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Allegiant Air

Discussion in 'Getting There & Getting Around' started by Tank45, Oct 15, 2014.

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  1. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    Noticed Allegiant Air has a flight out of Des Moines in December when I'm headed to Vegas. It is at a minimum at least half the price of all other one way flights (already booked a cheap return flight). That even includes Southwest. I've read a a lot of not good things about Allegiant, but then searches other airlines for comparison reviews and find bad reviews for others as well. QUESTION: can it really be that bad? It's a non stop flight, so that's also a plus. Can anyone sway me either way who should/shouldn't book with them?

    Thanks!
     
  2. 1LuckyMomma

    1LuckyMomma High-Roller

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    I personally like Allegiant. It's the cheapest for us here in our tiny town in Oregon. $300 RT for 2 with 1 checked bag. This time I didn't pay for assigned seats because I was being cheap. Hopefully DH and I will get to sit together. We'll see.
     
  3. luvlv

    luvlv Low-Roller

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    We always fly it out of Sioux Falls. It is by far the cheapest and it is non-stop, They pack you in the planes and nickel and dime you for everything on the flight. But nothing beats cheap and fast when you're going to Vegas.
     
  4. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    As far as pack you in, do you mean seating is smaller than other planes or they make sure to fully book flights? Seating wise only, how do they compare to other "regular" airlines, I'm a big guy.
     
  5. dfalk

    dfalk VIP Whale

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    When I started flying late I hated them cause they were always at least 30min-1.5 hours late. The last few times they have been on time and I've been very happy. If you don't care about luggage, priority boarding, assigned boarding or free snacks/drinks you're good to go.

    For my upcoming flight I paid $70 each way for a total of $140 RT. I added one checked bag for $36, and will book an exit seat on the return leg for $18, and usually buy a drink or 2 on the way down for another $10. That brings by grand total to $204 for a 1hr 45min direct flight. My next cheapest option is Alaska Airlines for $249 that has 1 stop and will take over 8 hours. Allegiant every single time for me.

    As far as being a big guy, I'm 5'11" around 175lbs, as far as width I'm comfortable in the seat, but leg room is pushing it a bit. Like I said my flights are under 2 hours which I can manage, if they were longer, say over 3hrs I would get pretty uncomfortable. On my flight home I always book an exit seat for the extra leg room (i'm so hungover and tired I want to be as comfortable as I can) I'd recommend at least getting an isle seat.
     
  6. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    Thanks for the info everyone. Allegiant it is!
     
  7. roycpa

    roycpa High-Roller

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    Several of my family fly Allegiant from Central IL to Fla and to LV - I don't. Most of their flights here are only once a day at best and two or three times a week at worst. If something happens to the plane you aren't delayed several hours, but several days! I think they do their best to maintain their fleet, but let's face it. They have the oldest fleet in the business. They use only planes that have been acquired from other airlines or elsewhere on the used equipment market. So if you need to be somewhere at a particular time, be careful.
     
  8. bjpcyclone

    bjpcyclone High-Roller

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    Before moving to Oklahoma last year, I flew Allegiant to Vegas out of Des Moines probably 10 times. Sure I've had a delay or two but nothing major. The best thing about Allegiant is the direct flight and the price. Before SW can to Des Moines, it was the only way to get to Vegas direct. I'd take SW over Allegiant unless the price was quite a bit less (plus you have to factor in bag fees/etc).
     
  9. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    Right now, including baggage fees and assigned seat paid, it is Allegiant $128 and Southwest $266!
     
  10. dmr

    dmr Registered Abuser

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    I'm p*ssed at Allegiant for pulling out of our area. They cited too much competition from Southwest. While they were around they were consistently the lowest.

    I still check their prices occasionally, even though the closest airports they fly out of are both over 100 miles away. Seems like lately the base fares are good, but when you add the nickel-dime fees they are not that much lower than US Air, which lately has been the cheapest for me to LAS.

    What scares me, however, are some of the horror stories our in-house TA at work told me. With other airlines, if they cancel, most will bend over backwards to get you there, even booking you on a competitor. With Allegiant, all they will do is refund your $$$, which takes 3-4 weeks. Also, when they pulled out of LNK, they changed all LNK reservations to GRI, which is 90 miles away from LINK with a very nonchalant letter. Apparently many people were showing up for a while only to find that their flight was a 1 1/2 hour drive away!

    My personal experience flying them has been good. They get there, and they are almost always on time.

    Minor annoyances are that almost all of their outbound flights from Las Vegas leave early in the morning, and you lose 1/2 day or so by taking them. Also, they seem to always cram on a shuttle service which is tricky to remove from your reservation.
     
  11. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    I'm gonna give it a try. From feedback here, sounds like the Des Moines flight should be "okay". Praying! Have a US Air flight back home as it had a much later departure time and was pretty cheap. All in all looking like there and back for under $300 including all fees. Couple that with 5 days/4 nights at CP for under $600 and I've got travel and room for under $900!
     
  12. bjpcyclone

    bjpcyclone High-Roller

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    That's a no brainer then! I've had near zero issues with Allegiant out of Des Moines.
     
  13. FullBoat

    FullBoat VIP Whale

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    I'm flying with them for the fist time on Monday. A co-worker used them a few months ago, and said it wasn't bad. Yeah, it was kind of cramped, but you're only on there for about 3 hours. And, it looks like they might be changing planes from Austin to Vegas. They use MD80's now, but I looked for March, and it has 3 seats on each side. The MD80 has 2 on one side, and 3 on the other. And, it looks like the price is still under $200 for a round trip. Can anyone say Vegas birthday?
     
  14. dylanfann

    dylanfann Tourist

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    I used Allegiant in the past, never had an issue. The last couple of years I flew with Frontier out of Milwaukee, because they were a bit better deal than Allegiant. I just booked a flight with Allegiant again. I could not pass up the price. Two adults and a checked bag was $340 total round trip price. I fly out of Appleton, so it is closer for me than Milw. The flight is direct, Frontier was not. So, I am going to try them again!
     
  15. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    Hope it works out for both of us!
     
  16. Wanger1969

    Wanger1969 Iowa Nice

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    I've flown Allegiant out of Des Moines for nearly every Vegas trip and also a couple of times to Florida. They are very timely on their flights, only dealing with one delay in the 10 or so times I've flown with them. (and it was a 30 minute delay) No frills, but they get you there, and with air travel, that's all I expect. The seating is what it is and isn't any different than any other airline. I'm a big girl, and its tolerable for the 3 or so hours in flight. Price wise, they can't be beat out of Des Moines unless Southwest is throwin out some crazy promo, which isn't often. Good Luck!
     
  17. Tank45

    Tank45 High-Roller

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    Thanks for the info Wanger! I'm a little on the bigger of the bigger side ;) , so I tend to worry about air travel, maybe more than I should. But your report helps ease the nerves!
     
  18. texdan17

    texdan17 Low-Roller

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    Just got back from Vegas and flew Allegiant out of Austin because it was $200 r/t (I live in Houston...no flights near that price from here).

    The flight out was delayed by an hour. So everything people said about their delays immediately became true.

    They did board fairly quickly once the plane arrived and was cleared out... BUT, we paid for two carry-ons for our group of four and because they were delayed no one was checking for bags...I felt like we could have gotten two more on. Maybe it was just the rush since they were late? NOPE. Same thing on the way back...scanned the boarding passes from my phone and didn't even check for bags... and indeed, we had an extra bag this time. So, win for us?

    Service was OK not phenomenal. We bought drinks both ways and they were not super pricey but I did miss my SW drink coupons... :)

    The plane was SUPER hot on the way out as they didn't turn on the vents until right as we were leaving the ground. On the way back, they had them on at boarding...

    The plane was the 3-2 seat arrangement and even though there were empty seats, they would not let people move to other seats.

    There was tape "covering" a crack in the compartment above our head...except it was blue and said "caution" on it. On the way back, found the same reassuring tape in the restroom. WTF???

    I don't know that I would fly this airline again... not worth saving $120 to add a 2 1/2 hour drive in exchange.
     
  19. keno60

    keno60 VIP Whale

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    If you can catch their low prices they are hard to beat. I sometimes fly them to Vegas and come back on SW. The A flight get me to Vegas late but it works out with my son's schedule getting me to the AP late works out fine.
     
  20. FullBoat

    FullBoat VIP Whale

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    texdan17, we must have just missed each other. My flight out on Monday went without a hitch... until I got on board. I use a cane once I've been standing/walking a while. So, I put it in the overhead. Didn't use it getting on, or use the pre-boarding. One of the FA asked if it was mine, and if I used pre-boarding. I told him it was, and I didn't. "Well, you can't sit here." I had paid for an exit row. I told him that I only need it if I've been walking a lot, didn't even listen. Told me I could get a refund at the gate from an attendant. Did move me to a row by myself. But, when we got there, no attendant. ugh

    Trip back was the same deal. Didn't even listen to what I had to say. Didn't even bother trying to get a refund. $30 wasn't worth the headache. But, we were delayed about 30min in Vegas, but it wasn't their fault. Someone was sick, and the medics were checking them out to see if they could fly. They couldn't.. All I could think of is if someone said the "E" word, I'd slap them with my cane. They did make up about 15 min in the air, so we only landed about 15 late.

    Yes, they do squeeze people in there, and the seats don't recline. But, they weren't that bad. Planning on using them again in March, but no exit row for me this time.
     
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