Post all SW questions concerns, etc. here...

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I can book Chicago to Maui on SW. The connection is in Oakland. No separate bookings required.

Personally, I hope the competition helps keep the costs on the Legacy carriers down as well. I’m afraid the SW planes are too small for comfort for a 6 hour flight (roughly the time from CA to HI).

That's just what my husband was reading that marketing wise it was not going to be at the moment strong to people in the plains and eastward.

Now Maui might be different than Oahu. But you're going to find a lot more people interested in Oahu.

You can make it but it completely depends on connections and I think people are going to find the issue for going home because of the time change. For instance while I can make it to Oahu from KC via Oakland (we have a non-stop to Oakland) on the way home I have to stay overnight in Oakland because the flights don't work to get me home and SWA doesn't do overnight flights like other airlines do.

Like I said when I flew Delta the flight from HNL to LAX (where we were connecting) left HNL at nearly 9pm and landed in LAX something like 5-6am. SWA wants to get you home that same day (well midnight-1am or so type deal). Chicago you might have more options than Kansas City but you'll still run into some issues. For instance August would not be a good time to fly back home. Looks like you get 3 days at the beginning of the month from HNL to get back to Chicago in 1 day leaving at 9:30am and getting back to Chicago 12:25am the next day and a few more days available in August to get home from Maui. To get to Chicago on the way home it's like 9:15or so am landing back in Chicago around 12:20am the next day.

We ran into this issue with the Grand Cayman islands too with SWA. I really wanted to go there instead of Jamaica this past August but the issue was getting back home. We could get to the Grand Cayman islands easily but getting home the plane landed in whatever connection city too late to make that connection back home that day. It meant an overnight stay in the connection city.

So while it's possible with Chicago better than with Kansas City it's not the same as other carriers who fly overnight.

But I do hope the pricing goes down for sure though it helps us all out.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

That's just what my husband was reading that marketing wise it was not going to be at the moment strong to people in the plains and eastward.

Now Maui might be different than Oahu. But you're going to find a lot more people interested in Oahu.

You can make it but it completely depends on connections and I think people are going to find the issue for going home because of the time change. For instance while I can make it to Oahu from KC via Oakland (we have a non-stop to Oakland) on the way home I have to stay overnight in Oakland because the flights don't work to get me home and SWA doesn't do overnight flights like other airlines do.

Like I said when I flew Delta the flight from HNL to LAX (where we were connecting) left HNL at nearly 9pm and landed in LAX something like 5-6am. SWA wants to get you home that same day (well midnight-1am or so type deal). Chicago you might have more options than Kansas City but you'll still run into some issues. For instance August would not be a good time to fly back home. Looks like you get 3 days at the beginning of the month from HNL to get back to Chicago in 1 day leaving at 9:30am and getting back to Chicago 12:25am the next day and a few more days available in August to get home from Maui. To get to Chicago on the way home it's like 9:15or so am landing back in Chicago around 12:20am the next day.

We ran into this issue with the Grand Cayman islands too with SWA. I really wanted to go there instead of Jamaica this past August but the issue was getting back home. We could get to the Grand Cayman islands easily but getting home the plane landed in whatever connection city too late to make that connection back home that day. It meant an overnight stay in the connection city.

So while it's possible with Chicago better than with Kansas City it's not the same as other carriers who fly overnight.

But I do hope the pricing goes down for sure though it helps us all out.

I’m merely referring to the fact that I don’t have to book separate flights and I’m east of the Rockies.

And yes, an overnight flight home is definitely the best, but perhaps they haven’t been approved for overnight/over water flights yet? (I’m guessing as I have no knowledge one way or the other).

As for demand to HNL over OGG, that may be true here on the Dis, because of Aulani but I assure you, Maui is definitely a popular destination.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I’m merely referring to the fact that I don’t have to book separate flights and I’m east of the Rockies.

I understand. I was relaying what my husband was reading. You run into the exact same problem as I do here in KC but there's just more options. Getting home is going to be your issue no matter if it's Oahu or Maui; just far more limited the further east you get because of how they operate their flights.

And yes, an overnight flight home is definitely the best, but perhaps they haven’t been approved for overnight/over water flights yet? (I’m guessing as I have no knowledge one way or the other).

I don't think SWA flys overnight in general and I believe they said they don't really plan to. I don't know if it's an approval thing or if they even sought to get approval if that wasn't in their plans.

As for demand to HNL over OGG, that may be true here on the Dis, because of Aulani but I assure you, Maui is definitely a popular destination.

No I wasn't even referring to Disney people at all. Not at all about Aulani.

Oahu, because of Waikiki, because of North Shore, because of Pearl Harbor, etc. I'm not suggesting people don't want to go to Maui..

 

[MarBee]

A friend of mine used mybreferral link for my SW Premier card almost 3 months ago. He was approved instantly and even met his spend requirement and got his bonus points. However, I still have not seen the 10,000 points for referring him.
Do you know how long it typically takes for referral points to come through?
If they should’ve posted but didn’t, do I call Chase about it or SW?

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[shoreward]

A friend of mine used mybreferral link for my SW Premier card almost 3 months ago. He was approved instantly and even met his spend requirement and got his bonus points. However, I still have not seen the 10,000 points for referring him.
Do you know how long it typically takes for referral points to come through?
If they should’ve posted but didn’t, do I call Chase about it or SW?

Thanks in advance for your help!

The bonus points should be credited to your RR account in the next billing cycle, following your friend meeting the spending requirements.

I would contact Chase to inquire. I once thought the bonus points were missing, but Chase confirmed that the points were indeed credited to my account; I just missed seeing it, among the other points credited.

 

[huskies90]

Question using Travel Funds:

I have 2 travel fund credits. One for $5 which expires 5/16/19 and another for $110 that expires 9/23/19. I am booking a flight for 5/11/19. If I needed to cancel that flight my entire credit will now expire 5/16/19. Correct? I am happy I have a chance to use the $5 credit but I am not sure if it is worth it because if I use it, I basically lose my ability to cancel the flight if I need to. I just want to make sure I understand the expiration correctly.

 

[BelleOftheBall16]

Question using Travel Funds:

I have 2 travel fund credits. One for $5 which expires 5/16/19 and another for $110 that expires 9/23/19. I am booking a flight for 5/11/19. If I needed to cancel that flight my entire credit will now expire 5/16/19. Correct? I am happy I have a chance to use the $5 credit but I am not sure if it is worth it because if I use it, I basically lose my ability to cancel the flight if I need to. I just want to make sure I understand the expiration correctly.

You are correct any mixed funds take on the earliest expiration date. That also applies to any cash you add in. For example if you use the $5 fund, the $110 fund and $85 cash-the entire $200 now has an expiration date of 5/16. I would just eat the $5 unless you are 100% certain you are going to fly on 5/11.

 

[huskies90]

You are correct any mixed funds take on the earliest expiration date. That also applies to any cash you add in. For example if you use the $5 fund, the $110 fund and $85 cash-the entire $200 now has an expiration date of 5/16. I would just eat the $5 unless you are 100% certain you are going to fly on 5/11.

Thank You. That is what I thought.

I have a follow up question sorta related to the same trip:

This trip on 5/11 is to pick up my daughter from college in OH. I am flying from Hartford to Cincinnati (she attends the University of Dayton). There are no direct flights so I am connecting thru Chicago's Midway. The fare is very low - $97 for the one way.

As luck would have it, I have to fly back out the following week to get my other daughter from Notre Dame and I had planned to fly to Midway and drive to South Bend, IN. That fare from BDL to MDW is $210 however the same fare from BDL to CVG connecting thru MDW is again only $97. So my question is, couldn’t I just book the Cincinnati flight and not get on the connection to CVG and save $113? This would also be a one way flight.

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

I referred a friend with my link from my SW Premier card almost 3 months ago. I have not seen my 10,000 point referral bonus yet.
How long does it take for a referral bonus to post?
And who should I call about if it hasn’t posted yet? SW or Chase?

Depending on when they used your link in proximity to your statement close, points should have either been on your next statement or the statement after that. If you’ve had 2 statements and no points, it didn’t track. You can attempt to call Chase but be aware this is extremely difficult to get them to concede: I would know your friends’s full name, address, the date they applied before calling if possible.

 

[PolyAddict]

We are 7 1/2 weeks out and need to change return trip by one day. Right now its $35 extra a person. Should I do now or is it possible to go down at all?

Thanks

 

[PolyAddict]

Also, can you use points to change flight?

 

[shoreward]

We are 7 1/2 weeks out and need to change return trip by one day. Right now its $35 extra a person. Should I do now or is it possible to go down at all?

Thanks

Also, can you use points to change flight?

You can't pay with a combination of cash and points; it's either all cash or all points (except, of course, when a ticket is booked with points and the fees are paid with cash)
There is no way to know if the fares will decrease or not. You can always change, if the fare goes down, and use the credit for a future flight, within one year from date of original booking.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

Anybody else notice a decrease in the number of non stop flights? My market went from four daily to two daily during the fall.

 

[scrappinginontario]

Anybody else notice a decrease in the number of non stop flights? My market went from four daily to two daily during the fall.

Yes. There was quite a bit of chatter about this earlier in this thread when the last group of flights were released.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

Yes. There was quite a bit of chatter about this earlier in this thread when the last group of flights were released.

Thank you.

 

[MilwaukeeMom]

We are leaving in 2 weeks. Any chance SW will drop their prices before then? My son can’t pay $900 round trip per person so they’re thinking of driving instead.

 

[MarBee]

We are leaving in 2 weeks. Any chance SW will drop their prices before then? My son can’t pay $900 round trip per person so they’re thinking of driving instead.

I fly out of Philly usually so maybe it’s different in other markets but I always find the prices to go up the closer you get. Once in a while if it’s an off time flight it will decrease but I doubt it would at this point.
Is there another airline you can try?

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We are leaving in 2 weeks. Any chance SW will drop their prices before then? My son can’t pay $900 round trip per person so they’re thinking of driving instead.

A lot of their sales require a 21day advance purchase. Generally speaking we find 2 weeks to be the point where at least Wanna Get Away fares no longer decrease and tend to only go up in price from there. As a PP mentioned different markets can operate differently.

 

[jenseib]

We are leaving in 2 weeks. Any chance SW will drop their prices before then? My son can’t pay $900 round trip per person so they’re thinking of driving instead.

Check every day. You never know. I checked mine coming back from San Juan and literally 4 days before coming home it dropped quite a bit and between 2 of us I got 7,000 points back

 

[DLgal]

Is anyone worried about the mechanics issue and the most recent crash of a Boeing 737 Max 8?

I am booked on SW on a flight to MCO late April/early May. My flight there is on a Max 8. I am starting to worry, because of this issue with the mechanics and all the allegations on both sides of planes being sent into the air with known issues (that the mechanics insist are NOT cosmetic).

I booked my flights with points, and am considering cancelling them and booking with Delta. Am I being paranoid?