Spirit Air ?'s

[las3888]

Hi all,

We have never flown Spirit but decided to take a quick get-away to WDW in part because we found some nice low airfare on Spirit from Chicago to Orlando. Today I went to book and the a/f popped up about $35 per person! Since I am not too familiar with Spirit, I just wondered if it is common to see daily changes in a/f (sort of like SWA) or am I stuck with this new price and should book in case it goes even higher? What a bummer...this might put an end to our quick trip....it is starting to add up. Any advice with Spirit? TIA.

PS - I am familiar with the coupon code 7.5OFF and yesterday using the code the outbound portion of our flight was even lower (WHY DIDN'T I BUY THEN???) but now it has popped. Maybe because of the sale the availability is less?

 

[DebbieB]

Hi all,

We have never flown Spirit but decided to take a quick get-away to WDW in part because we found some nice low airfare on Spirit from Chicago to Orlando. Today I went to book and the a/f popped up about $35 per person! Since I am not too familiar with Spirit, I just wondered if it is common to see daily changes in a/f (sort of like SWA) or am I stuck with this new price and should book in case it goes even higher? What a bummer...this might put an end to our quick trip....it is starting to add up. Any advice with Spirit? TIA.

PS - I am familiar with the coupon code 7.5OFF and yesterday using the code the outbound portion of our flight was even lower (WHY DIDN'T I BUY THEN???) but now it has popped. Maybe because of the sale the availability is less?

Airfares change day to day. Also be sure to check Spirit's fees - they charge for both checked and carryon luggage.

http://www.spirit.com/OptionalFees.aspx

 

[CarolMN]

SPIRIT charges extra for everything, including in-flight beverages, carry on luggage (unless it fits under the seat), seat assignments, checked bags, etc.

They are virtually impossible to contact if you have a question or problem. I never got any response at all to my emails. Their customer service is non-existent. If your flight has a problem, you will be totally on your own.

For me, the biggest negative is their seats. Very, very uncomfortable and very, very little leg room. I have short legs and my knees were pressed against the seat in front of me. Never had that issue with any other plane. Both my DH & I got off the plane with a back ache.

That said, they can be cheap transport if you are lucky and encounter no problems.

We used them once. The plane was very clean, the FAs friendly and professional. At the airport, they assigned the two of us to two seats together. (They make it sound like you will be separated if you don't pay for seat assignment, but we didn't care where we sat so I didn't bite on that). Flights were on time.

I will not book them again due to their seats and lack of even basic customer service. I did like that they charged for carry-ons that go in the overhead. Planes loaded much faster and not once did I have to worry about someone dropping a heavy bag on my head.

 

[las3888]

We'll have to factor in the bag charges and seat charges. Do you know how much it costs to assign a seat? I wouldn't care if it were just DH and myself but we have DS who is 8. I wouldn't want him to be stuck by himself for 3 hours. Do they at least try to seat children with one parent?

I hope the prices go back down. I will keep checking. I am also looking at playing around with their dates.

Wow - charging for beverages on board!!!! Amazing....

We are saving at least $250 even if you factor in the bag charge for any other airline though. Hmmmm....

 

[melissafox18]

We flew spirit on our last Disney vaca because it was the cheapest even when we factored in the cost of bags (they will charge you for carry on or checked luggage) and seating assignments. I will completely agree that their customer service is by far the least helpful group I've ever called and quite rude.

I booked our flight through Chase rewards and the rep on the phone said that my reservations were cancelled and asked me for my credit card number to rebook my flight. Even if they are cheaper, I'll never fly them again!

 

[freddyttt]

I only fly Spirit out of Atlantic City. mainly because it's covenant. 40 min drive right down the parkway. also with only 2-3 flights a day it's a breeze to park and also to check in-. no hustle and bustle. price is also v. good- 216.0 round trip PP to Orlando. yes they nickel and dime you but im ok with that.

good luck-

 

[frisbeego]

The fees are annoying, but I can tolerate them. At least you're somewhat in control.

What I don't like about Spirit is unpredictable cancelled flights. Work booked me on Spirit because it was cheapest. When I went to check in at the 24 hour mark, I learned that the flight had been cancelled. Spirit hadn't even attempted to book me on another flight. Fortunately, work picked up the tab to find me another flight at the last minute.

I heard someone had the same experience with a return flight from Peru. Small problem: Spirit doesn't fly that route every day. The next Spirit flight was 2-3 days later. The person had to pay for another ticket on another airline to get back for work.

I also read this week that Spirit's 801-area code customer service line is not toll free. So, if you use a landline, you're paying every minute you're on hold.

 

[las3888]

Good to know all these things in advance! I am checking the a/f today and it's changed again. It's just all over the place. Since our original dates popped up in price, we started looking at new dates which was no easy feat for us. Now THOSE have popped up in price. I am getting really frustrated.

Can anybody tell me what happens if you don't reserve seats in advance? Do you check in online 24 hrs in advance and find out your seat assignment at that time? Do they at least seat children with one adult?

Also, if you need to check an extra bag that you didn't anticipate at the airport, it's an extra $5, correct?

What if I book today and the a/f drops tomorrow?

Thanks for all your help!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Good to know all these things in advance! I am checking the a/f today and it's changed again. It's just all over the place. Since our original dates popped up in price, we started looking at new dates which was no easy feat for us. Now THOSE have popped up in price. I am getting really frustrated.

Can anybody tell me what happens if you don't reserve seats in advance? Do you check in online 24 hrs in advance and find out your seat assignment at that time? Do they at least seat children with one adult?

Also, if you need to check an extra bag that you didn't anticipate at the airport, it's an extra $5, correct?

What if I book today and the a/f drops tomorrow?

Thanks for all your help!

Did you check Spirit's website? All of your questions are answered there; it's actually one of the better airline websites for explaining their policies.

Start here:

http://www.spirit.com/OptionalFees.aspx

 

[las3888]

I have read the fees but it doesn't really explain what happens to you if you don't book a seat at the time of booking, other than they will be assigned by them. Just wondering if they do actually try to put you together or not? Again, I am wondering if they try to place children with an adult or not as well. Other people's experiences would factor into what I will decide to do.

I don't recall seeing anything about what you can do if the price drops on their website either, other than modification fees, which would be outrageous unless your fare changed dramatically.

 

[Lewisc]

Good to know all these things in advance! I am checking the a/f today and it's changed again. It's just all over the place. Since our original dates popped up in price, we started looking at new dates which was no easy feat for us. Now THOSE have popped up in price. I am getting really frustrated.

Can anybody tell me what happens if you don't reserve seats in advance? Do you check in online 24 hrs in advance and find out your seat assignment at that time? Do they at least seat children with one adult?

Also, if you need to check an extra bag that you didn't anticipate at the airport, it's an extra $5, correct?

What if I book today and the a/f drops tomorrow?

Thanks for all your help!

Is there a fee to choose a particular seat in advance?





Yes, there is a nominal fee to pre-reserve your seat assignments. We recommend it if you would like to guarantee a preferred location onboard the aircraft, and to ensure that traveling companions are seated together. Prices differ based on location in the aircraft.

Spirit makes it clear passengers who want to sit together should pay for assigned seats. You can do a search. There are many families who didn't pay the fee and were split. Some get lucky and sit together. Either pay or be prepared to be split. Absolutely no way to know in advance.

 

[las3888]

Gosh, this airfare on Spirit just changes by the minute. I wish I bit the bullet and bought yesterday. Now it's almost $60 more and there is a discount code that expires at midnight tonight. Since I am new to Spirit I am wondering if any Spirit frequent fliers can tell me if it makes sense to wait and see if I get a new price (sans discount) tomorrow, or just suck it up and pay because the codes are your best bet. I know you don't have a crystal ball--just wondering what your experience has shown you.

TIA

 

[bianca]

First off, Spirit rarely discounts flights to MCO. With that in mind, you have to get those quick. The closer it gets to your departure time, the prices usually go up ...... Especially for Orlando. Also, if you are willing to buy tickets at the airport, you get $17 off each leg of your trip by not booking via Internet. Doesn't make a lot of sense, but it is just another fee they can throw in there. I only do that if I have lots of tickets to buy. I just bought 9 round trip tix to Orlando for January trip and saved a bundle.

I flew last week with them to Ft. Lauderdale. We got great rates, take only personal bags and always splurge with big front seats, as it makes all the difference in the world to us. That being said, my three 20+ girls went with us on the trip and they don't pay for seats. The key to sitting together when not paying for seats is to 1) do NOT print your boarding pass out at home, as it will assign randomly, 2) Arrive at airport early so that you get the best choice of the "leftover" seats, and 3) print your boarding passes out together at the kiosk when you arrive. My girls were easily able to grab an entire row for themselves without paying for seat assignment.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Spirit makes it clear passengers who want to sit together should pay for assigned seats. You can do a search. There are many families who didn't pay the fee and were split. Some get lucky and sit together. Either pay or be prepared to be split. Absolutely no way to know in advance.

Spirit also does not train the staff to be helpful. Do NOT assume the gate agents or Flight Attendants will assist you of you are not together

 

[homedad]

another cost u need to factor in is for your hotel if u cannot cancel your ressie because your flight didn't leave when you planned your vacation to start. Happened to us(could fly till following day)and will never fly Spirit again, even if they paid us.

 

[Lewisc]

Spirit also does not train the staff to be helpful. Do NOT assume the gate agents or Flight Attendants will assist you of you are not together

You quoted me. I didn't say, or imply, any type of (favorable) customer service should be expected by any Spirit employee.

The OP has an 8 year old. Even an airline with good service isn't likely to ask passengers to move.

 

[las3888]

We ended up booking a flight on SWA. I would have flown Spirit and thanks to all of you, I was forewarned about many additional charges, etc. That wasn't a show-stopper, but DH is 6'5" and I have read that the seats have less leg room. I was also wary about not being seated together without paying an arm and a leg. But I was mostly concerned about a cancelled flight. That just wouldn't fly (so to speak) with us. After doing a little research, I realized that DH had a few extra miles on SWA, enough to get a one way segment, so we booked our remaining air on cash (plus we all had a $15 credit from previous price drop on a previous flight)....on top of that, I used the coke rewards $20 off fare, and ended up paying less out of pocket than Spirit (esp. since SWA doesn't charge for bags).

Many thanks for your very helpful responses.

I would consider them in the future...sometimes we do what it takes to get down to our favorite place

 

[CarolMN]

We ended up booking a flight on SWA. ........DH is 6'5" and I have read that the seats have less leg room. ......

Based on my experience (I'm 5'5""), your DH would have been totally miserable on SPIRIT.

 

[Goofy22]

I have read the fees but it doesn't really explain what happens to you if you don't book a seat at the time of booking, other than they will be assigned by them. Just wondering if they do actually try to put you together or not? Again, I am wondering if they try to place children with an adult or not as well. Other people's experiences would factor into what I will decide to do.

I don't recall seeing anything about what you can do if the price drops on their website either, other than modification fees, which would be outrageous unless your fare changed dramatically.

Whe you check in at the 24 hr mark it automatically assigns a seat to you ! I did this when my daughter flew solo because she didnt care where she sat since she was solo. I dont think it would necessarily assign you seats together as I dont know how the computer would be able to tell adult/ child apart but you could always go early if you dont pay and there is always someone around to help ! They could probably get you seats close or together as long as the flight iisnt booked but id most likely pay the extra and buy seats if I flew w my kids as we normally do. We also normally fly out of Atlantic City and have no issues

 

[njmom47]

I only fly Spirit out of Atlantic City. mainly because it's covenant. 40 min drive right down the parkway. also with only 2-3 flights a day it's a breeze to park and also to check in-. no hustle and bustle. price is also v. good- 216.0 round trip PP to Orlando. yes they nickel and dime you but im ok with that.

good luck-

This is us as well.
We haven't had any issues....maybe because we fly out of Atlantic City. I spent $4 for a bottle of water and a muffin. That's not out of line with any convienence store that I know of. DH is 6'2 and ds is 6'4 (he did sit in the aisle seat) and I'm 5'9, and we didn't have complaints about legroom. We all took squishy backpack type bags that fit under the seat in front of us. No charge. (We did have one carryon on the way down, and a checked bag on the way back. I just purchased them online at least 24 hours before and that was the cheapest way). We didn't choose our seats beforehand, and somehow, miraculously, we were seated together!
They did change our flight time, but I called customer service and they were very happy to put us on another flight, no fees, because THEY had changed the flight time. So yes, I did get through to customer service, and the rep was very helpful.
Am I the only one who hasn't had a bad experience with Spriit?
I will fly Spirit again.