The era of drip pricing through the booking process is (mostly) over at Frontier. The carrier will continue to offer a variety of service bundles at different price points (“The Works” was first introduced in 2015!, a year after the company started charging for carry-ons), but the pricing will now will be clearly displayed on the initial search result page rather than requiring consumers to click through to learn the real cost of their trip.
This is ‘The New Frontier’ and we are committed to offering more than the lowest fares – we deliver the best price for all the options you want and the customer support you need, when you need it. No gimmicks, just really low prices and good customer service.
– Barry Biffle, Frontier CEO
Ch, ch, ch, changes (are free)
Frontier will still offer a basic economy fare, with ancillary charges for nearly everything. The other bundles – Economy, Premium, and Business – are similar to what the company previously offered.
The bundles all come with a carry-on bag and a seat assignment; which seats can be selected varies by bundle. All three also now include a waiver from change fees. This benefit is limited, mostly in that the change must be made more than 24 hours from scheduled departure. But it brings the company closer to its competitors in fee-free flexibility. Passengers also will not receive a credit if changing to a lower priced itinerary, while they will be charged for a higher priced one. Still, it is a solid move in favor of travelers.
One catch with the new fare bundles: They will only be available for bookings made directly with the company. Tickets sold through third parties appear to be priced higher, and offer a different set of amenities/benefits. Bundle pricing also does not show on the metasearch sites frequently used by travelers.
The bundles also apply on reward itineraries. The mileage redemption secures a basic fare; booking a bundle must be paid with new money, not points.
Frontier sells the new bundles as non-essential ancillary fees, just like the old ones. It will avoid paying the federal excise tax on that additional revenue; that does not change from the prior approach.
Another passenger-friendly move comes in the reopening of a call center to handle questions and troubles. It is still a limited program, only available for passengers departing within 24 hours or elite status holders. But it is a massive win for handling day-of-travel disruption. Similarly beneficial to passengers, flight credits will now be valid for twelve months instead of three.
A best fare guarantee designed to never pay out
Finally, the carrier launched a best fare guarantee, including competing airlines. The fine print on that, however, likely reduces the chances it will ever have to pay out.
For starters, the basic economy fares are excluded. Beyond that, the guarantee must be on the same date, and at comparable times, though the company does not specify just how much deviation is allowed.
Read more: Saving on Allegiant’s optional fees can come with a cost
The guarantee also requires the same number of connections en route, and comparable amenities, including “substantially the same and seat products must have matching characteristics.” Given the variability within the offerings among airlines and what’s included in the advertised fares that will eliminate a number of comparison options.
And even if a traveler manages to claim the 2,500 mile payout from the guarantee, it is only available once per passenger per calendar year.
Removing the change fees puts Frontier on comparable standing with most other US airlines, though the 24-hour rule is still something of an outlier. Passengers will still have to go through the search process directly, rather than using metasearch engines to compare options. It should be a quicker process on the Frontier site, but the offering is still very much an unbundled product, now mostly rebundled.
Separate from the planned changes, it also appears the implementation is having some troubles. Some awards are showing negative prices, or bundles priced north of $20,000.
There are also reports that Go Wild! bookings are not working. Obviously that’s not what is supposed to be happening.
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