American Airlines

[disny_luvr]

Good morning!

I am looking to book a quick three night trip in April for my DH and I to see our sons perform with their marching band. Since this trip is happening the week before Easter, flight prices are through the roof. We usually always fly Southwest out of BWI, but I can’t get anything with times that work for us for less than $750. I found a flight on AA out of Philly for right around $500. We really hate the Philly airport, but if it’s cheaper, we aren’t opposed to it either.

I feel like a lot of people on here fly SW, but does anyone have experience with AA? I like the flexibility and free bags that SW offers, but I can’t see beyond the price.

My other question is, would it be a bad idea to take the last flight of the day on AA out of Philly? Both my DH and I have to work the day we’d be flying out, and we live about 90 minutes from the airport, so we can’t fly any earlier in the day. We could take the first flight out the following morning - and it’s cheaper, too - but we’d only land at 9:22am, baring everything goes smoothly, but that’s our Epcot day and I’d really like to be there at park opening.

Thoughts? Advice?
TIA!

ETA:
Should I wait to see if prices drop on SW? Our dates are 4/11-4/15 or 4/12-4/15 if we fly out the next morning.

 

[Ross Kratter]

AA is totally fine. I fly them all the time, most of the time without issue.

 

[DizneyLizzy]

AA is totally fine! Pack light to avoid baggage fees. Also, on-site parking at PHL is way more $$ and less convenient than at BWI. look into offsite park and ride options.

 

[disny_luvr]

AA is totally fine! Pack light to avoid baggage fees. Also, on-site parking at PHL is way more $$ and less convenient than at BWI. look into offsite park and ride options.

Any recommendations for offsite parking or are they all pretty much the same?

 

[Mrs.AMC]

We fly AA more than SW since AA flies out of our local airport, SW does not. I like SW fine but it's a 2+ hour drive
I have the AA credit card so no bag fees, plus you'll get a $200 (usually) credit on the first flight. Worth considering.
All in all, I prefer AA, I like having my seats settled and I like first class upgrades (wink)

As for the final flight out, I prefer to avoid those if possible. I've been burned a few times. But not a high percentage of issues. Just more than if we fly mid day. I normally pick whichever is cheaper

 

[brockash]

We fly AA a lot right now due to where we live, but have also primarily flown SW when living in other areas. The best thing to me about SW is the flexibility in switching dates etc. Aside from that, I don't find much difference (I too have a AA card so no baggage fees.) I also prefer hzving seats assigned so we don't have to worry about it and we can be one of the last ones on.

In general I would always opt for the first flight of the day as opposed to the last (less likely to have issues,) however like you we've also done many trips after work and been on the last flight. Usually it's not a big issue.

 

[MrKnight]

I always fly with AA, it's the largest airline in the world and a very reliable legacy carrier, I have never had any major issues with AA, IMHO I actually prefer AA over SW.. Also, PHL is a hub for AA so you should be able to find convenient flight times throughout the day for your trip..

 

[DebbieB]

If you are booking far in the future, they almost always change schedules.

 

[kanerf]

AA is my go to airline for flying to Orlando. I fly out of DCA direct. They usually have the best price for that route.

 

[alliecat523]

Personally not a huge fan of AA but have flown them quite a bit and have status. We just booked for March and had the same issue with SW. AA was $350 which felt like a steal. Going through PHL as well.

I’m always a bit hesitant to take the last flight because if there’s an issue, you’re stuck. But if it works then go for it.

 

[Angelboys3]

I usually fly Southwest but opted for AA for our weekend trip in May. I got 3 round trip tickets for $411 total ($137.xx per person) and I couldn’t pass that up

 

[SwiftyMorgan]

I fly AA almost exclusively for business travel, as well as Disney. No complaints. SW a couple times, never a problem, but I rack up miles with AA for work, so that's that.

As far as parking, I've tried a few. Eventually they all seem to burn you at one point, miss a pick up point, have a full van, so it takes 10 minutes for the driver to drop each person at the lot, or something like that. Smart Park, Wallypark, etc.

Colonial is a small lot, but works well with a reservation.

I've been using JetStream lately and it's one of the more reasonable rates. I also like that their parking lot isn't huge, so there aren't many drop offs to sit through - can also mean not as many vans operating, but that only hurt me one time. I make a reservation and there's always been a van waiting when I arrive. I park and am at the airport in 10 minutes. Lately, the drivers aren't as motivated to help with luggage. Fine by me. I rarely bring more than carryon, so I save a tip, though I actually did tip the driver last time anyway. Had the van to myself and figure he could use a tip.

There is rarely anyone in the checkin, checkout booth, so if you struggle with scanning payment codes, etc. they might not be for you.

Jet Stream also has a "truck" area toward the back fence, with slightly wider spaces.

 

[mikehn]

What about spirit, BWI to MCO? For me, the risk/reward ratio is pretty good.

 

[sam_gordon]

What about spirit, BWI to MCO? For me, the risk/reward ratio is pretty good.

Obviously that's your opinion, but I think many people would disagree with you.
* They have extra fees (luggage I believe is capped at 40# vs 50# with legacy carriers).
* You get one personal bag free. A second carry on (generally free with other carriers) is a charge.
* All refreshments on board will cost (generally basic ones are free on legacy carriers)
* If there is an issue, good luck getting help.
* If there is a flight cancellation, you're SOL until the next flight, which could be days away

I would fly them under the following conditions:
* It's only me
* I don't need to check a bag
* It's not a deal killer if my flight doesn't happen within 24 hours

 

[MrKnight]

What about spirit, BWI to MCO? For me, the risk/reward ratio is pretty good.

I would strongly advise against flying with Spirit, IMHO the worst airline in the North America..

 

[mikehn]

Its not always good, but in a lot of cases its not a bad option. Even with the extra fees, it can still be a good deal. But more importantly, sometimes the 2.5 hr nonstop flight fits in nicely. I'd never book a fight on Spirit unless it's nonstop.

 

[gharter]

We have flown AA frequently over the years. Our only issue (and probably true of other airlines as well) is flights being cancelled, flight times changing.

 

[gharter]

I would strongly advise against flying with Spirit, IMHO the worst airline in the North America..

Would agree. We booked with them once. 2 months before the flight, they cancelled the flight, said here's your money back, good luck finding another flight. I've had other airlines cancel flights, but put you on another airline for the flight. I called as we had 16 of us flying. they would do nothing to help us get another flight.
No matter how cheap, I would never use them again.

 

[Mrs.AMC]

Obviously that's your opinion, but I think many people would disagree with you.
* They have extra fees (luggage I believe is capped at 40# vs 50# with legacy carriers).
* You get one personal bag free. A second carry on (generally free with other carriers) is a charge.
* All refreshments on board will cost (generally basic ones are free on legacy carriers)
* If there is an issue, good luck getting help.
* If there is a flight cancellation, you're SOL until the next flight, which could be days away

I would fly them under the following conditions:
* It's only me
* I don't need to check a bag
* It's not a deal killer if my flight doesn't happen within 24 hours

I honestly am shocked that Spirit and the other low cost airlines haven't put coin slots on the bathrooms. They charge for every little thing. Majority of the time, by the time you pay for it all, it's not cheap and you are still left with limited flights and horribly uncomfortable seats

 

[disny_luvr]

If you are booking far in the future, they almost always change schedules.

How far? We are booking for April.