The Hagerstown Regional Airport has been in the news a lot recently, most notably due to Allegiant Air (the only large jet service operating out of the airport) now offering direct flights to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.  This makes three direct destinations for the airline out of the Hub City, which now offers round trip flights to Orlando (Sanford), Tampa Bay (St. Pete/Clearwater), and as of June 6^th, 2019 – Myrtle Beach.

Other than Allegiant Air, Southern Airways Express also offers daily service out of Hagerstown (on smaller planes) to both Pittsburgh and Baltimore.  So for a regional airport, the options for destinations out of Western Maryland continue to grow.

There’s a lot to like about this expanded service.  From a convenience factor, a drive from anywhere in the Four-State area to Hagerstown sure beats the commute to either Baltimore or Washington for a larger airport, so there’s a major time savings.  For example, from where I live, it’s only a twenty-minute drive to Hagerstown Regional (compared to at least a ninety-minute slog to either BWI, Dulles, or Reagan National – and that’s IF there are no back-ups or rush hour traffic to deal with).  Add in the fact that parking at Hagerstown is also free (hallelujah!), and travelers can rack up a significant savings on just parking fees alone (which can be north of $10 a day in some metro-area lots).  There’s also only one gate at Hagerstown, so the confusion factor and airport hassle is also on a much smaller scale.  Even old Granny Winters can easily find her way around the terminal (and the car rental counter personnel give the Maytag repairman a run for his money on the loneliness scale).

Still – is it a good value to fly out of Hagerstown?  Well, that depends a great deal on what you expect.  The flights to Tampa, Orlando, and Myrtle Beach are only offered twice a week, so you must be flexible in your travel plans.  In addition, the destination “advertised” by Allegiant can be misleading.  For example, that Orlando offering?  It’s actually to the Sanford, Florida airport, not Orlando International.  Sanford is 33 miles north of OIA, on the far side of the actual city limits of Orlando itself.  If your travel plans include the Florida theme parks, there’s still quite a bit of traveling left to do once you pick up your bags.  Walt Disney World is still 43 miles away, and that can take quite a bit of time in Orlando metropolitan-area traffic (think Beltway commuting).

Then there is the price.  Allegiant often touts its low fares, offering some one-way flights for as low as $68 at certain times of the year (or during special promotions).  But again, be wary.  Allegiant is a “no frills, a-la carte” airline, and as such, they charge for all of the so called “extras” that other airlines offer for free.  Allegiant charges you for things like seat selection, printing out a boarding pass at the airport, carry-on bags, ALL pieces of checked luggage, and any in-flight snacks or beverages.  Those fees can quickly add up, making that cheap “teaser” fee disappear quickly and creating a final tab more in line with the ticket prices of other major carriers at larger airports.  So unless you’re traveling like “Hobo Joe” and just walking onto the plane with a full belly and nothing but a carry-on, a total ticket price of under $100 for a one-way fare is an unrealistic expectation.

So, what IS the verdict on Hagerstown Regional Airport’s air service. 

Convenient?  Yes.

A Good Value?  Debatable.

Even so, I applaud the effort – and the travel options.

What are your experiences at Hagerstown Regional Airport?  Drop me a line in the comment sections below!