Flights from Newark to South Florida for as little as $64
Quick summary
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
If you're looking for a cheap fall getaway to Florida, both Spirit Airlines and United Airlines are offering deeply discounted budget fares this September and October.
Spirit is selling $64 round-trip tickets between Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL). United has $103 flights between Newark and Palm Beach International Airport (PBI).
Both these airfare deals apply to seats in the most basic fare class, which requires significant surcharges even for a carry-on bag.
Still, if you're traveling light and want a very affordable trip to Florida (or if you're a Florida resident looking for an affordable escape to New York), these deals could be right for you.
Read on to find out the details and the limitations of these flight deals.
Deal basics
Airlines: Spirit and United.
Routes: Newark to Fort Lauderdale (Spirit) and West Palm Beach (United).
How to book: Google Flights or directly with Spirit and United.
Travel dates: Select dates in September and October.
Book by: While discounted tickets are available.
Related: TPG's ultimate guide to South Florida
Sample flights
The routes here are samples of some of the flights offered on different dates in September and October. Various combinations of flight times and dates are still available. Flights are nonstop from Newark to either Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach.
United Airlines
The United fares are for its bare-bones basic economy class, which does not allow carry-on bags and charges $70 per checked bag each way. A ticket in this class does not allow flight changes or upgrades. However, if you're just packing a couple of outfits in a small bag that can fit under the seat in front of you, you can make this fare work.
Round-trip flights from Newark to West Palm Beach start at $103 and are currently available for a variety of dates in September and a few select dates in October.
A sample United itinerary below, seen in Google Flights, shows the additional surcharges. If you're traveling with a carry-on bag, it makes more sense to pay the additional $60 each way for an economy seat rather than the bag surcharge with basic economy.
Most regular United flights during the September-to-October time frame currently cost more than $200 round-trip, so these fares provide a significant discount.
Spirit Airlines
Spirit Airlines is also offering uber-low fares between Newark and South Florida via Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. The $64 round-trip price is about half off Spirit's regular fares during September and October, although some other discounted rates are available.
Be sure to note on the Google Flights screenshot above that Spirit is charging $85 each way if you want to bring a carry-on bag. This would more than triple the round-trip airfare, from $64 to $234, making this flight a poor deal. It's actually cheaper to check a bag round-trip ($150) than carry one aboard ($170).
However, if you're able to travel with just a personal item (and they will be strict in sizing it at the gate), then a $64 round-trip airfare is quite a deal.
Related: TPG's best (and worst) airlines for 2022
Maximize your purchase
Don't forget to use a card that earns bonus points on airfare purchases. Airline cards can always be a good call for earning status and rewards specific to those airlines, like the United Explorer Card in this case. For more flexibility on how you can use the points, The Platinum Card® from American Express earns 5 points per dollar spent on airfare booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel, on up to $500,000 of these purchases per calendar year. The Citi Premier® Card (see rates and fees) and the Chase Sapphire Reserve earn 3 points per dollar spent on airfare, while the American Express® Gold Card earns 3 points per dollar spent on airfare when booked directly with the airline or through Amex Travel. The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card earns 2 points per dollar spent on travel. Read this post for more on maximizing airfare purchases.
Bottom line
New airfare deals from Newark to South Florida on Spirit and United provide the perfect early fall getaway.
Round-trip fares for $64 on Spirit Airlines and $103 on United are great options — particularly for United, which regularly charges more than double that price during the fall.
However, keep in mind these fares are on bare-bones, basic economy-class tickets, so they will require fees for any carry-on bags or services. Spirit's carry-on bag fee of an astounding $85 each way and United's checked bag fee of $70 make these fares much less compelling if you're bringing any luggage.
If you can travel light and want an excuse to hop down to South Florida for a quick trip, then these fares are worth snapping up.