Northwest Airlines out of Detroit?

[gettingmarried]

Has anyone got any experience with NWA. We are planning on flying out of detroit (live in toronto) and have never done this before. Any comments?

[dantesab]

Have flown on them many times no problems the only problem is the airport it stinks.Were are you flying to?

[Griff4AU]

Detroit is a major NWA hub, so depending on where you are going, you should have no problems.

[Linda in MI]

Flying NWA out of Detroit is a good bet. Since it is a hub, there are always plenty of aircraft and/or alternate flights available.

 

Dantesab: What don't you like about the airport, especially the NWA terminal? I think it is very nice, and easy to navigate.

 

Linda

[nabby]

I fly NWA frequently. I haven't had any real problems with them. I read your post again, are you flying THROUGH Detroit or are you driving to Detroit and leaving from there?

[friend of Eeyore]

I fly out of Detroit fairly often, and think the new airport is very nice - the old one was horrible, but I do believe it's being torn down and remodeled. Northwest flies out of the new one and it is very nice.

 

Are you flying out of or through Detroit? If you're flying out of, then I (and others) can give advice on parking, hotels, etc. If you're flying through, than it's fairly straight-forward - you'll fly in one gate, have to walk to another, and fly out. I don't believe a Toronto-Detroit flight would even mean a change from the main terminal.

 

There's info online, complete with maps as to bars, restaurants, and shops. Check it out - click here - with the restaurant map here - click here. To get to one side to the middle to the other side of the main terminal, there is an overhead tram, so getting from one end to the other is fairly quick.

 

(And don't worry about the "airline travel from hell" note in my signature. :D That was American Airlines out of Flint, bad planning on their part going, and a day where storms disrupted everything all over the country coming back. :mad: )

[DanJ]

I agree flying out of Detroit is a pleasant experience. The Mcnamara terminal is bright, modern and comfortable. If you are driving down, there are a few park and fly type places along Middlebelt road with shuttles over to the terminal. We parked at US park and printed a coupon from their website to save a couple bucks per day. A lot cheaper than parking at the airport itself.

 

If you are connecting there from Toronto, you will clear US immigration at Toronto, so it will be a simple connection in Detroit.

[cabrx]

If you driving to Detroit down the 401 and crossing just be aware that post 9-11 has caused some serious back-ups depending on the time of day and what's going on in Detroit. Also from the bridge there is a detour with road construction lasting over 2 years. Just warning you to be prepared.

[DanJ]

There is also an electronic sign on the 401 at London that sometimes has the border wait times posted. Lately, Sarnia has been backed up and Windsor has been fine. But even if Windsor is showing no wait, and Sarnia is 30 minutes, Sarnia is still quicker because it's all highway right to the bridge, while Windsor is 10 miles of city streets from the 401 to the bridge. When you cross at Sarnia, you get on I-94 and go straight to the airport about an hour down the road.

[cruzinchris]

There is also an electronic sign on the 401 at London that sometimes has the border wait times posted. Lately, Sarnia has been backed up and Windsor has been fine. But even if Windsor is showing no wait, and Sarnia is 30 minutes, Sarnia is still quicker because it's all highway right to the bridge, while Windsor is 10 miles of city streets from the 401 to the bridge. When you cross at Sarnia, you get on I-94 and go straight to the airport about an hour down the road.

 

Great advice, and I totally agree.

 

DH and I live in north-suburban Detroit and visit Toronto several times a year. We also attended the Stratford Festival regularly for many years. We never travel through Windsor because the Sarnia route is much more convenient and quicker - easily shaves 30 minutes off the trip.

 

DH and I always fly NWA out of DTW. The terminal is open, spacious, and easily navigated by moving walkway and/or monorail. There are plenty of restrooms, upscale shopping, a variety of dining options ranging from coffee stands to full meal service, large-screen TVs throughout. McNamara terminal is almost a destination in itself :)

 

Bon Voyage!

Chris

[pinkbirds02]

If you are driving to Detroit and flying out of Detroit check out Spirit Air. They fly out of the old terminal but it is still worth that much less than NWA. Also check out off airport parking, much cheaper!If you are coming thru Windsor take the tunnel, no construction and you can get on I-94 and take that to the airport, exit at Merriman or Middlebelt North, plenty of parking and they pick you up at your car and drop you off at the door.

[care180]

I have flown NWA from Newark to Detroit many times. I have never had a problem.

[Lorey2007]

If you are driving to Detroit and flying out of Detroit check out Spirit Air. They fly out of the old terminal but it is still worth that much less than NWA. Also check out off airport parking, much cheaper!If you are coming thru Windsor take the tunnel, no construction and you can get on I-94 and take that to the airport, exit at Merriman or Middlebelt North, plenty of parking and they pick you up at your car and drop you off at the door.

 

Be aware if you are flying Spirit Air before mid September it will be out of the old Smith Terminal which is similar to Miami with no restaurants or shops:( and very old. Also Spirit Air is now charging $15 first bag, $25 second bag and additional fee for advance seat assignment based on middle, window, aisle or exit.

 

IMO the McNamara terminal is a pleasure to fly out of, new, many shops, restaurants and very very clean.

[goodml]

Have flown on them many times no problems the only problem is the airport it stinks.Were are you flying to?

 

Man, if the McNamara Terminal stinks then there's not an airport anywhere that's worth anything. That's a great terminal! Brand new, lots of glass, easy to navigate through, decent places to eat or grab a drink, monorail to take you from one end of the terminal to the other. The old Smith terminal is horrible but Northwest's is awesome.

[goodml]

If you driving to Detroit down the 401 and crossing just be aware that post 9-11 has caused some serious back-ups depending on the time of day and what's going on in Detroit. Also from the bridge there is a detour with road construction lasting over 2 years. Just warning you to be prepared.

 

To the OP, we live about 20 mins from Windsor on the Canadian side and we cross over to the states about 5 times a month. We actually have been finding that the bridge is a lot less busy with the huge construction going on so while it's a bit daunting navigating your way through we've found barely any cars in line recently. If you follow the signs it's actually pretty clearly marked where you need to go.

 

When we flew out on Spirit this past May we had a really early flight so we decided to stay over the night before. The Comfort Inn near Metro Airport has a great deal -for $70 we got the room (incl breakfast starting at 4 am) free shuttle to the airport and 7 nights parking at one of the secured lots close by. It was only a few dollars more than the actual parking fees at the lot.

[goodml]

Sorry, one more thing. Did you check prices to fly out of Buffalo? It would be a lot closer for you.

[gettingmarried]

Thanks everyone for all your comments and suggestions! To answer a few of your questions (which I neglected to inform on my questions) We are planning on driving from Cambridge, Ontario to Detroit. We thought of leaving from Buffalo from we could not seem to find any flights that were non-stop whereas detroit had them. It is about a 4 hour drive for us, but the difference in the flights is tremendous. $1200 -1500.-00 to fly to Fort Lauderdale from Toronto versus $660.00 out of detroit. The canadian taxes are out of control! Any more advice on parking etc for the 11 days would be great!

Thanks everyone.

[cruzinchris]

... Any more advice on parking etc for the 11 days would be great! quote]

 

When DH and I drive to the airport, we always use Airlines Parking that offers prompt shuttle service to and from the terminals. Here's the link:

http://www.airlinesparking.com/ Prices are much better than on site parking at DTW.

 

The Sarnia/Port Huron route, crossing the Blue Water Bridge instead of going through Windsor, would work well from Cambridge.

Chris

[macmax]

Both Jet Blue and Southwest have non-stop flights from

BUF to FLL. They both have great prices usually. Go through their websites.

[Go-Bucks!]

Thanks everyone for all your comments and suggestions! To answer a few of your questions (which I neglected to inform on my questions) We are planning on driving from Cambridge, Ontario to Detroit. We thought of leaving from Buffalo from we could not seem to find any flights that were non-stop whereas detroit had them. It is about a 4 hour drive for us, but the difference in the flights is tremendous. $1200 -1500.-00 to fly to Fort Lauderdale from Toronto versus $660.00 out of detroit. The canadian taxes are out of control! Any more advice on parking etc for the 11 days would be great!

Thanks everyone.

 

 

Check out Southwest Airlines from Detroit to Ft. Lauderdale. I would guess it's cheaper than $660.

[DanJ]

Just for kicks, Northwest flies from Kitchener (YKF). I'd have a look and see how much more it is to fly from home. It will be significantly more than the fare from Detroit, but you also won't have gas and parking (and the time it takes both ways).

 

When we flew down in January, I tracked the prices from London and Detroit for about 2 weeks and noticed a trend on when the flights were down in price. So, the third week, when it looked like the trend was following, I grabbed the flights from London. It was still about $90pp more than out of Detroit, but the convenience was worth it to me.