Legacy vs Discount Airlines?

I think it really gets down to attention to detail, and personality. If you are a detail person, you naturally compare all the costs and pay attention to what is included and what is not. If you tend towards “big picture “, you might miss the details and assume that what you get with a legacy is what you always got.

Some people are in loyalty programs and want to collect points/miles.

Fares can vary a great deal, depending on the time as well as the date of the flight. That's true for all airlines, so you really need to compare fares for your specific itinerary. I am not going to take a 6 AM flight; I'll take a much later flight that requires a connection instead. My willingness to take a very late flight would depend on my familiarity with the destination city and whether a taxi into town would be affordable--which also depends on what airport is being used. As a result of those biases, the very cheapest options will probably not be of any importance to me.

There is a somewhat related thread right now that brought some of this
to light and illustrated how deeply seated the perceptions of Discount
Airlines vs Legacy can be. In that one instance a poster assumed,
incorrectly, that the Legacy Airline’s (in this case Swiss Air) best
fare included checked bag, carry on, seat assignment and as such was
cheaper than the two Discount airlines being discussed.

I do not appreciate subtweeting, if you have an issue with my post you could have replied to the thread. But no, I was not incorrect. The price I mentioned was for an Economy Classic-ticket, which on Swiss (not Swissair, they went bankrupt 20 years ago) includes a checked bag etc. The Economy Light-ticket that only includes a carry on bag was a few thousand Forints cheaper.

And the poster stated a preference for the Legacy Airline that was a
4.5 hour flight including a 1 hour layover over a non-stop flight of 2.5 hours on one of two discount airlines.

I did not state any preference for any option, but wanted to add more options since the OP seemed reluctant to fly with LCCs.

I do believe the world has changed, and change is hard for some people. For example, I live 3 hours from the nearest international airport and 20 minutes from a small regional airport. Everyone tells me that it’s cheaper to fly from Portland. Everyone. Even when you factor in driving 3 hours, spending the night in the hotel before and after the flight, another hotel stay after returning, and storing the car at the hotel (about $800).

When researching our last trip, I found airfare from my local airport for $200 LESS per person than from Portland. Same (legacy) airline. Same number of connections. Had I listened to others and not done my own research, I would have wasted two additional travel days and at least $1600.

The problem I found, Badger, (and I replied at length also) was that we were all using random dates. When I picked my date in April, Swiss Air (and Lufthansa) were twice as expensive as the highest priced package on the 2 discount airlines for the same date. That is not always the case for sure!

So as acravan said, it truly does matter what day and what time for pricing - and then what is of importance in order to make our choice.

I also wonder if the airline world has changed enough that our past assumptions are now invalid. The discounts seem to more clearly delineate what they do and don’t provide - while legacy carriers are offering more and more “options not included”.

I do think it is becoming far easier to see what is and isn’t included. In the case of at least 2 discount carriers, that was fast and easy to see and at the very beginning of the booking process. And I find it clear when booking on our legacy carriers but it seems to come a little later in the booking process.

Maybe it’s become a bit like lumping all of “Europe” together. And like everything else - we have to read and pay attention.

Edit: travel4fun, I have exactly the same experience, living 2 1/2 hrs from a major hub!

A factor for which I'll pay (some about of) premium is IRROPs options.

Legacy airlines are also referred to as "network" operators, and industruy consolidation, joint ventures, and alliances have made those networks fewer but bigger. Most of the newer, discount carriers are "point-to-point" operators.

Ex: If something goes wrong with a BA flight you can reroute in via BA, IB, IE, AY in Europe—add AA to the list for solving TATL issues. On most discount carriers if there's an issue with mechanical, weather, crew, etc, your only other option to get to a destination might be the next available space on the same route with the same carrier—but they only fly that three times a week, and all the flights for the next week are full. SOL...

Additionally- I've progressed from being a fairly minor player of the points game to truly valuing alliance status. I don't sweat bag fees, seat selection, or priority agent access (among other perks) because I've strategically built status in OneWorld, the alliance that makes the most sense for my travels.

Carol now: II would say; “you might miss the details and assume that the Legacy provides more in the base cost than the Discounts do” as that was the false assumption on the other thread for the particular date and route that I was discussing; but either way its about paying attention and all the airlines I checked put the “detail” in your face the minute you clicked SEARCH.

Funpig; I cant possibly see getting enough loyalty points on one short flight to even briefly consider adding 2 hours and a stop, but you are probably right (the discounts have loyalty program too and the one Wizz uses produces easy to use savings quickly).

Acraven; that’s true with Legacy or Discount airlines and I agree and have similar standards.

travel4fun; I have use that to my advantage during the trip by occasionally finding multiple lay overs on the way to my final destination that are less expensive than going straight there (use to visit Kyiv on the way to Budapest for instance – same or less expensive).

TexasTravelMom: absolutely, which is why I stated the random date I checked (the OP didn’t provide a date); and I assumed the following post would use the same date; but there is some old silly expression about assumptions….. I am guilty as charged.

But all of that aside, unless I am missing something, I can’t find a reason to avoid, or be suspect of, the Discount airline if the schedule and price works and the amenities included in that price work; they seem to be fine you just have to read the offers and think them through otherwise it's just a plane ride.

I don't know what "other thread" keeps getting referred to, but if someone hijacked a topic to make their own thread that... seems weird, and maybe Badger's beef is legit.

The problem I found, Badger, (and I replied at length also) was that
we were all using random dates. When I picked my date in April, Swiss
Air (and Lufthansa) were twice as expensive as the highest priced
package on the 2 discount airlines for the same date. That is not
always the case for sure!

That can be a problem, hence why I used the same date as Mister E.

I don't know what "other thread" keeps getting referred to

It's this thread: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/hungary/wizz-airlines-vs-ryanair

Nothing like that, Scudder - just more thoughts, I think, and to KEEP from hijacking someone else’s post.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/hungary/wizz-airlines-vs-ryanair

periscope, I find I don’t get enough points or special treatment when booking on Lufthansa or Swiss Air or Air France or Austrian Air - I don’t fly them within Europe enough to make loyalty points worth anything. I think the point of this thread was about short flights within Europe, not booking from the U.S. on a partner airline. I know I have given up flying Spirit or Frontier…..

Periscope; “what if’s” that was the starting premise of the post; what “what if’s”?
I have flown a number of Discounts and so far there have been no more “what if’s” than with any other airline; but I am afraid that I am missing something because a large number of seasoned travelers like you share your opinion so I think there is maybe something I am missing.

TexasTravelMom; you are correct the post was a specific question, and I didn’t want to hijack it on a broader topic and I did not post the previous thread or the person I was discussing things with because it was just an example and nothing more; but I should have been ever more vague …. my apologies to the person involved.

If there is nothing wrong with the Discounts, and if we can push through the negative perceptions, then a lot of travelers will have a lot more options …. on the other hand if the perceptions are real this forum is a good place to get it out.

With that, I will just watch and learn from you guys.

I find I don’t get enough points or special treatment when booking on
Lufthansa or Swiss Air or Air France or Austrian Air - I don’t fly
them within Europe enough to make loyalty points worth anything

All three large alliances (Star Alliance, Skyteam and Oneworld) allow you to collect points on other airlines in the alliance. So if you fly Swiss, you can get United points e.g.

I hadn’t realized that, Badger! Will look for it from now on!

Ehhh… for transatlantic flights I like legacy airlines because they have more redundancy built into their schedules if things go wrong. For a „must make“ intra-European connection, I like legacy carriers. For a standard intra-European flight, discount carriers are fine for me.

I know a fair number of people from a variety of European countries who have sworn off discount carriers (or at least some discount carriers) because of being burned by them.

I do believe the world has changed, and change is hard for some people. For example, I live 3 hours from the nearest international airport and 20 minutes from a small regional airport. Everyone tells me that it’s cheaper to fly from Portland. Everyone. Even when you factor in driving 3 hours, spending the night in the hotel before and after the flight, another hotel stay after returning, and storing the car at the hotel (about $800). When researching our last trip, I found airfare from my local airport for $200 LESS per person than from Portland. Same (legacy) airline. Same number of connections. Had I listened to others and not done my own research, I would have wasted two additional travel days and at least $1600.

travel4fun, I'm in the same boat - I live 15-20 minutes from DLH, which is a small airport (4 gates) but have the option of flying out of MSP, which is a 2 1/2 hour drive. I have found, like you, that prices are generally about the same for international flights, so it would seem to make sense to fly out of the closer airport. But I still fly out of MSP. I can arrange my flight times so that I don't have to spend the night before or after in Minneapolis. If for some reason I do, there are Airbnbs close to the airport for $50-60 a night and I combine it with a shopping trip. When I leave for Scotland next year, I will take the shuttle from DLH to MSP.

I like flying out of MSP because it saves me time (usually 3-5 hours) and I can get better connections there. In your case, it sounds like the smaller airport works best. But in my case, I usually wind up saving a lot more time by driving to MSP.