Hot Take: I Love Spirit Airlines And I'm Not Ashamed To Admit It

I'm a major supporter of making travel as inclusive and accessible as possible, especially when it comes to price. It's now 2022 and I can regularly fly home to see family for less than it would cost me to get an Uber to the airport (RIP Uber pool).

Yes, you read that right, $25!!!! And that wasn't some random one time flight deal.  I can easily fly from Nashville (which isn't a major hub) to many US destinations for less than $100. 

See: Miami for $45, New York for $53. And yes, that is roundtrip.

I hear this a lot. People claiming that they're terrified to fly Spirit because it's so dangerous.

If, like me, you're on travel Tiktok, you'll know what I'm talking about. People taking videos of bad turbulence, editing it to sounds of people screaming, then claiming it was "their last" Spirit Airlines flight. I've seen what seems like a dozen of these videos, and none of them were an actual Spirit flight.

The ongoing rhetoric of Spirit being a "dangerous" airline is simply untrue and high-key classist. Just because it's affordable for a wide range of people, doesn't mean it's cutting corners when it comes to safety. 

Spirit Airlines is certified by the Federal Aviation Administration — just like the more expensive airlines. So, it's obvious they've passed all the necessary safety standards.

When you book a flight with Spirit you get two things:

1. A random seat (picking your seat is extra $$$)

2. A personal item, like a backpack or purse (a carry-on is $$ and a checked bag is $$$)

But the trick to traveling as affordably as possible is packing light. I have my personal item down to a science and am able to maximize the generous 18"x14"x8" of under-the-seat space.

Tbh I'm tired of people complaining about paying for bags. This is becoming common practice across most airlines, especially when booking the lowest fare.

If you really need an extra bag when flying Spirit, it's cheapest to buy it when you purchase your ticket. Buying it later is more expensive, and buying it at the airport is even more expensive. 

People tend to feel blindsided by this, but I'm not sure how? Spirit Airlines is INCREDIBLY transparent about their pricing and additional fees. And they ask you at least three times during the booking process if you'd like to add bags. In order to get through the booking process, you literally need to press a button that says "continue without bags" and then get a pop-up where you need to click, "I DON'T NEED BAGS" to proceed.

Maybe you don't have to! Did you know that a lot of Spirit's airports have self-check in and self-bag drop stations?

Spirit even won the 2022 APEX AWARD for Best Airport Innovation: First self-bag drop ‎off. 

Spirit offers passengers the ease of self-tagging their luggage to expedite the bag drop process. They have nearly 50 cities that offer self-tagging at the airport so you can save time and get to your gate quicker. No more waiting in that long line!

Yes and no. If you want to have a specific seat, you can choose that seat for an additional price. However, as a frequent Spirit flyer, if you check in early you will almost always get a window or aisle seat next to whoever you booked the flight with.

I've never once paid for my seat and when I fly with my partner, we have always been seated next to each other — or across the aisle from each other.

Also, after more than 30 flights, I've only been stuck in the middle seat once! And it was my fault for forgetting to check-in until just a few hours before.

And let's remember, Southwest doesn't even assign you a seat at all, but my Twitter feed is silent on Southwest.

This is likely their way of cutting down the number of people waiting in line at the check-in counter. So, honestly I'm grateful for it!

It's free to check-in online and via their mobile app. And you can always print your tickets at the digital kiosks in the airport.

I literally can't imagine choosing to have to talk to a human being IN PERSON. Just check in online, that way you can also get the good seats. 

Actually, Spirit Airlines is known for having one of the newest fleets there is. Every single Spirit plane is an Airbus. And Airbuses are known for being the best for safety. 

Let us also remember Spirit Airlines has never had a plane crash.