Rolling the dice
 

Alright Frontier loyalists, I'd love some advice...

I'm EXP on AA, but for an upcoming wedding this summer, I found a fare that's @$300 cheaper on Frontier for two tickets (technically it's a Midwest flight, but on Frontier metal). I normally wouldn't even consider this, but $300 pays for a couple nights of hotel stay. Here's how I see it:

Pros: Savings
Cons: Slightly further drive (MKE is about 45 mins further drive for me versus ORD); less flight options, need to go carry-on only to avoid fees, no upgrades to first, no mileage credits, less flight options if I get stuck, more feeling of being treated like cattle =)

Maybe I'm nuts to even think about this, but thought I'd see if there's anyone out there in Flyertalkland with some perspective. I've never flown Frontier, so any thoughts from loyalists is appreciated.

Frontier is way[I]better than AA. If you can book on frontierairlines.com you can get Classic ticket which includes 2 free bags, free TV on Airbus flights, and you can upgrade to Stretch seats for 15.00 per flight per person. Frontier has newer planes, friendlier flight personnel, and the ground personnel are much more flexible than AA.

I think you pretty much covered it. The question is how much do _you_ value those benefits?


(On the bright side, if you prefer to think this way, feel free:
They'd LOVE to give you a free upgrade to first; it's just that all the first class seats (yes, all 0 of them) are already booked up...)

;)

The last Frontier flights I was on (last weekend) offered optional free bag checking to anyone interested (once you made it to the gate, of course) due to onboard-space-limitations/full-flight, btw...

Only you can really place value on what matters to you most...

But as a DL Diamond who's flown Frontier many times and used the MKE airport plenty, I think you'll be pleased with F9. The baggage fees are an annoyance and I don't blame you there...as a previous poster noted you might want to check the Classic fare price; I've found sometimes it's not a heck of a lot more and you get free bags and other perks.

As for onboard, I think you'll really enjoy Frontier. It's not first class but the seats are 18 inches wide (vs 17), legroom is pretty good, you get live TV and the flight attendants have always been among the best I've had.

Frontier is a good airline and if I lived in DEN, I'd fly them a heck of a lot more...

I have status on both (Plat on AA, Summit on F9).

One big difference between F9 and AA is that, as EXP, you get unlimited upgrade to 1st class. There is no F on frontier, they are all coach.

Pluses on the F9:

* They have stretch seating, similar to E+ on UA. There is no stretch on AA. At 6'5", I need that :) I believe it's a $25 upgrade fee, but it's free if you have status. Well worth the fee IMO.

* IFE is great. As a summit, I get complimentary TV, but I used to pay for it BS (before status). Used to be $5, but I think it's $6 now. No TV on AA (though you do have WiFi on some flights).

* More generous with carry-on than AA (bag dimensions for the sizer are larger)

* Planes are newer and cleaner (though I personally like the quiet ride of the MD80 in F).

So if it was me: $300 is a good chunk of change. I'd do F9 and pay the $25 each way to upgrade to stretch. As an added bonus, they usually let stretch seating pre-board, so you're guaranteed to have overhead space. Not sure if that's standard policy, but that's usually what I see when they start boarding is that stretch pre-boards with their elites. So that makes it $250 in savings instead of $300.

If you can't get stretch, then I'd stay with AA if you have good success upgrading to F out of ORD.

F9, no contest. Not a fan of AA, their 55+ yr old FAs, 30 yr old MD80s, and generic brand. It's only one domestic itinerary, so not sure where the struggle is. In this example, money savings wins. Hopefully your F9 experience is a good one.

+1

If you take a look at the "Classic" fare, you will see that you are getting more for less. For example, if you book the "Classic" fare and check two bags, you have most likely already gone over the extra difference between the Regular and "Classic". Free DirecTV is always a plus, just bring your own headphones. As others have mentioned, I have also found F9 to have some of the friendlies FAs! They have constantly gone out of their way to help me in the past!

Bottom Line: FLY F9!!

Frontier is great. I fly it whenever I can. One additional benefit is the ability to buy DirectTV in coach for $5 per flight. Bring a headphone splitter to share a screen with your flying partner.