Four ways to survive flying Spirit Airlines
You may have heard of the "ultra low budget" airline Spirit. 聽They're often cited in news outlets as that evil company that charges a crazy amount of fees when you check a bag. 聽Well, I'm here to tell you that I recently flew on them, and lived to tell the tale. 聽Here are four ways I accomplished this feat:
1. 聽I Didn't Check A Bag
My flight between Chicago and Phoenix was about $190 roundtrip on Super Bowl weekend
(Phoenix was hosting the event). 聽That is a cheap roundtrip to begin with, but on a major weekend for the city it's a steal.
I knew the聽optional charges聽for checking a bag beforehand, which were about $30 each way to check it and $35 to carry it on (you do get Zone 1 boarding if you choose this option). 聽Spirit allows you to take one personal item, the kind of bag you can fit under your seat, for free, so I just packed my clothes in that for the weekend. 聽I'm an experienced backpacker, so a pair of jeans and shorts, and a few changes of shirts, underwear and socks were easy enough to fit in a minuscule pack with my laptop. Savings: $60 roundtrip.
2. 聽I Didn't Care What Seat I Sat In
This was admittedly a tough one for me. 聽I have long legs, and prefer an aisle seat, so it was a bit of a gamble not selecting which seat I wanted. 聽For the privilege, it's $10 to select a normal seat of your choosing, and the price goes up as you choose an exit row or the "Big Front Seat" which is featured on some planes and is the size of a regular first class seat ($25). 聽Savings: $20 roundtrip
3. 聽I Didn't Get Thirsty
Many people complain the airline doesn't even give out free water. 聽It's true, they don't. 聽But on my flight, I chose instead to sleep and forgo the inflight service. 聽Savings: $6 roundtrip for water.
4. 聽I Sucked It Up
Was it uncomfortable? Admittedly, yes. 聽It was a red-eye flight, departing at 1:25 in the morning and getting into Chicago at 5:30 AM. 聽The seats on Spirit don't recline, but it's almost a blessing, as you have so little legroom you do not want someone reclining into your knees. 聽But I sucked it up, because I knew I paid next to nothing on a flight that would have cost me double otherwise.
Would I fly them again? 聽Absolutely. 聽In fact, I already have my next trip planned with them. 聽Spirit has an impressively large network- you can fly all the way to Colombia and Peru for these rock bottom fares. 聽Check us out regularly for information on their next fare sale!
