Private jets for dogs coming to South Florida. Tickets are $6,000
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No more ruff-ing it in a dog carrier. Photo: Courtesy of Bark Air
Dogs sip from champagne bottles and sprint around a sky-high dog park in a dramatized commercial for Bark Air, a new airline made for pampered pups.
- The dog-first airline is coming to South Florida this fall after Bark launched last month with flights between New York, Los Angeles and London.
The big picture: The boutique airline — from the company known for its monthly BarkBox deliveries of toys and treats — wants to make it less stressful to travel with dogs, especially those too large to fly in the cabin on commercial flights.
How it works: Bark Air flies charter jets with beds, blankets and "calming pheromones" to spoil its furry passengers.
- Dogs don't get champagne, but they do get bone broth and snacks.
- Leashes are only required when the plane is taking off, landing, taxiing or experiencing turbulence. (If one dog is bothering another, they might be asked to leash up.)
- Each flight can seat nine dogs and their human companions. Children are not allowed. And no peeing on the plane!
Yes, but: South Florida currently only has one route: to Chicago from the Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport.
- From Chicago, you can get to New York, San Francisco or Phoenix. Service for the new routes, including a Paris connection, begins in October.
Sticker shock: A one-way flight from South Florida to Chicago is listed at $6,000. Bark says domestic tickets start as low as $3,000, depending on the route and time of year.
What they're saying: "While we understand prices might seem high, this is a premium service," a Bark Air spokesperson tells Axios.
- Matt Meeker, Bark's founder and CEO, previously told Axios that travel alternatives — chartering your own private jet or shipping your dog in the cargo hold of a commercial flight — are either more expensive or unappealing.
Fun fact: To demonstrate the stress that a dog undergoes flying commercial, Meeker once locked himself in a dog carrier and flew from Florida to New York in a plane's cargo hold.
- He told Axios it's a "pretty frightening" experience, with loud runway noises, darkness and temperature changes.
What's next: The company spokesperson tells Axios the airline plans to lower the ticket cost over time, add new routes and launch more "over-the-top dog-first amenities unlike anything in the market."
- That sky-high dog park in the airline's commercial is supposedly "coming soon," per the ad.
- "Listening to dog people and giving them more ways to spoil their dogs is what drives every business decision we make as we further our mission to make all dogs happy, and it will be no different for the next phase of Bark Air."