Any personal experience with Spirit airline?

[Grantmom]

Hi,

I have read quite a few negative reviews about Spirit, mostly complaints about there being lots of additional charges for carryons and even small purses, but I was curious if anyone here has ever flown with them.  What is your opinion on them?  

[solascriptura]

I have and it was fine. Just be prepared beforehand and know the different charges. They don't hide anything it's just that people don't know what they're getting into. When the prices are that low, something has to give. So, no, they won't give out free pretzels.

[Okra]

We have flown several times, and we would fly again.  The money we saved was worth the inconvenience.

 

They are super budget.  So, no food or drinks unless you purchase items.  

 

The seats are closer together than other airlines, so this probably isn't the airline to fly if you are very tall or very big

 

Read the fine print carefully.....they charge extra for everything.  Your suitcase cannot weigh more than 40 pounds, it cannot exceed their dimensions.  So, measure and weigh before you go.  Know the rules before you go, so you won't be surprised.

 

But, for us, it has been worth the money we save.  We have a big family, so we RARELY fly anywhere.  It has been worth it to save the money for us because it was every airline seat saved us money multiplied by the members of our family.

 

Really, we have never had problems with Spirit.  We were aware of what we were getting, knew the rules, and appreciated the savings.

 

 

[Halftime Hope]

Yep, we have used them several times.  That's how I manage to see dd at all.  :-)

 

In addition to carrying on something **small** that will stow under your seat (a purse or *small* backpack/laptop case), you can purchase ($) a full size carry-on or  a checked bag at the time you book your flights, so it's not that you *can't* take luggage.  (If you add luggage later, after buying your ticket, the price per item ($$) goes up, and even more ($$$) if you decide to check something last minute at the airport.)

 

The biggest changes for us were 1) no assigned seats unless you buy them, 2) no food or bev service at all, and 3) the seats don't recline at all.

 

hth!

 

(Edited to remove personal info.)

Edited July 10, 2017 by Halftime Hope

[MEmama]

DS flew them once by himself. All he needed was a small backpack with a few clothes so it was no problem.

 

We are accustomed to flying very minimalistically. :)

[Carol in Cal.]

Lots of charges for things other airlines do for free.

Charges that get higher the closer you get to your flight.

They even charge you for failing to check in in advance.

Crowded seats.

And in my case they were $1 lower in price that the next highest fare.  Not worth it.

[Annie G]

It's been almost three years but our Spirit experience was fine. Our carryon fit under the seat and we didn't have to pay for it.  We always bring our own food and drinks on so Spirit not providing a free soda was no big deal.  It left on time and the flight was smooth. 

 

But maybe things have changed in three years.

[Bootsie]

We have taken Spirit a couple of times, always a direct flight so we have no experience with connections.  We had four people traveling and packed so that we could minimize the number of suitcases we were charged for.  We have done it when the price was significant cheaper than another airline, even when we added the other charges we knew we would incur.  It was definitely "budget" but it was fine for a budget family trip.

[Lanny]

In a recent survey of airlines (worldwide) SPIRIT was selected the worst air carrier in North America (or was it in the USA?).  That said, I believe their flights are perfectly safe.  My wife has a friend who lives in So CA. She comes down here (to Colombia), a couple of times a year, on SPIRIT. I suspect she is an "expert" about the SPIRIT rules and how to get around them, and that she has clothes and shoes she leaves with her family here in Colombia, and that she  carries the largest bag SPIRIT is willing for a woman to bring aboard their aircraft and consider it a Purse, without paying extra.   STUDY their rules, so that you totally understand, before you click to buy.  

The reason I won't fly Spirit airlines is that 1.)  Most of their routes have 1 flight per day, or less; and 2.)  They don't have interline agreements with other airlines to take passengers when flights are cancelled or delayed.  The a-la-carte pricing of features other airlines may bundle into one price doesn't bother me, they are up front with that, and if you read their website, there shouldn't be any surprises there.  But, if your flight is cancelled for weather or other reasons, and you are on a route where they only fly one plane a day, you are guaranteed to wait at least 24 hours before there's a free seat.  As there is no certainty that the next flight will have enough free seats,  you may have to wait several days to be accommodated, and without being reimbursed for hotels or meals.  That risk isn't worth a few tens of dollars of difference in price for me.  Maybe not even hundreds of dollars.

[Mimm]

My mother lost a precious day of vacation while she sat on the runway for eight hours after boarding (after several other delays) while they fixed the plane. She arrived around 22 hours after she was supposed to. If you can possibly afford to fly with someone else, I would recommend it. :glare:

[linders]

Best friend just visited from across the country, had Spirit for her return trip thinking she was getting a deal. She can say absolutely nothing good about them. You had to pay for every carry on other than a small purse (in addition to checked bags), and you needed to pay ahead of time or the price per bag at the airport went up. The checked bag weight limit was 40 pounds (versus 50 for other airlines), so she literally left some of her stuff here. Seats didn't recline. Tried to get the bags paid for ahead of time, spent hours on the website and phone before they could log her in to do so. Customer service was non-existent.

 

She figures that in the end, it cost her more than another airline.

[dancingmama]

We fly Spirit when we have no need to carry anything but a carry on/purse. Each person gets a small backpack with a whatever they need. We have had no probably and it's great to get from here to there on the cheap. But I tend to pack tight and well.

[kathkath]

My aunt has for amazing deals and is happy with it. Travel light.

[Lanny]

I am a former airline employee. Our family income is very low. SPIRIT serves several cities in Colombia, where we live. I read some reviews on TripAdvisor https://www.tripadvisor.com/Airline_Review-d8729157-Reviews-Cheap-Flights-Spirit-Airlines and elsewhere.

 

There is NO WAY our family would risk going on SPIRIT.  If everything goes perfectly, and it usually does, that's great. But, they seem to cancel a lot of flights, at the very last minute, or with only a few hours notice.  Not good...   If that happens on SPIRIT, and you get your money back, it could cost a family hundreds, or thousands, of dollars, to purchase tickets, at the last minute, from another carrier. Assuming the other carrier has space available.  Or, cancel the trip at the last minute and stay home.

 

My impression is that JetBlue is extremely good.  Even a carrier I would rate as "good", Delta, or "fairly good", United and American, would be far better, if something goes wrong.  Even the very good airlines can and do screw up, in horrible ways, and they generate a lot of bad publicity for themselves, in the process.

 

We have a low cost carrier here in Colombia. Viva Colombia.  We will not fly with them. We would rather pay more, and go with a carrier we consider to be "very good" (in our case, Avianca or COPA (Panamanian airline) or LATAM) depending upon the route.

 

Again, the  carriers I consider to be best are far from perfect and they have their share of problems and bad publicity, but nothing like what I see about SPIRIT. And I do know some people who've flown SPIRIT, without problems (from CA and PR) to Colombia and back to their homes. One on multiple occasions. Usually, things go well, but if not, on SPIRIT, I think you need Contingency Plans and must be prepared to cancel the trip, at the last minute, if SPIRIT cancels your flight and cannot accommodate you.on another SPIRIT flight, since they apparently will not pay another carrier to take their passengers, if something goes wrong. Or pay to put them up in a Hotel and pay for their Meals, until they can be accommodated on another flight.

 

Years ago, there was something called C.A.B. Rule 240 and in the "Carriage of Contract" (Fine Print on your ticket), it explained what they would do if a passenger needed to be reaccomodated or put up in hotel and fed.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_240

 

http://www.airfarewatchdog.com/blog/19233753/three-airlines-will-still-fly-you-on-competitor-if-there-snafu/#

 

Not surprisingly, SPIRIT apparently doesn't do anything to help their stranded passengers. 

 

One reason Avianca is my favorite airline is that they have a very young fleet of aircraft.  They also have a lot of aircraft.If an airline like Avianca cancels flights on occasion, and they do, and it generates horrible publicity here in Colombia, you can imagine what SPIRIT is up against.

 

There is another thing, about how the aircraft are routed in the pattern and if something goes wrong, late in the day, you are up a creek without a paddle.  That is one reason it is best to go on the first flight(s) of the day.  Our low cost carrier (Viva Colombia) announced they are going to discontinue service to our city (Cali) and to the city of Barranquila, on September 1st, because they are cancelling so many flights. I worked in the Scheduling Department of a large International U.S. Flag airline, in the HQ.  One thing we tried to do was allow enough time between flights. Another thing we tried to do was to have a Spare aircraft of that type, in our home city, in case there was an issue and an aircraft had to be pulled out of service for unscheduled maintenance. Things happen.  With older aircraft they happen more often. Even with very young aircraft, there are issues. More issues on old aircraft.  

 

The airlines try for maximum utilization during the day. The more hours the aircraft can be in the air, the better for the airline. But, maintenance is required. Crews need to rest.  Tightly scheduled patterns can lead to big problems, as Viva Colombia discovered.

[gstharr]

 I just flew United to drop the new 7th grader off at CTY summer residential. I flew back alone on Spirit. The 7th grader will fly back on Southwest alone.  Spirit was $100 cheaper than anything else for a simple seat, but you have to pay for CARRY ON, checked luggage, snack,, assigned seats, and all drinks. Some of these fees double if you don't  purchase ahead of flight.   unaccompanied minor fee on Spirit $150, on Southwest $50.  Spirit served the purpose for me on this trip as I was traveling back light and alone.  But, I don't see how it would have been practical for a family on say  a week long trip with  luggage.

[SimonJoshep]

Yep, we have used them several times.  That's how I manage to see dd at all.  :-)

 

In addition to carrying on something **small** that will stow under your seat (a purse or *small* backpack/laptop case), you can purchase ($) a full size carry-on or  a checked bag at the time you book your flights, so it's not that you *can't* take luggage.  (If you add luggage later, after buying your ticket, the price per item ($$) goes up, and even more ($$$) if you decide to check something last minute at the airport.)

 

The biggest changes for us were 1) no assigned seats unless you buy them, 2) no food or bev service at all, and 3) the seats don't recline at all.

 

That said, I'm sending four family members on Spirit for my dd's wedding weekend half a continent away.  I purchased a checked bag for each (due to tux rentals and formal gowns) and an assigned seat so they could all sit together, and it was still $150 cheaper per person than the nearest competitor.

 

hth!

 

Thanks for sharing your personal experience dear. I will try it soon for my next visit. :)

[creekland]

Their rating alone keeps me away from them.  Our preference for airlines is Southwest, but we live near BWI (a big hub of theirs), so can easily go anywhere they go inexpensively.

 

A "bad" airline can't go low enough in price for me to consider them.  

[Grantmom]

Thanks for all of this great information and details and tips!  This is exactly what I was looking for.  Thank you so much to everyone who replied!  To be honest, the flights I could find were not that much cheaper on Spirit than something like JetBlue or Southwest, so it doesn't sound like it will be worth the savings in this case.  Especially the part about getting stranded!  I have had a flight canceled twice already this year and that is never fun.

[J-rap]

For me, as long as it's considered safe and it makes travel possible, I can put up with almost anything for awhile.  That said, I haven't flown Spirit myself (though I've flown similar budget airlines in Europe), but several of my kids have.  As long as you are prepared -- plan in advance, no expectations, etc., I think it's fine.  Like another poster said, it's not like they have a bunch of hidden, sneaky costs.  They're up front about it;  you just have to read the small print.  Mostly my kids have flown it to Central America to visit my dd.  They pack extremely light or know they'll have to pay, they don't reserve a seat, they bring a snack, they know that arrival and departure times are sometimes inconvenient.  But hey, it got them to Central America several times at about half the cost of other airlines, so why not!

 

And now after typing all of that, I see you probably won't need to take Spirit after all.  :)  We love both JetBlue and Southwest!

 

[Lanny]

If JetBlue goes from where you are to where you want to go fly JetBlue. If not Southwest has many benefits I have read about in other WTM threads. Enjoy your trip!

 

Sent from my SM-G355M using Tapatalk

[creekland]

Thanks for all of this great information and details and tips!  This is exactly what I was looking for.  Thank you so much to everyone who replied!  To be honest, the flights I could find were not that much cheaper on Spirit than something like JetBlue or Southwest, so it doesn't sound like it will be worth the savings in this case.  Especially the part about getting stranded!  I have had a flight canceled twice already this year and that is never fun.

 

FWIW, when we flew back from the Bahamas a couple of years ago (via Southwest), BWI was closed for a big storm.  SW (at least at that time) only flew one flight per day from the Bahamas.  We weren't really sure how long it would take us to get back.  (I know, being "stuck" in the Bahamas - terrible!   :lol: )  BWI being totally closed is rather rare so the SW employees weren't sure either.  With one flight per day, the next one was already full so we couldn't all fit on it.  Turns out the company decided to send another plane (empty) to us the next day to get us all back and that crew was wonderful.  (Most crews are, but that one in particular was very joking and upbeat in a nice "sorry you got stranded" way.)  They were practically insisting on extra drinks (sodas, juices, etc) and pretzels or peanuts, etc, trying to do their best to help those who were inconvenienced.

 

I absolutely love SW.  We've been known to create trips around "Where does SW fly?"

[Lanny]

@Creekland The SW cabin crew probably enjoyed relaxing on the Positioning flight to pick you up in the Bahamas.  Nice story.  And you see what an airline with a large fleet can do, if they have a "spare" aircraft in the pattern.