Flew SEA-MIA round-trip on Boeing 737-700s. Fare was $374 R/T (14-day advanced purchase).

On cross-country routes such as SEA-MIA, Alaska generally matches the lowest fares, yet offers better service.

The food was tasty and the portions were reasonable.

The seating is not roomy, but you'll only find more legroom on American or United's Economy Plus. And, as of October, they will have on-demand in-flight entertainment consisting of 9 movies, 3 TV programs and 10 hours of MP3 music available complimentary in First Class and for a fee in coach (reserve at the time of booking and you'll save $2).

Check-in was smooth on both ends. At Seattle, we checked-in on-line and just "dropped" our bags at the ticket counter (look for the sign that says "Web Bag Drop").

Both flights were on-time and my bags arrived without incident. The baggage claim area at SEA is crowded, and you should be prepared to wait up to 30 minutes for bags to arrive.

Alaska has the only non-stop flights between SEA and MIA, but we would fly them again even if there were competition.