Save $ by purchasing Spirit ticket at airport

I just found this out.

Spirit charges $16.99 per person/each way to book your flight over the internet. This fee is not charged if you purchase your ticket at the airport.

Has anyone done this?

Any problem buying your tickets at the same time they are checking people in for a flight?

Any problem buying your tickets at the same time they are checking people in for a flight?

I just found this out.

Spirit charges $16.99 per person/each way to book your flight over the internet. This fee is not charged if you purchase your ticket at the airport.

Has anyone done this?

 

Any problem buying your tickets at the same time they are checking people in for a flight?

This poster means actually driving to the airport, standing in line and purchasing their ticket on Spirit, not necessarily for same day travel.

Yes, Spirit charges a "Passenger Usage Fee" ranging from $8.99 to $16.99 each way for purchasing online. No, I've never flown Spirit and don't intend to, but there shouldn't be any problem purchasing at the airport.

After you factor in the price of gas, wear and tear on your car, the fee to park your car at the airport, how long you are going to stand in line to do this, and whatever you think your time is worth, I wouldn't even consider this option.

This poster means actually driving to the airport, standing in line and purchasing their ticket on Spirit, not necessarily for same day travel.

It was the reference to "at the same time they are checking people in for a flight" that puzzled me. Surely you should be able to buy a ticket at the airport whenever the ticket desk is open, not only when check-in is being done for a flight?

Yes, but am guessing (Spirit does not fly to/from SEA) that the ticket counters are manned only around times when people would be checking in for a flight; not all day.

Why do people fly Spirit, Frontier, Ryan, etc.? By the time they nickel and dime you to death with their insipid fees, you could have had a much less hassle free flight at the same cost on pretty much anyone else.

Doesn't matter much. This is just the first fee you will trying to get out of if you are flying spirit.

Yes, I did mean buying the ticket ahead of time.

I know all about Spirit. However, I would be flying them from Ft. Myers to Atlantic City. They are the only airline that flies into Atlantic City from Ft. Myers. I could, of course, fly into Philadelphia, pay more, get a connecting flight instead of direct and then rent a car to drive to AC and then have to do the same in reverse.

So instead I'll take my chances with Spirit. Ft. Myers airport isn't that far from us. We'll go there, have lunch in our favorite restaurant and save $67.96. Some seem to think that makes us cheap. :confused:

I did do some research before asking here, and that's why I asked about purchasing the tickets while they were boarding flights because someone did say they were not able to do it at one airport during the very busy time.

We'll go there, have lunch in our favorite restaurant and save $67.96. Some seem to think that makes us cheap. :confused:

 

I did do some research before asking here, and that's why I asked about purchasing the tickets while they were boarding flights because someone did say they were not able to do it at one airport during the very busy time.

No one said you were "cheap".

It is possible that you would not be able to purchase a ticket when the agents are very busy. I have seen this at the UA counter in SEA. Agents were in a hurry to get people checked in so they could make their flight, and they were not selling tickets at that time. What Spirit's policies are, I have no idea.

It is possible that you would not be able to purchase a ticket when the agents are very busy. I have seen this at the UA counter in SEA. Agents were in a hurry to get people checked in so they could make their flight, and they were not selling tickets at that time. What Spirit's policies are, I have no idea.

I have no idea either, but I speculate Spirit has some internal policy that gives in-person ticket purchases last priority. It's more costly than an online purchase and they lose the revenue from online booking fees. The choice may boil down to spending an hour at the airport (plus round trip drive time) versus a few minutes online.

Curiously the boarding pass policy is exactly the opposite...no fee online, a fee to use a kiosk at the airport, and highest if an agent issues the BP.

Why do people fly Spirit, Frontier, Ryan, etc.? By the time they nickel and dime you to death with their insipid fees, you could have had a much less hassle free flight at the same cost on pretty much anyone else.

It depends. Spirit just started flying to KC and I keep looking at the flights to Chicago, where I go frequently to visit family. Sometimes they're cheaper, sometimes not. But times are perfect for me, personally. So it's a matter of doing all of the math (ALL), and determining. I have a feeling I'll be flying them at some point.

So instead I'll take my chances with Spirit. Ft. Myers airport isn't that far from us. We'll go there, have lunch in our favorite restaurant and save $67.96. Some seem to think that makes us cheap. :confused:

If you're buying lunch to justify the trip to the airport, then you probably have to deduct the price of lunch from teh $67.96 to determine your true "savings." ;)

 

Curiously the boarding pass policy is exactly the opposite...no fee online, a fee to use a kiosk at the airport, and highest if an agent issues the BP.

As a customer, it's a lot faster and easier to buy a ticket online instead of taking the time to drive to the airport. Spirit knows almost everyone will do that even with a fee, so it's just an way for them to add revenue.

Checking in is different. There's no real advantage to the passenger checking in at home, because they have to drive to the airport anyway. If it's cheaper to check in at home, most would do that. If it's cheaper to check in at the airport, most would do that. So Spirit knows that if they make it attractive to check in at the airport desk, most will do that and that would result in very long lines of passengers who are now griping about missing their flight because there aren't enough agents to process everyone. My guess is Spirit would prefer to avoid that mess so they give the incentive to print your boarding pass at home.

If you're buying lunch to justify the trip to the airport, then you probably have to deduct the price of lunch from teh $67.96 to determine your true "savings." ;)

 

 

 

Actually, I would be having lunch anyway, whether out in Ft. Myers, or in Punta Gorda, or Port Charlotte, or home. And DH and I both are in the market for new vehicles, so we would hit the car dealers that are not in Punta Gorda.

 

 

You know, not one person answered my question about whether they have purchased their Spirit tickets at the airport. Never mind, I'll ask elsewhere.

If you're buying lunch to justify the trip to the airport, then you probably have to deduct the price of lunch from teh $67.96 to determine your true "savings." ;)

 

 

 

Actually, I would be having lunch anyway, whether out in Ft. Myers, or in Punta Gorda, or Port Charlotte, or home. And DH and I both are in the market for new vehicles, so we would hit the car dealers that are not in Punta Gorda.

 

 

You know, not one person answered my question about whether they have purchased their Spirit tickets at the airport. Never mind, I'll ask elsewhere.

 

 

I'm guessing no one has answered that they have because for most people, the hassle and expense exceeds doing it online and paying the fee.

You know, not one person answered my question about whether they have purchased their Spirit tickets at the airport. Never mind, I'll ask elsewhere.

 

True, but probably better than 0 replies to your original post and the sound of crickets. :)

LOL! I guess so.

 

Actually, I would be having lunch anyway, whether out in Ft. Myers, or in Punta Gorda, or Port Charlotte, or home. And DH and I both are in the market for new vehicles, so we would hit the car dealers that are not in Punta Gorda.

 

Well, lunch at home is usually a lot less expensive than lunch in a restaurant. But if you'd likely be eating out anyway then sure, the savings you quoted is accurate, and you can combine the trip with other errands, then you're not really wasting gas, so go for it. I would check the Spirit departure schedule for that day though, and try to time your airport arrival to a time that the Spirit desk will likely be manned. Ex. If there's a 12:00 flight and the next departure isn't until 4:00, it's a pretty safe bet that if you get there at 12:30, there may not be anyone from Spirit to help you. My home airport only has about 3 daily departures on AA (well, that's changing now they're merging with US) so frequently when I arrive for my DL flight there is absolutely no one at the AA desk.

I think this probably falls into the same category as those people who drive 50 miles roundtrip to save 5 cents per gallon on fuel.

You know, FBGD, before this thread I hadn't posted on Cruise Critic for a couple of months.

A post like yours (piling on, thinking you are so clever) reminds me why I stayed away.

You know, not one person answered my question about whether they have purchased their Spirit tickets at the airport. Never mind, I'll ask elsewhere.

Sorry, can't give you a definitive answer as there is no Spirit presence at my home airport. But, I don't know why you can't purchase a ticket if the counter is open. I tell you to call them and ask, but they'll probably charge you :).

You know, FBGD, before this thread I hadn't posted on Cruise Critic for a couple of months.

 

A post like yours (piling on, thinking you are so clever) reminds me why I stayed away.

Unfortunately it is a very tough crowd in the Cruise Air forum as you have found out.

I have indeed flown Spirit at least three times and each time it was WAY cheaper than any other option. Even with extra fees (that I didn't pay in my cases), they can often still be substantially cheaper than other options. Comparison shopping is key. So is knowing what the true end cost will be.

Regarding purchasing at the airport, I am too far from the airport to make it worth it to me, but if it were me, I would look at Spirit's schedule to/from Ft. Myers and find out a good time to go maybe 1/2 hour before a flight is schedule to. Most people will have checked in 1/2 hour before flight departure so they might be slower and it might be better. Or perhaps an hour or 90 minutes before a scheduled arrival is also a good time.

Apparently some people here never eat out (or make such snide remarks just to keep up the tone of the Cruise Air form :) ). But if you want to eat out in Ft. Myers vs. somewhere closer to your home - or even if you didn't - who really cares? Thanks for coming to the forum to post your question in spite of the many non-answers you received.

I did a Google search and there are a few forums and travel articles that are close to your original question. As FYI, it sounds like online fares are not available at the airport. The dollar amounts are occasionally the same, but the norm is the "airport" fare is quite a bit higher. So, it's going to be hit-and-miss which will have the cheapest bottom line.

Definitely let us know the outcome!

You know, FBGD, before this thread I hadn't posted on Cruise Critic for a couple of months.

 

A post like yours (piling on, thinking you are so clever) reminds me why I stayed away.

It is sort of tough love. There is so much bad info on this section of the website about air fares and airlines that sometimes it takes some direct (and not so nice) posts to get the correct info into some folks heads. There are a few folks who post in this section on a regular basis trying to correct bad info and some folks just don't want to hear anything that doesn't jive with what they want to hear and take it as being "rude or mean". (and while I am not the expert many on here are, I do fly as much as I can (I do it for fun.....did a IAH-ATL up and back last Wed (had a nice lunch at longhorn steakhouse at the Atl airport) just to get some more miles to lock in elite status (aka milage run) so I have a little knowledge myself and have been accused of not being very nice)