Frontier Airlines is in ultra low-cost carrier that is known for its super-cheap fares. But did you know it is possible to save even more on these cheap fares with something called a Discount Den membership?
In this article, I will break down everything you need to know about the Frontier Airlines Discount Den program, including all of its benefits, prices, and what to expect with your savings.
Table of Contents
What is the Frontier Airlines Discount Den?
The Frontier Airlines Discount Den is a special program that allows Frontier Airlines passengers to receive discounts on select fares and also receive additional perks like allowing kids to fly for free! Below, I will go into detail about all of the different benefits of the Frontier Airlines Discount Den program.
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How much does the Frontier Airlines Discount Den membership cost?
The Frontier Airlines Discount Den will cost you $59.99.
Each year, the renewal price will be the same at $59.99. Note that this program is not refundable after you have paid your fees (whether signing up or renewing).
Unlike Spirit Airlines which has the $9 Fare Club and offers you a trial period, there is no trial offered for the Discount Den. (The $9 Fare Club is also more expensive at $69.95 per year for successive years.)
Who is eligible to enroll in the Discount Den?
You must be 18 years old to enroll in the program. Also, you need to have a FRONTIER Miles membership (Frontier’s frequent flyer program) but if you don’t have one a FRONTIER Miles account will be created for you.
What are all of the Frontier Airlines Discount Den benefits?
- Special access to cheaper fares
- Cheaper fares available to up to six people on the reservation
- On valid Kids Fly Free flights, one kid under 15 can fly for free for every adult Discount Den fare purchased
- Be the first to hear about news
The main benefit of the program is the special access to a cheaper fares.
It’s worth pointing out that not every route will have a cheaper fare for you to select. However, when I searched many different routes I found a lot of them with cheaper fares so I think it should be relatively easy to find your discounts.
To me, it’s very significant that up to six people can take advantage of these cheaper fares because that can allow the savings to instantly multiply and outweigh the membership fee.
Also, the fact that kids can fly for free on certain flights can be huge but I will talk about that more below.
- You might also be interested in the Frontier Airlines World Mastercard Review
How do you select the discounted fares?
When you search for a flight on the Frontier Airlines website, you will see it clearly indicated when there is a Discount Den fare. Just look for the green box with the little bear hanging out — you can’t miss it!
How much do you save with Discount Den?
Since you would be paying $60 per year for this membership, that is going to be the minimum benchmark of savings for a lot of people. So naturally, they will want to know how difficult it would be to save $60 per year.
In order to gauge the savings for this program, I did a number of test bookings.
I tested both one-way and round trips so that you could get a full picture of the potential savings. I also tested out some routes with connections to see if there was a difference in savings.
Here are the savings results from all my testing:
- CLE to DEN: $10 one-way
- DEN to AUS: $13 round trip
- DEN to AUS (with the connection in LAS): $5 round trip
- DFW to ATL (with connection in MCO): $10 one-way
- LAX to CUN (with connection in DEN): $10 round-trip
- LGA to MIA: $9 round-trip
- MCO to BWI: $2
So as you can tell, the savings can range from $2 to $13 based on the data points above. Therefore, on average you will probably need a handful of flights in order to capture your $60 in membership fees back.
But that would be just purchasing a ticket for yourself.
Keep in mind that up to six people on your itinerary can also take advantage of these lower fares. So, if you were traveling as a family of five then all of a sudden you could potentially save ~$60 on one one-way flight with all of your family members.
And also remember that on some flights kids can fly for free so that could be even more drastic savings. If two adults are flying with the Discount Den fares then two kids could fly for free which means that you could save a couple of hundred bucks with this membership.
The catch with this is that you must select an eligible kids fly for free date — not all flights will allow your kids to fly for free. You will know when you have found an eligible flight that allows kids to fly for free because you will see it clearly indicated on the fare as shown below.
There are some restrictions you should consider about the kids fly free:
- It is only available on round-trip domestic flights
- Kids qualify if they are under 15 years old
- There must be one adult with a Discount Den membership in order to qualify
- Not valid on overnight connections
- Lap children do qualify but should be booked at time of initial booking as a child instead of a lap child.
So depending on your travel habits, the savings can rack up in a hurry.
But I think everybody should also consider the high amount you may have to pay in baggage fees with Frontier Airlines because that can certainly eat into your savings. Assuming you pay your baggage fees online during booking, a carry-on will be about $38 and your first checked bag will be about $34.
In some cases, you might be better off flying Southwest where you can fly with two free checked bags.
Another thing to consider is the change policy. Frontier Airlines has a pretty friendly change policy though it’s not as good as Southwest that will allow you to change your flights for free.
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When can I join?
You can sign up for a Discount Den membership any time online by going to the following link. You can also wait until the time of booking and join then.
Frontier Airlines Discount Den FAQ
Yes, you will earn loyalty points on your Discount Den fares.
No, there is no limit on the amount that you can save with your Discount Den membership.
No, you do not get any checked baggage for free with your membership. Remember that as an ultra low-cost carrier, Frontier has some pretty expensive baggage fees and you can read more about those here.
Your membership will be automatically renewed with the credit card that they have on file (the default credit card in the “Wallet” section of your Account Profile). And recall that the membership fees are not refundable so this is something you definitely want to keep up with.
You may cancel your Membership in Discount Den at any time by selecting the unsubscribe option within your FRONTIER Miles account profile . On the main homepage click on “account sign in” link. After you login click on your name in the upper right hand corner. Then click on “My Profile” and you will see your Discount Den status and where to cancel.
Yes, sometimes you can find ongoing promotions for discounted fares. For example, in 2020 there was a promo code for 50% off Discount Den fares. 50% off was a very sweet deal but keep in mind that these promos often come with a lot of black out dates so be on the lookout for those.
Final word
The Discount Den membership is a great way to maximize savings with Frontier Airlines.
At just under $60 a year it is a pretty reasonable price and if you fly them a handful of times you can easily recapture that value. But I think the real value here is with families. If you are traveling as a group your savings will quickly add up and you might be able to travel for free with your children which could amount to substantial savings.
Daniel Gillaspia is the Founder of UponArriving.com and the credit card app, WalletFlo. He is a former attorney turned travel expert covering destinations along with TSA, airline, and hotel policies. Since 2014, his content has been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, and CNBC. Read my bio.