What It's Like To Fly On Avelo Airlines

 

A new budget airline has landed on the west coast! Avelo Airlines claims that it was created to inspire travel. It inspired me and my mom to fly from Burbank Airport located in the San Fernando Valley just north of Los Angeles to Santa Rosa, in the heart of the Northern California wine country for a quick weekend getaway. 

The airline advertises $29 fares from Burbank to Santa Rosa and a lot of the time, there are discount codes available or sales that actually make the flights cheaper. We were able to score round-trip tickets for $44 each.  

That being said, this airline operates like Frontier and Spirit Airlines where you pay extra for carry-on luggage, checked luggage, and seat assignments. But if you truly just buy your ticket, travel light, and sit wherever they put you, then it is priced cheap. 

What It's Like To Fly On Avelo Airlines 

The flights do not operate every day and usually offer just one flight per day. The airline uses smaller airports like Santa Rosa, Bend, Oregon, Redding, Eugene, and Eureka. Avelo does fly to Denver, Las Vegas, and Salt Lake City. 

Avelo also operates flights from JFK to various cities in Florida. 

I checked right now and there is a flash sale of $20 off with the code FLYAWAY so with a random weekend in March, Avelo offered me flights for $55 round trip with no add ons. Not bad. 

Every passenger can bring a personal item onboard for FREE. According to the website, a personal item is defined as a laptop computer, purse, or small backpack. Basically, an item that can fit under the seat in front of you. If you want to add a carry-on or a piece of luggage you would stow in the overhead bin, you will need to pay $40 each way. Ouch! 

If you want to check luggage, you will need to pay $35 each way. Ouch again! 

If you want to choose your seat, you will need to pay $6-$39 depending on which seat you would like. You could get window seats for just $7 each way. 

The airline also states that you will get a better deal on add ons if you do it when you book and not wait until you get to the airport. 

What It's Like To Fly On Avelo Airlines 

Check-in was easy and online. I had decided to forgo a bag entirely and just brought a backpack. My mom had a carry-on and we easily walked right through security and onto the plane with it. Interesting sidenote, no one ever checked or confirmed verbally that she had indeed paid extra for her carry on bag. 

Avelo bought old Southwest planes for its fleet so the planes felt comfortable and clean. There is no entertainment onboard or in the app. 

There is no food service since the flights are short, but they did hand out bottles of water on board. 

Since the airline uses small airports, we walked onto the tarmac and up and down a ramp to board the plane. The boarding was so smooth that we departed 10 minutes early. 

One other note of interest, right after I booked the flights, the airline launched a sale. You can't change your flight online so I called. An operator picked up right away but confirmed that my flight could not be changed. He did offer to give me a credit for my original flight and then rebook using the credit at the lower rate. 

So now I have a $25 credit at Avelo that is good for one year. 

I would definitely fly Avelo again and not just because I have a credit. But I would probably forgo a seat assignment (there were tons of empty seats) and just pack a backpack. 

It's a good option for short flights to smaller airports, but like discount airlines, the add ons can also add up, and then it's no longer a discount at all.