I've heard a lot about flying Frontier, and most of it has been negative. I had the opportunity to fly with them last weekend, and wanted to share my experience. They do charge for everything, and I do mean everything. If you want to choose your seat (even when checking in the day you fly), you have to pay for the privilege. If you want to check a bag, that costs money. Even more expensive is bringing a carry-on to put in the overhead compartment. (Anything you put under the seat is free of charge.) Drinks or snacks on board will cost you, too. I knew all of this going in, so I packed in a backpack and sucked it up in my middle seat. I didn't notice the seats to be any smaller or closer together than other domestic planes despite everything I've heard about Frontier being cramped, but I'm pretty short so that may be why I didn't notice. If you are planning a short flight and Frontier has flights that work, I recommend them. Even checking bags and choosing seats they are still cheaper than other flights, and the plane loads quicker since most people aren't wrestling with giant roller bags. They do have limited schedules, often with only one flight per day on a given route so you need to be flexible.
That's good to know, because sometimes I might need a quick flight to another city in Texas. I probably wouldn't want to deal with all of that hassle going across country, but for a short flight (some are 50 minutes), it sounds perfectly do-able. Plus I wouldn't be packing much for those trips, which would save me on checked bag fees, and seating wouldn't matter so much on a brief flight.
If the flight is only going to be an hour or so then it's well worth choosing a budget airline. I'm a fan of Ryanair myself, although they do get a lot of flack. Like Frontier, they charge for virtually everything (apart from the use of the overhead locker) but I really don't mind as the prices are so much lower than other airlines.
Frontier is very limited in where they fly. It looks like while they do have three Texas cities that they fly into, they don't fly between cities in Texas. It's always worth checking, though, because routes do change and they have been expanding their service. Unfortunately, we don't have airlines quite as cheap as Ryanair in the U.S. I heard about them a lot when I was traveling in Europe in college, but never had the opportunity to fly them.
This sounds like something you would want to have available when you have a short 1 hour flight. The air travel industry is getting to charging for every little service they provide unlike in the past where you are the customer got good service for the price of the ticket no a la cart like in the restaurants.
@CoolCat Oh, well that's disappointing. I used to do short hops all the time, and didn't mind no frills airlines for them. Well, as you said, routes do change. Hopefully if they find there's a big demand, they will add service between the various cities in Texas. People here tend to have family members in several other areas of the state, and sometimes it's nice to hop on a plane, rather than making the drive.
Ive never flown this airline. I usually fly with US Air or Delta. Most airlines charge for picking your own seat and for checking luggage. Even the major airlines. Its hardly a phenomenon that only occurs with small airlines. As far as cramped space, I think thats the case with most coach plane tickets. You get what you pay for. I have no problem with minor inconveniences as I like saving money.
I'm all up for budget airlines! Their model is to charge everything so you pay less for the flight, and I get that. Often we pay and don't even use what the flight offers, so why not pay only when you use it? The only thing that concerns me is the cramped seats. I'm 5´8, so my legs suffer in every commercial/economy flight.
That's good for people who are taking my much, but I've never flown a short distance as it's always going to be more than the cost of a bus, and that means I have to take the bus. I don't see how it would end up being worth getting buckled and dimed to death if you were going for a vacation and had to take some clothes.
I'm going to look into this airline. As long as a flight gets me from point A to point B in one piece I don't care about much else. I don't need all the extra bells and whistles. I don't make enough money at this point to travel in luxury.
a twist ending!! lol I was expecting to read a horror story, but then you recommended them. If you can go into it expecting it to be bad, and then even name off some of the disadvantages, just to still recommend it? That says a lot. next time I fly I just may have to see if they can't accommodate my schedule.
I think the main charges that most people find silly are charging for carry-on bags (which is more expensive than checking a bag) and paying to get any sort of food or drink during the flight, where most airlines give you some water or soda and a couple of pretzels for "free". Given that I normally buy water a pack a snack and that my carry-on generally goes under my seat, I didn't find that it affected me much. You may want to proofread your posts before you submit them, because it looks like autocorrect did a number on this one! I don't think I was nickled and dimed to death (as I am obviously still alive and able to post on the internet). If I were going on an extended trip, I would likely want to check a bag for the convenience of being able to bring as much shampoo and lotion as I want. The checked baggage fees were lower than what I've seen from some other airlines, so that's not a huge deal. I don't take buses or trains when I travel largely because of the time involved. It would take me 12 hours to get somewhere by bus where it only takes me 4 (including checking into the airport early) when I fly and that time with my parents is really valuable if I am only visiting for a long weekend. Well, I kind of went into it thinking that it couldn't be nearly as bad as people were making it out to be. I fly fairly regularly (at least three round trips a year, usually more) and it's always a bit of an irritating experience. Once you accept that, I haven't found the differences between airlines to be all that big.
I haven't flown nearly that much. I guess 3 round trips in the past several years? There were some issues. A delayed flight almost caused me to arrive at my final destination late. I had no way to get a hold of the people picking me up 2 1/2 hours from home, to tell them its going to be late. But they switched things around so I could get there 5 minutes earlier than expected. And another time my ride to the airport thought if my flight left at 8:15 am, getting me there by 8am was ample enough time. lol I can't tell you who any of the airlines were, though. I'll remember Frontier, though... after this post it actually stands out from the rest.
I guess Frontier is still ok for cheap short flights. However, in my experience they use really old planes and I would definitely avoid if I can just for that reason. I just don't fee safe on them, all though they have not had any stories in the news about plane safety or accidents, it is just a thought. If you ever fly on Frontier, you will notice how noisy the plane generally is. That is because it is old.
I've always flown on the more well known airlines, (USA, Southwest, American, etc). And even with those I can't sit on the wing for that exact reason. I don' t think it sounds or looks safe when I look out the window. And it constantly sounds like the wing is about to fall off. It really freaks me out. Is it worse than that?
All these low-costs companies usually charge you for absolutely anything. To be honest, I've never heard of Frontier Airlines before. Where do they operate? From your post, it seems to me that you'd be better off paying a higher price to a high-end airline company than pay a derisory price to these "low-cost" companies which then end up costing just a few dollars less than a mid-end company after all taxes. It's just a mind-trick, if you ask me.
