Frontier Airlines

[Just Kate]

Anyone flown Frontier? Even with being nickel and dimed, they are significantly cheaper than our other options (flying to visit dh's parents this summer). I'm ready to book, but just want to make sure I'm not making a giant mistake.

[LarlaB]

We've flown with them 1-2x a year for the last 6 years (since we moved to Denver, their hub). Yes it's nickel and dime but frankly I get where I need to get- and so do my bags. And for SOOOO much less than other airlines.

 

Their redesigned planes have small hard, non moveable seats with tiny tray table, no free drinks or snacks and you have to pay for bags and preassigned seats. That's the worst it gets. There is nothing bad about it beyond that 😜

Edited April 11, 2017 by LarlaB

[Just Kate]

We've flown with them 1-2x a year for the last 6 years (since we moved to Denver, their hub). Yes it's nickel and dime but frankly I get where I need to get- and so do my bags. And for SOOOO much less than other airlines.

 

Their redesigned planes have small hard, non moveable seats with tiny tray table, no free drinks or snacks and you have to pay for bags and preassigned seats. That's the worst it gets. There is nothing bad about it beyond that 😜

 

Thanks for the feedback! Makes me feel a bunch better. I just booked our flight. I decided to  pay for "The Works" (allows us to choose seats, bring one carryon and one checked bag per person, and maybe something else?) and it was more expensive than our flight! Since we are taking our kids, choosing our seats was important. We don't need that much baggage, but when I priced out what we will need, "The Works" was still less expensive. We also have to drive three hours to a bigger city for the flight, but it is much cheaper than the price we were going to have to pay flying locally. Oh, and the flight is non-stop, which is so much better!

 

Travelling is so stressful. I hate that dh's parents live so far away (16+ hour drive). We haven't seen them in a few years, so this trip is necessary.

[Ottakee]

I had the same with Allegiant. Yes there were lots of upgrade fees for bags, seats,etc but it was a non stop flight and 1/2 the price even after fees. We all survived the 3 hour flight. We did have an hour or so delay heading home but again we still got home way after than the other 2 leg flight would have done.

[Mama Geek]

We flew frontier 1 time this spring and had a lay over in Denver.  It started snowing and we were eating lunch.  In conversation with a waitress she said that frontier was terrible about delays and pilots and staff leaving.  They left within a few minutes of on time out of Denver but it wasn't bad out yet.  The seats were miserable for a cross country flight with a layover.

[Acadie]

I'll never take the redeye on Frontier again--the seats are sooo cramped and uncomfortable! They also gave us a hassle about my daughter's violin.

 

But for a shorter flight, if you've priced out all your baggage, bon voyage!

 

Amy

[J-rap]

I've taken them several times, and they're fine when you need to travel on a budget and you know ahead of time what you're giving up (or expected to pay for).  On the one longer, overnight flight we took, we paid extra for seat reservations so that we could be sure to all sit together.  They still split us up, and did absolutely nothing to help.  We complained to their customer service department after the trip but they stood by their claim to be able to split families and change seats around even if you have a paid reservation.

 

But, I still fly them on one shorter route I take once/year because they really are so much cheaper!

 

 

[Carol in Cal.]

The one to avoid is Spirit.

They upcharge you for absolutely everything.  They absolutely stink.

[Karen A]

I know you already have your tix, but for others/the future, unless things have changed, Frontier has no partner airlines, and limited flights to certain locations.  A couple years ago, we had a 6 hour delayed flight, and were told multiple times the flight might be canceled.  If it was canceled, the earliest they could get us out was 3 DAYS later, as the Milwaukee to Trenton route only ran 3 times a week.  So looking at the flight schedule ahead of time might be a good idea for someone flying Frontier the REALLY needs to be at their destination on a certain day/time with no wiggle room.  I don't know how often this  type of cancellation happens, however.

[zimom]

Yes, as Karen said and I will reiterate, when flying Frontier or Spirit (and likely other small airlines) they often only have 1 or 2 flights a day per city.  This is important to know because if the flight is cancelled or if you are overbooked (i.e. United), you may not get another flight home for 1, 2 or more days.  They do not partner with other airlines so they will not book you one.  I have heard horror stories from when this happened.  

[creekland]

Never flown them nor desired to do so.  The only things I've heard are "You get what you pay for" with the meaning that one shouldn't expect much other than getting to your destination.  The best comparison that comes to mind is a Motel 6 equivalent.  They fill a niche for bargain hunters, but they definitely aren't equivalent to higher priced places in comfort.  Sometimes, however, one only wants a Motel 6.  As long as expectations are kept low, they shouldn't disappoint. (Well, other than reading above that they split a family up even AFTER they paid more to reserve seats.  That one shouldn't have happened IMO and will go down as a bad mark against them in my "what I've heard column.")

[RioSamba]

At some locations, Frontier is so understaffed that they do not have a person at the checkin desk until a time that is uncomfortably close to flight time. They also may not have a kiosk. Make sure that you either print a paper boarding pass or put their app on your phone for a mobile boarding pass. Otherwise you will be standing there with rising blood pressure, wondering if you'll make it through security in time.

 

Frontier used to be so wonderful and we flew them all the time. I agree with all of the above remarks regarding discomfort, etc. I avoid flying with them unless the price difference is *enormous.*

 

ETA: their there they're. Not the same. Whatevs, I'm on an iPad

Edited April 12, 2017 by RioSamba

[Rachel]

I've flown Frontier twice in the last year and have had a great experience both times. If you know going in you pay for the baggage and snacks, you can adequately prepare.

 

My husband is 6'5" and flies frequently, he thinks Frontier is OK. Not great, but not awful.

 

I flew 5 people to Denver for $500, really it's hard to complain about that. A major airline would have made the trip financially impossible. The online reviews had me expecting the worst, but really it was a brand new and much cleaner plane than whatever partner airline I usually end up stuck on.

[scrapbookbuzz]

I had the same with Allegiant. Yes there were lots of upgrade fees for bags, seats,etc but it was a non stop flight and 1/2 the price even after fees. We all survived the 3 hour flight. We did have an hour or so delay heading home but again we still got home way after than the other 2 leg flight would have done.

My problem(s) with Allegian are the nickel and diming AND (this is the biggest one) you can't always get a flight on the day you need it! I'm pretty much done with those that "claim to be cheaper" and wind up not being so. If I want a decently priced r/t airfare, I'll stick with Southwest, thanks.