We know that ultra low cost carriers (ULCCs) in the United States are in a tough spot. While airlines overall have done reasonably well in the past couple of years, a lot of the demand has been for premium and long haul travel, and those are segments that ULCCs haven’t historically tapped into. Furthermore, the industry overall is dealing with an overcapacity issue.
So we’ve seen these carriers start to rework their business models. In early June 2024, Spirit Airlines announced it was completely eliminating change fees, and extending the expiration of vouchers, both of which are customer friendly moves.
Then in late July 2024, the airline announced additional changes, which completely redefine the Spirit Airlines experience. These changes include bundled fares, priority check-in, a new boarding experience, and more. I wanted to provide an update, as the new fare bundles are now on sale, so we have a sense of what pricing is like.
In this post:
Spirit Airlines introduces four fare bundles
Historically, Spirit Airlines has had a la carte pricing, which it so that a ticket included almost nothing, and you had to add everything to your fare. Even if you purchased the Big Front Seat (Spirit’s equivalent of a first class seat), you still had to pay for carry-ons, snacks, drinks, etc.
The airline is now taking a new approach, by introducing bundles fares. The airline has four fare bundles — Go, Go Savvy, Go Comfy, and Go Big — offering different value propositions. Here are the details:
- Go is Spirit’s most basic fare, which just includes a personal item and free ticket changes, but doesn’t include anything else
- Go Savvy is Spirit’s second most basic fare, offering a standard seat selection, and a carry-on bag or a checked bag
- Go Comfy is Spirit’s next most premium fare option, offering a blocked middle seat, Group 2 boarding, a carry-on bag and a checked bag, and a drink and snack
- Go Big is Spirit’s most premium fare option, offering a Big Front Seat, Group 1 boarding, complimentary drinks (including alcohol) and premium snacks, and Wi-Fi
These new fare bundles are now available for booking (as of August 14, 2024), with these new “experiences” being implemented onboard by August 27, 2024. So, what is pricing like for these new bundles? I’ve gotta say, the fares I’m seeing seem entirely reasonable, and actually, like a great value.
For example, take a one-way flight from Miami to Houston for a weekday in October 2024, where the basic fare starts at $34, the fare with a blocked middle starts at $134, and the most premium fare starts at $214. That’s good value for consumers, if you ask me!
Suffice it to say that these are absolutely massive changes. The Big Front Seat is now a bundled product offering (rather than just a bigger seat), you can book an economy seat with a blocked middle, and some passengers even get drinks, snacks, and Wi-Fi, included.
Spirit isn’t the only ULCC to introduce bundled fares, as Frontier Airlines also recently overhauled its fares.
Spirit Airlines adds priority check-in
As mentioned above, as of August 27, 2024, Spirit Airlines is introducing priority check-in for Go Big passengers, as well as Free Spirit Gold members, and Free Spirit World Elite Mastercard holders.
Priority check-in will be available at more than 20 airports, including in Atlanta (ATL), Cancun (CUN), Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), Detroit (DTW), Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Houston (IAH), Las Vegas (LAS), Los Angeles (LAX), Newark (EWR), Orlando (MCO), and more. This will provide front-of-line access to the first available ticket counter agent.
Spirit Airlines modifies boarding process
As of August 27, 2024, Spirit Airlines is also introducing a new boarding process. The redesigned boarding process will include five groups, and aims to reduce boarding time and improve operational performance.
Priority boarding will be available for those who choose the Go Big or Go Comfy options, Free Spirit Gold and Silver members, Free Spirit World Elite Mastercard members, and active-duty US service members (and their spouses and children).
Bottom line
Spirit Airlines is updating its business model, as the airline is going from a la carte pricing to bundled fares. Effective immediately, Spirit has four fare bundles, including everything from blocked middle seats, to drinks and snacks, to priority check-in.
We’re certainly seeing ULCCs transform their business models, and in many cases, the value proposition is quite good. These new fares are now on sale, so it could be worth considering a flight on Spirit, even if you might not have considered it in the past.
What do you make of Spirit Airlines updating how it sells tickets?
The BFS used to be the best value in the sky. If you didn't like Spirit's seat price you could wait till a week before the flight and bid up Now you have to bundle. A waste of money for us agile light travelers. After my October Spirit trip it's goodbye Spirit. Shame
My existing reservation seated Row 6 is now Comfy class (middle seat blocked). Do I have to pay for it?
Why does everyone pile the hate on Ben's writing ability all the time? I find these articles informative and interesting to read, even if they aren't particularly well formulated. Thank you, and keep up the great work!
Have priced out a number of itineraries. Well, I'm glad I went in and bought Big Front Seat on all my future reservations yesterday before the change happened today.
You can't mix and match the seating styles (unlike Breeze... you can buy on Breeze the low fare if you don't want any bags, then pay for the big seat that comes with free drinks/snacks a la carte). So on a few itineraries, mostly short...
Have priced out a number of itineraries. Well, I'm glad I went in and bought Big Front Seat on all my future reservations yesterday before the change happened today.
You can't mix and match the seating styles (unlike Breeze... you can buy on Breeze the low fare if you don't want any bags, then pay for the big seat that comes with free drinks/snacks a la carte). So on a few itineraries, mostly short haul 2 hour flights, looks like I can buy the cheapest fare on Spirit, and get a free bag and basic seat assignment as a Gold, for $60. And have a regular seat (exit row still free for me). Or, pay $196-279 and have a Big Front Seat as part of that bundle even though as a Gold I don't need some of them.
This is a sad day if this is how it works.... have lost a ton of value from Spirit.
The bundling options remind me of what Zipair is doing with their add-ons. If these bundles save money over a la carte items--and aren't filled with fluff--I think this is a good move.
These changes in no way affect a person's membership in the Spirit Fight Club.
LOL
It looks like BFS are blocked to anyone that didn’t get the most expensive bundle. This is horrible for most spirit loyalists, and especially if you have status.
Yeah, I've been playing with even going back and modifying one of many existing future trips and no option to change seating.
What I was looking at two days ago for a $200 round trip including Big Front Seat both ways (and having free carry-on and checked due to Gold status) is now $500.
There is a major catch no one noticed. Under the basic fare "GO" it says "not allowed" for carry on . Does this mean only a checked bag can be added to the reservation after ticketing?
I fly Spirit from time to time and these seem like positive moves. In fact, I will be flying Spirit in Nov and already paid for Big Front Seat.
Anyone know if paying for BFS prior to this announcement is going to give the same "Go Big" benefits??
I’m guessing you probably will get the bennies.
This just confirms two observations, first Americans on average are fat, and the airlines in their efforts to cram as many seats into the cabin as possible are now having to sell empty adjacent seats.
Yeah absolutely nothing else in the last 40 years confirmed Americans are on average fat. This is the confirmation we needed
LOL !
This is an interesting development.
On balance, these should be positive changes, especially if the bundled pricing is less than buying the pieces separately.
The downside is the one problem that these actions do not fix. Operational reliability. There are few options available when something goes sideways and there are no viable options other than to purchase a new ticket.
If you purchased insurance for the trip, that will solve the IROP question....
This is an interesting development.
On balance, these should be positive changes, especially if the bundled pricing is less than buying the pieces separately.
The downside is the one problem that these actions do not fix. Operational reliability. There are few options available when something goes sideways and there are no viable options other than to purchase a new ticket.
If you purchased insurance for the trip, that will solve the IROP question. In fact, it is travel planning malpractice if we don’t offer travel insurance and explain the risks and benefits available.
If you have that coverage, go buy a ticket on Brand X airlines and submit the claim.
In my view not welcome. My employer allows only Economy class on flights of less than 6 hours (which is a pretty generous limit, not complaining). I liked to fly Spirit, because this allowed me to by a BigFrontSeat for a small extra (paid out of my own pocket). I fear this will no longer be possible.
I doubt we'll see the legacies adopt Eurobiz as an option for domestic Y+ because it would probably cannibalize their domestic F sales. With the exception of 6h transcons, a blocked middle makes for a perfectly comfortable flight.
Do they still have 25 inch pitch? Then I don't care.
Just provide a comfortable seat with better padding & legroom and train your agents to be courteous towards your passengers. Those are the two reasons why many I know, don’t fly spirit. Spirit customers are not those who are gonna pay more for blocked seats. They are trying hard to be like legacy carriers but not sure that’s gonna work.
I nearly bought a Frontier ticket with the blocked middle last week. The pricing can be pretty favorable. I love that Spirit will now have a choice of Eurobiz or the BFS. I would book Eurobiz for a vacation with my spouse for a reasonable upcharge. Neither of us love being the middle, but we want to sit together. I think I can get on a Spirit plane again, if the price is right.
Why fly Spirit then? We have seen the legacy carriers introduce basic fares that include nothing which is equivalent of the so-called low cost carriers. These bundles make them equivalent to a legacy carrier. Consider the "Comfy" seat is like premium economy or business class within Europe and the big front seat is like flying US domestic first. These so-called low cost carriers were never very cheap by the time you were finished with the extras.
Similar to Play Airlines model except for the snacks. This is a good move
Wow.. bring the blocked middle seat to all airlines! Although that would make me stop spending on FC so maybe not such a good idea. I just want shoulder room, I could care less about the meals and whatnot for domestic flights.
Now all we need is one of the legacy U.S. airlines to offer an Air New Zealand "couch" in economy on long-haul flights. I think selling a middle seat, let alone a whole row, is brilliant. I've been calling for it for years.
Spirit’s new model is attractive to hub-captive Delta customers in Detroit and elsewhere who want to do domestic and Caribbean travel. Blocked middle seats in their version of Delta comfort-plus and now a real first-class product. Yes, Spirit is a mess operationally and they get some weird customers. But Delta’s airfares are absurd these days. And there’s little value in the Delta program not anyone not flying internationally or anyone who is just starting off....
Spirit’s new model is attractive to hub-captive Delta customers in Detroit and elsewhere who want to do domestic and Caribbean travel. Blocked middle seats in their version of Delta comfort-plus and now a real first-class product. Yes, Spirit is a mess operationally and they get some weird customers. But Delta’s airfares are absurd these days. And there’s little value in the Delta program not anyone not flying internationally or anyone who is just starting off. I can rollover Delta diamond for at least 4 or 5 years and, in the meantime, fly Spirit domestically in their new first-class and then Air France internationally to Europe all while keeping my Delta diamond status for when Delta makes sense.
Hmmm. Does that mean you won’t be able to get the BFS except as a bundle? I often buy it, but don’t need the rest. So this would discourage me.
I’d buy that Euro business-lite product in a heartbeat on any airline. Hope it’s successful and we see more of it
Spirit is going to need a removable drink table for the blocked middle seats to fight off self-upgraders. Even further, they should place a divider of sorts down the center of that table. Zero division of that no man’s land seat will inevitably lead to some arguments
based in nyc I rarely find Spirit being anywhere cheaper than mainlines, and therefore had never taken them. If you want to fly out during peak times, Friday before Thanksgiving and back Sunday after Thanksgiving week, for example, it is just as expensive as UA/DL/AA. And if you wait for a good price, UA/DL/AA/B6 can also be just as cheap. I don't really see the reason of flying them.
This could be the start of something interesting.
As others have pointed out, this will basically be a combination of US First and Euro Biz.
...if the Legacies catch on to this, I'm wondering if it might be a way for them to more regularly sell "Premium Economy" in stateside narrowbodies, without a significant hard-product change.
All they'd have to do, it just block the middle seat on the first row or two of Y+,...
This could be the start of something interesting.
As others have pointed out, this will basically be a combination of US First and Euro Biz.
...if the Legacies catch on to this, I'm wondering if it might be a way for them to more regularly sell "Premium Economy" in stateside narrowbodies, without a significant hard-product change.
All they'd have to do, it just block the middle seat on the first row or two of Y+, upcharge, and sell that as Premium Economy, while the rest of Y+ remains Economy Plus.
Hmm.
I personally think this is a reaction to Southwest, which should have announced a similar move. We've seen Delta sell-out its first-class cabin in the last four or five years largely because of leisure travelers willing to pay for a better seat and more space. Economy is so miserable that an extra $250-$500 for most people is worth it. It will be interesting to see if Delta reacts. For example, offering a middle-seat blocked. It...
I personally think this is a reaction to Southwest, which should have announced a similar move. We've seen Delta sell-out its first-class cabin in the last four or five years largely because of leisure travelers willing to pay for a better seat and more space. Economy is so miserable that an extra $250-$500 for most people is worth it. It will be interesting to see if Delta reacts. For example, offering a middle-seat blocked. It is absurd that none of the legacy airlines currently offer this. It is such an easy upsell. It could be implemented easily.
Wow great point. Southwest with a few rows of blocked middle seats would be perfect. I’ve had good luck recently snatching up aisle 17 but you’re literally talking about one row on the entire plane…. not great.
I’m wondering how they will enforce the middle seat policy. When they have oversold flights or pilots trying to go home, will that seat now be taken? Otherwise everything looks good
Apparently frontier will put someone in their version of that blocked middle seat if they really want to.
Guess that Judge should’ve let B6 and NK merge after all
While these changes are interesting and I think positive, they don't solve one big problem I'd have with Spirit: the lack of redundancy in their scheduling. Meaning that most routes are daily only (some less) and if you hit IRROPS, you're screwed.
Basically, my impression of Spirit is that, if all goes well all is well and people wonder why they're the subject of jokes. But once there's trouble, flying Spirit is horrible.
on the other hand I'm sure there were plenty of stranded Delta flyers last week who wish they were on Spirit flights
(I jest... kinda?)
I agree. I'm with Ben and think that Spirit's Big Front Seat is far and away the best value of any domestic first class. I've been happy the few times I've tried it. But the reason I almost never fly Spirit is because of that lack of redundancy. Last thing I need during my business or leisure travel is to lose a day because there are no further flights. Not to mention, any sort of...
I agree. I'm with Ben and think that Spirit's Big Front Seat is far and away the best value of any domestic first class. I've been happy the few times I've tried it. But the reason I almost never fly Spirit is because of that lack of redundancy. Last thing I need during my business or leisure travel is to lose a day because there are no further flights. Not to mention, any sort of connection on Spirit usually involves massive layover times compared to the traditional carriers.
Not sure if they can fix their network to be as reliable / frequent / coordinated as a traditional hub-and-spoke airline, but if they ever do (at least for the destinations I frequently fly to), I wouldn't hesitate in flying them.
This is cool and good for the onboard experience at Spirit but it kind of feels like every airline in the US is just becoming the same airline with different paint jobs
I want to see how well the no-middle-seat option is enforced in the US.
I can see that being a point of contention, particularly when it comes to the "what do you mean I can't sit next to my girlfriend, even though I paid the cheapest-fare class?!" type of people.
That's an interesting point. I wonder if it might be cheaper for someone to book a blocked-middle seat fare and a basic fare for the second person if they are a party of 2 people traveling with checked luggage. That might be a good trick! With the one premium fare that offers a blocked middle seat, maybe you can sneak the second traveler into that seat and have both sit together (rather than paying for...
That's an interesting point. I wonder if it might be cheaper for someone to book a blocked-middle seat fare and a basic fare for the second person if they are a party of 2 people traveling with checked luggage. That might be a good trick! With the one premium fare that offers a blocked middle seat, maybe you can sneak the second traveler into that seat and have both sit together (rather than paying for their own assigned seat). However, one issue I see with this is that Spirit may seat all the people in the blocked-middle seat fare together, so if someone sits in that middle seat, the person on the other side of that set of 3 seats would likely mind and complain to the FAs.
Or a set of parents book window and aisle, and suddenly they have room for their kid under 2 to sit when they are up in the air/somewhere to put the child in carseat without booking for free.
I have a feeling they would also use these blocked seats if they are overbooked. Just wondering what the compensation will be in practice
In frontier’s version, the row is already pre-set with blocked middle seats. Either you buy that aisle or window at the premium price , or someone else does.
The key is: making sure the FAs don’t fill that seat when the plane is oversold. Apparently that happens on Feontier sometimes.
..and yes, sitting in that middle seat would definitely shortchange the third party so that’s not really a fair loophole.
It will only be a matter of time before someone buys the no-middle-seat option for their Emotional Support Peacock.
The Comfy class seats are fixed, rows 4 - 6 on a A320, for example
Just a reshuffling of how LCCs communicate to you and enhancing ancillaries towards making you more loyal to them.
Play Airlines just announced that they want to be the first ones to introduce long haul monthly subscriptions between Europe and the U.S.
A different type of loyalty but still aimed at you the customer.
Hopefully they dramatically increase their fares. The problem with airlines like Spirit and Ryanair catering to the poor is that it allows very undesirable people to get to wonderful travel destinations and ruin it for everybody. Hopefully, with the "bus of the sky' business model failing we can all have a better travel experience.
Stay classy Nige
You're certainly entitled to visit any destination you want without those undesirables around.
You're paying $300 more for a plane ticket, not tens of thousands for a private stay. Get off your high horse. Seems to me like you're the type of person ruining it for everyone else.
I think Nige meant those people who start fights on the planes and causes delays or cancellations.
Might not sound "pc" but you're right. Notice never had these problems until the LCC model came along. What everyone misses on this board is how does this solve Spirit's problem of non ending losses? Blocking a middle seat means no revenue from that seat. Does the additional revenue from the aisle and window seat make up for that? If not, it sounds nice but does nothing to bring profits back.
Clearly Spirit (and Frontier)...
Might not sound "pc" but you're right. Notice never had these problems until the LCC model came along. What everyone misses on this board is how does this solve Spirit's problem of non ending losses? Blocking a middle seat means no revenue from that seat. Does the additional revenue from the aisle and window seat make up for that? If not, it sounds nice but does nothing to bring profits back.
Clearly Spirit (and Frontier) are trying to upscale it's customer base because the ULCC is a failure. But when you've become the "Family Dollar" of the skies the customer base you're chasing may not be interested, particularly with all bennies afforded by a legacy co-branded credit card.
Benefits of a co-branded card? Surely you must be joking. They get people to pay $100 for a bad earn rates, to have priority boarding only after half the plane gets on, and to cover the checked bag they used to get for free. Oh, and if you pay $600, we will let you into our special area with used office seats and cold cuts sitting under a warming lamp. But on Delta, you can...
Benefits of a co-branded card? Surely you must be joking. They get people to pay $100 for a bad earn rates, to have priority boarding only after half the plane gets on, and to cover the checked bag they used to get for free. Oh, and if you pay $600, we will let you into our special area with used office seats and cold cuts sitting under a warming lamp. But on Delta, you can only do that a few times a year without spending $75k while earning 1 Skymile/$ for the privilege.
And if you want an upgrade? Well, I hope you flew 200,000 miles last year and charged it all on your Delta Reserve because otherwise, you are #20 on the list.
If I can fly Eurobiz with Spirit for only a marginally higher rate than DL or AA in Main Cabin, I'm doing that (on a direct route). No co-branded card or perceived loyalty can deliver the benefits of just actually locking in a reasonably comfortable flight experience. I know 28" pitch is rough, but 30" isn't much better. The ability to get shoulder room and to turn your legs sideways a bit more into the middle will make up for it. Only B6 provides enough legroom in every seat to be a strong competitor here.
So....you are all telling me you like to see those low-brow people in their pajamas, with their awful screaming spawn, carrying their bags of "fast food" as they get on the plane?
They have both american and intra-europe first class on the same plane. Neat.
If this was delta they would probably call it a 5 cabin configuration.
Upgrading from economy to business now requires 4 Regional Upgrade Certificates each way! But the experience is so Premium™ it'd be a bargain at twice the price!
Effectively they're admitting the ULCC business model isn't viable long term. While this is a step in the right direction it might be too late. The type of flyer Spirit (and then probably Frontier) wants to appeal to likely already has a very negative view of Spirit. Youtube is absolutely littered with bad passenger behavior for both these airlines. Do you want your flight to be an hour late because some morbidly obese, improperly dressed...
Effectively they're admitting the ULCC business model isn't viable long term. While this is a step in the right direction it might be too late. The type of flyer Spirit (and then probably Frontier) wants to appeal to likely already has a very negative view of Spirit. Youtube is absolutely littered with bad passenger behavior for both these airlines. Do you want your flight to be an hour late because some morbidly obese, improperly dressed adult is acting like a spoiled four year old and has to be thrown off the plane?
Not to mention will these changes actually bring in profits. Free drinks and snacks sound great but is the fare difference Spirit getting profitable after the cost of delivering the product?
I wonder if these are bookable at the airport.
The second cheapest allows one carry on OR one check in. If both are needed, it's unclear if an add on is possible or if the 3rd cheapest level is needed.
These are smart changes and attractive options. I especially like the no middle seat option and would like to see it offered by other carriers.
This would actually make me consider Spirit over the big four that I usually choose.
I flew Frontier last week for the first time ever, and chose their similar Business Bundle which included a blocked middle seat and luggage. I thought it was perfectly pleasant. Fortunately we didn't have IRROPS.