Allegiant MD-82 (N416NV) at Bellingham with a blue tail.
I recently had the opportunity to fly from Bellingham, WA to Las Vegas, NV on Allegiant Air (note: this was not a free ticket and I paid full fare). It was time for a little vacation, but vacation doesn’t mean I can’t review my flight.
On the blog, I have covered Allegiant quite a bit. I have looked at the possibility of them starting flights from Paine Field, talked about their Boeing 757′s and have explored their recent growth. However, I have never actually flown Allegiant and felt it was about time.
Although I haven’t flown them, I have had a small, odd crush on the airline. They have a very unique business model of flying older MD-80′s out of smaller airports and are geared towards the leisure traveler trying to get somewhere warm. They fly places that other low cost carriers don’t fly offering non-stop service to airports not usually served. They also seem to under cut the competition in fare price.
When booking my ticket I was looking at flights out of Seattle (SEA) and Bellingham (BLI – which is located about 1.5hours north of Seattle). Flying Allegiant out of BLI was $50.00 cheaper than anyone else — even after the fees I ended up paying. Add that parking at BLI is only $9/day vs $28/day at SEA and the 1.5hr drive north sounds like a good idea compared to the 30min drive south for me to SEA (ok, so when I have to drive it from 1am-2:30am when I got back, it didn’t seem so great at the time).
There is no hiding that Allegiant love their fees. If you are just flying with a carry-on. don’t care about where you sit and you don’t eat anything you can get to your destination for dirt cheap. Allegiant has become quite skilled at trying to sell you things during every step of the travel process from going onto their website to getting off the airplane.
Allegiant's new seats have the seat pocket located on the top of the seat.
This is not to say I blame them for this, I have always said I do not mind fees. If I am traveling light why should I have to pay for people who are not? When booking my ticket these were some of the “upgrades” I was offered. Some of these fees you do not see on every airline (note that the priority boarding fee is the same for each flight, but the other seat fees will differ depending on flight length):
* Priority boarding: $9.99 – allows you to get on the plane first making sure you have overhead room.
* Premium seat selection: $9.99 – you get an assigned seat near the front or at the exit rows.
* Standard seat assignment: $6.99 – gives you an assigned seat towards the back of the aircraft.
* Online checked bag fee: $39.98 – might be more than the industry average, but you want to pay it online, since it will cost you $70.00 per bag at the airport.
You can fly without having to pay any of these fees, but many will end up paying. Allegiant recently went to a new boarding process. First the people that pay the $9.99 for the priority boarding get to board. Then those who need a little extra time (not kids or family) that they need extra time getting seated get to board. Next, passengers with seat assignments get to find their seats. Then those who do not have seat assignments, but have kids that are under 7. Then it goes to open seating and people get to pick what is left as far as seats and overhead bin space. On the flight to LAS, there weren’t many who went with open seating, but it seemed most of the plane was open seating on the way home.
Normally I wouldn’t pay for an assigned seat, but on this trip I was flying with my girlfriend Amy and I wanted to make sure we sat together. I didn’t get the premium seats and even after the $32.00 seating fees (for both of us there and back) our tickets were still $50.00 cheaper than the competition. Since Allegiant flies MD-80 aircraft, paying more to sit up front can be more useful since you are farther away from the jets in the rear of the plane.
Got a nice view of Mount Rainier heading south towards Vegas.
One annoying aspect of Allegiant’s fees is most are opt-out fees. It automatically signs you up for the $9.99 priority boarding and seat assignment charges and asks if you are really sure you want to opt-out. After I thought I opted out for everything and I was on the payment screen and I had “additional charges” adding up to around $60.00 that I didn’t know what they were. It took me a while to realize Allegiant already added two tickets for a hotel shuttle and for travel insurance. I could see people not realizing what is going on and paying for them, even if they didn’t want or need them. Even though it was a bit more work to get the tickets (it was almost game like and I think I won) I still ended up with super cheap tickets.
Although their aircraft are a bit older, the ones I flew on (N416NV & N419NV) were quite clean. The new Allegiant seats are a bit unique with not having a standard seat pocket. Instead of the seat pocket being down by the knees, it is up above the tray table and is much smaller. This allows them to put the seats closer together and cut down on turnaround time since there really isn’t room to put trash.
The new seats are also “pre-reclined,” which is fancy airline-speak for they do not recline. For me, this is a non-issue. I rarely recline my seat out of respect for the people behind me. Non-recling seats allow more seats to be put in, cuts down on maintenance costs, which allows more revenue and keeps your ticket cost cheaper. For some reason, so many people do not see this connection. There are many other airlines out there that might provide a bit more room, less fees and a reclining seat, but it will cost you more to fly them.
Once you are on board the plane, you have more fees to consider paying as well. Unlike most other airlines, there is no free food or drinks. Not even that small glass of Diet Coke or a miniature bag of peanuts. A 12oz soda will cost you $2 and snacks range from $2-$6. Of course you also have the choice of beer for $5 or mixed drinks for $7. Considering I paid $3 for a soda and $5 for a bagel with cream cheese at the airport before boarding, I should have waited.
Boarding on the tarmac at Bellingham allows one to get views like this, which you can't get on a jetway.
The flight attendants also sell tickets to events and shuttle tickets while on board (at least on my Vegas flight). My biggest regrets of my flight was not getting an Allegiant MD-80 model – which they also sell. They won’t advertise them, so you have to ask for it. I totally forgot on the flight to LAS and was sleeping the entire way back to BLI.
One reason I slept the entire flight back was it was so late. The plane was scheduled to leave LAS at 8:05pm, but we didn’t take off until about 10:30pm. De-icing and flight plan issues caused the delay. Add to that sitting in the plane for about 1.5hrs of that delay with a loud kid in front of us and a group of college kids behind us, it was not fun. At least they did allow us to use our electronic devices and the restroom during the wait. Although it was annoying, what can you do? There are delays in any form of transportation. How many times am I sitting in Seattle traffic and it takes me an hour to go just ten miles (a lot btw)? As always people seem to get angry at the airline for delays; like someone is sitting in a room somewhere making a plane late for fun. The pilots, flight attendants, ground crews, airport personnel, operations managers and everyone else waiting on the last flight of the day do not want the delay anymore than you. These sorts of things happen in a complex business like this and I always find it is best to roll with the punches (although Amy can attest I was getting grumpy at the time).
Allegiant has a smart model that works and they will continue to grow their route map. They own their planes, fly to smaller airports, concentrate on leisure travelers, provide complete travel options and have fees. It obviously is working for them since they have been able to grow rapidly over the past few years and I have a feeling it will continue to work for them. How have your experiences with Allegiant been?
During my time in Vegas, I was also able to take a visit of Allegiant’s head quarters and will be sharing that with you soon. Stay tuned.
Other Airline Stories of Interest
Review: Flying (like a boss) In a Boeing Business Jet 
My Review: Flying Business Class on American Airlines 777-300ER
REVIEW: Flying on a Delta Air Lines Boeing 777-200LR Domestically
Taking a Look at New Seattle Startup Airline Using a Piaggio: Arrow 
Flying a Dream: Qantas First Class on an Airbus A380 – Part 1
Flying From Seattle to New York to London and Back in 40 Hours on American Airlines
Ok, I will never fly with this airline ever! I was ordering tickets online and opted out of everything possible. It wouldn’t let me continue because of a (what it was telling me)was an error in my information(found out later from my bank they were trying to charge my account three times the amount I was given $2000+!)I called to see what was wrong(I waited on hold for an hour and also online support kept me waiting for over 20 min) the guy was so rude and insisted that no one EVER has problems in ordering. I called back later with the information my bank said to me(another 25 min wait) same guy gets on, rude as ever, and swears that this can not be true and that it is my fault. Worst everythng as far as I am concerned. I will not be flying with someone, that if something goes wrong with the plane, is the passengers fault lol!
[...] does Allegiant board? – Allegiant offers many different add-ons to their standard fare and does a nice job of [...]
This is the worst airline ever! They will eventually fail, as they are not customer friendly, and are always late.
Pamela,
One might think, but they are actually one of the most successful airlines in the world and profitable. Why? They offer rock-bottom prices and although a person might not have the best experience, when they are looking to re-book, they take the chance because those prices are so low.
David
What a horrid airline. $430 for tickets from Plattsburgh to Tampa (hardly a discount rate). But that is only the start. You pay for everything. You want to pick your seat? $20+ per seat fee. I opted out and none of our family sat together. Thisty? wanna a sip of water $2, Wanna watch a movie? listen to some music? Nope nothing like that here. Want to recline your seat? Even a little? Nope, none recline, and they are the most uncomfortable seats I have ever sat in on a plane. Check a bag $60 rt if you do it in advance 70$ if you don’t. Bring on a carry on 36$ RT, And warning. The biggest scam is that they are extremely strict about carry on size. If it does not completely fit? 35$ each way. Do you get $ credit for the $36 you already paid as a carry on.. not a chance. Our plane was full but I have never seen the overhead compartments so empty. Apparently we were not the only victims of this sham. you pay $106 rt for upgrading carry on to checked. And weight limit… they got you there too, normally 50lb limit but it is 40lb limit with them. Go over.. another $50 each way. My feeling is that is was not a very good ticket price to begin with then to constantly be nickeled and dimed??? I only hope they go bankrupt (again)
I truly loved visiting your site. Thanks
It’s a get what you paid for scenario with this airline. Now I can see that not all is bad with the Airline, and understand the apologists for the company. When traveling all airlines have their bad experiences. Flight Delays. Bad Customer Service. Unwanted fees. But here’s the thing with Allegieant. They have a higher percentage of Delayed flights. A horrid 35% of their flights are delayed. A third of flights being delayed is unacceptable, especially when the top carriers manage less than 10% of their flights delayed. Their negative reviews on customer service far outweigh the positive. I actually haven’t read any positive reviews in that aspect. Maybe some MEH reviews, but none that claimed they exceeded expectations. And the fees are no secret. We find fees on all airlines…but a fee for a carry on? A fee to sit next to your family? A fee for a simple drink? These are low cost options for the airlines that they turn into high cost fees for passengers. honestly, this airline might work fine for those who can risk delays, who are traveling light, and who might be traveling alone. But if you don’t meet all three of that criteria I’m finding it might not be worth the headache.
In the last little while this Airline has gonne downhill.
They have no customer service skills and make you feel like you are doing something wrong. My experience is below.
Also in the same terminal this happened to the ppl waiting at the gate opposite us as well.
Before leaving hotel checked online status of flight “On Time”…
3PMChecked in for flight (boarding pass indicates boarding at 440pm), checked in Bag, went through security and proceeded to Gate D3 in LAS, no mention of any delays at the gate Flight is scheduled to leave at 540pm. ONTIME.
5pm rolls around still No Allegiant Rep at the gate… whats scarier is there is No plane at our gate just our luggage sitting on the tarmac.
520 a rep finally shows up and says that the plane is delayed but will be here at 630.
So we wait.
630 comes around and no plane or updates at 715 there is an announcement saying that the Plane we are supposed to be travelling on which is in Fresno hasnt even boarded yet and they are serving those passengers beverages while they are waiting & that they know nothing else.
745PM they start setting up a table with cups, ice, water and pop cans saying that management will be up in 10 min with answers and will be able to answer questions.
8PM they changed reps who told us there is a mechanical issue with the plane so they dont know when it will arrive, when asked by passengers why they dont have another plane to take us we get told that the crew that is in Fresno lives in Bellingham so its more “convienient” for them to be our crew so they can go home (which was pretty annoying to hear)
at 9pm they distributed food vouchers ($8.00 meal per person, lets be honest you cant get much for 8 dollars at the airport terminal. Most fast food places were starting to close at 9)
BTW no manager yet…a lady in a orange shirt kept coming to tell the reps something but kept leaving as soon as ppl started to approach her. She looked angry and cross. I dont think they realise that we would just like to hear the truth. not that they dont know anything when they actually do. Its frusterating. As well as when you ask a question and they ignore it or you all together, very poor customer service.
930PM the rep says they are doing an engine run( i dont know what that means…testing the engine?) then she says they have boarded the plane and take off and THAT WE WOULD BE GOING HOME WITHIN 1.5HRS.
around 10pm the orange shirt lady came up and was asking the rep why she told us that and they rep said you told me the plane pushed so i relayed the message.
1030pm the Allegiant Air flight from Fresno lands at our gate and we get an announcement stating that our flight is cancelled due to the crew being in the air for the max amount of hours. and that our flight is rescheduled until the following day at NOON.
Pretty frusterating. they had time to print up personalised hotel + food vouchers for 150 ppl, but didnt know that we would not be flyiing until the plane landed? I think that they have the poorest customer service I have ever experienced. In the mean time the only number that you can find online either doesnt work or tells you they are experiencing high volume calls 24 hours a day.
They next day they acted like nothing happened. but did distribute $8.00 more dollars in food vouchers for breakfast and a letter for our employers.
They didnt once apologise like normal ppl would, they had the worst attitude and were in turn being rude to us, which fuels the fire and gets ppl ANGRIER.
REGARDLESS lesson learned i will pay the 200-300 difference and fly with a BETTER more professional Airline.
I could go on for days about our experience. JUST WANT EVERYONE TO BE AWARE….DONT FLY ALLEGIANT.
I purchased a flight for a family member and the day before he was supposed to board he hurt himself severely and was unable to make the flight. I called and then wrote to Allegiant upon request by their telephone representative and was told by the airline that the could not reimburse me at all or change the name of the passenger so that we could get use out of the money that was lost. We have purchased many, many travels with them as well as recommending all of our family and friends who have purchased many, many tickets with them and we have flights booked in the near future with them and they still refused to help us with this one issue. Poor decision making, no personability and word of mouth will surely work against this company. I will be canceling our future flights with them, losing what we will gain in cancel fees and using another means of transportation from now on. Word of mouth will certainly not work in their favor from our home any longer as well as our family and friends. Sadly, when you become greedy and stop caring about your customers and begin blaming it on “policy”, you begin your decline as a reputable company and begin your descent to failure and eventual bankruptcy.
While the author of the article may be correct that that have been profitable in the past, their recently initiated Hawaii routes will be their downfall. I expect they will be discontiued as word of their constant and excessive delays, maintenance issues, and complete lack of customer service will eliminate any repeat customers to Hawaii. Even the Hawaiians were complaining on the news while we were there of how Allegiant is giving the tourist industry in Hawaii a bad rep with their poor service. Allegiant’s model make work for short commuter routes but in my opinion people traveling 7 hours to a vacation will not tolerate such incompetence at any price. Time will tell for Allegiant – I’m not buying any stock.
Took out flex insurance, but could not talk to customer service (Message said too busy) to change my flight. Said needed 24-48 hours to return your call. Mother was in hospital wanted to go a day earlier, couldnt get through. When I did go, 7:35pm suppose to go, delay to 9:30 pm, delayed to 11:05pm, delayed to 11:40 pm,actual time out about 1 am! Grumpy stewardess! I have flown with them for years and this is the worst it has ever been!
3/31 from Stockton C A to Honolulu, flight 1053. The departure time was supposed to be 9:30 am. We got a phone call saying it will be delayed until 5:30pm. So we arrived at airport before 4 pm. Now it is 8pm, we are still in airport WAITING!!!
No explanation, no apology, no food or drink. Worst experience ever.
Totally disagree with David. Are you getting paid ($0.10/word) to talk for allegiant? In business, you’d want to minimize expenses while maintaining a competitive service for customers’ benefits. You do not give s#@tty service and justify it by claiming that I charge you “less” therefore this is called the “s#@tty class” a class lower than the economy class. The worst and disorganized run airlines I’ve ever experienced and they’re rude too. They’re rude because they’re incompetent. You ask them a question, they don’t know the answer to it. So instead of admitting their poorly trained and lack of knowledge they’d masquerade their incompetency by being rude. Try calling customer service to see if you can get through. I am willing to bet with you that allegiants will eventually go bankcrupt.
Allegiant does offer lower fares to most cities and most of their employees are pleasant enough and their equipment is adequate. I agree that they try to add as many fees as possible but that is avoidable. I have flown with them 7 times and only once was treated rudely by ticket counter attendants.
However, beware of using their flight insurance and pity you if you have to make any changes. I purchased their flight insurance, which eliminated their flight change fees, but I had to make flight schedule changes twice several weeks before flight date. I made the changes within a two hour period and actually finally changed to a week later. They charged me for the difference in fares for both flights which I DID NOT TAKE! It was a total fee of $370. My final flight was actually about $3 less than the initial flight. When I finally reached someone by phone to complain, they rudely refused to refund the unfair charges. I had my credit card company remove the charges but after weeks of their negotiation with Allegiant they reinstated the charges. I wrote to Allegiant to complain but never received a reply. Maybe you get what you pay for in terms of lower service for a lower price but cheating customers is not a nice way to increase your company profits! I have filed a complaint with the FAA but as usual don’t expect any action from our typical incompetent government employees.
Just checking my credit card statement after a 2 week trip to Hawaii. With whom did I fly?
Allegiant Air. Will I ever again. Not on my life. The $50 charge for excess baggage, that
I spent 20 minutes resolving by repacking and having the luggage weighed again and approved
as under 40 lbs, is simply the last straw. The first straw was them NEVER answering their phone
prior to my flight, during the two weeks I was traveling or this past week. NEVER. The second straw
was having my flight canceled after I had left for the airport, despite being sent a message the previous
evening to pre-board check in. The service was completely non-existent. I did not expect food, we took our
own. But the utter lack of service, unfriendliness and disorganization upon check in both in Bellingham and especially in Honolulu and the inability to reach anyone before, during and after the trip just makes it not worth the hassle. I’ll be flying a domestic Canadian airline in future. If I wanna be treated like cattle I’ll do it at home where
at least I don’t need to worry about being in another country and am free to challenge the poor service
at point of access.
The only thing that went right with Allegiant was the wonderful Laura at the Bellingham airport who
called to say my daughter’s camera had been found on the airplane and we could pick it up. I consider the $50
rip off for baggage to be the finder’s fee for the DSLR. As for the 300 in travel vouchers promised when they
cancelled our flight, I’m not holding my breath and don’t have the interest or energy to pursue this company to cough up. Allegiant Air, a complete and utter rip off. Don’t waste your money.
Worst customer service I’ve ever experienced…period. Allegiant flight was delayed out of Youngstown. We live 1.5 hours away so waited to show up until 1.5 hours before the delayed takeoff time. When we got to the airport, there was no one working at the counter. They had closed up and gone home. So, no one could print us a boarding pass, even though we’d already checked in online. So TSA wouldn’t let us through. And no one was there to help. We went home. When we called, two managers denied our request for a refund. Done. NEVER FLY ALLEGIANT!
Customer service with Allegiant Air is non-existent!
It is impossible to call the customer service number and speak to someone. You receive a recorded message that they are experiencing a high call volume and are not taking calls. I then tried emailing just about every email I could find. I received an email reply that I should call customer service (the same one not taking calls) and that “Customer Care Specialists do not make outbound phone calls.” — so if you leave a message, do not expect a return call.
My credit card information was stolen and used for a purchase with Allegiant Air. When I was trying to reach a representative, the charge was only “authorized” on my account. If I had actually been able to speak to someone, the charge could possibly have been shut down before processing and being sent through my account. The account has been shut down and the bank has initiated an investigation that will involve Allegiant Air.
A little customer service could have gone a long way in preventing the company being involved in an investigation for a fraudulent transaction and allowing a person committing theft to travel with their airline.
It’s been a fun challenge for me to Beat Allegiant at their own game. I have flown Allegiant from Oakland on more than a dozen roundtrip occasions to visit family in Bellingham. I beat the Allegiant system of nickel and diming by travelling with only a hand made by me tote bag with the largest allowable dimensions to fit under the seat, which is still free. I now avoid the overhead because they charge for it. I keep some clothes and toiletries at my destination, thanks to the kindness of my friends and family. When I have flown with a companion, there was no problem finding seats together, without paying for the priviledge; even when being practically the last people to board. I will not pay for priority boarding. Don’t rent a car thru the Allegiant website; they tack on at least $5 per day. Rather, go directly to the rental car website for a better deal. The same for hotels; don’t use the Allegiant combination booking because it’s not really a better deal. I bring food, an apple, cookies, and sandwich, from home and have never been quesioned at Security. Always use a debit card to pay rather than credit card. I check prices often because they change more than The Dow, or gas prices. I have flown Oakland to Bellingham for $51RT; another trip was $88RT; $150, and lately for about $180RT. Allegiant is not profiting from my business.
IMPROVE ON THE CUSTOMER SERVICE NUMBER!!!!! You can NEVER get through! I can not believe every single time I call its a HIGH CALL VOLUME!!! Please Allegiantair CEO’s get a clue. We are paying guest on your airline, we abide by the Air Laws of the Airlines, and put out good hard earned money
to even fly with you. Don’t forget it’s the passages who help in providing you with a JOB! No Passengers on ALLEGIANTAIR, NO ALLEGIANTAIR, NO JOB at ALLEGIANTAIR!!! Please Please start to do better. We always fly out of Stockton, CA because it is our home, it’s makes it easy to get a flight. We’re trying to support our airport and your airline. We fly every 4 months at least, and every time it’s the same on the phone Bull Crap. So now we go to the Stockton airport and get our tickets. It’s a ways out, but at least we found a way around your VERY POOR customer service number. Please at least improve on areas the need improving. You know what they are, you’ve heard the consumers outrage, now “DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!!!”
Recently flew return from Phoenix to Hawaii. CHecked a lot of airlines and chose Hawaiin rather than Alegiant. Return far $404 per person taxes and fees in. Alegian was about $60 less but there fees would bring it past Hawaiin. What a nice experiance. Free drinks inlcuding Mai Tais. Food service with wine and a real fork!!!! Had an overweight bag on the rturn trip but the attendee checked with us and found out there was a medical device inside and waived the fee. All in all a very good experiance. When we left Hawaii the Allegiant plane was still sitting on the tarmac 4 hours afer scheduled departure. A off duty pilot was looking for a ride home and mentioned he never took Allegiant as it was always late! Planes are too old!!! Have heard many horror sotries back home of flying with them. Go Hawaiin
Paid for seating $14 extra per ticket My wife my granddaughter and myself
After a three hour delay going from Fort Lauderdale to Greenville South Carolina
someone was sitting in my seat. Flight attendant respectfully did ask passenger to
take another seat. On return trip one hour delay We were rushed on the plane.
Our seats were taken. When I confronted the flight attendant she said there’s no -
assigned seats being honored. Took a seat toward the back And I was asked to move
by the flight attendant Because she said if I have a kid on board even though I wasn’t
able to sit with my granddaughter that I could not set at a exit seat. So here’s the 411 -
we pay for three seats…. paid for checking two bags… Paid a next or $14 per seat to be able to sit together so that I can have my wife with our granddaughter. When the seatbelt signs went off I went to check on my wife and granddaughter to find my granddaughter who is two years old sitting on my wife’s lap without a seat… How’s that for customer service….
I flew from Tampa to Cedar Rapids and could not believe how rude and unfriendly the majority of workers were when we were checking in. There were only 2 people working at the counter to check people in and over 100 people in line. Once we were through the line and in security one of the employees was barking orders to hurry up to a lady that was in a wheelchair in front of me. They were telling her to hurry because she was slowing things down. She was an elderly lady. I have flown with every airline and have never experienced such rude and unfriendly behavior ever as I have with the trip on Allegiant Air. Forget how cheap they are – I will pay more to be treated with respect and kindness.
My husband and I have flown three times so far from Great Falls, guess what no surprise all three times late the last time being six hours to Vegas spoiled half a day at our resort. They ruined a man’s t motorized wheel chair by tipping it and spilling battery acid, anyone hear of baking soda not these morons and it took them two and a half hours to get Haz Mat, hello they do work at the airports folks. As a budget airline they are doomed to fail no question, sooner or later the axe will fall, next charges for the bathroom and maybe a charge to speak to a customer rep if you can get a hold of one, hey if you book by phone there is a charge. All our friends and neighbours will be told about this, but hey they should be using bi-planes by then, Disgusting