Help me Southwest.

[EmJ]

I’ve been waiting for Southwest to open up its reservations for next March so I can book flights for our trip. I always book as early as possible for the cheapest “wanna get away” fares. I just saw that on July 10, Southwest is opening it’s reservations through March 6, 2020. Of course we are traveling March 2-7. Am I right in thinking there is no benefit to booking round trip and that I should book one way when the early March dates open in July, and then one way again when the later March dates open, probably in late August?

 

[twitch]

There is no benefit in booking round trip on Southwest. In fact, many frequent flyers prefer to book one way trips for ease of adjusting or refaring the tickets later on.

The only downside is for budgeting... as ling as you’re confident you can get a good price on your return flight, then you should be good to go.

 

[tzeitel]

I book 1 leg at a time (that sounds funny ) just in case prices drop and I have to rebook - sometimes they even have lower fares for just one ticket. Anyway, there is no perk by buying round trip - same price.

 

[EmJ]

Thank you! One way tickets it is.

 

[lcp9]

Make sure to keep checking prices after you book - you can always rebook and get the difference back in credit, and apply that to the return flight once those open up. Or just have credit for later anyway!

 

[sugcarol]

I have been waiting for fares to open up for our Dec 7-13 trip, today they came out and I am shocked how high the prices are. Last year roundtrip Dallas/Orlando was 218.00 pp. The price now for those dates are 330.00 pp.

 

[EmJ]

I have been waiting for fares to open up for our Dec 7-13 trip, today they came out and I am shocked how high the prices are. Last year roundtrip Dallas/Orlando was 218.00 pp. The price now for those dates are 330.00 pp.

Yikes! I wonder why. Could it be the whole 737 Max fiasco? I think Southwest took a big hit. I can also look at United but I hate dealing with bag fees. Down with bag fees!

 

[longboard55]

Southwest is not always lowest, from dallas I would check American

 

[dkrauss]

I book 1 leg at a time (that sounds funny ) just in case prices drop and I have to rebook - sometimes they even have lower fares for just one ticket. Anyway, there is no perk by buying round trip - same price.

The November dates just came out this week and I only booked the Newark NJ to LAX portion of our trip. Got it for $155/per. The flight home is on a Sunday and the pricing was just insane...…….so we'll wait to see what happens. We prefer Southwest because of the 2 FREE checked bags...…...which given SWGE will be huge on this trip.

Doug

 

[gottalovepluto]

Thank you! One way tickets it is.

And keep an eye on the release date, it can change.

 

[sugcarol]

Yikes! I wonder why. Could it be the whole 737 Max fiasco? I think Southwest took a big hit. I can also look at United but I hate dealing with bag fees. Down with bag fees!

We only want to fly out of Dallas Love Field, DFW is too insane. I did price out American from DFW and was 251.00 pp but they add bag fees so basically same price. If I am paying the same price I would rather go out of a better airport.

 

[bumbershoot]

I book 1 leg at a time (that sounds funny ) just in case prices drop and I have to rebook - sometimes they even have lower fares for just one ticket. Anyway, there is no perk by buying round trip - same price.

Fwiw even with a round trip you can rebook or reprice just one part of it.

 

[twitch]

Fwiw even with a round trip you can rebook or reprice just one part of it.

Yes. You can. But if the price of one leg goes up and the price of the other goes down, it is a cumulative, and may not be as beneficial. (At least, that’s how it used to be.)

 

[focusondisney]

Yes. You can. But if the price of one leg goes up and the price of the other goes down, it is a cumulative, and may not be as beneficial. (At least, that’s how it used to be.)

You can pick just 1 way of your itinerary to change. So if your flight there goes down, you just pick that flight to change. The way back flight stays unchanged. So there is no risk that you will pay a higher fare for that flight.

 

[twitch]

You can pick just 1 way of your itinerary to change. So if your flight there goes down, you just pick that flight to change. The way back flight stays unchanged. So there is no risk that you will pay a higher fare for that flight.

Good to hear. It was not always that way.

 

[chimoe]

Wow, I usually book our tickets 1month advance tops. Never thought about booking 1yr in advance. Last rip I booked 2 weeks prior.

I also travel a lot for business and I agree with others there isn’t pricing benefits to booking RT vs. 1way.

 

[3DisMunchkins]

So if you book a flight on SWA and the price goes down, will they adjust later?

 

[starry_solo]

So if you book a flight on SWA and the price goes down, will they adjust later?

You'll have to do it. They don't automatically do it. Refund is in form of travel credit that needs to be used one year from date originally booked trip (not one year from date of trip), unless that has changed.

 

[EmJ]

Wow, I usually book our tickets 1month advance tops. Never thought about booking 1yr in advance. Last rip I booked 2 weeks prior.

I also travel a lot for business and I agree with others there isn’t pricing benefits to booking RT vs. 1way.

Aren’t all the wanna get aware fares picked over by then?

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Aren’t all the wanna get aware fares picked over by then?

No not necessarily. My husband often books business travel 2-3 weeks in advanced. Most often it's WGA fare. Now the price may be higher than it could have been previously but WGA fares can still be there.

Routes, times of year, and flight time all can have an impact on that though.