Frontier Airlines

[kymom99]

My good friend sat for hours in San Antonio waiting to come home. I think it was at least 8-10 hours. She called me a couple times to pass the time. They kept boarding the plane and having to get back off. She could see them repairing the plane out the window. Yikes! They did finally come around with food vouchers.

They got in a conversation with a young man who was supposed to meet up with his preacher when he got here to nky to ride up to Dayton or Columbus. One or the other. They had to go on without him and he had nowhere to go. When they got here my friend and her husband drove him to a hotel and paid for a room for him. In the morning the young man had a friend drive down to pick him up. Just wanted to share because it's sometimes nice to heard about people doing good for others.

 

[bellangie]

We have always flown Frontier to Orlando. When we used to bring a stroller there was no fee.

 

[katyjeka]

A few years ago we were able to fly Atlanta to Las Vegas for $19.00. They had a sale and we grabbed it. The flight was fine and our only complaint was the plane appeared old and dirty. The attendants were nice and our flight was on time. We did pay for a bag and assigned seats but it was still very reasonable. We are getting ready to fly to California and surprisingly our best price was on Air Alaska this year. Unless you are paying for 1st or business class I don't think one company is better than another anymore. Southwest used to be our "go to" airline but prices are not as good as they once were.

 

[PsycProfPlum]

Just a note of caution with frontier. Last March my family of four had a flight to MCO out of Raleigh on Frontier. Two hours before departure, Frontier cancelled the flight without explanation. They refunded us the cost of the tickets but left us high and dry with no way to get to Disney. The first flight they could get us on was a full week later! Obviously same day tickets on another airline were ridiculously expensive so we ended up having to drive and lost the day because we were unexpectedly in the car. Never again will I book with Frontier.

 

[_19disnA]

Have flown quite a bit with both Frontier & Southwest. With any airline, you have to add up the cost of ALL extras (seats, luggage fees, snacks.....etc.) to compare total costs. Frontier runs a lot of 'specials', but then the other fees get tacked on and you aren't really saving that much. Haven't had issues with either Frontier or Southwest. If you travel in bad weather, your flight could be delayed in a connecting city and no airline has any control over that.

It is generally good to compare TOTAL costs among the various airlines who are traveling to where you want to go to make the best decision.

 

[michelb]

The only other fee I can think of is the fee to pick your seats. (It is not like Southwest- you get assigned seats.) I didn’t want to risk not being seated next to my kids.

Look into it but I believe airlines must seat you next to young children (probably 12 or 14 and under). We've never flown Frontier but have flown with Allegiant many times and that's what they always do. Having said that, if you are 2 adults and 2 kids, it's very likely that you'll get 2 seats together somewhere plus 2 seats together somewhere else. If you want all 4 seats together, you will have to pay for seat selection.

For the OP, I suspect they also allow families with young children to board ahead of time (we actually always wait until the last minute anyways because it's hard enough keeping the kids in the seats while the plane is in the air let alone on the ground).

 

[MarBee]

Look into it but I believe airlines must seat you next to young children (probably 12 or 14 and under). We've never flown Frontier but have flown with Allegiant many times and that's what they always do. Having said that, if you are 2 adults and 2 kids, it's very likely that you'll get 2 seats together somewhere plus 2 seats together somewhere else. If you want all 4 seats together, you will have to pay for seat selection.

For the OP, I suspect they also allow families with young children to board ahead of time (we actually always wait until the last minute anyways because it's hard enough keeping the kids in the seats while the plane is in the air let alone on the ground).

There was some talk of a law trying to get passed that would require parents to sit with children but nothing has happened yet as far as I know...

 

[maxiesmom]

There was some talk of a law trying to get passed that would require parents to sit with children but nothing has happened yet as far as I know...

Nope, it is not any sort of law or rule. If you have to pay to pick your seats you need to do so, even if you have kids.

 

[MrsM]

We've flown Frontier and Southwest several times from PHL - on our last trip we were able to get flights to MCO on Frontier for $20/pp one way. My kids are teenagers so I figured they could fend for themselves if we didn't get seated together but we did get seats together at no charge when checking in 24 hours ahead of time. Each person took the one personal item onboard (kids took their backpacks) and we paid for one large checked bag that weighed pretty close to the 50 lb allowable - total cost for 6 people to fly one way less than $175. We took SW home since the prices on that day were similar and we preferred their flight time. I wouldn't hesitate to fly Frontier again knowing that it's "no frills" at best.

 

[wendow]

Look into it but I believe airlines must seat you next to young children (probably 12 or 14 and under). We've never flown Frontier but have flown with Allegiant many times and that's what they always do. Having said that, if you are 2 adults and 2 kids, it's very likely that you'll get 2 seats together somewhere plus 2 seats together somewhere else. If you want all 4 seats together, you will have to pay for seat selection.

For the OP, I suspect they also allow families with young children to board ahead of time (we actually always wait until the last minute anyways because it's hard enough keeping the kids in the seats while the plane is in the air let alone on the ground).

I don't believe there is any law. There was some talk but nothing ever passed in terms of legislation. Funny/weird story...we flew Frontier last summer to TX, and on the way back, I notice the guy behind me just standing in front of the seat, kind of crouched down, but not sitting. There is a baby (12mos or so) strapped into a car seat in the window seat. A lady comes up and says that is her seat (the middle one where the guy was kind of standing). He tells her that he is sitting several rows further up but his dd (the baby) is in the window seat. He starts telling the lady that she has her pacifier but would she mind getting it for her if it falls out and she can't reach it, telling her he will bring a snack back during the flight, baby flies often and always does well, etc. This lady is like so she stares at the guy for a minute, you know completely dumbfounded, and then offers to switch seats lol. The dad gladly did so but I was blown away that he or Frontier would have been ok with that plan!

 

[kymom99]

I don't believe there is any law. There was some talk but nothing ever passed in terms of legislation. Funny/weird story...we flew Frontier last summer to TX, and on the way back, I notice the guy behind me just standing in front of the seat, kind of crouched down, but not sitting. There is a baby (12mos or so) strapped into a car seat in the window seat. A lady comes up and says that is her seat (the middle one where the guy was kind of standing). He tells her that he is sitting several rows further up but his dd (the baby) is in the window seat. He starts telling the lady that she has her pacifier but would she mind getting it for her if it falls out and she can't reach it, telling her he will bring a snack back during the flight, baby flies often and always does well, etc. This lady is like so she stares at the guy for a minute, you know completely dumbfounded, and then offers to switch seats lol. The dad gladly did so but I was blown away that he or Frontier would have been ok with that plan!

I've heard similar stories where parents didn't pay to preselect seats and just expected random strangers to look after their children. I can't even imagine!

 

[wendow]

I've heard similar stories where parents didn't pay to preselect seats and just expected random strangers to look after their children. I can't even imagine!

That is just beyond crazy! I'm sure you are right that people do this but I'd never seen it before. I literally could not believe what he was asking of this lady. And not a 4-5-6yo but a baby! I can't even imagine either.

 

[NY Pirate Princess]

Frontier has just arrived at our airport last year with direct flights to MCO. I am grateful for all of your horror stories of cancelled flights with no notification. I will stick with jetblue!

 

[ktlm]

When you are looking at Frontier-- there is one major thing to look at that can greatly affect your experience-- that is YOUR specific airport and your destination airport. You need to look at the number of flights to and from your destination- and whether they are daily or not. This is what will impact you in the event there is a problem with your flight. If you are in Denver- which is a hub- your experience will be very different from someone in Oklahoma City or Tulsa because there are usually Frontier flights every day from Denver to and from MCO or other locations. In OKC and Tulsa, there are only flights to and from MCO about 4 days a week for at least a good part of the year. There are less to and from some other locations.

I know people that have flown Frontier and love it because either 1. they have had no problems other than maybe a minor delay with their flights and it was cheap and direct; or 2. they were flying from a city where Frontier had a good number of flights to and from their designation so even though their flight was cancelled they got on another one within 24 hours. For those cities where there are as not as many flights- if your flight gets cancelled due to weather, mechanical issues etc.- you can have a big problem- it can be days before Frontier can get you to and from your destination. Part of what makes Frontier so cheap is that they have no agreements with other airlines, and will not rebook you on another airline if there are problems with your flight. I have a friend who was supposed to fly back from MCO on Frontier on a Monday-- her flight was cancelled. There was a Tuesday flight but it was already completely full, so she was told they could not get her on a flight home until Thursday. Her option was either stay until Thursday or to pay for and book a one way ticket with another airline on her own. Frontier will refund you the portion of your ticket for the cancelled flight, but that is all they will do for you. So, she got a very cheap price she had paid refunded-- but had to book a one way ticket at the last minute on a major airline for a high price to get home. We also had someone who was supposed to go to MCO on a Monday- but that flight was cancelled due to weather and the very next flight was not until Wednesday. Had the same thing happen recently, but due to a mechanical issue, to a friend flying to California. So-- the problem is that while everything is great if your flight leaves as scheduled-- if you have a significant enough weather or mechanical delay that your flight is cancelled, then you are going to have a big problem if you are in a City with a lower volume of Frontier flights to and from your destination. For some people it is worth the risk. Currently there is a sale where with the carry on price added, I could fly to and from my home to MCO on Frontier for $98-- typically unless you get lucky, with most other airlines it will be between $320 and $550. So it is a huge savings, especially when you are talking about a whole family flying- but it comes with risks.

 

[NYCDiane]

Bottom Line: you get what you pay for.

Fly a larger airline. Pay the extra money. Jet blue, delta, etc.

 

[Narnia_girl]

When you are looking at Frontier-- there is one major thing to look at that can greatly affect your experience-- that is YOUR specific airport and your destination airport. You need to look at the number of flights to and from your destination- and whether they are daily or not. This is what will impact you in the event there is a problem with your flight. If you are in Denver- which is a hub- your experience will be very different from someone in Oklahoma City or Tulsa because there are usually Frontier flights every day from Denver to and from MCO or other locations. In OKC and Tulsa, there are only flights to and from MCO about 4 days a week for at least a good part of the year. There are less to and from some other locations.

I know people that have flown Frontier and love it because either 1. they have had no problems other than maybe a minor delay with their flights and it was cheap and direct; or 2. they were flying from a city where Frontier had a good number of flights to and from their designation so even though their flight was cancelled they got on another one within 24 hours. For those cities where there are as not as many flights- if your flight gets cancelled due to weather, mechanical issues etc.- you can have a big problem- it can be days before Frontier can get you to and from your destination. Part of what makes Frontier so cheap is that they have no agreements with other airlines, and will not rebook you on another airline if there are problems with your flight. I have a friend who was supposed to fly back from MCO on Frontier on a Monday-- her flight was cancelled. There was a Tuesday flight but it was already completely full, so she was told they could not get her on a flight home until Thursday. Her option was either stay until Thursday or to pay for and book a one way ticket with another airline on her own. Frontier will refund you the portion of your ticket for the cancelled flight, but that is all they will do for you. So, she got a very cheap price she had paid refunded-- but had to book a one way ticket at the last minute on a major airline for a high price to get home. We also had someone who was supposed to go to MCO on a Monday- but that flight was cancelled due to weather and the very next flight was not until Wednesday. Had the same thing happen recently, but due to a mechanical issue, to a friend flying to California. So-- the problem is that while everything is great if your flight leaves as scheduled-- if you have a significant enough weather or mechanical delay that your flight is cancelled, then you are going to have a big problem if you are in a City with a lower volume of Frontier flights to and from your destination. For some people it is worth the risk. Currently there is a sale where with the carry on price added, I could fly to and from my home to MCO on Frontier for $98-- typically unless you get lucky, with most other airlines it will be between $320 and $550. So it is a huge savings, especially when you are talking about a whole family flying- but it comes with risks.

To your point, we have experienced how Southwest handles the same type of issue. Our "home" airport is St. Louis, but it is still a 2-hour drive south. We left home 3 hours ahead of time to drive our son to the airport after Thanksgiving break. He is a college student in Oklahoma City. Before we got to the airport St. Louis was hit with a brief sleet storm. Cars in the ditch all over the place and traffic at a standstill. We were within view of the airport but could not get there in time. We called Southwest and they told us to go ahead and drop him off, that they would get him to OKC somehow. And they did. They put him on a plane to Dallas, where he had a layover, and then on a plane to OKC. It took longer, but he got there that same day. They fixed a problem, that wasn't their fault.

If you schedule is flexible, Frontier and Allegiant can be great bargains, but we won't fly them when time is important.

 

[Jannephotog]

I don't have a ton of experience flying to MCO but did a trip from Chattanooga to Sanford via Allegiant then back from MCO to Nashville. While Frontier was better than Allegiant, I was also on a trip that wasn't a stay on property but with friends and only took a really small amount of luggage. If I was looking at a more specific timeline with a little more stuff, like a RunDisney trip I'm planning February for Princess, I'm looking at prices on Southwest because of the two free bags & they don't seem to have as many delays. (Full disclosure: we'll probably wind up driving but never hurts to look at prices)

 

[michelb]

Nope, it is not any sort of law or rule. If you have to pay to pick your seats you need to do so, even if you have kids.

Thanks for the correction. It looks like the law has been passed by Congress for a year or two but rules haven't been established yet so you're right, airlines don't have to seat kids with a parent (which seems kind of strange since airlines have rules about unaccompanied minors) https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/11/flying-the-friendly-and-crowded-skies-with-kids-this-summer.html.

FWIW, we haven't flown with Frontier but we have flown many times with Allegiant wihtout selecting seats and one adult is always seated next to at least one child (usually it's 2 + 2 although I think we've also been split 3 + 1).

 

[MinnieMyers]

We fly Frontier, often. We just booked our 11th flight with them for our visit in Jan. They offer nonstop service from Cincinnati and we paid about 650 for all 6 of us with 2 checked bags roundtrip. We NEVER pay for seats when booking. We have yet to be separated. When flying with kids, they will not separate you from them if they are under a certain age. So even with all the fees, they were half the cost of the other airlines. However, they are not ALWAYS cheaper. When flying to PHX earlier this year, southwest actually beat them.