Should I book it?

[kangaand2roos]

I was all set to book w/ Southwest for our Nov/Dec trip. Our only other comperable choice was AirTran and since I had heard all these things about schedule changes and pulling out of markets I said I would just fly Southwest. Well I have been looking everyday and I can get 4 people, direct flight on AirTran for just about $1000 (so $250 each). Southwest for 4 direct is $1266. Now I could hold out and see if I will get better but I'm not sure how much better I will get flying the Saturday after Thanksgiving and having a direct flight which is a definate plus when flying with a 2 and 4 year old. But I am nervous about booking and having some sort of difficulty w/ AirTran. What would you do?

 

[happymom52003]

Personally, I'd go with Southwest over Air Tran.

 

[CatsMeow]

Southwest seems to be much more stable than any of the airlines right now. Unless it is a major budget-buster, I would stick with them. Certainly they have schedule changes as well, but they never seem to be as numerous as the other airlines. And for your time of travel, there won't be tons of reasonable options. Where you are flying from may make a difference, too. In areas where there is a lot of competition (e.g., SWA!) for Orlando flights - Philly, my home town, comes to mind - prices tend to stay relatively stable. The price difference in this case is significant, so you may wish to do some sleuthing to see if AirTran is a bit more stable in your neck of the woods - Google and see what you find. And, of course you can always get a credit if the SWA fare goes down.

 

[SAV]

Does your Air-Tran price include the $6 fee each way to select your seats? Right there is another $48 bucks to include in your $1000 to make the price difference a little less if you didn't.

We flew Air-Tran in June and it was great. I will fly them again if the price is right.

And not to be picky, but is it listed as a direct flight or a non-stop? There is a difference. A direct flight is any flight between two points by an airline with no change in flight numbers, which may include a stop over at an intermediate point. These are often confused with non-stop flights, which are direct flights involving no intermediate stops.

 

[kangaand2roos]

It is a non-stop flight and no it doesn't include that selecting seat fee but we have flown AirTran a number of times before and never selected seats more than the 24 hours in advance so I've never paid the fee. I'm leaning toward Airtran since I have never had any trouble with them before. I hope I won't regret it:shrug: