Volaris is a Mexican low-cost carrier that isn’t very well known to those of us living in the U.S. Its mosaic-style logo and its nearly half-price fares versus Aeromexico on the Cancun–Guanajuato route first caught the attention of both LD and me. But what really stayed with me was the excellent service and the very cost-effective upgrade policy.
About Volaris
“Volaris (Volaris Airlines, airline code Y4) was founded in 2004 and is a low-cost airline based in Mexico, with its main operating base at Mexico City International Airport. Volaris is the second-largest airline in Mexico and primarily provides scheduled service. It currently serves 43 cities in Mexico and 22 cities in the United States.” — from the official website
The Mexican airline with best fares. — official slogan
When we were choosing the CUN - BJX segment, all kinds of negative trip reports about Volaris online had LD and me hesitating for quite a while. But in the end, this just proved again that you really have to experience something yourself before drawing conclusions! (Though of course that doesn’t necessarily make you right either, haha.)
Route Overview
Route map overview:
Mexican cities you can reach from the U.S.:
When we travel in Mexico, we basically focus on Cancun + Guanajuato + Mexico City, so I only checked routes for those three destinations here:
Most of the routes are concentrated in California, though there are also flights from major cities like New York and Chicago.
Next, let’s look at the fare trend for Cancun to Guanajuato over an upcoming period. (For Guanajuato’s airport, code BJX, you have to search for leon directly on Volaris; if you type Guanajuato, nothing comes up. So annoying...)
Pretty cheap, right? Not impressed? Okay, then let’s compare it with other airlines. Here’s a screenshot from Expedia for the same date, 9/1/2017:
The top two of the top three options are both Volaris, and the second one even has a pretty decent schedule. Further down, it’s mostly Interjet, a bit more expensive at around 140. After that come the traditional carriers like Aeromexico.
As for the prices on those last 3, all I can say is: you do you!!
Before Boarding
First, let’s look at where Cancun and Guanajuato are on the map:
Yep, 1958KM. Driving would take about a full day....
Now for our flight info: it would take only about 2.5 hours. At moments like this, I really have to thank the Wright brothers :lol:
We took the private taxi that had brought us to the hotel earlier (it was actually a van). We had negotiated a round-trip transfer for $30, which was pretty reasonable for a taxi. The driver and the owner of the vehicle were both very nice, so in the end we gave a $5 tip. P.S. Mexico really is a tipping-heavy country—just about every service expects a tip!! I’ll talk more about that later if I write the full trip report....
Once inside the airport, it was very crowded, though the line for Guanajuato was manageable. Volaris was on the right side of the airport; after entering through the main doors, just walk right for a bit and you’ll find it.
Check-in went very smoothly. They looked at our passports and immediately printed our boarding passes. One thing worth mentioning: if you want help checking in at the counter, you need to purchase personal attention; otherwise, you have to use the self-service machines nearby. Thankfully, we bought that service. I saw two couples struggling at the kiosks for a long time without getting boarding passes, and even after staff came to help, nothing much happened—they were still fiddling with it when I left....
And why didn’t we check bags, even though Volaris includes checked baggage for free? Because after reading a lot of guides and trip reports saying checked bags could easily get lost, LD strongly insisted that we spend a little extra and carry on instead. Carry on wasn’t expensive either—I remember it being around $3 - $5 per bag, give or take.
After waiting inside for a bit, it was finally time to board! YAY! Since we paid for a premium seat upgrade, we got to board early.
Flight Experience
The aircraft operating the flight was an A319. Here’s a photo I took after arriving in Guanajuato.
It looked pretty sharp. As a shortened derivative of the A320, it uses the same fuel capacity as the A320-200 but carries fewer passengers, making it the longest-range member of the Airbus A320 family. In a two-class configuration with 124 passengers, its range can reach 7200 kilometers. And here’s a small Aeromexico plane next to it.
Once onboard, I realized the paid premium seat was absolutely worth it. I could stretch my legs straight out in front of me, and compared with UA’s Economy Plus, the space felt “huge”....
We were seated at the exit row, which was very comfortable.
Load factor was average. The flight attendants were pleasant-looking, and their service attitude was also quite good. All onboard announcements were made once in Spanish and once in English (though I have to admit I couldn’t really understand much of that English....)
As someone who loves credit card churning, I’ll admit my self-control is weak. If LD hadn’t been next to me giving me that murderous look, I probably would’ve applied, applied, applied again.....
Mid-flight, both LD and I were starving, so we bought burgers, fries, and drinks onboard. Maybe it was because we were so hungry, but it actually tasted really good and smelled great too. Most importantly, the portion size was solid. The price wasn’t bad either—I remember a combo costing only a few dozen pesos. Big thumbs-up. The flight attendants’ service was also excellent throughout, always smiling. Since we didn’t understand Spanish, we communicated with a mix of gestures and English. Even more amazingly, one of them could say a few lines of very clear Mandarin Chinese (apparently self-taught), which was pretty impressive!
The seat headrest cover showing seat class/status looked pretty ugly... haha.
Taken just before landing. As a place often described as “ideal for retirees from Mexico,” Guanajuato really did impress me with its safety, city management, and overall cultural environment.
Overall, this Volaris flight departed and landed on time, with no delays. I was quite satisfied with the upgraded seat, personal attention, and carry on service that cost only a little over ten bucks extra. It was nothing like the dirty, chaotic, low-quality experience people describe online. So yes, I’m giving Volaris a big thumbs-up! I’d definitely fly them again if I get the chance.
Off Topic
After getting off the plane, before reaching the terminal exit, you first need to find the taxi service counter inside the airport. Once you agree on the price and pay there, you can go outside and pick whichever taxi you like. Just show the driver your receipt and you’re good to go. And of course, after you get out, you should still leave a tip—20 pesos or so is about right.
The airport taxi livery actually looked decent enough.
This was downtown Guanajuato near sunset—truly beautiful! More importantly, as a foodie, I have to say the value here was fantastic. At an upscale restaurant (when we walked in, several elderly couples dressed very formally were quietly having dinner, which made casually dressed LD and me feel a little awkward), steaks and even a whole grilled octopus cost only a few hundred pesos. The value was outstanding (hopefully I can get the full Mexico trip report written soon~)! I can safely say that if I get the chance, I’ll absolutely come back to this city again.