New to Southwest and have a boarding question

[Lovemy3babes]

I'm thinking about flying to WDW in October with just my girls. They are 12 & 11. I have never flown SW but am willing to drive the 2+ hours to get a lower price than what's available to me in such a small town. I am nervous about this "cattle call" boarding I have read about. Should I worry? Is there a way to ensure that I can sit with my children?

(are all rows three seats across?)

Thanks for any help! I'll be the only adult on this trip so and I'm sort of a worry wart when it comes to my kiddos.

 

[kaytieeldr]

All rows are three across. See Southwest's Boarding School page on their website; the earlier you check in, the more likely you'll sit together. Consider paying for EBCI.

 

[ccgirl]

I'm thinking about flying to WDW in October with just my girls. They are 12 & 11. I have never flown SW but am willing to drive the 2+ hours to get a lower price than what's available to me in such a small town. I am nervous about this "cattle call" boarding I have read about. Should I worry? Is there a way to ensure that I can sit with my children?

(are all rows three seats across?)

Thanks for any help! I'll be the only adult on this trip so and I'm sort of a worry wart when it comes to my kiddos.

Really...the cattle call is not that bad. I have never paid for EBCI and have been able to sit with my children even on really busy flights. We only fly direct non-stop so we are always getting on an empty plane. Once we had to sit in the back row (that is when we checked in at the airport) but we were still together so I didn't care. EBCI means SW checks you in 36 hours in advance so you would get better boarding position than those that didn't use EBCI. The exception being, if you get a "B". Family boarding is between A and B so you would board after them. I think $10 is too much for this service so, personally, I don't choose to use it. Check in right at your 24 hour mark and you should be able to sit together. If you have a web enabled phone you can use that to check in on the way home. Your boarding position is assigned when you check in not when you print the pass so you can just get the printed pass at the airport.

Have fun!

 

[DISNEYNY]

It's not that bad. I don't usually do EBCI and always have been able to sit with my kids. I do make sure that I am on the website at exactly 24 hours out so I can get an A boarding pass. I have still been able to get a seat with my family with a B boarding pass. If you are worried about it the $10 for EBCI might be worth it to you.

 

[brenda1966]

Have never paid for early bird boarding. I try to get my boarding passes at the 24 hour mark and have never had an issue. I have seen families that board last have a problem and the airline will ask for volunteers to move so the family can be seated together. I have always seen someone move to help the family.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Don't worry. You should not have a problem sitting with your kids. As far as the cattle call.. it is a lot better than it use to be years ago. Its a simple process and you will be fine.
I definately hear you about driving to get a cheaper flight. We have driven from Cleveland to Columbus Ohio which is 2 1/2 hours for us simply to get a much cheaper flight. We drive down the night before and get a hotel for usually $65 right by the airport which offers free parking for the car while we are gone. And since parking a car at the airport can run right around $50 - $75 depending on the length of the trip the hotel price is a good deal. That way we don't have to worry about something happening between home and the airport.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

You all are so nice and wonderful. Thank you!!!

 

[rw_hadley]

I see you are in MN. I assume you'd be flying out of MSP (Terminal 2 - aka Humphrey Terminal).
We flew MSP to MCO a couple of weeks ago as our first experience with SWA.
The boarding procedure is really pretty straightforward, and clearly explained. I was concerned about it before, but not now.
Our flight stopped at Chicago Midway before continuing to MCO, but we did not have to deplane. In fact, a surprisingly large number of people got off in Chicago, and we were able to move up to the 2nd or 3rd row.
So if you are flying one of the routes from MSP that goes through Midway, you might be able to do this.
(BTW we did early bird check in, which I figured was worth it since we didn't have to pay for luggage. We were A group in the low 30's going and A group high 20's coming back. I have no idea what it might have been if we hadn't done EBCI, but I think we would have been OK for the three of us to sit together.)

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Thank you Richard!!

 

[goofy4tink]

It's no longer a 'cattle call' when boarding SW planes. You check in right at the 24 hr window, and you should be fine. If you choose to pay for EBCI (which I always do when leaving WDW so as to not have to worry about it) SW will check you in at the 36 hr mark...which puts you ahead of those at the 24 hr mark.
As long as you get a B boarding group, you'll be fine. It used to be that people had to get to the gate more than 2 hrs before departure and then stand in the same spot in the line for hours...just to be able to hold their spot in their boading group. It wasn't a ton of fun.
But now, you checkin online, you get a boarding group, A B or C, and then a number within that group. You could arrive at the gate 30 mins before departure and just go up and get into the line at your marked spot. I wouldn't advise it since SW starts boarding about 25 mins before departure. But you could do it if you timed it right.
So truly, it's not really a 'cattle call' anymore.

 

[SaraJayne]

OP, I was very anxious my first time flying SW, too...but really, I found the boarding process to be much smoother and quicker than when flying Delta (who we usually fly).

You should have no problems sitting with your girls. If you wish, you can purchase Early Bird Check In (EBCI), and be checked in automatically by SW at the 36 hour mark. We always pick this option. In my mind, it replaces the baggage fee charge. lol

If you choose not to purchase EBCI, just make sure to check in at the 24 hour mark (both going and coming home) and you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[Lovemy3babes]

Thanks so very much again. You definitely put my mind at ease. Much appreciated!