5 West Coast Weekend Flight Deals From Tampa For Under $200
Crossing 3 time zones for under $200? Yep! It can be done. This morning I found 5 west coast weekend trips you can take and the roundtrip flight price tag is under $200 for each of them. This time of year some great flight deals can be found if you’re flexible and willing to fly on discount airlines.
If you can break free for a couple days, this is a really cheap time of year to book a flight from Tampa to some fun spots around the country. Summer travel season is when airfares and hotel rates skyrocket. So if you can get away for a few days during the spring, you’ll save a bundle. Last week I showed you some photos from a quick visit to New Orleans where tickets were under $100 from Tampa International Airport! I think the price was around $88 to be exact.
Flying to the west coast is a long, grueling flight. If this is your first time visiting, I wouldn’t try to squeeze everything in a weekend. California is like 5 countries in one state. I lived there for 6 or 7 years and still don’t think I experienced half of what Cali has to offer. Just seeing the Hollywood sign or Golden Gate Bridge isn’t seeing the real California just like a trip to Disney doesn’t give you the true Florida experience. That said, maybe you’d just like to see friends or hit the tables in Las Vegas for a day or two. These deals are pretty incredible.
Las Vegas: $187
Out of all the cities on this list, Las Vegas is the one I think that is ideal for a two to three day visit. Any stay longer in Vegas to me is too long. You can only see so many shows, hit so many tables or overeat at so many buffets. Las Vegas is a blast but after a couple days, it gets old quick. So this deal from Frontier Airlines might be for you if you are free next weekend! Yep, not much time to book this one so hurry. The flight leaves TPA Thursday, March 21 at 8AM. It’s a nonstop flight so with the time zone changes, you’ll land in Las Vegas at 10AM their time. The flight back Monday is a little less convenient. But if you’re one of those lucky people (I’m not) who can sleep on a plane, leave Las Vegas Monday night on March 25 at 11:23PM. When you get back to Tampa four hours later, it’ll be 6:39AM East Coast time.
Seattle: $184
This is one of those cities that’s still on my bucket list. Go see the Space Needle for under $200 with this deal also from Frontier. Leave Tampa early Saturday morning at 6:05AM on April 27. There’s a stop in Denver. You’ll arrive in Seattle at 1:55PM. Return to Tampa on Monday, April 29 at 8:20AM. There’s another 3 hour stop in Denver, so with the time zone change, you’ll get back to Tampa at 9:12PM.
Los Angeles: $181
Maybe you need a selfie with the Hollywood sign. I’m not a big LA fan. It’s a mess. Traffic, smog, and dirty. Those are my memories of my visits to LA when I lived in California. But it is a place you’ll want to visit at least once. This roundtrip flight from Spirit leaves Tampa at 9:34AM on April 20. There’s a quick stop in Houston and you’ll arrive at LAX at 1:38PM. Just in time for lunch at In-N-Out. The flight back though is one of those pain in the butt overnight red eye flights. You’ll leave LA at 12:49AM on April 22 and after another connection in Houston, you’ll be back in Tampa at 11:13AM.
San Francisco: $197
This flight deal barely makes the $200 or less requirement. San Francisco is another city I love, but can be easily done in a couple days. Once you see the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, you’ll only have used up about 4 hours of your time. There’s a ton to do. Ride their famous cable cars or check out the city’s incredible restaurants. I could never live in SF, but I loved visiting when I lived in California. Fly out of Tampa at 8AM on Frontier on April 19. There’s a stop in Chicago and then you arrive at SFO at 3:08PM. For your flight back, you’ll leave on April 22 at 10:34AM and get back to Tampa at 11:10pm. That seems long and it is… but keep in mind there’s that time zone change and a 3 hour layover in Atlanta.
San Diego AND Las Vegas: $159
This might be the best deal of the bunch. Get a 2 for 1 with this flight from Frontier. Leave Tampa Saturday, March 30 at 12:16PM. There’s a quick plane change in Dallas and you get in to San Diego at 5:09PM. On the way back, it’s another one of those dreaded red eye flights… but if you can handle it, you’ll get to sleep in and spend a good chunk of your last day in San Diego. Your flight back to Tampa leaves at 4:25PM on April 1. You’ll have 5 hours to spend in Las Vegas before your connection back to TPA leaves. After your long night, you’ll touch down in Tampa at 6:39AM.
7 Things That Suck About Tampa International Airport
#7: Shuttles Down
I don’t know when this started. And I don’t know how long it’ll take to fix the problem or complete renovations. But I’m tired of only one of the two shuttles to the gates working. Seems like I always walk up just as the doors are closing. When you look to the other side, there’s that yellow tape indicating the other shuttle isn’t running.
Maybe it’s part of improvements they’re making. Maybe they’re cutting costs by only operating one shuttle. Either way, it sucks.
UPDATE: An airport employee emailed me regarding this: “At TPA, we believe long lines and congested airsides negatively affect the perception of TIA and only create frustration within our guests. It takes about 45 seconds for one shuttle to arrive at an airside from the main terminal. Depending on how busy we are, we will disable one of the two shuttles simply to manipulate passenger flow at the airside, which can get overwhelming during peak hours of the day.”
#6: Arriving Delay
Maybe it’s just me. But it seems like every time my flight arrives at Tampa International, the plane gets in early. That’s a good thing right? Not so much. Because of the early arrival, crews at the gate are not in place or there’s a wait for the previous plane using the gate to move out.
There’s nothing more frustrating after a long day of travel than having to wait on the runway after you land. You probably haven’t been up to stretch and walk around in an hour or so. Chances are you have to use the bathroom. You just want to get out of the airport and back home to unwind. But no, you’re stuck in that seat for what seems like an eternity while the plane just sits there.
#5: Food Choices
The food choices we DO have at Tampa International are good. Anytime I can get a 1905 Salad at The Columbia Restaurant, I’m a happy guy. But I just wish there were more choices – especially for fast food. It seems like other airports have far more quick service options than TPA does.
In the main terminal before you head to your gate, there’s a Wendy’s. That’s cool. But the one I’d love to see most? When I was flying back from New Orleans this weekend, I was stoked to see a Shake Shack. C’mon TPA, they are in downtown Tampa already – get one at the airport!
#4: Lack of Lounges
At most airports, once I get through security, I can look forward to relaxing in an airport lounge. Because of the credit card I use, I get free TSA PreCheck to skip the lines at security AND membership to Priority Pass, a network of airport lounges that are not airline specific. I’m not loyal to any airline. I pick the flight that is cheapest and will get me where I’m going fastest. Airline-specific lounges are useless to me. Even tiny airports in South America I’ve been to have a Priority Pass lounge. But not Tampa International.
With Priority Pass, you can sip on an adult beverage, nibble on appetizers, and relax in comfortable seats. Some Priority Pass lounges even offer things like a massage and showers. But Tampa International doesn’t have a single lounge for Priority Pass members. All of the airport lounges are tied to specific airlines. It’s unlikely that’ll change anytime soon since lounges are usually located in the terminal after you pass security. And with TPA, there are several different security checkpoints for each terminal.
#3: EV Parking Spots
Look I get it. Most have not switched to electric cars yet. But look around – EVs are everywhere now in Tampa Bay. In the enormous economy garage, there are thousands of spaces. But there are only FOUR for electric vehicles. FOUR!
Those 4 EV parking spaces are ALWAYS taken when I pull in. I’d love to come home to a fully charged car. But here’s why you should care even if you drive a gas car.
Tampa International does NOT need to install the expensive level 2 chargers. Just put simple regular plain old electric outlets next to unpopular parking spaces on the upper level floors. You offer electric outlets for passengers to charge their cell phones in the terminal. Do the same in your garages in the less used, far away from the elevator parking spaces nobody else wants. That’ll leave more parking spaces for gas guzzling cars in prime spots and more EV owners will use your expensive parking garage.
#2: Breakfast
I like picking the early flights out of town so I can spend the day at my destination. While morning flights are usually on time and get your day off to a good start, the lack of breakfast options is frustrating at TPA. Chick-fil-A is one option, but if it’s Sunday … well you know. Most of the dining spots at the airport open for lunch. I’d like to see more options for those of us who fly out in the morning. I’m not much of a Starbucks guy. But I think Tampa has to be one of the only airports in the world without a Dunkin.
#1: Connecting Flights
There are direct flights to most major U.S. cities from Tampa International Airport. They even have service to small hometown airport in Portland, Maine. But about 2 years ago, I discovered Colombia. It’s become my new favorite place to visit. The color, the food, the music, the people – I am obsessed with it. Everything in Colombia costs about 1/4 of what you pay in the United States. For example, a 20 minute Uber ride will cost you about $3. A meal at a nice restaurant that would be about $50 a person here in Florida costs about $10-15 in Colombia. I’ve made some great friends there and HATE that I have to drive all the way to Orlando to get a quick direct flight.
Flying out of the country from Tampa often means a long annoying layover that cuts in to your vacation time. For one flight to Bogota last year, I had to connect in NEW YORK! YES! I had to fly 2 hours NORTH and then 5 hours SOUTH. Meanwhile, if I fly from Orlando, I can get to Bogota or Medellin in about 3 hours.
Public Transportation
#8 is a bonus gripe… because honestly it’s not really Tampa International Airport’s fault. But it sucks that there are no useful public transportation options to get to and from the airport. I live on the Pinellas side and it’s a pain to pay $12-$25 a day to park at the airport… or pay crazy Uber surge prices. Almost every major city in America has either a subway or bus system to get you to the airport cheap.
Here in the Tampa area, buses do go to TPA. But especially here on the Pinellas side, the buses are useless. Buses don’t run to the airport on weekends or at night. And that’s when I normally fly. Even during weekdays, there are large gaps in time when the buses don’t run at all.
Rob's Gripe: CLEAR
Rob Damiani passed along something I completely missed. Tampa International Airport doesn’t have CLEAR. CLEAR uses your biometric data to identify you. You skip the line at TSA and go to a pod where they scan your boarding pass and your eyes or your fingerprint “clear” you. You’re then escorted to the scanners. It costs $189. Only about 50-60 airports have it right now, according to The Points Guy. Unfortunately Tampa International isn’t one of them. I don’t have CLEAR. And PreCheck seems to get me through security at TPA quickly as it is… so this one isn’t high on the priority list for me personally. But I agree with Rob. It would be nice to have.
The CLEAR logo is displayed at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on January 08, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
