Spirit Airlines Launches $1 LA-Vegas Fare
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Miramar, Fla.-based Spirit said on Tuesday it would begin five daily nonstop flights between Vegas and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) starting May 5, with introductory fares of $9 each way. The carrier then dropped fares to $1 after several rival carriers slashed their own fares in response.
Analysts say this kind of fare war is typical in the European leisure travel, where Ryanair and EasyJet often undercut traditional rivals. Fare wars like this are a little less frequent in the U.S., but Spirit is trying to make a splash in a big destination for gamblers and conventioneers.
"It's hard to break into a new market," Rick Seaney, chief executive and co-founder of FareCompare.com told AOL Travel News. "There's a lot of competition from Vegas to LA."
Spirit said it would offer its cheapest fares for travel on Tuesdays and Wednesdays between May 10 and June 15th.
Rival Southwest Airlines, the dominant airline between LA and Las Vegas responded immediately by dropping fares to $29 each way and Allegiant Air, which is based in Las Vegas and flies to Long Beach, Calif., cut fares to $10, according to the Las Vegas Sun.
JetBlue later matched the airfare with its own discounted seats from Las Vegas to Long Beach. American Airlines and US Airways matched that fare sale with $58 round-trip fares.
The low fares do not include taxes and fees.
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Nice! I wish it was a great deal from Molilne, IL, to Vegas! Right now it's around $355!!! No way will I pay that price.
March 10 2011 at 8:36 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThe catch is ... You must pay extra to fly INSIDE the plane.
March 10 2011 at 3:54 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWhy are fares from LA to Las Vegas so low and fares to Vegas from the East are so high?
A. Vegas is much closer to LA, so people might decide to get away for a weekend, at the last minute. It might be compared to living in Boston and then driving to Portland, Maine to a great restaurant for lobster, or living in Dallas and deciding to spend a weekend in San Antonio at one of the golf resorts.
B. The airlines are competing with the automobile. I-15 is a straight shot from downtown LA to the Strip. Flights between Portland and Seattle compete with driving I-5. Flying between Chicago and St. Louis competes with driving I-55.
Generally, people in the East or Midwest don't decide to pack and bag and hop on a plane for Vegas.
Also, between LAX, Ontario, Burbank, and Orange County, Southwest has almost 40 daily departures. By the time you add American, US Air, Jet Blue, etc., that is a lot of seats, and the airlines don't like empty seats.
In the east, where there's more $$$ than anywhere in the U.S., they never give us good deals to Vegas.
Have to believe it's because they know we'll pay to get there regardless. Can't wait for someone with a brain in Jersey to wake up and legalize sports betting in A.C. When this happens, airlines won't be able to give us prices cheap enough to get us to leave the east coast. It's coming and we on the right coast, will not forget the years of being "jobbed".
The bad thing about these types of fares is the rest of us have to pay the losses they incur by upping the fares to other destinations. It sucks in plain english.
March 10 2011 at 12:40 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplySpirit is the worst airlines in existance.
March 10 2011 at 11:26 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyYes .....I will not fly spirit !!!! Even IF THEY PAY ME !!!!!!!
March 10 2011 at 3:45 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWe have virtually nothing from Palm Springs to Las Vega and can't understand that...all we have is 2 United flights a day in like a prop plane for about $450 round trip..don't know why Southwest or others airlines don't come in here..there is so much car traffic between us!
March 10 2011 at 11:23 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyTo any sap who really thinks they are going to fly anywhere for $1 buck, I have some oceanfront property in Tennessee I'd like to sell you.
March 10 2011 at 9:42 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyClever , I'll bet some a$#%*^e will take you up on it . Is that view the Indian ocean ?LMAO
March 10 2011 at 2:07 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Replylove how the left coast gets all the deals give us some deals here on the east coast i wanna go to vegas too
March 10 2011 at 7:44 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWhen the heck is someone going to lower the airfares from the East Coast to Las Vegas? It doesn't have to be $1, but East Coast travelers deserve a break too.
March 10 2011 at 7:43 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHot 5 Deals
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