Spirit Airlines and checked luggage

[FredS]

Read this article about the new charges and lower airfares on this carrier:

 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17484546/

 

Now all checked bags are $5 or $10 depending on how you made your reservation. No first class and no free food or drinks, even sodas cost as of June.

[parody]

Now all checked bags are $5 or $10

 

Actually, the third bag (and each subsequent bag after that) costs $100. See the USA Today story here.

[jezzdogg]

All tickers booked starting today are allowed 1 checked bag that must be paid for(not free).. a second bag might be allowed to bre paid for, if there is room..however, if there is not room spirit is not responsible for said piece of luggage..(which really means is do not bring it)

guess who i cam not booking with

[parody]

All tickers booked starting today are allowed 1 checked bag that must be paid for(not free)

 

This policy of charging for the first bag really starts June 19, 2007 (unless one purchased their tickets before December 15, 2006 in which case they are still free). Until then the first bag, if it weights 50 pounds or less, is free. Details are given on their website along with tickets that can be bought for 1 cent each way (not including taxes and fees). If one can get these heavily reduced fares, charging for bags makes the overall fare paid quite reasonable.

[Smiles3usa]

I heard about this on the radio this morning. The first thing I thought about when I heard it was that this was the way that self-serve gasoline started too (except in NJ, bless them for their foresight). Everyone was more interested in saving a little bit of $$$...and for those who weren't well just pay more for full service. Now finding a full service station is a hunt...and the price difference is much more than nominal. I hope folks don't go for it. Because when they do, you can bet other airlines will also start charging. On the otherhand, when Spirit starts losing market share as a result of this change, you can bet that they will quickly abandon the practice.

 

As one who always tipped the porters at the airport, I now carry my bags inside--I refuse to pay the airlines more money for a service that should be included in the price of the ticket. The ticket price did not go down when they instituted the charge for dropping luggage outside. As long as folks will go for it, the airlines (as well as other commercial enterprises) will take as much money as they can get--whether deserving or not.

[piper28]

I think the nastiest part of the whole thing is how they say that they'll only guarantee you a spot for one bag. And since there's no way to know ahead of time if they'll take it, you're pretty much just going to have to deal with it. I'd hate to be on a trip where I took two bags down, then got refused the second bag coming back.

 

I do find it a bit fishy though. Suddenly the planes they've been flying fine with 2 bags a person may not have room for it? Makes me wonder if they're contracting out part of their luggage space because they can make more money that way.

[jimc_usa]

I heard about this on the radio this morning. The first thing I thought about when I heard it was that this was the way that self-serve gasoline started too (except in NJ, bless them for their foresight).

 

And Oregon...

[jerseygirl3]

I think the nastiest part of the whole thing is how they say that they'll only guarantee you a spot for one bag. And since there's no way to know ahead of time if they'll take it, you're pretty much just going to have to deal with it. I'd hate to be on a trip where I took two bags down, then got refused the second bag coming back.

 

I do find it a bit fishy though. Suddenly the planes they've been flying fine with 2 bags a person may not have room for it? Makes me wonder if they're contracting out part of their luggage space because they can make more money that way.

 

Piper, I agree with you completely. Paying for our bags is bad enough, but no guarantee we can take on a second bag???? And the bags have to weigh less than 50 lbs. I know I can't pack for a 2-3 week vacation (clothes, toiletries, shoes, etc.) in one bag that weighs less than 50 lbs. And with carry-ons so stringent, it makes it even tougher.

 

Spirit Air just recently purchased a new fleet of aircraft and they are larger than the previous ones. How is it that they suddenly can't fit two pieces of luggage per person???!!!

 

Something sounds fishy. And they say they will be lowering their fares. How are we, the consumers, supposed to gauge that? Spirit's fares are all over the board. I've seen a flight erroneously put on their website for $694 one day and the next day it says $119. Then it's $219. I know fares change, but that's probably their out. We would have no way of really knowing if their fares have dropped.

 

I've been flying Spirit out of Atlantic City since their inception, and I am getting more and more disgusted. And did you notice no more Spirit Plus? It's been changed to "Extra Big Seats." No free beverage service in those seats beginning in June. I guess the only perk will be a larger seat.

 

I say let's let Spirit hear our disgust, and maybe they'll listen.

[pms4104]

So if they can't guarantee carriage of bag #2 ... what's the point of paying $100 for bag #3, should you need to do so?

 

What's next ... pay toilets on board? Or perhaps an extra fee for carryons that don't fit under the seat in front of you?

 

What I would like to see from TSA and/or all airlines is some reasonable enforcement of the carryon limit. Over-size and overweight pieces, to say nothing of the number of pieces some pax take on board. No wonder it takes some 30 minutes to board approx 120 passengers! I can see cutting slack for the road warriors ... they likely account for the greatest total revenue on any given flight. But, really, where does it all end?

[hdawson]

Former Spirit customers still have Southwest and AirTran for low cost carriers. If enough of you switch your loyalty, they will notice.

[jerseygirl3]

One of the reasons we've always flown Spirit is because they have many non-stop flights from Atlantic City, which is only a few minutes from our home. For many years, parking was free for up to 3 weeks. Then around 5 years ago they started charging $3.00/day for parking, then $4.00/day. Now I believe it's up to $6./day, which is still a bargain. But because of Spirit's new policy's, it looks like we'll be making the drive out to Philly and frequenting other airlines.

[BaskGal]

They could be carrying additional freight from private companies and therefore not transport baggage. There is a lot of money to be made with freight.

 

:confused: