Boarding Passes withS.W. Help1

[english rose 47]

Am I understanding that I need to call 24hrs ahead for B.P. Then how if I get 1 do I get it and whathappens if you can't get thruand end up with aC pass and you have kids. Could we end up all seperated, 'cos that would be awful for us and who ever had to sit next to 2
a 5 yr old who's never flown before and wants his Mom!. So booking early or getting to airport early don't count.Makes me think of looking at another airlineif 1 has direct flight early in a.m.!

 

[seashoreCM]

If you check in on line and don't have a printer handy you can still do the check in and get the A or B if available. Then when you go to the airport you can have the boarding pass "reprinted".

If you cannot find seats together you mgith at least try to find seats within sight or within earshot. Finding seats one behind the other (sometimes other passengers prefer you take the front seat of that combination) might work out OK.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[DebbieB]

You may be able to pre-board with a 5 year old. When I flew them last week, I think one way they said 5 or under, the other way they say 4 or under.

 

[kaytieeldr]

You can't check in on the phone.
You can check in online up to 24 hours before your flight.
As stated above, you can have somebody at home check in for you, then you just (re)print your boarding passes when you get to the airport.
Alternatively, if you are at your hotel 24 hours before your flight, you can ask the Front Desk to check you in for your flight.
You may or may not be allowed to preboard; it depends on, as stated above, the age limit AND whether Southwest is even allowing preboards at MCO - keep in mind that MOST parties on your flight will have children, and many will have young children.

If all else fails and you end up with the 'dreaded C' passes, get to the airport early, get in the C line as quickly as possible (be prepared for a LONG wait) and be among the first of that group to board - then head for the back of the plane, where you're much more likely to find two seats together (and if you're a party of three, i.e. two adults and one small child, you should NOT expect anyone to move so the three of you can sit together)

 

[goofy4tink]

As just posted, you should check-in, online, as early as you can. I have had a 10 a.m. flight and checked in around 5 a.m. and had no problem getting an A boarding pass. If you are posting here, then it's safe to assume you have access to a computer. If you don't have a printer handy, just print out your bp when you get to the airport..you'll still have the boarding pass that you got when you checked in online.
Then, if it's WDW you're going to, you can checkin online from the resort. I've had my boarding pass printed out at the resort, but if for some reason they can't/won't print it out, do the same thing as previously mentioned...print it out when you get to MCO.
You really don't need to stress out over seating on SW..it's not the huge deal some make it out to be. Do I like it? No, but no one is forcing me to fly SW. If you understand how it works, you should be fine.

 

[disneyldwjr]

You may be able to pre-board with a 5 year old. When I flew them last week, I think one way they said 5 or under, the other way they say 4 or under.

The age for preboarding is under 5.
From the site: "Prior to general boarding, Customers with disabilities, unaccompanied children between the ages of five and 11, and adults traveling with a child under five years of age will preboard. Customers who choose to preboard cannot sit in an emergency exit seat. "

 

[english rose 47]

Thanks everyone for your posts DD is good at online stuff so she cando the preboard stuffonline 24 hrs before. Next question what site etc do you go to? As this is our first ever trip I want everything to go as smooth as possible. We're planning on a straight thru flight as early in a.m. going and ccoming back as late as possible don't want to miss a monute of Disney.

 

[plutolovr]

Thanks everyone for your posts DD is good at online stuff so she cando the preboard stuffonline 24 hrs before. Next question what site etc do you go to? As this is our first ever trip I want everything to go as smooth as possible. We're planning on a straight thru flight as early in a.m. going and ccoming back as late as possible don't want to miss a monute of Disney

Well, let's see, you're flying on Southwest right?

Then I guess you have to go to Southwest.com? Makes sense, doesn't it?

 

[english rose 47]

O.K. I said I was new at this! YES IT MAKES SENSE ! But how would I know if I didn't ask . But I guess it was a Deeerr!!!!!!!

 

[Stimpy]

SW is VERY good about keeping young children with atleast 1 parent even if you get a C boarding pass. The FA will do their best to get 2 seats together for you and 99% of the time the other passengers will help out. Besides no one wants to sit next to and take care of your 5 year old

Believe me, we learned this the hard way LOL We almost missed our flight due to bad traffic once. We were the last to board with 2 kids under 5, 1 is still in a car seat (& we had purchased her a ticket), DH & myself. The other passengers and FA were VERY nice and helpful to us. They were able to get 1 full row for DH and the 2 kids and I had to sit a few rows back. Most relaxing flight I had in a long time!

BTW, SW has had no pre-boarding for children under 5 before. It doesn't happen often but it is a possibility.