Vacations Blog

Allegiant Air

The first place I go when I’m looking for airline fares for a vacation is a comparison site like Travelocity or Expedia.  Unfortunately, many airlines that offer great fares aren’t included on these major sites.

In my experience, as someone who purchases plane tickets in and out of Florida about 10 times a year, the best airline fares to Florida are found through Allegiant Air.

Allegiant is a small airline that specializes in offering direct flights from small cities to popular tourist destinations.  In other words, you won’t find a flight from New York to Los Angeles, but you can get from Cedar Rapids, Iowa to Orlando, Florida in just under 3 hours.

Allegiant offers airline fares alone, or vacation packages that include air, hotel and car rental.

In Florida, Allegiant flies into the Orlando area (airport in Sanford), the Tampa-St. Petersburg area (airport in Clearwater) and Ft. Lauderdale (airport in Fort Lauderdale).

I’ve gotten flights on Allegiant into and out of Orlando for as little as $29 each way.

Of course, there are limitations to keep in mind if you’re looking to book a flight with Allegiant for your Florida vacation.  The flight availability is much more limited than a major airline’s schedule and you can only book about 3 months in advance.  You’ll also pay extra for checking bags and choosing your seat ahead of time.  And, of course, they don’t offer service to every major airport.

Even with these restrictions, if you’re planning a Florida vacation on a budget, there’s a good chance that you can save money by booking your flights through Allegiant Air.  Check the Allegiant website for cities, schedules and current fares.  You can also follow Allegiant on Twitter to get the latest deals.

Photo courtesy of Allegiant Air.