Cheap Flights From Columbus, Ohio To Tucson, Arizona

“Love those explus jets, but lost a bag”

by reedinthewind on July 22, 2010

Flight from Columbus to Tucson

Airline:

United

RT/OW

Round Trip

Number of Stops:

1 stop in Denver, Colorado

Date of Flight:

May 2010

Seat Class:

economy

I fly Columbus to Tucson 3-4 times per year, but this was the first time I'd done it on United. It certainly won't be the last.

I was going to a conference in Tucson, and knew I'd have to work on the plane. I purposefully chose an explus jet on the CMH-DEN leg since that's a 3 hr flight, and the country below, while pretty, isn't enough to have me glued to the window. To me, explus is worth a little extra money. The plane had been completely refurbished--the interior looked brand-new. The seats were very comfortable with large tray tables. They aren't kidding that you get extra legroom and a wider seat. The overhead bins are also bigger, but that's less important to me than the seats. Approach to DEN was bouncy but more fun than anything. There was nothing particularly good or bad about the service during the flight. I do remember the gate agents were rather frazzled in CMH, but I think it was because ORD had been shut down due to thunderstorms and United had to reroute most of the morning's flights.

Flight was actually early into Denver, which meant we had to sit on the tarmac because our gate was occupied. I had about 80 min in Denver. Great airport with lots of interesting things to see out the windows.

I was on the smaller regional jet from Denver to Tucson, and the difference between it and explus was staggering. The seats were uncomfortable and windows tiny. Nonetheless, I was glad to have a window seat because the mountains below us were gorgeous. It was only a 90 minute flight, so I had no need to get up.

Then I get into Tucson, and discover my checked bag is missing. Naturally, I have a conference in two days, and I'm missing half my clothing. Turns out another passenger from Columbus was missing her bag as well, so I think it was an issue in Columbus. The United representative immediately looked up my tag to see if the bag had been found (no luck) and then gave me a tracking form, promising to contact me once it had been located. Major points to the United rep--he was courteous and efficient. My bag finally showed up late that night. Could have been worse! I had placed copies of my boarding passes inside the bag in addition to outside and inside tags, which was apparently a very good idea.

Flights back were uneventful. I was on another old regional jet from TUS-DEN, and then an Airbus 320 from DEN-CMH. No bag issues and a slightly longer DEN layover, so I got to explore that airport a bit more. The flight was early into CMH, but we didn't have to wait for a gate here. I'd do this flight again, especially during hurricane season when my preferred IAH connection with Continental is risky. I'm definitely putting my itinerary in my bag again, though!

“My favorite CMH-TUS flight”

by reedinthewind on May 25, 2010

Flight from Columbus to Tucson

Airline:

Continental

RT/OW

Round Trip

Number of Stops:

1 stop in Houston, Texas

Date of Flight:

December 2009

Seat Class:

economy

I frequently fly from CMH to TUS to visit family. Going through Houston on Continental is my favorite route. Continental's people in all three airports have always been courteous and helpful, and I've had no trouble with baggage. The flight attendants are pleasant with a sense of humor. IAH is one of my favorites airports in terms of restaurants, shops, and people-watching--I find it easy to amuse myself for layovers under 3 hours.

I have two minor complaints. First, layover times on the CMH-IAH-TUS outbound flight tend to be either really short ( less than 1 hr) or very long (more than 3 h), at least for the cheapest flights. The short ones are a problem when I am transferring between regional jets (usually on B terminal) and 737's (usually C terminal). I've missed the plane in IAH due to (weather) delays on the flight from CMH. They put me on the next flight to Tucson even though it was out of their control, so I was happy. My baggage made the original flight, though--Continental must have incredible baggage handling there!

Second, those regional jets are really uncomfortable. Head room is cramped for the window seats, the seats themselves are narrow, and the single lavatory is in the back, so if you're in the front you have to walk up a very narrow aisle. I would not want to be on one for longer than 2 1/2 hours, which is the usual westbound flight time. Eastbound is a lot faster--this route tends to maximize the tail wind effect.

Overall, this is my favorite way to go from CMH to TUS. I've taken it in the morning, afternoon, and evening, and it's never been less than great. I like to have window seats on these flights since I shouldn't need to get up during the flight if I'm careful, and the land below is really interesting, especially western New Mexico and eastern Arizona. If you don't like cramped flights, make sure you pick the 737 aircraft times!