Spirit: DCA-FLL $92 all in (+ $40 membership)
 

I'm a little reluctant to mention these guys, but the fare is certainly cheap. You have to join their "$9 fare club" (good for a year) to buy these seats, and then they're $92 roundtrip all in. Some availability in June and July, and wide open for several months thereafter.

Obviously a better deal if you're going multiple times or with a group (one membership covers you and anyone you're flying with). Roundtrip purchase seems to be required.

Given how high the prices are on "real airlines" this summer, this could be a plausible alternative. Keep in mind there's a potential pilot's strike this month, though, and that beginning Aug. 1 there's a carry-on bag fee for larger items.

They do have a (complicated?) ff program, but I haven't yet invested the time to see if there are any worthwhile award possibilities.

Spirit also offers other cheapo city pairs through their fare club, but this one seems a bit unique in its easy availability and potentially broad appeal.

Spirit pilots are going on strike next Saturday.

Caveat emptor.

If I were needing to go DCA-FLL I'd probably go US, they're only $174 all in on some dates (not to mention they have a real, straightforward FF program), and you can carry on a bag for free (though still checked bag fees).

Yeah, if you were only going to buy 1 ticket on Spirit, it doesn't make much sense. But if you're flying back and forth frequently, or taking a family, it makes a lot of sense.

I haven't followed the Spirit pilots dispute carefully, so I don't know if it's an "Eastern Airlines-like" situation. Otherwise, common sense would suggest that both sides will come to some sort of agreement in this economy. Worse case scenario, you get your money back from your credit card company and fly somebody else. Of course, I wouldn't book for next weekend (and I don't think you can with this fare).

Since this is more of an add-on or generally cheap seats deal rather than a true MR opportunity, I've moved this to Budget Travel.

Unless it's a useful mileage run 'Deal', such fares will be moved to Budget Travel, however it's OK to leave the deal heading as a long-term redirect, so that such threads can still be seen in a MR Deals thread title search.

I've left a month's redirect, so that it stays in the forum as a link for the month.

BiziBB, Moderator Mileage Run forums