Spirit for Thanksgiving - Help Me Convince Hubby

[inkkognito]

I am already checking out fares for our Thanksgiving Disney cruise, and Spirit Air is $216...not bad, considering that ATA is $274! But hubby is scared to death of using them...he is afraid that our flight could be cancelled or that they could go out of business before Thanksgiving. Even if the 7:15 flight would cancelled, there is another one around 11 so we would probably make the ship. But hubby has a friend who has had some terrible experiences with Spirit. Anyone have good or bad experiences with them, particularly out of Chicago? He would rather pay more to fly ATA, but I am a penny pincher. (The other thing in favor of hubby is that if we fly ATA, we can fly out the night before like we prefer, for the same price, but with Spirit it would have to be the morning of the cruise).
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[bjakmom]

Barb - I have flown Spirit out of AC many times over the years with only one problem - 4 years ago they changed our return flight time from 6 PM to 11 AM - they moved our flight back one day for us as we had already bought our passes for that day at WDW and didn't want to leave early - spent the night at an airport hotel, which of course they didn't pay for, but no charge to change the flight. AC is a very ! small airport dominated by Spirit, but just beware that in larger airports (my experience was Ft. Laud and Tampa) where they are not a large or important service, we were bounced three times to different terminals before one return flight - and another time they kept getting moved from the check in counter - kind of funny at the time - the woman had to take the magnetic 'spirit' sign down and move it to another spot and we all had to try and follow her. These problems were all at least two years ago, so that may no longer be the case - I now only fly them from AC to MCO - I'm flying them again in Aug. Hope someone can help you with Chicago info - Go Cubs!~

 

[Miss Jasmine]

I would be weary, especially with flying the day of the cruise. Spirit does not have the best on-time record and not enough planes if one should go down for a mechanical. Also, your husband has a right to be concerned about the financial fitness of the company. With Spirit you either hate it or love it. Good luck with your decision.

 

[CarolMN]

I have to agree with your DH even though I too am a "penny pincher", especially when it comes to airfare. To me, it would be worth the extra $$ to fly out the night before and eliminate that extra worry about any flight time changes, cancellations or delays that might cause you to miss the cruise. Weather can be tricky that time of year. Also, keep in mind that it's likely that there will be AT LEAST one schedule change before Thanksgiving. (So that 11 am flight might not be available as a back up).

Whatever you decide, have a wonderful trip!