Alaska Airlines Reviews 266

I want to share my recent experience with Alaska Airlines, which left me extremely upset and disappointed.

I had a Saver Fare ticket and arrived at the airport early. There was an earlier flight with empty seats, yet I was denied boarding — not because the seats were unavailable, but because of a rigid policy. Those empty seats flew unused while I was forced to wait for my scheduled flight, which itself ended up being delayed.

This treatment felt unfair, disrespectful, and completely lacking in humanity or common sense. Instead of helping a passenger and showing flexibility, Alaska Airlines chose to hide behind policy. Adding insult to injury, I was later told I could have paid $90 extra for a “same-day confirm” — which makes absolutely no sense when seats were empty anyway. Why should a customer be punished for wanting to sit on an earlier flight when it costs the company nothing?

As a result, I lost hours of my time, endured unnecessary stress, and had my entire day ruined. This is not the kind of service or respect a passenger should ever experience.

I fully understand that Saver Fares have restrictions, but policies applied without fairness or compassion only harm customer trust. This situation was handled poorly, wasted my time, and left me with a very negative impression of Alaska Airlines.

I expect Alaska Airlines to acknowledge this mistake, offer a sincere apology, and provide material compensation for the inconvenience. At the very least, I hope the company realizes that passengers deserve more than inflexible rules — they deserve respect and basic fairness.

If you value customer service, avoid the Alaska Airlines credit card.

I’ve never had a worse experience applying for a credit card. With a 797 credit score, I expected a smooth and straightforward process—but it turned into four weeks of frustration.

After being verbally approved, I was told my card would arrive in 2–3 business days. A week later, with no card or updates, I called in. Only then was I told—vaguely—that “additional information” was required, though no details were provided. A letter eventually arrived requesting my pay stub and an authorization form to verify my SSN, with the only submission method being through the mail. In 2025, that’s not just inconvenient—it’s concerning.

Two weeks after mailing sensitive documents, I called again, only to be told they “never received” them. Even worse, the representative claimed they now had “everything they needed” anyway, and suggested I cancel and reapply. When I asked why I was required to send unnecessary documents in the first place, I got no clear explanation.

At that point, I canceled my application. After weeks of poor communication, conflicting information, unnecessary document requests, and a complete lack of transparency, I have zero confidence in this product or the company behind it.

Bottom line: The process was unprofessional, frustrating, and left me questioning the security of my personal information. I’ll be taking my business elsewhere.

I took a short hopper flight with Alaska from LAS to SFO in Business Class mainly to do an evaluation of the airline with a view to using Alaska for future internal flights for me and my colleagues. To start, I'd note things did not get off to the best of starts. The check-in process was a little chaotic and the team seemed not to notice they had BC customers waiting in line. When they did I was a little disappointed to have to listen to one of the team complaining to another how much they disliked check-in and wanted to only do gate work. I did not take it personally! It's fair enough to have gripes but do you really want to air them in front of customers? I was pretty sure Alaska did not have a lounge or shared lounge access at LAS but I thought I'd check. Instead of a polite 'I'm sorry sir we do not currently have a lounge at this airport' I instead got a withering look that smacked of 'you are joking aren't you' and a curt no! I can see why this individual really did not want to do check-in. I was not looking forward to my flight and, if I had been writing a review at this point I'd be heading for a single star rating (and certainly no future flights or recommendations Good news. it improved considerably. The boarding was smooth, polite, friendly and ordered. Then, the best bit. The aircraft. I was expecting one of those half-baked BC cabins with standard seats. more legroom and a shared middle seat for two people. I could not have been more happy. The cabin was a real BC cabin, great seats with plenty of room and really comfortable. I kind of wished I was flying further. The team on board the aircraft were great too. So polite, so helpful. All in all, a great, uneventful, comfortable flight. In fact, I would have given a five star review if it wasn't for the disappointing performance of the check-in desk team. But I'll definitely fly with Alaska again.

Alaska might have been good in the past. Now they're below awful. They manipulated my seat prices outrageously, so I booked on American (a flight Alaska operates!) and get a sane return price on a round trip.
Call 'customer service?' Good luck. "15 minutes wait" means NEVER on their automated reply system. After two hours, I called back. This time, no call back.

They cancelled our second leg of our non stop flight and left us stranded for 13 hours due to a technical issue on their part. Only offered discount instead of a refund!

My daughter in law had to get back from New York to Portland for my son’s passing. All flights delayed and zero compassion for them staff. Just another corporate POS corporation

This airlines brags about itself, but it doesn't deliver!! Become a gold member, 75 K, 100 K - what does this mean to them? That you are a fool to buy into their promotions that are meaningless. Upgrades? What Upgrades? They discriminate against people from the state that their name carries. Why pay more money when you can get a cheaper flight on another airline? They really need to change their name to Seattle airlines, to refect their scuminess! This name is more fitting as they left the great state of Alaska years ago.

First time flying with my partner I asked for help the man came off a bit rude but was able to work w me told me I had to due line he saw me get in the the member only lane and didn’t let me know then I got yelled at by the lady that checks you in for the scanners and what not for being in the wrong lane ik im a drama queen but I couldn’t help to cry of frustration but when I’m working on bettering my rage it’s hard to when after asking for help because I have no idea I get the worst costumer service

IT issue causing a ground stop. Stuck on the tarmac with every other person traveling on Alaska. This is a recurring problem with this airline which they can’t seem to correct. Terrible!!

Let us begin! Customer Service is essentially useless. Potentially the money that is spent on the payroll of these representatives should go into other avenues.

Arriving at Newark Liberty Airport an hour before my flight and of course departure times being to change and even the gate numbers. By the time we board and attempt to leave it was 6:45 pm delaying the flight already by an hour and fifteen. Subsequently, due to the crew not departing on time bad weather hit getting and the FAA grounded all flights. ( Customer Service can't tell you the time ground flight because of proves the flight was already delayed prior. Not a member of staff showed any drop of remorse for it's companies failings. I guess when failing because the norm doing a normal task is difficult )

In being four hours late to arrive in Seattle, I missed by connecting flight. Not one representative cared. It didn't matter they failed miserable and you have to appauld them. I had to end up taking an Uber that cost four hundred to get to my destination because truly Alaska Airlines servers no purpose what so ever in actually so why serve consumers when your product doesn't work.

And at the end of it your shit out if luck with not a single person too help you. Alaska Airlines goes above and beyond to realize you don't matter what so ever.

If possible fly with a different airline all together it isn't worth your time, effort and especially your hard earned money. It's easy to make money throwing morals away.

I paid for a First Class seat and did not receive my money's worth. I've flown First Class before and knew what to expect, but this airline did not meet those expectations by a long shot. When you board, there is no warm cloth with which to wipe your hands and face. There is no glass of champagne - just a tepid, lukewarm cup of orange juice in a PAPER CUP. There was no amenities case, no blanket, no pillow. This was a 4 hour flight and those would have been welcomed. There was only 1 meal, and no snacks were passed around. The meals were a joke, although they were served on ceramic plates with metal cutlery. The real kicker was that there was NO TV screen available for passengers to use to watch movies or follow the flight of the plane. No entertainment at all, unless you brought your own laptop or tablet and paid $8.00 to use their WIFI. WHAT A COLOSSAL RIP-OFF. Don't fly Alaska!!

Subject: Disappointing Experience with Alaska Airlines at Seattle Airport

I recently had a very frustrating experience with Alaska Airlines at the Seattle Airport, and I feel compelled to share my concerns.

After arriving on a Hawaiian Airlines flight (which, I must say, was outstanding), I was informed by a boarding agent that my connecting flight was departing from the C gates. I made the long walk from the S gates to C, only to be told by a guest agent there that my flight was actually back at the S gates. This kind of miscommunication is incredibly inconvenient, especially for passengers unfamiliar with the airport layout or on tight layovers.

To make matters worse, I encountered a staff member at Gate S4 around 7:00 AM— a blonde woman—who was dismissive and unhelpful when I asked for assistance. Her lack of engagement left a very poor impression.

At Gate S2, another employee named Supra downgraded my seat from premium without any consultation. She stated that I had a premium seat but never asked whether I was willing to pay to keep it—she simply assumed I would not. This was presumptive and frankly offensive. It felt as though I was being unfairly judged based on appearance or assumptions.

The employee at S4 also came across as biased, and the overall attitude from both staff members was rude and unprofessional. It was only thanks to the excellent service from Hawaiian Airlines that my travel experience wasn’t entirely negative.

I am extremely disappointed in the lack of organization, poor communication, and customer service I received from Alaska Airlines during this connection. Going forward, I will strongly consider flying with other airlines, even at a higher cost, to avoid being treated so poorly.

I don't know where to begin with this airline. We all know it's kind of a running joke that dealing with the airlines is worse than going to the dentist. Alaska airlines was one of the best airlines and stood out from the rest for years. I always went out of my way to make sure I booked with them and was a long-term mileage plan member flying about 100,000 mi a year with them. They've just gone downhills so fast. I seem to be more focused on virtue signaling than actually running their airline. I have recruit a lot of miles over the years with them but guess what? I can't use any of them. Despite there being multiple available flights on any given day they completely black them out to be used for Mileage tickets. They give you some crappy long multi stop long layover option and nothing that actually is reasonable. So you're really earning miles that pretty much become useless now. Nice scheme. Saves them a lot of money I'm sure. Additionally their website and booking is a joke. We've tried to book multiple flights recently only for it to have an error at the end saying it's not available. Their phone rep said their website doesn't update in real time. Well that's apparent but it doesn't update in any amount of time it seems. These flights set up there appearing to be available and they let you go through the entire booking process only to find out they don't exist. This all seem to start when they partnered with American airlines and integrated those options into their system. Anyway, they've lost a long-term customer in us and we can't even use the miles we've earned with them over the years to cash out here. We've since started choosing Delta or United which seem to be far better. If you ask me a few years ago if I'd be saying that I would have thought you were crazy but it goes to show how quickly a company can go downhill. I also question their pilot qualifications and safety. Flying for years in Alaska We had outstanding pilots and I never worried. In the last year or two they seem to be utilizing a lot of low hour inexperience pilots that put the landing gear through the runway. let's be honest, none of us care who's flying the plane as long as it's an experienced and safe pilot. They seem to be focused on everything but the experience and decision making of the pilot in the seat

Needed to cancel flight from LAX to Liberia at last moment due to family illness. Ground staff (who were very helpful checking in the rest of my family who did take the flight) suggested writing to Alaska Airways which I did - but expected nothing. They replied within a few days with full refund for my flight. Amazing. Sorry to see they aren't getting many 5* reviews! Maybe they're turning a corner??

I booked a flight eight months in advance and used miles for the first time for personal travel. They cancelled the return flight home and I had to buy a ticket on Delta. The customer service was unapologetic and said there was nothing they could do to compensate for the inconvenience and additional expense.
Time to cancel my Alaska Visa and protest that they are treating their customers as bad as they treat Joe Eskimo on their tail. They don’t seem to realize that they staff and equip their planes like a regional carrier but pretend to be global worthy.

I booked our Alaskan cruise 8 months in advance, did all the planning, bought $100 binoculars to see whales, bought travel insurance for everything and was advised by cheap cruises to book our own airline tickets because tickets could vary in travel times up to over 24 hours duration. I booked the tickets with Alaska Airlines departing Minneapolis MN to Seattle. We arrived early for our flight in Minneapolis. Alaskan Air canceled our flight due to their failure to maintain their aircraft. We therefore missed the sailing of the ship. This was all no fault of our own and find out the travel insurance we thought would cover us was not going to cover this. We are out over $3,000 and no one is offering us anything, credit wise or nothing.

Upon arriving to the check in counter at the Seattle/Tacoma airport I immediately realized that Alaska airlines appears to be doing what they can to phase human beings out of their check in process. I observed multiple elderly people far ahead of me (one of which that had difficulty walking) have an extremely difficult time lifting his own bag onto the new self check in system. An employee was standing there staring at him doing absolutely nothing. When I asked her what was happening and asked why Alaska airlines is risking the health of the elderly her response was well our employees got injured so we don’t lift anymore. I responded with, Oh so Alaska prefers the elderly to be harmed instead of hiring people that are capable of performing a job that by definition should include being able to lift a suitcase for a customer. She responded with something along the lines of this is just how it is. I will never fly Alaska again because this new process is tantamount to elder abuse.

Extremely disappointed with Alaska Airlines' customer service. My Mileage Plan account has been under investigation for too long despite providing all documents, including my ID and passport. I even missed a ticket I paid for. No clear answers, no support, and way beyond the promised response time. This needs to be addressed immediately.

I booked three tickets a week prior to departure for $6,000 to fly from Boise to Cabo. I was treating the family to first-class tickets and wanted a stress-free experience for my 90-year-old dad who was joining us.

When arriving at the check-in counter, there was a person being helped and another person in line ahead of us. Finally, it was our turn. Our check-in agent, Jenna, was not efficient and took quite a bit of time doing whatever she was doing. She got a call about another issue on her headset and, after a while, in an animated tone said, “Oh no, you’re late for your flight.” I asked what she meant, and she said, “You’re late by 20 minutes.” I argued that we would make the flight—just check the bags in. There was no wit in the security line. But she didn’t budge.

She also made us move 4 pounds from one suitcase that was 53.6 pounds over to another that was 10 pounds under.
Then… she rebooked us for the next flight. We were moved from first class to economy. Jenna must have used the word “downgraded” 10 times, with absolute glee. We were refunded only a fraction of the ticket cost. Then she charged us for our baggage because we had been moved from first to economy.

All this messing around—and guess what? Our bags hit the conveyor belt with less time to make the next flight than if she had just left us alone to catch our original one.

Never flying Alaska again. I encourage others to avoid this airline too. They have some good employees, but their failure to address behavior like this is dragging the airline down to one of the worst out there

Flight 626 on 2/28/25 sat at the terminal for an extra hour before a 6 hour flight from Seattle to Honolulu, only to get to Honolulu and sit on the runway for another 45 minutes. Will never be using Alaskan airlines again for travel. A 6 hour flight turned into over 8 hours sitting on the plane from boarding time until exiting. Unacceptable - no meals served, just snacks and drinks. Waiting for baggage to be unloaded - another 40 minutes standing around. In total if it isn’t clear enough, steer clear from Alaska airlines whenever possible.