My Final Alcoholic Drink Box Experience on Spirit
It finally happened. I was finally able to try the Mojito Capri-Sun-style beverage on a Spirit flight. The flight attendant told me they were out, and I must have shown my disappointment because then she told me she’d look in the back to see if they had any there. =) This time I was smart and asked for a cup with ice and shook up the drink before I tried it. It was fine, I guess, but for the same price I’d rather get a liquor or a glass of regular wine.
The flight home was a little more adventurous since we had mechanical issues and were delayed for several hours. I was happy with how it was handled, first they got us back to the gate as soon as they figured out we had mechanical troubles (it was discovered when we were taxiing out). Second, as soon as we got back to the gate passengers were allowed to deplane the aircraft with the instructions to take your boarding pass with you and to make sure you check back since they hoped we’d be able to start re-boarding again within an hour. I’ve heard horror stories about people not being allowed to deplane so I’m sure this was a relief to everyone on board.
The next things were interesting since the only reason I witnessed them was because we were sitting near the front of the aircraft.
There was a man in front panicking because he would not make his connection because of the delay. He said he was trying to find flights online but nothing was available. The flight attendant calmly explained to him that since it was a mechanical issue Spirit was responsible for putting him on another flight (on any other airline available) to get him to his destination when he needed to be there. So he went, talked to the gate agent, then came back, got all his stuff and left our flight. This is one of those times when it’s good to not have checked luggage since I don’t think they would have let him leave the flight like that if he still had a checked bag on board (if anyone knows the policies on that, let me know!)
There was also a woman in the front who could not stand or walk on her own at all. I know many times we see people in wheelchairs at airports who can stand or walk for a few steps, but not beyond that. This lady could not at all. I saw the flight attendants as they helped her to and from the lavatory twice on our flight. They also were attentive with checking on her periodically to see if she needed anything.
There was also a small group of people who were making a connection to Mexico. With our flight delay they were cutting it close to make their connection. The pilots and flight attendants asked everyone on board to let them deplane first when we got to DFW so they could at least try to make the connection. They also told them that Spirit had already reserved them seats on another flight in case they didn’t make it. Everyone did let them off first, but unfortunately their flight had already departed. Of course I would have felt better knowing they already re-booked my flight.
Despite mechanical issues and flight delays it was still a very positive experience on Spirit Airlines. I’ll be flying on them again to Colorado at the end of the month, and I got my ticket for $69 (round-trip). Since that’s a short out-and-back my plan is to not check any luggage. We’ll see how that works out for me. 😉 I’m also looking at us flying out to California in September. Looking at flight prices today, it would cost either $185 or $205 round-trip per ticket on Spirit depending on which day we fly out on and yes, I’m including our baggage fees in that estimate. The next best price is Delta ($282) but their flight times are… not great for the return flight. I checked Southwest and it would cost us over $400 each to fly on them. I understand some people swear by Southwest Airlines, but it’s our strategy to go with the cheapest flight available. Maybe it’s because of where we live, but rarely is the cheapest flight on Southwest.
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Thanks for the lengthy discussion about Spirit. Most travel bloggers do not focus on Spirit. I’m not excited about its low-budget cattle car approach, but the prices are right and at a point in time when one gets less room for most cost on airlines like UAL and DAL, Spirit is increasingly looking like a good option.
That’s good to know that Spirit actually has pretty good customer service. I have avoided them based on comments shared on other travel blogs, but I might check them out next time I’m looking at a short haul.
They were also very helpful back in December when Texas had the ice storm and we had a good range of options for rebooking our flights:
https://heelsfirsttravel.boardingarea.com/2013/12/13/will-spirit-airlines-hold-storm/
The only time I saw anyone who seemed harsher than normal was the gate agent with the $100 carry-on fee incident:
https://heelsfirsttravel.boardingarea.com/2013/01/30/holy-expensive-carry-on-fees-batman-guest-post-by-tiff/)
In that case I thought it might have been more of an east-coast culture vs. Texas/Florida culture (where I normally fly back and forth from) and not poor customer service.
I always fly Spirit to myrtle Beach from Boston..non-stop 2 hr. flight…on and off…never have had a problem…If you know what you are paying for up front, you can make a better informed decision!!..always a pleasant flight.
What a sweet story, however, they didn’t do the same for my daughter. We were told they weren’t doing anything for anyone if they couldn’t for everyone. Many people missed their cruises, weddings and more. We were fortunate to be able to purchase a ticket from AA and they took care of my daughter who was going on a 3 wk sail expedition. I hope they’ve improved, I just booked my best friend a ticket, we’ll see.