When booking a trip, I always look for non-stop flights on a major carrier. If it’s not non-stop, I always look for the one with a smart connection, meaning, I look for a stop that’s on the way to my final destination, not two hours north and then to the west, or passing the destination and then going back. I almost always pack everything in my carry-on. Welp, I learned a lesson…
Waking up Naked in Vegas
I had a rough week. I threw my back out over the weekend which had me cranky and stressed with this upcoming trip. I have been so excited about having the opportunity to speak at NMX this year in not one but two sessions. That’s exciting for me especially because I am where I am today because of NMX, which was formally called BlogWorld. But that’s another story….
So with my back out, and the decision to save Global Resort Homes some money, my IT Director and I booked our flights with Spirit Airlines, saved us a ton of money. That’s great right? Well, it all got interesting from there. I quickly learned how each seat costs money to reserve, ok, I’ll spend a little more for the exit row, so fair enough. But seat prices start at $5 per seat, so if you are traveling with your family, yes, you guessed it, you have to pay for the seats to sit together.
Then for checking in bags, it costs money, but that is typical on most airlines these days, so ok, I will accept that too. However, I do normally bring a carry on bag anyway, but if I chose to do that on this trip, it would have cost me as well. YES, Spirit charges for carry on luggage too. They don’t serve any food or drinks without a cost. Yes, even drinks. And I am not referring to adult alcohol beverages…even just a soda.
We provide a variety of food and drinks that can be purchased using a debit or credit card (no cash is accepted). Please view our menu.
Please note that we do not offer any special dietary meals; however, our menu selection still provides a range of options that should meet most dietary requirements.Information from – http://customersupport.spirit.com
This might not matter to others, but for me, I really appreciate having some time to work while on a plane. Spirit does not have wifi. Not the end of the world, but it is definitely something to note if you do care about staying connected while in the air.
OK, so that’s that stuff, but let me share the actual experience from check in at the Orlando airport to arriving to the final destination in Las Vegas.
Once arriving to the Orlando airport, I was pleasantly surprised that the line to check in wasn’t too bad. Compared to United and US Airways check-in counter lines, I was happy to know I’d be done in about 10 minutes. The flight I was to be on was delayed giving me about a 30 minute connection time in Dallas. I asked the nice guy behind the counter if I’d make it, and he reassured me that I would make the connection without a problem. By the time I got to the gate it showed that the flight was delayed again with the landing time being 11:05 pm and the connecting flight leaving at 11:09 pm. I was just a little nervous, but figured, it would all work out, Until we arrived there was was no reason to worry (and the medicine for my back kicked in and all I wanted to do was sleep anyway).
The plane was nice, not fancy but clean, nice size seats, and the flight attendants seemed very nice. No complaints. While in the air, the flight crew eased any concern I had about missing the connecting flight by letting us know that they were the same crew that was going to be on the Vegas flight, so we would make the flight.
The flight was fine, plenty of people took out their cc for snacks and/or drinks. When we landed we sat on the runway for a bit, waiting to taxi to the gate. We couldn’t get to the gate for there was another plane in our spot. So we waited. A while, a good 10-15 min. Then when we finally got to the gate we were able to stretch our legs and had about 40 minutes before we boarded the connecting flight. All again seemed fine. Exhausted and hurting, I just wanted a shower and bed.
So, we arrived in Las Vegas and can you believe the same thing happened at the gate? We sat on the plane waiting for another plane in the gate to leave. The first time it was weird, I hadn’t had that happen before, but again? So it took about an hour to get to baggage claim from the time we landed. So when one by one bags were dropping out of the shoot onto the baggage belt, and suddenly about 50 of us are standing there, and no more bags were coming out. I knew…we all knew. But wait, there were a bunch of us. It didn’t take a minute for all of use to realize we are all the ones from the Orlando flight to Vegas. Yes, Spirit didn’t put any of our luggage on the plane. So needless to say there were a bunch of very unhappy people. And it was obvious that the reps from Spirit weren’t very happy either. They were crabby and really didn’t care about much more than getting us out of the office. When I asked what kind of compensation they could offer for losing our luggage, the rep said, and I quote, “we have given you a $25 credit for your next flight with us.” Seriously? So my response? “So you are going to credit me almost what it cost to check in a bag to chance to lose it again?” I was tired, hurting and frustrated.
So I bought some toiletries….
Made it to my room – Thank goodness it was nice. (Rio has newly renovated rooms!)
Woke up looking like a crazy person….
And at 4:00 pm I finally received my bag!
So bring on NMX – and maybe it will be safe for me to chance my luck at a table or two. 😉
Moral of the story? I guess it is to stick to my normal rule of thumb. Always pack a carry on bag, even if it’s with the essentials, I would have been much happier. I will try to always have a nonstop flight, but still pack a carry on. And most importantly, I will never fly Spirit ever again.
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I almost always fly American…and I am going to Vegas for CES on Monday, and the only flights available were for Delta, with connections. I am seriously bringing only the necessities because I refuse to check a bag because I KNOW they will lose my luggage. I am glad your luggage finally made it to you!
Oh my! We travel a lot and have never had our luggage lost thankfully. That being said, I always have at least one outfit and my toiletries in a carry-on whenever I have a connecting flight. I usually don’t bother with a direct flight, I take my chances that my bag never made it on the plane for those. I’ve never flown Spirit before…not sure I want to now either.
Oh my gosh!!! I would lose it. I am already a super nervous flyer, so anything added to that is too much. lol I hate when they nickel and dime you for everything, too. I haven’t flown anything but Southwest in a really long time. Once I was without my luggage for 4 days in Aruba, though. They put my bag on a cruise ship! That sucked!! Good lesson to learn, though — keep at least some essentials in the carry on.
Yes, I love Southwest too!
Oh wow. What an ordeal. My daddy always told me never to take any bags other than a carry on. lol. He doesn’t realize that sometimes, women require more than will fit.
Haha well just remember that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas
Growing up in Maine, there was almost no way out of the state unless it was through Logan Airport. Any time I checked a bag, it never arrived with me, and once never arrived at all. So when I started traveling for business, I learned to pack everything into a single carryon. I never want to run the risk of not having my stuff arrive; I’ve stood with that sick-to-my-stomach feeling at those counters too many times!
I’m glad your bag arrived! Hope you have a great time in Vegas and definitely visit a table 😉
oh my! I hope the rest of NMX goes amazing! We do not have Spirit airlines at our airport and I am pretty happy about that after reading your post.
I have never had to pay for a carry on bag. I would be a bit angry if they told me I had to pay to carry my purse and computer on board.
That’s unfortunate that you had such a bad experience with that flight service! It just goes to show that you learned many things on this trip, one of which is how you’ll be skipping Spirit in the future. Lol
All in all I’m glad you had a good time despite the setbacks! And at least your bag was returned to you safe and sound 🙂
This is the #1 thing I fear when flying…not having my bags! We are headed to Vegas in March. I *think* we have direct flight so I hope my bags make it too!
I’ve never flown them, but I’ve heard awful reviews of Spirit Airlines. And one of the main reasons is the expense for families with all the extra charges. Glad to hear your luggage finally showed up! Hopefully you’ll have a better experience when you fly home.
Sorry you’ve had such a bad experience! I have had this happen before and now I always carry my essentials, including a change of clothes in my carry-on.
Sounds like a mess! I am always worried about bags getting lost, but it is too bad the airline wasn’t more helpful
This happened to me and my hubby before we were married. We took a trip to Cancun. Got there and no luggage. They told us the luggage was separated from our plane and placed on another plane and we would get them later that evening. Really!! Why? In the meantime we were in Cancun in 90 some degree temps with our winter clothing on. I refused to spend a dime on clothing at that resort. Finally our luggage arrived later that night. I had never been happier to see a suitcase before in my life, I wanted to hug it.
I’ve had big delays consistently on Spirit. Though if there’s a straight flight and I”m flying alone, I’m usually okay with it (because I expect it).
I haven’t taken them for a good long while though because customer service was so not good the last time. And phft to the carry on charge, I don’t like that at all, but I remember it was like that when I was on Spirit too.
My big beef with airlines, and I blogged about it once and most people agreed, and many said it had happened to them too, is that airlines are not seating parents with children…small children, and then they are expecting them to fly. I flat out refused to not fly next to my 5yr old on our connecting flight home from Chicago last year (on an international flight). It got a little ugly. Why it’s even considered okay at all baffles me. Why it’s becoming very common makes me astounded/irate.
Sorry to hear about your back!
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Hi… Dear
What a great post.
Hi, Dear very helpful post. thanks for sharing
Hi Dear, What a great post. thanks
Hi dear, What a great post.thanks
Hello Dear, Sounds like a mess! I am always worried about bags getting lost, but it is too bad the airline wasn’t more helpful
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It seems messy… anyway you received your bag that’s great. by the way loved reading the blog.