Zihuatanejo-Ixtapa Message Board - the final Frontier

Zihuatanejo Ixtapa Troncones Mexico
Message Board / Tablero de Mensajes

Back to the forum index

Linear

Stardate 4/22/2024 : I booked the cheapest flight, via Frontier, but forgot to read the
(awful) reviews. Expedia has a rule if you make a reservation you can refund free of charge within 24 hours but I called them and they make you refund through Frontier. Which does not even have a customer refund/complaint phone number. Not quite delivering what they promise on the part of Expedia.
So the Frontier scam goes like this: you get to the airport and if your backpack doesn't fit into the 8x18x14 inch "sizer"(at the GATE) you have to pay 99 bucks. No middle ground or fifty shades of grey. They want a Benjamin. Pronto. Or no bordo.
So looks like tomorrow I will be wearing four sets of shirts under my flannel shirt. And stuffing socks and various items into my pockets (is that a banana, sir?) so that my backpack will be more floppy and fit into the sizer. Maybe even my laptop under my shirt (make that shirts) if I am feeling brave.
Has anyone been through this Frontier hassle before? Turns out the gate agents receive 10 dollars every time they can net another sucker with baggage that won't fit. And consequently a 100 M class action suit is going on since November, but the practice still goes on...whatever happened to cease-and-desist?
Update: looks like if you take a photo of your luggage fitting into the sizer you can successfully do a chargeback on this scam.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Flights/comments/133bh0h/frontier_baggage_scam/

2882 views

You could just try to follow the rules. When we fly Volaris or Allegiant we pay for 2 checked bags and carry on a small backpack each so no worries. I’m actually tired of watching people cramming oversized carryons into the overhead and taking so long to sit down. So far we have not had the pleasure of flying Frontier or Spirit, good luck with your flight.

2496 views

In this case the rules are intentionally predatory. How many people show up to the gate (not the airport) expecting to have to cough up 100 dollars AS THEY BOARD just because their backpack doesn't quite fit into this company-specific sizer. Even straps hanging out of of the little space are causing people to have to pay, according several reviews I have read. The rationale is that they need the backpacks to fit under the seats but this 14 by 18 by 8 inch "gotcha" tactic is way smaller than what fits under the seat comfortably, and what they are traditionally used to--a one hundred dollar difference between "carry-on" and "personal item" is a shock to most travelers. I've never heard of such a thing in my years travelling until reading reviews online for Frontier. I agree that budget airlines are more likely to surprise you with a fee but this sounds bonkers. Glad to see the courts are addressing this specific issue I mention.

2490 views

Frontier has been doing this since day one and it won't stop until people stop using them.Vote with your pocketbook. Fly first class on a major airline and travel in comfort.

2361 views

You could just try to follow the rules. When we fly Volaris or Allegiant we pay for 2 checked bags and carry on a small backpack each so no worries. I’m actually tired of watching people cramming oversized carryons into the overhead and taking so long to sit down. So far we have not had the pleasure of flying Frontier or Spirit, good luck with your flight.

There is something nice about “getting away” with something. There is something nice about being the person who was able to “stretch the rules”.

But I get kind of fed up having paid to checked my luggage only to see others taking up overhead space with luggage that is oversized. On a recent trip I searched for a place to put my properly-sized carryon as a person finished loading their backpack, with tent attached, into the overhead. For my next flight to ZIH I paid for a higher fare class to get checked luggage included.

If Frontier is inconsistent with the application of its standards, I agree with the OP, flexibility of rules should apply to all. But If Frontier is consistent in its practice, I congratulate them.

2408 views

Little Guy,

I respect your opinion on these Romulo-Klingon practices.
But let me ask you, have you ever seen an airline get all anal
about "personal item" vs "carry on" dimensions at the gate, as you board, splitting hairs over semantics?
With a 100 dollar penalty? That's what's going on here. These are policies in direct opposition to intergalactic law I learned in field commission as an ensign and posted to advanced training near galaxy Rijel 7. I seriously hope I don't have to get Scotty to beam me up tomorrow, in public, or call Geraldo.

2411 views

Little Guy,

I respect your opinion on these Romulo-Klingon practices.
But let me ask you, have you ever seen an airline get all anal
about "personal item" vs "carry on" dimensions at the gate, as you board, splitting hairs over semantics?
With a 100 dollar penalty? That's what's going on here.

Most times when I check in I have seen the sizing devices for carry-on and personal items both at the check-in counter and at the boarding gate. I have considered them to be utilitarian, not merely decorative.

I have seen items being checked for size at each location. I have seen items not passing the test but because it doesn’t affect me I haven’t paid attention to what happened next. I don’t think of “This doesn’t fit.” as being semantics. I think of it as being objective measuring.

These are policies in direct opposition to intergalactic law I learned in field commission as an ensign and posted to advanced training near galaxy Rijel 7. I seriously hope I don't have to get Scotty to beam me up tomorrow, in public, or call Geraldo.

I don’t travel intergalactically. Heck, I don’t even travel interplanetary. Again, because it doesn’t affect me, I don’t pay attention to intergalactic regulations.

2329 views

My experience is at the other end where they fleece you in customs. We come for months at a time and always bring a couple of suitcases. Shoes and clothes can get musty or mildewed over the summer at our condo and those are the same clothes that can be worn in the summer up north. Next time, I'm going to request that the person at check-in not put the red priority insert on the baggage tag. These bags do not come on to the carousel in ZIH first, but they may be a tipoff for customs to provide extra scrutiny. We've gotten the green light and then they still hit us up for a couple hundred bucks. (And no, my wife's clothing and my golf clubs are not for resale, but it's hard to say the value is less than $1,000 per person.) Stopping in Mexico City, so the flight to ZIH is domestic, used to be a good option for us when Interjet was in business, but now the connections are poor.

2353 views

After years of experiencing customs at ZIH, I became disoriented the first couple of times I came through customs at MEX in recent years. I kept waiting for problems that didn’t occur. I have previously related a friend bringing a few items for me.a couple of years ago, all with receipts, well under US$500 total. Oops, I forgot to give him the receipt for the C$160 Apple TV. He was charged M$1500 duty on it.

Last year when he arrived, the same customs person saw him, smiled at him, and waived him through without checking anything.

A few months ago I arrived at ZIH with an itemized list, prices listed, converted from C$ to US, amounts totaled up, with all receipts in an envelope. I even had a large tool for woodworking, brand new in a box. Aduana was disinterested in my arrival.

In October I’ll be arriving via MEX. Yes, the flights are lousy connections, but the arrival is more pleasant.

2103 views

I think a key consideration is the events, and the treatment of travellers, can be wildly airport- or situation-dependent. After reading horror stories about Frontier, my trip from Mexico to California was not that horrible. In other cases with Frontier, on youtube, I saw grown men and women in tears over getting nickel and dimed by this airline, or told they would not be on the flight just for complaining. I have had interactions with TSA that were pleasant and professional or ones where they groped my crotch 3 times and I wanted to slap their faces. So yeah, we expect consistent or predictable treatment but it really depends on who is working that day and what airport you are travelling through.

2052 views

Stardate 4/22/2024 : I booked the cheapest flight, via Frontier, but forgot to read the
(awful) reviews. Expedia has a rule if you make a reservation you can refund free of charge within 24 hours but I called them and they make you refund through Frontier. Which does not even have a customer refund/complaint phone number. Not quite delivering what they promise on the part of Expedia.
So the Frontier scam goes like this: you get to the airport and if your backpack doesn't fit into the 8x18x14 inch "sizer"(at the GATE) you have to pay 99 bucks. No middle ground or fifty shades of grey. They want a Benjamin. Pronto. Or no bordo.
So looks like tomorrow I will be wearing four sets of shirts under my flannel shirt. And stuffing socks and various items into my pockets (is that a banana, sir?) so that my backpack will be more floppy and fit into the sizer. Maybe even my laptop under my shirt (make that shirts) if I am feeling brave.
Has anyone been through this Frontier hassle before? Turns out the gate agents receive 10 dollars every time they can net another sucker with baggage that won't fit. And consequently a 100 M class action suit is going on since November, but the practice still goes on...whatever happened to cease-and-desist?
Update: looks like if you take a photo of your luggage fitting into the sizer you can successfully do a chargeback on this scam.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Flights/comments/133bh0h/frontier_baggage_scam/

We went to Cuba last October, via Sunwing, from Montreal. (WestJet recently bought Sunwing). The all-included package included 1 free checked bag/passenger, which we used. At the Montreal check-in, Sunwing's check-in agent looked over the counter at our carry-on and said "That's $25 for your carry-on."
Me: Why?
Her: It has wheels.
Me: So what?
Her: If it has wheels we have to charge $25.

What are you going to do? I paid.

Coming home, at the airport in Varadero, Sunwing's check-in agent did the exact same thing: looked over the counter and said we had to pay $25 for the carry-on, "because it has wheels."

I paid again.

At no time did either of these check-in agents make any effort to check the size or the weight of our carry-on.....just a quick glance and the statement that we had to pay $25 "because it has wheels."

Clearly, Sunwing has instructed all its agents to charge $25 for ANY carry-on that has wheels. Nothing but a scam to squeeze another $50 from unsuspecting travelers.

I checked Sunwing's small print, and our very small, wheeled carry-on is within their posted weight and dimensions for carry-ons......including the wheels. The small print mentions nothing about "wheels" being a disqualifier.

Still pissed-off several months later, I lodged a formal complaint directly with Sunwing. They responded quickly with a statement that review of my claim would be delayed, apparently due to an increased volume of complaints.
What a surprise.

If Sunwing refuses to refund my $50, I'll escalate to the next level.

2379 views

"The small print mentions nothing about "wheels" being a disqualifier."

Thank you, thank you. These "gotcha" tactics are the exact type of crap I am talking about; in fact, this is worse than gotcha tactics because they are wrong.

2065 views

I had some sympathy for a guy as I was checking in on WestJet at ZIH last month. He had a small “personal item” and a tube that looked like it would hold a fishing rod. This was not a big piece of PVC, but a small diameter tube maybe a metre and a half long. It looked to be not very robust. I thought it was curious that the person would use that item as checked luggage.

When he got to check in he said he had carryon only. No checked luggage. The WestJet agent said the item had to be checked. The guy said it was an expensive fishing rod that he always took onboard to keep it safe. He said it laid in the back of an overhead bin and took up no space.

I’m guessing the guy was correct. It probably didn’t interfere in any way with “properly sized” carryon luggage in an overhead bin. He said he had never had to check it.

On the other hand, it greatly exceeded the WestJet maximum dimension for carryon that is 53 cm. The agent was clearly correct that it did not meet the requirements for carryon.

I finished checking in before the discussion ended, but I don’t think the fishing rod case would have faired well, regardless of how many “FRAGILE” stickers they tried to put on it.

2079 views

I went to Cienfuegos Cuba recently as well on a Sunwing Charter and in big bold print it says free checked bag and any carry on is $25. You could have put a gargantuan sized bag in the belly of the plane for free why would you push the limit over and above a back pack for carry on and then complain? No sympathy

2132 views

I went to Cienfuegos Cuba recently as well on a Sunwing Charter and in big bold print it says free checked bag and any carry on is $25. You could have put a gargantuan sized bag in the belly of the plane for free why would you push the limit over and above a back pack for carry on and then complain? No sympathy

Thanks for your opinion on how much baggage we should carry. I won't bother pointing out that our carry-on was full of the toiletries, (toothpaste, soap, etc), school supplies, stationery and chocolate treats that we were encouraged to bring to Cuba for the locals.

Here are Sunwing's limitations on carry-on baggage, as reported by "FlightCenter," that were in effect when we flew last October:

"Carry-ons must weigh below 5 kg and dimensions must measure between 23 cm x 40 cm x 51 cm (9" x 16" x 20" including wheels and handles. Carry-ons that weigh more or exceed the dimensions will have to be checked in and will be charged for excess baggage fees."

As noted, our little carry-on did not exceed that weight or those dimensions....but it didn't matter, because neither ticketing agent made any attempt to weigh or measure: "It has wheels, that's $25."

I see that Sunwing's CURRENT limitations now mention a $25 charge for carry-ons that meet the description above. Their October/23 rules and regs did not.

1951 views

If you just had your boarding pass ahead of time just skip the check-in desk and go through security. They don't care.

2062 views

If you just had your boarding pass ahead of time just skip the check-in desk and go through security. They don't care.

Good point. Never thought of that. Without a cellphone or a printer, I think we have to go through check-in, but that doesn't mean we have to schlep ALL our bags up to the counter.

1964 views

Umm...the gotcha moment is at the gate, when you think you're in the clear, with Frontier. Not at the check in counter. That's what takes people by surprise.

1975 views

If you just had your boarding pass ahead of time just skip the check-in desk and go through security. They don't care.

Good point. Never thought of that. Without a cellphone or a printer, I think we have to go through check-in, but that doesn't mean we have to schlep ALL our bags up to the counter.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that cell phones will never really catch on.

1988 views

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that cell phones will never really catch on.

I'm waiting for this silly InfernalNet fad to blow over.

1819 views

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that cell phones will never really catch on.

My first encounter with anyone using a cell phone was in a grocery store, where some moron, in a booming voice heard all over the produce department, said:

"Honey, did you say we need broccoli?"

That was it for me.

1742 views

RSS Feed of thread