Allegiant Airlines to Hawaii

[Ron98GT]

In June, 2012, Allegiant Airlines will start service to Honolulu, Hawaii. They are only flying from Las Vegas, NV, and also Fresno, CA.

The cheapest fares that I saw were $179 each way + taxes.

Competition = Good Thing

 

[LisaRex]

Call me paranoid, but I don't feel comfortable booking discount airlines, especially when dealing with overseas travel and/or the ferocious winds of the Hawaiian islands. I figure that in order to compete at those prices, either their planes are old or their pilots are young!

Give me Delta or United and their experienced pilots and I'll gladly pay an extra $300 or so for peace of mind.

 

[Luanne]

Isn't Allegient one of the airlines that offers discount pricing, but then charges you for every single extra like checked luggage, assigned seats, etc., etc., etc.

My sister told me her niece used Allegient to fly from CA to MO and by the time she got through paying for 4 tickets, plus all the extras, it would have been just as "cheap" or cheaper to fly with one of the other airlines. She also said, at least the route they were flying, that the schedule wasn't all that great, meaning they only flew a couple of days per week.

 

[DeniseM]

Allegiant does charge for all the extras - BUT you can decline them. However, it isn't obvious on their website, and many people do not understand that the fees are automatically included unless you opt out from them. Soon they will be charging for carry-ons as well, except for one personal item. We like to travel light, so we are going to try to travel with just the maximum sized personal item and see how we do.

 

[dougp26364]

In June, 2012, Allegiant Airlines will start service to Honolulu, Hawaii. They are only flying from Las Vegas, NV, and also Fresno, CA.

The cheapest fares that I saw were $179 each way + taxes.

Competition = Good Thing

$179+checked baggage fee+carry on baggage fee+seat selection fee+fee's for any food/water inflight+fee's to breath the air on the plane et......

We use to fly Allegiant until their add on fee's started jacking the rate up to the same as if we were flying a regular carrier. Add to this the risk that, as a charter carrier, if they decide to cancel a flight, they are only obligated to refund you the price of your ticket. They are not required to accomadate you on another carrier and, trust me, they won't even attempt it.

 

[Passepartout]

Could be a long ol' flight to Hawaii on a DC-9/B-717/MD-80 with non-reclining seats. Maybe they have a bigger plane stashed somewhere.

Last year, Allegiant came here for 2 round trips a week to LAS (Fri-Mon) for $29+++ but must not have sold enough fight/hotel packages to make a buck on us, so they picked up their signs and left town.

They learned all their money making tricks from RyanAir, but without the service.

Jim

 

[JeffW]

Semi-related: my cubemate at work was looking fly from the East Coast to Florida earlier this month. On the 'base' fare, Spirit out of Atlantic City was cheaper. However, as she stepped through the purchase, it was one fee after another (baggage, seat selection, I think an online booking fee). Before she clicked 'buy', I said, "Maybe we should check Southwest out of PHL." Sure enough, I don't remember if they were cheaper, but there were definitely comparable. That's who she went with.


I'm sure Spirit and Allegient get enough 'curious' shoppers. However, I bet there defection rate when it gets to the final purchase screen, and they see all the fees, is pretty high.

Jeff

 

[Ron98GT]

Isn't Allegient one of the airlines that offers discount pricing, but then charges you for every single extra like checked luggage, assigned seats, etc., etc., etc.

My sister told me her niece used Allegient to fly from CA to MO and by the time she got through paying for 4 tickets, plus all the extras, it would have been just as "cheap" or cheaper to fly with one of the other airlines. She also said, at least the route they were flying, that the schedule wasn't all that great, meaning they only flew a couple of days per week.

Your thinking of Spirit Airlines. Their the ones that starting the check-in baggage fee's. Now they started charging for carry-on's.

My wife uses Allegiant to fly roundtrip between Las Vegas and Colorado Springs several times a year, with carry-ons, and no complaints. I used them last October, with carry-ons, had had no complaint.

When we fly to Hawaii with Hawaiian Air, we only use carry-ons, so there are no extra charges.

my only complaint with Allegiant is that they have no direct flights between Las Vegas and Florida, so that their prices are nolonger competitive.

 

[Luanne]

Your thinking of Spirit Airlines. Their the ones that starting the check-in baggage fee's. Now they started charging for carry-on's.

No, I'm not thinking Spirit. I'm thinking Allegiant. Route from Los Angeles to Branson.

 

[Ron98GT]

One side note. When people post on this web site and constantly get beat-up, they get rather reluctant to post, even if they have useful information that SOME people might find useful.

 

[Ron98GT]

No, I'm not thinking Spirit. I'm thinking Allegiant. Route from Los Angeles to Branson.

What ever, sorry I posted.

 

[Luanne]

What ever, sorry I posted.

I just don't like being corrected when I'm not wrong.

And you're not getting "beat up". Mostly people are just cautioning that there may be additional charges that make the great deal not so great.

 

[DeniseM]

One side note. When people post on this web site and constantly get beat-up, they get rather reluctant to post, even if they have useful information that SOME people might find useful.

Why is it OK for your to correct Luanne, but not OK for her to correct you? I don't see anything inappropriate in her post at all. Just a simple correction.

 

[Luanne]

Thanks Denise. I'm just amazed when people who post on a public website forum get upset when people disagree, or post differing views or opinions.

 

[DaveNV]

Back to the OP topic: Should be interesting to see how a Las Vegas to Hawaii route pans out. Allegiant knows how to shave the last nickel off their expenses, so maybe this will turn into something good.

But as someone said, I don't know whether the jets I've seen them fly would be right for trans-oceanic flights. I think their hub is in Las Vegas -- does anyone know if they have a stockpile of bigger jets sitting there?

Dave

 

[curbysplace]

Read the newspaper article on Allegiant beginning service to Hawaii and thought it said they will fly 757's on that route. The comment on the fees is correct (i.e., $10 -$15 "convenience" fee for booking on line, $2 for a Coke, etc., carryon bag fee). Bottom line, with all the fee addons, is their total travel fee higher or lower than another airline? We will weigh it considering that if the price is close including the addon fees, does the convenience of Allegiant's non-stop flights and the flight schedule to Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Mesa and Orlando carry the day. For us it cuts out 2-3 hours to those destinations because we can avoid a connection in either Minneapolis, Denver, Chicago or Dallas. Hawaii on the other hand may make a connection in Vegas feasible or unfeasible; will it be more costly and more of a hassle. It'll be interesting to see how this unfolds from our part of the country--the Midwest.

 

[Karen G]

Las Vegas is a popular destination for Hawaiians, so I'm sure that may have been a factor that Allegiant considered when planning this route.

Here's a quote from this recent article:

"Allegiant's planned three-times weekly flights from Las Vegas make sense to me. Having worked at two vacation packaging companies in my career, Las Vegas was always the number one destination for people living in Hawaii traveling to the mainland. I managed inventory and pricing for a twice weekly charter flight from Vegas to Honolulu and it was almost effortless to fill the planes. Allegiant, I'm sure, is hoping for the same."

 

[tompalm]

Read the newspaper article on Allegiant beginning service to Hawaii and thought it said they will fly 757's on that route.

I read 757s also. However, these aircraft are older and single isle. The 767s that Hawaiian, United and the other airlines fly are newer and better for transpac. I am happy that Allegiant is starting service and that will help keep the price low. But, after adding all the extra fees, I don't think I will be saving enough money to fly on them. For a few dollars more, I will take a 767 with a major airline.

 

[dougp26364]

I'm not trying to beat you up. I'm am trying to warn that what looks like a great deal might not be as great as it looks. It's also important to take into consideration Allegiant flys as a charter airline. If they cancel a flight, they don't have to reaccomadate you on another airline. You're just stuck until Allegiant has an empty seat to get you out on or until you find and pay for a ticket on another airline. I've had a few co-workers learn that leason the hard way. It's important to know what the risks are before putting your money down and, with Allegiant, there are additional charges as well as additional risks.

 

[daventrina]

2-3-2

I read 757s also. However, these aircraft are older and single isle. The 767s that Hawaiian, United and the other airlines fly are newer and better for transpac.

The 757's (2/1982) first flight was actually after the 767 (9/1981) and while the 757 ended production in 2004 it is, like the 767, a great aircraft. The GW of the 757 is around 250,000# the 676's is in a range that averages about 4000,000#. Boeing built about 1000 of each. The 757 has about half as many hull loss accidents. Their older sister, the 737, on the other hand is about 100,000# first born in 1967. We've flown to Hawaii on all of them ... and the best ride is on the 747 or 777.

The best thing about the 767 is its 2-3-2. This is the main reason we choose this aircraft when we can. We get both a window and an aisle and no middle seat

 

[tompalm]

It's also important to take into consideration Allegiant flys as a charter airline. If they cancel a flight, they don't have to reaccomadate you on another airline. You're just stuck until Allegiant has an empty seat to get you out on or until you find and pay for a ticket on another airline. It's important to know what the risks are before putting your money down and, with Allegiant, there are additional charges as well as additional risks.

Excellently stated and could not have said it better myself.

Also, Daventrina said it well " We've flown to Hawaii on all of them ... and the best ride is on the 747 or 777." and also stated the 757 is not that old. But, my input is from a few pilots that I know who are now working for Allegiant and have nothing good to say about flying the older aircraft that Allegiant flies, or the maintenance that is done. I assume that Allegiant will be buying older 757s, because that is what they do.

When I mentioned newer 767s, I was thinking about Hawaiian and all the backup aircraft they have in Hawaii. I like the seat configuration also on the 767 and getting two seats on the side. I might fly Allegiant, but the only thing excites me about them is that they are bringing lower fares for Hawaii - Vegas flights.

 

[daventrina]

my input is from a few pilots that I know who are now working for Allegiant and have nothing good to say about flying the older aircraft that Allegiant flies, or the maintenance that is done. ...

That is the scary part...
A well maintained older aircraft isn't necessarily bad.
A poorly maintained newer aircraft isn't good.
A poorly maintained older aircraft is BAD. :ignore:

For a few bucks (maybe not that much) is it worth a mechanical failure 1000 miles from land:ignore:

 

[KonaCoffeeDrinker]

No guarantees on aircraft type on any airline. Recently booked San Francisco to Kona on United. Happy to be on a 767 because of the 2-3-2 configuration. Week after booking United switched plane to 757.
Have flown Allegiant on short hops and had no concerns.

 

[Aaron Kristen]

allegiant air

wow, so much negativity on a discount airline.
I have flown them several times. I have found nothing but great service, and top notch employees. Just because they are a bit cheaper does not mean you will sacrifice your experience. Alligiant selectively identifies routes where they can make money.
In canada, we have a "discount airline" in wetjet. They have made their living off of giving great service. Ultimately the market will determine who wins or loses.

 

[DaveNV]

Has anyone else actually gone to the Allegiant site and tried to book a flight to Hawaii from Las Vegas, if only to get pricing and availability for a non-discounted "regular" scheduled flight? I just tried it, and got mixed results.

Using a Saturday departure in mid-July as a "typical" starting date, I found I could not fly back from Hawaii on the following Saturday on Allegiant. My timeshares in Hawaii check in/out on Saturday, so that is immediately a problem. I'd have to return on Friday or Sunday, so either cut my week short, spend extra money to stay another night, or book return flights on a different carrier. That alone makes this a deal breaker for me.

The price I eventually saw was $533 per person, which WAS a bit less than Hawaiian Airlines for comparable dates, but the schedule on Hawaiian was better. The difference in ticket price would likely be about the same cost as paying for an extra night spent in Hawaii.

Perhaps if the passenger was able to travel based on the schedule Allegiant currently has published, this might work. But for a timeshare vacation based (generally) on a week's stay, it doesn't work, at least not for me. YMMV.

Dave