www.CostaRicaTicas.com

Man, sorry to hear what happened. Unbelievable! Just a refund...who cares. Your whole vacation is ruined, unless you were able to book on another airline, one that actually flies their planes to the destination promised.

Enough said about this airline.

It wouldn't surprise me Indeed, Spirit sucks on many different levels.
Coming soon...charges to use the toilets...must be charged to a credit card

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"In a nation ruled by swine, all pigs are upwardly mobile, and the rest of us are phucked until we can put our acts together; not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely"...Hunter S. Thompson (RIP)

You know, I used to hate on them as well, but once I started using them I began to appreciate their fee methods. Because of them I travel light, and usually incur no extra charges. They are fast to upgrade me to an emergency isle seat, and so far they haven't been late.

I doubt that Spirit themselves cancelled a flight that was already on the tarmac. That is expensive, and leads to refunds which isn't their typical M.O. Of course it's just easier to blame the airline, and I had to listen to people on the last trip blaming Spirit for the cancelled flights due to the volcano itself.

This May trip is through Jetblue. I get one free checked bag, and as I wanted a second, the cost for such is 3 times the Spirit fee. So I figured I'd just overload the first bag. Oh, the overweight fee is double the Spirit fee. Hmm, perhaps Spirit isn't the only 'fees,fees,fees' airline out there.

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bypassin' kinky, and usin' the whole chicken!!!

Sorry but the info regarding baggage fees is not accurate. First of all the weight for a Spirit bag is 40 lbs not 50 lbs as it would be on Jet Blue. Second, the 1st checked bag on Spirit is $21 if you are a member of there $9 fare club $30 if your not. This fee must be paid on line by the time you check in. Fees are higher if you pay at the airport. The 2nd checked bag is $31 is part of their club and $40 if not and this has to be done on line. If not on line then fees are higher. Spirit charges $26 for carry on if part of club $35 if not and this must be paid on line. Fees are higher if paid at the airport.

On the other hand JetBlue has free carry on and free first bag up to a 50 lb weight limit. (most people fit in here) The 2nd bag, also up to 50 lbs, cost $50 on Jet Blue. If you figure out the extra 20% per bag weight plus free carry on most of us would be better off on Jet Blue. Jet Blue will give you a free soft drink or water Spirit charges $3.00 or more for that. The same for snacks. Jet Blue does not play games with it's customers Spirit is nothing but a game.

Also worth mentioning on Jetblue you are actually comfortable in your seat unlike Spirit where your knees are tight against the seat in front of you. Also the free TV in US Airspace and complimentary movies on your own personal screen is a huge perk.

Bud, compare apples to apples. The ticket price is $100 less on Spirit. So factor in the $21 dollar checked bag fee. The second bag costs $19 MORE on Jetblue. Overweight bags cost $50 MORE on Jetblue.

My experiences have all been positive on Spirit up to now. But as always, YMMV.

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bypassin' kinky, and usin' the whole chicken!!!

[/quote]
Bud, compare apples to apples. The ticket price is $100 less on Spirit. So factor in the $21 dollar checked bag fee. The second bag costs $19 MORE on Jetblue. Overweight bags cost $50 MORE on Jetblue.

My experiences have all been positive on Spirit up to now. But as always, YMMV.[/quote]

Do you ever read and comprehend a post before you get so postwhore crazy you have to refute it? I said the information you posted concerning the baggage fees was inaccurate. I was not talking about the $100 difference in airfare. ONLY BAGGAGE FEES How much luggage do you think an average guy going to SJO carries ? I do not think 99% of the guys on CRT are that concerned about the price of a 3rd bag , do you?JetBlue has no carry on fees, and the first bag is free. How much more luggage do you think the average guy on this website is taking? Therefore for almost all of us there is no baggage fees when we use JetBlue.

Now to the other stuff, If you like being squeezed into a seat like a sardine fly Spirit. If you like a seat that does not recline then fly Spirit. If you like being charged $3.00 for a glass of water then fly Spirit. If you like being treated like dirt then fly Spirit.

Mike, you really take a narrow view of everything, don't you? Did it ever occur to you that the reduced price of the Spirit flights just might take into account the lack of 'free' baggage? Adding in the cost of a carry-on and a checked bag, and Spirit is still cheaper. And adding a second checked bag is way cheaper with Spirit.

Now, since I am not a large guy, the Spirit seats don't bother me. I am capable of bringing my own water and snacks on the flight, and as I just listen to music, the tv does nothing for me. Remember I fly from FLL, so a 3 hour flight is nothing to sit and relax. I suppose if I was coming from farther away, it might make a difference to me.

Look, I get it: you don't like Spirit. Fine. I have yet to have an issue with them. I prefer their bare-fare strategy, because I am in control of the overall costs based upon what I decide to bring. Oh, and to your snarky remark about the 'average guy', I have no idea what others bring. I happen to bring stuff for friends living there, and occasionally it amounts to a lot of stuff. And that is why I am familiar with the 'second bag' fees with both airlines.

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bypassin' kinky, and usin' the whole chicken!!!

Loco Mike, I have been a die hard Jetblue fan since my first trip to San Jose five years ago. On this forum, I have stated I wish they flew to all the destinations I travel to so I could fly them exclusively. Unfortunately, I think they are now taking advantage of their popularity. Their fares between Orlando and San Jose are no longer low-budget fares.

I will be traveling to San Jose later this month. The difference in fares between Jetblue and Spirit was $146 when I was searching at the end of March, beginning of April. My travel dates are very flexible, so I can look for the lowest fares available. The times of the flights are very close - Spirit arrives in San Jose 1 1/2 hours before Jetblue, and departs 40 minutes before. I have a connection in Ft Lauderdale on Spirit and Jetblue is direct. I have to leave Orlando earlier and will arrive later on Spirit, but that time is not important to me. The only extra fees I pay on Spirit is for a checked bag. I take snacks from home and buy a bottle of water in Ft Lauderdale for $2. I fly Spirit to/from Medellin and on 15 trips, I have been assigned a middle seat only one time. I admit the leg room on Spirit is short, but I have endured worse things for three hours.

If Jetblue would adjust their fares to be closer to Spirit's, I would return to Jetblue without hesitation. But as long as I can save $100 on airfare, I will fly Spirit.

I loosely compare Spirit's business plan to a sporting event - if you want good seats, food, valet parking, etc, you have to pay extra for all of those.

what sucks mostly for you guys is that on many occasion I pay less for a direct flight from newark than many pay for a direct from MIA orFLL...

once i paid less for a EWR-FLL-SJO than alot of people on the FLL-SJO leg did....

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its easier to fool people than to convince them they have been fooled- mark twain

GDJ: I have also noticed a difference in Jet Blue fares going to SJO and in my case SDQ. I also understand that if you can save a lot of $$$ Spirit becomes a viable option even with the tricky fares and baggage fees system.

BD: I know better than to get into a post war with a post whore. All I will say is that I was commenting on baggage fees only. Almost none of us carry 2-3 bags therefore any savings for this do not effect most of us. If traveling with one bag at 50 lbs or less, plus one carry on then most of us will incur no baggage fees on Jet Blue. People who bring large items such as a set of golf clubs or a surf board know they will have to pay extra.

As to Spirit the old "TEHO" applies.

How do you justify throwing insults at other members that simply do not agree with your POV?

What exactly is a "post whore"? Someone who whores themselves for 'posts'? A post that whores itself?

If my presence on the forum disturbs you so much, then block me and you will never again have to see anything that I post. That should make you happy, huh?

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bypassin' kinky, and usin' the whole chicken!!!

Exactly. But, as GoodDayJohn pointed out, JetBlue has indeed raised their fares the past year or so, and can no longer be considered a low-budget airline

Possibly coming to Spirit soon...

Besides a TU (toilet usage) fee, an EBM (excess body mass) fee may be implemented.
A passenger may be charged $3 for every pound over 250. Hence, a person that weighs 300 would be charged an extra $150. They may justify it by stating that weight is a major factor in determining their overall fuel cost.

...it's their business model

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"In a nation ruled by swine, all pigs are upwardly mobile, and the rest of us are phucked until we can put our acts together; not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely"...Hunter S. Thompson (RIP)

It has been announced that Jet Blue is going to add 15 seats to their A320 fleet , so that means less legroom ( still more than Spirit) and also announced a new pricing structure based on the amount of bags you are checking.

http://time.com/money/3595360/jetblue-f ... room-hate/

It all depends on what is important to you, money or space.

From the article, regarding JetBlue...
"The real heartbreaker to travelers is likely to be the new “Fare Families” structure, which consists of three bundled options that travelers must choose from when booking a flight. At the low end of the pricing spectrum, tickets do not include a checked bag. Passengers who pay higher fares are entitled to checked bags (one at the middle level, two at the high end), and also get bonus loyalty points."

That is disconcerting. Have they instituted the new fare structure? Are they now charging for the first checked bag?

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"In a nation ruled by swine, all pigs are upwardly mobile, and the rest of us are phucked until we can put our acts together; not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely"...Hunter S. Thompson (RIP)