We’ve all been there. You’re on Google Flights, searching for plane tickets and comparing prices, and you suddenly see an airline that is $200 less than the others. You’re thinking, maybe it has a weirdly long layover or they don’t serve complimentary snacks on board, but I can deal with that for the savings! 

Here are some things to be aware of, that I wish somebody had told me before I flew with these airlines:

• A lot of things that you might consider the “bare minimum” are not included in the base price that you see. There might be upcharges for all sorts of things. I’m talking:

  • Carry-on bags

  • Checked bags

  • Water

  • Juice/Soda

  • Snacks

  • Seat Selection

  • Printing your ticket at the airport

  • Cancellation Fees

• They often are smaller airlines with less planes/routes. 

  • This can be a problem if you experience delays, miss your connection, or if your flight is cancelled. A major airline likely has other flights leaving the same day or soon after, or even agreements with other airlines that help you get to your destination. 

  • Therefore, utilizing an ULCC for an event (ie. wedding) or time-sensitive situation (ie. boarding a cruise ship) may be taking on a major risk. 

I’m not telling you not to fly a ULCC at all. But, it’s important to be aware of the pros and cons in order to make an informed choice. 

There also may be advantages. You can still fly and ULCC and choose to pay for things that are important to you, like a carry-on bag and seat selection, and perhaps still come in under the price of a larger airline. With larger airlines, you essentially are paying for a lot of the “complimentary” items, even if you don’t use them. Also, even major airlines have moved to similar upcharge pricing models (side-eyes in Basic Economy). 

Another advantage would be when the price is so low that you consider a trip somewhere that you wouldn’t have ordinarily visited. I did this with Philadelphia - it wasn’t very high up on my “to visit” list, but I saw a flight price that I couldn’t turn down, and I packed my stuff for an extended weekend into a personal item and was cool with whatever seat they put me in. On a separate tip, I also did an overnight layover in Denver so I could see Meow Wolf’s Convergence Station, and that worked out pretty well for me. So, it’s situational, but make sure you know what you’re signing up for.