Spirit or Southwest

[ColinCodyMom]

I have to make a choice soon. Here's the dilemma: ETA: both of my kids have food allergies so I do need them with me. That way I can wipe down all surfaces and be assured that no one in our row will have something they can't encounter.

Southwest: fares are a bit higher (about 20 per person each way) but bags fly free. I would do EBCI though so that adds 80. I've never flown Southwest and I'm worried about the seating. I've always had the option of paying for a seat ahead of time and knowing where I'll be on the plane. I know we'd more than likely be able to sit together, but I'd rather not be at the back of the plane and to be honest, people holding rows of seats would make my blood pressure skyrocket. I see complaints about cattle calls and lining up and it is all so nerve wracking. Also, the flight is not nonstop, but we don't change planes. It is a good amount cheaper than Spirit.

Spirit: I've flown them most of the time. I always pay for seats and luggage so they are quite pricier in the long run. They offer nonstop flights which is nice. And I have a Free Spirit Mastercard so my family and I can board first. When adding on the seats and bags, they are quite a bit more expensive. And they change their flight times on me more than I would like.

There are pluses and minuses to both. Really, I just want my family and I to make it to Orlando without chaos. We are flying out of Detroit if that makes a difference. I'm looking for any advice from someone who's flown them both. What would you do??? Thanks.

 

[Tinkerbell58]

I voted for Spirit for convenience. The airport they fly out of is a short drive from me.

I booked my August trip this morning on Spirit. They are running an on-line special if you use your Master Card. Take $35 off with code MC35 for flights April 13-November 17.

 

[backyardponder]

I voted for SW because I fly them all the time and love them. All the talk about cattle calls and lining up to me is unimportant. I look it as being no different than going to the corner and catching a bus. Not a big deal.

I never pay for EBCI. In your case I wouldn't either. Your 9 and 12 year olds do just fine at school without you all day. Worst case is they may not sit with you on the plane...not a big deal. Since you are making a stop, you can always move around on the plane after folks get off and before the new folks come on.

I've never had SW change their schedule on me once their schedule came out. Of course, like any other airline, there can be weather or mechanical delays.

I've never flown Spirit.

 

[ColinCodyMom]

I voted for SW because I fly them all the time and love them. All the talk about cattle calls and lining up to me is unimportant. I look it as being no different than going to the corner and catching a bus. Not a big deal.

I never pay for EBCI. In your case I wouldn't either. Your 9 and 12 year olds do just fine at school without you all day. Worst case is they may not sit with you on the plane...not a big deal. Since you are making a stop, you can always move around on the plane after folks get off and before the new folks come on.

I've never had SW change their schedule on me once their schedule came out. Of course, like any other airline, there can be weather or mechanical delays.

I've never flown Spirit.

Thanks for the reply. I should've been more specific about the kids. They have food allergies and I need them with me. That's why I would purchase EBCI just to know that they would be. Thanks!

 

[Hockey Ninja]

In your situation, I'd go with Southwest. It will be cheaper overall, and even if your family doesn't get to sit exactly together, you'll be where you can keep an eye on your kids-- and like backyardponder said, you can rearrange yourselves during the stop. I've always had fine experiences with SW.

Spirit is kind of a touchy subject with me. I had a horrible experience with a mechanical failure delay-- the communications between whomever was in charge and the gate agents was god-awful, and they kept feeding the gate agents incorrect info which they of course passed on to us. The flight wound up being delayed by 5 hours. Plus the flight attendants were rude and they do charge for drinks and snacks. (Not a really big deal most of the time, but given that they'd kept telling us over and over that it would be "just another half hour" until after the terminal restaurants were all closed for the night and we were all really hungry, a little more leeway with the snacks would have gone really far to soothe irate passengers.) (Note: I don't blame the FAs for that, but management.) They did give us all credits for that leg of the trip, so that was something.

I realize many people have flown Spirit without problems, but I'm personally leery of trusting them again. I'm only using them for my next trip because (a) I have that credit I have to use before it expires, and (b) it's an early AM flight, so if something goes wrong at least I'll have plenty of time to find another way home!

The point is, don't let the non-assigned seating on SW scare you off. They have great service, they really do get everyone to line up in an orderly fashion by boarding pass number (I'm sure there have been a few unruly exceptions), and free checked luggage is wonderful.

ETA: You posted while I was posting, so I didn't see about the food allergies. In your case EBCI or assigned seats do make more sense!

 

[disneyfaninaz]

I voted for Southwest.

Here is their food allergen policy:

http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/disability.html#peanut

 

[ColinCodyMom]

I voted for Southwest.

Here is their food allergen policy:

http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/disability.html#peanut

Thanks for the link! It's nice to see that an airline has considered changing the snack. I haven't encountered that before. That's good to know and helping southwest seem better and better! Thanks again!

 

[disneyfaninaz]

Thanks for the link! It's nice to see that an airline has considered changing the snack. I haven't encountered that before. That's good to know and helping southwest seem better and better! Thanks again!

I have been on a couple of flights where they have served pretzels instead of peanuts.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I voted for SWA. We've never had our kids sit alone. They never change their schedule except for weather/mechanical issues which for us has only been weather related. If you need to call for any reason, their staff has always been super friendly and helpful. We are about midway between Philly and Atlantic City so we could go to either. While I like ACY, I'm not fond of Spirit's fees so we don't fly them. They also have only around 3 flights to MCO per day vs. something like 10 on SWA.

SWA never charges a change fee and 2 bags pp are free. We paid for EBCI last time just to try it. Part of our group didn't. We got A16-19; they got high A's. Everyone still got to sit as they wanted but we were closer to the front of the plane. We've had Bs and still sat together. Even with mid Cs b/c we changed flights last minute at MCO due to snow delays in Philly, I sat with one child and dh sat with the other.

That said, I normally wouldn't mind paying a little more for any flight that is non stop vs. connection so that would be a tough choice for me.