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Airlines - 12/6/2012 9:12:40 PM
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Steve O
Posts: 708
Joined: 8/10/2004
From: Chicago
Status: offline
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I must be getting old or just ****ed off. I am still trying to find a flight to Cancun or Cozumel and Spirit had a flight for $141.00. I used to use Spirit all the time when they first came out because they had decent fares. Now I don't even bother but wanted to find out what they charge anyway.
I went to the Spirit site and put down February 5th. as that is the cheapest flight at that time. The flight was $141.19 of which they said the government gets 60%. I then went to check the additional fees they charge. Some of them I don't understand. I tried 8 times at their site to get a final price but couldn't get through.
1 personal piece of luggage is allowed as long as it fits under your seat. That would include a purse or a lap top.
1 carry on bag is allowed for a charge of $35
I- checked bag costs $30 so it is cheaper to check your bag. Baggage weight allowed is #40. That's 10 # less than other airlines. They probably figure that if you carry on your luggage you can get out of the airport quicker so will pay more.
There is a $10 booking fee.
$2.00 for DOT fees
$5.00 for a boarding pass
$25 for passenger usage fees
Up to $16.99 for a revenue standby fee.
There is also a seat selection fee of $10 per seat. Assigned seats at the airport are free.
You can also buy a boxed lunch from $5.00 to $10.
Want to change your ticket? I'ts $115.00
Not sure if there is a washroom fee yet but that is probably covered under the passenger usage fee along with using the seat belts.
Cash is no longer accepted on airlines. If you want a drink it's anywhere from $5.50 to $7.50. You can get a glass of pop, coffee, or water for free but anything else costs you.
I just don't understand all of this. I just got a one way flight out of Chicago on Southwest airline to Las Vegas for $67. Now, Las Vegas is a few hundred miles farther than Cozumel or Cancun and the airline is still making money. I get one checked bag free plus a carry on and I can change my ticket for no extra charge. I even get to pick my seats.
Maybe someone out there can explain all of this to me. If they can make money on a $67 flight to Las Vegas they can make a lot more on a flight to Cancun or Cozumel. I'm sure there are more fees to pay for landing but not that much.
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RE: Airlines - 12/6/2012 10:10:59 PM
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Linda J
Posts: 171
Joined: 12/9/2006
From: Gimli, Manitoba Canada
Status: offline
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I agree...ridiculous. Maybe I am old-school, having flown for a few decades all over the world i can't help but wish for the old days of flying...One charge for advance booking, one for full economy, one charge for business or first....everything included. Customers respectful, airlines personal respectful, no pushing or shoving, people queuing up nicely.
Now everyone tries to cram as much into carryon as possible to avoid checked fees so it always takes longer to load...
I guess very generation longs for the old days... :(
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 7:19:07 AM
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texas yankee
Posts: 269
Joined: 7/12/2005
From: originally NYC - now, near Dallas, TX
Status: offline
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It's supply and demand, get what ya can, and absolutely nothing to do with per mile expenses. I used to fly AA from DFW to CA - I wanted to go to John Wayne airport, but it was always so expensive ($700) so I went to Long Beach. My buddy, coming from Austin, always went into Long Beach - his flight from Austin actually stopped in DFW and then went to John Wayne. His flight cost about $300 - but it was $700 for me if I got on at DFW - make sense?? Of course not.
I do like using sites like **** - if ya take into consideration the additional fees from carriers like Spirit, it kinda levels the playing field and it's relatively easy to get the least expensive flight.
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 7:42:59 AM
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Bosco
Posts: 6914
Joined: 5/8/2006
From: Another day..another seedy hotel
Status: offline
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Yes...spirits fares are completely unbundled, but if you do the math, sometimes you still save money.
I just had to fly to Florida last minute. Booked on Monday night for Tuesday travel.
Spirit $188 +40 baggage = $228 Round Trip.
Airtran. Delta.....more than $600.
< Message edited by Bosco -- 12/7/2012 7:43:41 AM >
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 8:26:22 AM
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neilalex
Posts: 2560
Joined: 10/18/2006
From: Ottawa Canada
Status: offline
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Try booking a flight out of Canada (especially Toronto) going to England.
fare: 350 taxes: 700
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 8:40:10 AM
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snowbound
Posts: 4122
Joined: 11/9/2006
Status: offline
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As the old saying goes...
Remember when travel used to be fun?"
Snow(gimme back my armrest!!!) Bound
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 9:23:21 AM
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Dollar
Posts: 178
Joined: 1/6/2005
From: Great Falls, Virginia
Status: offline
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Just flew Spirit to Ft. Lauderdale - Told family here's the deal
Don't have the budget this year for Akumal but if they want to
go to the keys for 5 or 6 days get some sun and pack there
stuff in a backpack - store in under the airplane seat - We're
good to go. $267 round trip for a family of four - non stop.
It was kinda fun and a challenge but pulled it off otherwise
I'm lookin' at $1700-$1800 for a flight to Cancun.
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 1:31:29 PM
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reefhugger
Posts: 8906
Joined: 8/25/2004
Status: offline
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It is supply & demand, but the airlines sort of artificially created the demand when they cut so many flights to vacation destinations and also took out most non-stops to anywhere. Places that even 3 yrs ago we had a choice of up to 5 non-stops a day, now you're lucky if there are 2. Travel time is much longer and much more of a pain in the tush when you have to take connecting flights. They're routinely overselling flights these days at much higher levels then they used to. If you traveling anytime around the holidays and don't opt for the 24 hr advance check in, it's hit or miss if they have a seat for you when you get to the airport, even if you check in well within the required timeframe.
When they created demand, the prices went up accordingly. The add-ons are ridiculous. Carry-on charges will, I'm sure, become the norm soon enough. I also won't be surprised to see them start charging for non-alcoholic beverages too.
With every merger and alliance there's less need to really give a crap about the customer experience. There's less competition on routes, and very little anymore that sets one carrier apart from another, at least in the North American market. There are still some fantastic choices for international travel... if you can or want to spend the money... Within the US and Canada and to the Caribbean and Mexico, imo, there all the same these days. Lack of space onboard, lack of service, charge for everything.
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 3:36:25 PM
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scubasteve
Posts: 113
Joined: 12/3/2006
From: St Thomas Ontario, Canada
Status: offline
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I'm happy to see that the trend seams to going the other way around here. Sunwing has always had a welcome glass of champagne, a choice of 2 hot meals with wine, free snacks and pop, free headsets, and free round trip transfers from the airport to the resort.
Now Transat provides a free welcome glass of champagne, a hot meals with wine. Dedicated check in counter for families. round trip transfers from the airport to your resort.
On April 2012 they started a 2 year project to redo their plane interiors.
" An attractive, more spacious economy class with wider seats and additional legroom. Egromonic, Italian leather seats with four way headrests and new generation foam to ease pressure points as well as more space, a la carte entertainment via touch screens on the back of all seats, day to night mood lighting that simulates natural light for a soothing atmosphere."
< Message edited by scubasteve -- 12/7/2012 3:39:12 PM >
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RE: Airlines - 12/7/2012 4:58:15 PM
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neilalex
Posts: 2560
Joined: 10/18/2006
From: Ottawa Canada
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: scubasteve
" An attractive, more spacious economy class with wider seats and additional legroom.
I wonder how many planes they have actually done, my parents just flew to England and their Air Transat plane was very tight. My Dad is 5 foot and only weighs 130 lbs and he did not have any knee room or width in his seat.
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RE: Airlines - 12/8/2012 11:17:02 AM
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Kenny2skidoos
Posts: 104
Joined: 8/31/2012
From: Yukon
Status: offline
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Anyone know if you can use these (Transat/Sunwing) for air only, or do you need to book a package with them?
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RE: Airlines - 12/9/2012 2:57:26 PM
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Vancouver Sundog
Posts: 5971
Joined: 10/1/2006
From: North Vancouver
Status: offline
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quote:
They might just doing the planes for the charter flights to the south?
Not last year wehn we travelled with Sunwing or Air Transit
Sunwing is also know for the longest 2.5 - 3 hr transfer times.
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RE: Airlines - 12/9/2012 5:22:46 PM
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Kenny2skidoos
Posts: 104
Joined: 8/31/2012
From: Yukon
Status: offline
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Thanks Scuba, I might have to check it out for next time....already booked with WJ this trip.
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I have Rectal Glaucoma.... I can't see my ass gettin to work today!
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RE: Airlines - 12/9/2012 5:35:41 PM
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palapaboy
Posts: 813
Joined: 11/10/2008
From: Austin TX
Status: offline
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Reefhugger nails it.
OIil Corporations do it - why not airlines?
Even cheaper oil prices over the last year makes no difference.
No change seen soon.
quote:
ORIGINAL: reefhugger
It is supply & demand, but the airlines sort of artificially created the demand when they cut so many flights to vacation destinations and also took out most non-stops to anywhere. Places that even 3 yrs ago we had a choice of up to 5 non-stops a day, now you're lucky if there are 2. Travel time is much longer and much more of a pain in the tush when you have to take connecting flights. They're routinely overselling flights these days at much higher levels then they used to. If you traveling anytime around the holidays and don't opt for the 24 hr advance check in, it's hit or miss if they have a seat for you when you get to the airport, even if you check in well within the required timeframe.
When they created demand, the prices went up accordingly. The add-ons are ridiculous. Carry-on charges will, I'm sure, become the norm soon enough. I also won't be surprised to see them start charging for non-alcoholic beverages too.
With every merger and alliance there's less need to really give a crap about the customer experience. There's less competition on routes, and very little anymore that sets one carrier apart from another, at least in the North American market. There are still some fantastic choices for international travel... if you can or want to spend the money... Within the US and Canada and to the Caribbean and Mexico, imo, there all the same these days. Lack of space onboard, lack of service, charge for everything.
_____________________________
"I know one thing - indecision may, or may not, be my problem." Jimmy Buffett
Lounge Against the Machine.
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RE: Airlines - 12/10/2012 6:31:16 AM
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Jamie
Posts: 2580
Joined: 3/10/2005
From: Southern California
Status: offline
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Most airlines buy their fuel on the futures market so it can take up to 90 days for prices to catch up if gas prices rise or drop a lot.
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RE: Airlines - 12/10/2012 9:33:08 AM
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AnotherBob
Posts: 1219
Joined: 10/15/2008
Status: offline
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I won't go near Spirit Airlines ... the last time I flew them was the last time. Just plain BAD in all ways. AirTran is now on my list of NO WAY EVER AGAIN ! They have shrunk down the seat pitch again. Anyone over 6' tall can not get their legs to fit behind the seat in front of them. God help you if the person in front wants to recline too ! The sneaky nickel-dime-dollars add-on charges are often skillfully hidden until you get to the final stages of booking a ticket. Spirit's charging $100 to put a bag in the overhead if you don't reserve that space ahead of time ?  Unarmed robbery ?
Delta has recently shrunk down the seat pitch by another 1-2" too. Why ? So they can cram more people in and also create a way to charge for "normal" seat pitch zones in the plane. $38 per flite, per person, was what they wanted on our flight this past week. Oh, but wait, if you want to sit in the exit row seats, that's only $19 per flight, per person. What ? I'm charging $10 per person to use that exit if we have to evacuate the plane ! ! ! Cash only ! 
We do our best to use JetBlue now. No charge for carry-on and you can also have a backpack or other small item. No charge for the first checked bag (50 lbs). Free soft drinks. Dunkin' Donut Cofee, and unlimited free snacks (multiple choices and they are very good). TV's in every seat back. Yes, the seat pitch is still a bit too tight and they have premium seating for a fee.
A few weeks back, I read that one of the ultra-cheap airlines is proposing to remove most of the seats and replace them with hanger straps (like on subway cars) so that passengers can stand up during the flight. Yup, that's a true story. That will let them cram in more passengers and leg room becomes a non-issue ! I pity the really short people on those flights.  Hopefully the FAA will veto that idea ?
Flying used to be a pleasure and customers were treated as valuable assets. Now the treatment is more like cattle headed for the slaughter house on most airlines. We hear a lot of grumbling from the passengers on every flight. And that seems to affect the flight attendants mood as well. 
AnotherBob 
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RE: Airlines - 12/10/2012 11:33:12 AM
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RLee
Posts: 1603
Joined: 9/13/2006
Status: offline
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This is from Ryanair, the same company that was thinking of putting pay toilets on it's planes.
This is copied from an online paper, I couldn't get the link to work.
Because O’Leary believes “seatbelts don’t matter,” and because airline passengers seem to be proving O’Leary’s point by choosing the cheapest form of transportation possible regardless of service or comfort, Ryanair is currently trying to launch a standing-room-only section on its airplanes, where fares on short-haul flights within Europe would start at £1, around $1.50.
Does this idea have, well, a leg to stand on? O’Leary certainly thinks so, guaranteeing that cheap standing-room-only tickets would sell out long before seats that cost, say, $40 on the same plane.
He may be right. At the same time, travelers should know that it’s impossible to actually pay £1 and get anywhere with Ryanair. In early November, reported the Guardian, the airline announced that as of Dec. 1, all passengers must pay a £6 ($9.50) administrative fee on each one-way ticket purchase. In the past, customers could avoid the fee by using a Ryanair-affiliated credit card.
That’s hardly the only fee Ryanair passengers are likely to encounter. If you don’t print out your boarding pass before arriving at the airport, you can expect to pay as much as $75. It was the complaint of an angry mom who was forced to pay five such fees for her family of five that prompted O’Leary’s “idiots” comment. More likely, Ryanair customers will be confronted with any number of mysterious baggage charges — for checked luggage, certainly, and also for carry-on luggage and perhaps what’s known as hand luggage.
Ryanair allows one piece of hand luggage (purse, laptop bag, small backpack) per passenger. And what happens if you go over the allowance? One woman in Spain recently found out. After boarding a Ryanair flight with a book and a scroll that didn’t fit in her bag, the woman was escorted off the plane by police when she couldn’t pay the airline’s fee, reportedly because her credit card was not working. Glamorous jet-setting this is not.
Read more: http://business.time.com/2012/11/12/new-low-for-flying-standing-room-only/#ixzz2EfgEy5LC
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RE: Airlines - 12/10/2012 4:35:15 PM
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Dollar
Posts: 178
Joined: 1/6/2005
From: Great Falls, Virginia
Status: offline
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I love Spirit Air - 67 bucks round trip to Ft. Laud.
as an example - Can't beat that - Brand new planes
I'm 6' 1" - A little tight but for 120 minutes in the air
no problem especially at that rate - I'll take the savings
and have my lodging bill taken care of. Otherwise it's
$250+ per person. I'll take the money and run - They're
truly doing it the right way. Other than Spirit - I'm a big
Airtran fan. Jet Blue's not bad either if you're flying to
Boston.
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