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[buzz1fan]

Can someone explain to me my best option - like a 5 year old.
Family 4- one is young adult who will fly home different time.
Thinking of getting a southwest card. Which card is my best bet?
We travel 2 times a year to Florida- not just Orlando.
I’m not sure I understand companion pass and how to use it.

I book flights - we do have our own rewards numbers but I have been booking the flights. I know we can’t use points on one booking- but right now we don’t have enough for points to pay for a flight.

I like to have us on one reservation- but I book one way flights. Last time I changed my sons to his own when he had to get back for work.

Also not sure what type of ticket to get. With the new booking system- seems like I’d want option 2 if we are over 6 months or basic option 1 for under 6 months. Which is what I am looking to book now for December.

If I got card now- I’d be able to spend the dollar amount needed to get points.
Not sure how we need to book to use the points- companion pass- I assume I would get more points on my name since I’m getting card.

A perk is we will each get a free travel bag with the card I believe.

 

[eticketplease]

A perk is we will each get a free travel bag with the card I believe.

The free bag is for up to 8 a people plus the primary card holder as long as everyone is on the same reservation with the card holder.


On the way down you will receive 4 bags and 3 on the way back. Your DS will have to pay for his bag on the way back.

 

[focusondisney]

Can someone explain to me my best option - like a 5 year old.
Family 4- one is young adult who will fly home different time.
Thinking of getting a southwest card. Which card is my best bet?
We travel 2 times a year to Florida- not just Orlando.
I’m not sure I understand companion pass and how to use it.

I book flights - we do have our own rewards numbers but I have been booking the flights. I know we can’t use points on one booking- but right now we don’t have enough for points to pay for a flight.

I like to have us on one reservation- but I book one way flights. Last time I changed my sons to his own when he had to get back for work.

Also not sure what type of ticket to get. With the new booking system- seems like I’d want option 2 if we are over 6 months or basic option 1 for under 6 months. Which is what I am looking to book now for December.

If I got card now- I’d be able to spend the dollar amount needed to get points.
Not sure how we need to book to use the points- companion pass- I assume I would get more points on my name since I’m getting card.

A perk is we will each get a free travel bag with the card I believe.

Re: the companion pass… IMO, it’s not that easy to earn. You have to either fly 100 one way flights in a year or earn 135,000 rapid reward points in 1 year to earn the CP. The current credit card offer seems to be 50,000 points, so you’d need to 85,000 more points this year to qualify for a CP. The point count towards CP restarts every January 1st. There are sometimes bonus point offers during the year that can help. Note.. the 100 flights & 135K points must be earned by 1 person…others on your reservation don’t count towards your count or rapid rewards points total.

If you do earn the 135K points or flights needed for a CP, you qualify for the remainder of this year & all of next year. Many people try to apply for a cc & earn their spend very early in the year, so they have the CP for almost 2 years. If you have a lot of expenses you can put on your CC, it’s worth a try. Personally, we don’t spend that much in a yer & many of our major expenses can’t be put on a card, so we haven’t earned a CP in years.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

The current credit card offer seems to be 50,000 points, so you’d need to 85,000 more points this year to qualify for a CP.

Most folks who are doing the CP via credit card are opening two cards (a business card and then a personal or two business) so they're hitting two bonuses plus the 10k RR accelerator for CC holders. That plus paying attention to categories that generate 2x or 3x rewards, plus maybe a referral if you've got multiple household members doing it, kicks you over the top way easier.

 

[buzz1fan]

Hmm- so really the southwest card may only help us for the bag. We only fly 2 times a year unless something is special or something.

 

[focusondisney]

Most folks who are doing the CP via credit card are opening two cards (a business card and then a personal or two business) so they're hitting two bonuses plus the 10k RR accelerator for CC holders. That plus paying attention to categories that generate 2x or 3x rewards, plus maybe a referral if you've got multiple household members doing it, kicks you over the top way easier.

Yes, I know some people do that. But for people who don’t want to open 2 cards, already have the cards or don’t have anyone to do the referrals to, it’s not easy to earn. The 2 or 3 times rewards categories don’t work for everyone either. Neither of the 2 this year have applied for me. I have a current bonus offer..spend $9K in 3 months, earn 25% bonus points. That’s less than 2500 bonus points, not a significant amount towards 135K. Again, if you have a lot of expenses that you can put on a card, it helps. But for most people, it’s just not that easy to earn.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Getting a promotional companion pass seems to be easier than getting a companion pass the traditional way. Sister-in-law and her fiance have a companion pass the traditional way BUT they own a duplex and a 4-plex and put all their business expenses on their SWA CC. It's not as easy over the years. It used to be easier when the goal was 110,000 points to do the personal and business cc as you often only had to earn 10,000 points after that between the bonuses, some bonuses meant you didn't have to earn more than that but SWA has progressively made it harder and harder intentionally by bumping up the amount of points or flights needed

 

[focusondisney]

Hmm- so really the southwest card may only help us for the bag. We only fly 2 times a year unless something is special or something.

The points earned can help with flight costs tho. Depending where you fly from, when your trips are, & the category booked you can sometimes get flights for less than 10K points a person. So you might be able to book at least 1 way of your trip on points. Even if you don’t have enough points this trip, the rapid rewards credits don’t expire, so you can keep saving up towards next years trip. Also, if you cancel or change trips books with points, the points return to your bank & don’t expire.

 

[pooch]

Ah, the chasing points game, I love it! We haven’t paid for a flight to Florida in over 15 years thanks to SWA points. DH and I both have cards and absolutely every bill that doesn’t charge a fee to pay with a CC, goes on them. We do, of course pay in full every month. My favorite promotion so far occurred last year when DH got 3X points for all gas, grocery & restaurant purchases for the whole year! We earned an extra 24,000 points on it!
We both recently opened Jet Blue cards & got 70,000 bonus points each.

 

[Hurricane Hanna]

Ah, the chasing points game, I love it! We haven’t paid for a flight to Florida in over 15 years thanks to SWA points. DH and I both have cards and absolutely every bill that doesn’t charge a fee to pay with a CC, goes on them. We do, of course pay in full every month. My favorite promotion so far occurred last year when DH got 3X points for all gas, grocery & restaurant purchases for the whole year! We earned an extra 24,000 points on it!
We both recently opened Jet Blue cards & got 70,000 bonus points each.

It is a game, and not everyone finds it worth their time. Most credit cards either give you some kind of incentive or cash back. I have zero fee credit cards that give decent cash back on every single thing I buy, without the initial investment of an annual fee. I can use that cash to buy whatever I want including a plane ticket and checked bags. Easy peasy.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Ah, the chasing points game, I love it! We haven’t paid for a flight to Florida in over 15 years thanks to SWA points. DH and I both have cards and absolutely every bill that doesn’t charge a fee to pay with a CC, goes on them. We do, of course pay in full every month. My favorite promotion so far occurred last year when DH got 3X points for all gas, grocery & restaurant purchases for the whole year! We earned an extra 24,000 points on it!
We both recently opened Jet Blue cards & got 70,000 bonus points each.

The conversation though is about Companion Pass which is completely different than trying to earn as many points as you can in a given year to then use on subsequent travel.

Raw purchasing on a SWA CC combined with little travel (which the PP said they fly maybe twice a year typically) is much harder than before to earn a Companion Pass. Earning a promotional one is often easier, for example we just missed out on earning one by 3 days as my husband booked his work flights for this upcoming week 3 days before a promotional companion pass offer (good for travel in August-mid November IIRC) came out towards the end of June.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I have a question about seating that I'm sure other airlines have addressed. I know that a person in a wheelchair cannot sit in the exit row. But suppose a person who'll need wheelchair assistance unknowingly books a seat in the exit row. How do flight attendants address the problem? Do they simply ask for someone in the equivalent style of seat (extended leg or preferred-I forget which) to trade? Do they randomly take someone from a non-exit row to switch? I know that currently it isn't a problem (I'm in a wheelchair, and once when I got on, I must have looked like I was headed for the exit row, and a flight attendant quickly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, with a panicked look on her face to remind me "No exit row")

 

[pooch]

The

The conversation though is about Companion Pass which is completely different than trying to earn as many points as you can in a given year to then use on subsequent travel.

Raw purchasing on a SWA CC combined with little travel (which the PP said they fly maybe twice a year typically) is much harder than before to earn a Companion Pass. Earning a promotional one is often easier, for example we just missed out on earning one by 3 days as my husband booked his work flights for this upcoming week 3 days before a promotional companion pass offer (good for travel in August-mid November IIRC) came out towards the end of June.

Wow so sorry for going off topic

 

[buzz1fan]

I think points we would earn more than the companion pass. We are flying around holidays but then again next summer. I need to see what is best for us.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

The

Wow so sorry for going off topic

Just a different conversation on the thread at this exact time for a person does little travel compared to a good chunk of us who travel quite frequently because we are normally trying to gobble up as much points as we can in various ways we can whether it's using SWA or using other CCs to earn points there.

 

[pooch]

Sure, because ways of earning more points would not be helpful or relevant to the infrequent traveler. I read the question du jour as looking for the best way to get free/reduced tickets on SWA. I have never accumulated enough points for Companion status but we fly free anyway.

 

[buzz1fan]

Appreciate all opinions and thoughts!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Sure, because ways of earning more points would not be helpful or relevant to the infrequent traveler. I read the question du jour as looking for the best way to get free/reduced tickets on SWA. I have never accumulated enough points for Companion status but we fly free anyway.

Yes but you put a significant amount of your purchases on the card which is why. It would take the infrequent traveler a decent amount to be able to fly for free consistently as well as for multiple passengers. You and me are not different in that we both fly off points for a long time so I know where you're coming from but we obviously fly a lot more than maybe two times a year unless something comes up like the PP. Your starting part of your comment was about "the chasing points game" so yes I responded with that mentality in mind based on the PP's post and questions about getting the SWA CC when they just don't travel a whole lot. Regardless I was saying it's a way different conversation, because it is a different conversation, to maximize point accumulation most especially loyalty points with an airline with the intent to not pay for a flight with that airline. But I apologize if you felt that was too abrupt.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Appreciate all opinions and thoughts!

I'd really consider if your amount of travel is worth getting a new CC much less a SWA CC.

While you may have 4 people to think about for bags you would want to look IMO more than just that benefit for locking yourself into an airline branded CC especially if you're not always flying together where the benefit wouldn't even transfer to the passengers not on your reservation with you (the card holder).

Two other aspects influence my viewpoint in that 1) some surveys sent out are pointing towards a potential huge overhaul in Companion Pass eligibility 2) This is a very precarious time period for SWA because none of us can really keep up with all the changes going on and none of us know how the assigned seating will pan out. Certain perks associated with the CC will have to change once they go to assigned seating so at the moment obtaining a new card may come with the risk of unknowns

I'm normally a long-term down the road type thinker than a short term gain type of thinking so my viewpoint is also influenced that way.

 

[katallo]

I have a question about seating that I'm sure other airlines have addressed. I know that a person in a wheelchair cannot sit in the exit row. But suppose a person who'll need wheelchair assistance unknowingly books a seat in the exit row. How do flight attendants address the problem? Do they simply ask for someone in the equivalent style of seat (extended leg or preferred-I forget which) to trade? Do they randomly take someone from a non-exit row to switch? I know that currently it isn't a problem (I'm in a wheelchair, and once when I got on, I must have looked like I was headed for the exit row, and a flight attendant quickly appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, with a panicked look on her face to remind me "No exit row")

So many people have questions about how wheelchairs will be dealt with in the future. So far, I don’t believe Southwest has offered any type of guidance.