One carry-on? Yup. You read that right. Shocking, especially if you know me.

I am here to share the in’s and out’s of flying with Spirit, how I prepped, my experience, and why I would 100% do it again.

Before booking my roundtrip Spirit flight from LAX to Atlanta (for only $167 I might add… that is unheard of, honestly) I did a little research. I wanted to make sure that I knew exactly what I was getting myself into and where I needed to set my expectations. I read a few awesome blog posts (like this one) and figured I was ready to take the plunge. I didn’t have anywhere to be, technically, until the morning after my flight, so I was accepting any potential delay and clicked “confirm purchase” on the website. A couple of things that I did when purchasing this flight:

1. I did not choose my seat. All airlines at this point are charging for seat selection (rude, if you ask me) so this was something that I was used to. I am still young, I am still flexible, and I don’t NEED an aisle or window seat. Want, sure, but I will accept a middle seat if that saves me $60 roundtrip. This is 100% up to you, but it keeps your total price low. ( I ended up with aisle seats both times though, which is my preference, so I was thrilled about that! )
2. I chose to check-in on my own and print/download my boarding pass. They charge for literally everything at Spirit, including checking in with an actual human being, so I made sure that I did not add that unnecessary charge to my total.
3. I made sure to skip all pages that tried to get me to add things on like their “big front seats” and baggage. Tip: You get one carry-on item for free but if you ARE bringing bags, make sure to pay for them ahead of time as the fees massively increase if you pay for them on the day-of. I didn’t want to pay for any bags, ever, so I just skipped these pages.
4. I ignored all of their promotion for their credit cards and membership programs. I don’t know enough about them to say if they are worth it, but since I don’t plan on flying solely Spirit in the future, it didn’t seem worth my time to investigate their details. If you do, it’s worth taking a look into I would imagine!

A couple of days before my flight, I started to check things off of my Spirit to-do list. I knew that they didn’t have outlets on the flight, in-flight entertainment, or offer water/snacks, so I was able to prep ahead of time for these things. Here is what was on that list:

1. Plan out outfits (with details) for each day and event of my trip so that I only pack what is absolutely necessary in my single carry-on. I will go into more detail with tips on what and how I packed below.
2. Charge mobile charger and make sure all cords associated with mobile charging are present in its little bag so that I can fuel up my phone or iPad during the flight.
3. Download movies & TV shows from Netflix and YouTube to my iPad.
4. Charge up AirPods and make sure I have backup headphones that plug into my iPad.
5. Check-in 24 hours prior in order to have my boarding pass emailed to me.
6. Pack an empty water bottle and snacks (Go Macro bar & fruit snacks for this trip).
7. Mentally prep for delays, potential rude flight attendants/passengers, uncomfy seats, the potential of having to pay for my carry-on if it was too big, and potential long lines from budget airline security areas.

I personally think that a lot of things in life are mental. How you react to situations and what your expectations of them really play into how things unfold. If I was expecting 5-star service, snacks, and entertainment with a red carpet greeting onto the flight, maybe my experience would have been different. But I did my research, set my expectations, and was ready for anything.

Some thoughts on delays: My flights were not delayed one second, we even arrived early for both trips! I have had HORRIBLE delays with other airlines and had none with Spirit. Delays happen on every airline and are honestly a part of the deal with airports and flying. If you aren’t mentally prepped for a delay, you may be in for a disappointment because I have had delays on airlines that are supposed to be top-tier. It doesn’t mean they aren’t, it means that something unexpected happened to the plane, with the crew, or earlier in the day with their schedule. In addition, I think that layovers REALLY add to the possibility of delays and your trip going less than swell. I will never, ever choose a flight with a layover as every single trip I have been on with layovers has ended poorly for me. Sure, that may be a little more expensive, but that is the one thing I am not willing to sacrifice on while planning a trip. The exception to that is obviously international trips.

Now for the carry-on. This part of the journey for me was the challenge I was most excited to overtake. Here are a couple of tips I have for packing a 5 day trip into one North Face backpack.

1. TRAVEL. SIZED. TOILETRIES. I repeat, travel-sized toiletries. Lifesaver. Truly. How was I not traveling with travel-sized toiletries before this? Toiletries take up so much space that I didn’t even realize. I used to have to bring huge toiletry bags with endless items in them and now they all fit perfectly into my Dagne Dover travel case. It also made me realize what makeup and products I don’t actually use or need. I also got to try some new products that I had been wanting to try without committing to the full size and full price. I love an excuse to try new products. Also a tip: Put any medication you need into little baggies. Bringing the whole bottle, even if it is travel-sized, could take up a lot more space than it needs to if you only need a few day’s worth of medicine. So, get a cute toiletry bag, head to Target’s travel section, and stock up! It will change the game. I think I might do a toiletry bag blog post? Thoughts?
2. SHOES. Shoes take up so much space. Like SO much. I brought one pair of “sneakers” aka like trendy white tennis shoes that I wore on the plane and then every single day. I packed sandals for when I didn’t want to wear those or when I wasn’t at the music festival. Just two pairs of shoes. If you can do that, just make sure you pack a neutral shoe that goes with most of your outfits. Thankfully I wasn’t going anywhere fancy that I needed to dress up for.
3. Roll up your clothes. Yup, I rolled each and every item into a super skinny little roll. My Mom would always tell me that this was a much more efficient way to pack all of your clothes and I never believed her but she was right (aren’t they always?). I rolled up all of my items and they fit marvelously. I was even able to bring two other options for my music festival in case I didn’t like the other options I brought.
4. Wear your sweatshirt/jacket. Outerwear takes up the most space in luggage so if you aren’t going somewhere with snow, pick one jacket to wear for your trip and wear it on the plane. It’s best to layer up on the plane so that you can bring some extra items of clothing but you also never know if your plane is going to be an arctic tundra or a tropical beach. It always varies tbh.
5. Pack each compartment carefully. I knew that I was going to need to reach my charger and headphones pouch more than say my socks or my shorts for the weekend. So I carefully packed things that I didn’t need at the bottom of the front zipper pocket and the main pocket in order to be able to place my wallet, tech pouch, and snacks on the top. Every item you place into the backpack has a purpose and a place when you are carrying just one bag.
6. Double-check as you pack that you need every item you are packing. I was going to bring my journal and pen but as I was packing decided that I could simply journal in my notes app on my phone during this trip. Don’t bring a physical book, download one to your phone or tablet. Simple shifts like that can leave you more room than you think.
7. Don’t buy things on your trip or you will literally have to leave them. I am a mug addict and always want to buy mugs everywhere that I go so bringing only one carry-on was great to halt my mug addiction on this trip. I also was tempted to get some merch from the festival and decided against it because of my carry-on. My wallet was happy about this decision.

If you’re into outfits and details about my trip, head to my Instagram and click on my “Music Midtown” highlight, it’s all there! I wanted to keep this post strictly business.

Well, this about sums it up for my experience and tips with flying Spirit Airlines. I will absolutely do it again and probably learn more tips and tricks for doing it the next time. When you travel on a budget as much as I do, it is important to get the best pricing. I will say the only thing that stuck out to me was the level of noise on the plane. It seemed as though since everyone was flying Spirit, they were up for tons of convo, shots, and jokes. It didn’t bother me as I had my headphones in, but it was the most social and noisy flight I had been on in a while. Again, I had my expectations set for literally anything so I was mentally prepped for anything and everything that could have happened on the flight.

If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments below or head over to my Instagram ( @MadisonCrowley ) and shoot me a DM! I love answering questions and interacting with you guys, it’s my fave!

Happy flying!! ✈️xx