As a side note, we do plan to join the "$9.00 club" so luggage fees and seat fees are cheaper?? I think!!

 

[bianca]

We use Spirit all the time, as we love their direct flights. Have never had a problem and would say that $39 is a great rate!

 

[Buzz's Buddy]

Atlantic City is a great small airport. Not much in the way of amenities, but getting through security is much easier than PHL. Parking isn't too bad either. Any delays or cancellations would most likely be due to weather issues, and more than likely, if it affects ACY, it would also affect PHL.

You'll hear many negatives about Spirit, but if you do your homework, and are willing to accept what Spirit offers, you can save money.

Spirit seats are very close together, closer than any other airline. Spirit charges for carry-ons...in fact, they charge more to carry-on a bag than checked luggage. They do allow a personal item (think average sized backpack) that will fit under the seat in front of you.

Spirit's customer service is notoriously bad, but in my experience, all of the staff I have dealt with have been pleasant enough.

I have used Spirit to Orlando several times and have never had a problem. I have saved lots of money using them over USAir or Southwest. I don't mind the lack of space for a 2 hour flight when I can save $100, $200 or more when you factor in the cost of 5 tickets.

Most recently, I've been using Frontier flying out of Trenton. In fact, I returned from MCO yesterday after a short trip. In fact, depending on where you live, you may want to look into them flying from Trenton or Wilmington.

 

[amcnj]

AC Airport is small with few flights per day compared to large airports. This makes it much easier and quicker to go through security and to retrieve your bags after landing there. In the good old days the parking used to be free too!

 

[njmom47]

I'm another one who loves Spirit out of AC.
I will agree with:
-the airport is great (small, moves quickly, parking, etc).
-know your fees (paying for luggage at least 24 hours before your flight online is the cheapest)
-you're on a plane for 2 1/2 hours, so to us, we don't mind the seats (although ds who is 6'5 will sit in the aisle seat)
-we live about 45 mins away but if you live nearby it's also cheaper to purchase your tickets at the airport!
I had to change my flight with them once and there was no problems at all and I had even booked through a 3rd party.

Are you renting a car? If so, you could spend your first night at a nearby hotel unless you don't mind paying Disney prices to sleep the night you arrive.

 

[eangel12]

Glad to see such great reviews!! The rate shot back up to $75.00 per person so I'll stalk the site. If it goes back down to $39.00, I'll buy it right away!! Mad I second guessed myself on such a great price! Blah!!

We are flying down midweek so hoping it pops back up at that rate!!

 

[debster812]

You can count me as not a fan of Spirit. They are truly a no-frills, barebones, charge for everything airline. And in a perfect world, when everything is going well, they are fine. However, if there are any type of irregular ops (weather, mechanical, crew not showing up) you are well and truly hosed, and that is where the utter lack of customer service is going rear it's ugly head.

Just make sure to research, research, research, and have a "plan B" in the back of your mind, should anything go awry, because Spirit is not going to be terribly helpful.

Good Luck!