In all my years of flying, I have never flown on Frontier Airlines…until now. Sometimes a cheap fare is simply far too cheap to resist.
Cheap Ticket On Frontier Airlines: I’m Flying To Milwaukee
After my tree problem my annual autumn trip to Green Lake, Wisconsin got pushed. While I did consider skipping it this year (for the first time in 12 years), an opening came up and I figured it was the perfect opportunity to go. Thanksgiving is around the corner, then December will be a very busy month…it was now or never.
Time is the currency of love and taking a couple of days to visit dear friends is all the more important to me during a time of great uncertainty in so many areas of life.
I don’t know if you’ve checked lately, but domestic airfare is pretty pricey these days. United wanted $425 each way to go from LA to Chicago or Milwaukee, which was particularly difficult to stomach considering I’ve already surpassed the spending requirement for 1K status (no rollover at United).
But Frontier Airlines was only $63 from Ontario (ONT) to Milwaukee (MKE) via Denver (DEN). Not bad, especially because I will be traveling light.
So I booked it.
Then I booked United back via the same routing…at nearly seven times the price (Frontier wasn’t as cheap going back and I figured that one-way may be one-way too much).
I have very low expectations for Frontier Airlines going into this, but I also know that you get what you pay for so if I can get there safely and on time, I’ll be a happy camper.
Any tips for flying Frontier? How closely will my personal item be measured?
image: Frontier Airlines
I’m someone who flies low cost carriers a lot and love them. Frontier is my least favorite. I find the seats much less comfortable that Spirit. The seats on frontier seemed designed to torture you.
I flew them last week LGA-DFW and it was…ok. The most annoying part is the check-in experience. You can’t self tag a bag until 2 1/2 hours before departure, the bag drop only opens 2 hours prior, but closes 60 minutes prior, so you end up in a very long line sweating whether you’ll make the bag cut-off even when you show up 2+ hours early (I ended up making it with a bit more than half an hour to spare). I can vouch for the previous commenter’s take on the seats; they are rock hard and quite uncomfortable, though legroom isn’t as bad as you’d think. They didn’t measure anyone’s carry-on bags on this flight. Flight was on time. I’ll fly them again if there’s no other realistic alternatives, but won’t be going out of my way to book with them, either.
It sounds like you got a steal. If you’re considering other ULCCs, Allegiant Air really goes above and beyond to offer a great suite of benefits (free carry on, checked, oversized, pets, etc.) to military, including veterans. https://www.allegiantair.com/military-discount
I flew them for the first time from LA to Oregon (in to MFR, out from EUG) for the recent eclipse and thought the experience went really well.
Do the status match with frontier. It will make frontier like flying any other airline in coach. Except it’s less comfortable but you’ll get free exit row and only pay the base fare. It’s basic transportation but it can be a steal. For a fee they’re doing it at statusmatch.com and you’ll make that money back in one trip. I’m an AA exec plat and have had frontier status due to the march it’s an amazing deal.
And at top tier status all tickets are REFUNDABLE. No airline does that.
A seat assignment is going to set you back what…$40 adding both legs, and anything but a laptop bag will be $50 either carryon or checked. So the fare is now over $150. I mean cheaper than United, but could you have flown into o’hare for less than $400 and with the time saved drove up or taken a train from’ Chicago
Where does he say he purchased a seat assignment or checked a bag?
I have written a number of articles about Frontier Airlines, Matthew.
Expect to have the boarding gate at the farthest part of the airport, expect to have the boarding gate changed numerous times before departure, expect the flight to be delayed, and expect to encounter fairly poor information technology. If you do not have elite status, expect to pay to carry your bag aboard the airplane. I never pay for seat assignments.
If you can handle all of that, it actually is a good experience for the money. You will be flying aboard a fairly new and clean airplane. Members of the flight crew are usually friendly and helpful.
How do you join the class action lawsuit against Frontier regarding their scam of a go wild pass?
I purchased such a pass and have been unable to use it because they never have a seat available.
Not sure – but keep me updated.
If you buy a sandwich and chips at the airport to eat onboard, it will be an improvement over any food United would have served.
How interesting, Matthew, that you know of Green Lake. Small world. We had a year round home (that we only used as a summer house) three doors from Pilgrim Camp. As we kids got older and wanted to stay home in suburban Chicago with our friends, it was time for my Parents to sell the place. Nice though whilst we were younger
I’ve found that some Frontier gate agents are pretty adept at spotting oversize bags and may ask you to fit them into the carry-on sizer during boarding time. Then you’ll have to pay up for a gate check at the inflated price. They’ll also watch for oversize personal item bags too.
You have committed a sin.
Frontier and Spirit are okay if you go in with low expectations. I dont check bags with them or do connections. I’ve done Spirit three times and they have always been delayed by hours. Thankfully I didnt have to worry about a missed connection because I flew direct or flew the first leg with a traditional carrier.