RAC When Flying Southwest

Disney Bunny

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Jan 14, 2010
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We are planning on using DME for our r/t airport/Disney transportation. Could someone explain to me how RAC works if I am returning home on Southwest? We have a 2:45 PM return time. Will RAC check me in on Southwest 24 hours before my flight time or will I need to do that myself? I know that DME will assign us a bus time about 3 hours before our flight time (bus time should be around 11:45) and that I should be at the DME check in about 15 - 30 minutes prior to our assigned bus time. Other than take our bags to the DME check in, is there anything else we need to do or does Disney take care of all of it for us?
 
You will need to check yourself in 24hrs in advance. Unless you do the following

The Resort Airline Check-In staff will process the 24-hour in advance check-in for all Southwest Guests as long as they have pre-registered at the Airport Welcome Center.

Will Southwest Guests receive their boarding passes to their resort room like other Resort Airline Check-In Express Guests?
Guests arriving to MCO utilizing DME will be pre-registered for RAC at the Welcome Center. Guests who are flying on eligible Southwest flights have the option with DME to sign up for RAC. These Guests will receive their boarding passes and temporary luggage tags at their room the morning of departure. The Welcome Center will have information fliers for Guests explaining the process.

What if a Guest does not elect to participate in pre-registration for RAC or does not come through the Welcome Center? Can they still utilize RAC?
Guests can utilize RAC on the morning of their departure to check-in for their flights and receive their boarding passes. They will not receive any documents in their room.

Southwest Airlines utilizes boarding groups for their flights rather then seat assignments. How does this impact the RAC process for pre-registered Guests?
For Guests who are pre-registered at the Welcome Center, RAC will automatically check Guests in for their flights 24 hours from their flight time. Boarding groups are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis by Southwest Airlines. RAC's automated check-in process does not guarantee a certain boarding group; however, the chances are the same as a Guest checking-in online.

At the Resorts, we have Southwest Guests who come to the Concierge Desk to check-in 24 hours prior to their flight. What should we do?
If the Guests have been pre-registered via the Welcome Center, they will be checked in by RAC and their boarding passes and temporary luggage tags will be delivered to their room the morning of their departure. For Guests who have not been checked-in via the Welcome Center, they are to follow the existing Front Desk process.

If I check-in a Guest on the Southwest website and they are re-registered for RAC, will it negatively impact the Guest's boarding group?
No, it will not. RAC's system automatically kicks off the check-in process 24 hours before flight time. If a Guest has completed the check-in online before the RAC system has completed the process, RAC will receive notification that the reservation has already been checked-in and it will receive the same boarding group that the Guest received. RAC will still send the printed boarding passes and temporary luggage tags to the Guest as planned. If boarding passes have already been printed out then they will receive duplicates on their door the morning of departure.

Can I add or delete luggage for the Guest via the Southwest website?
No, the Southwest website does not allow changes to the luggage; the site is for flight check-in only. If Guests have incorrect luggage totals and it is 48 hours prior to flight time, they may call the Service Center to add luggage documented with DME. Or, on the morning of departure when dropping theirs luggage off with RAC, they may add luggage to their reservation at the desk.

What if they receive too many temporary luggage tags?
Any unused temporary tags can be discarded. If not used, they are deleted from the airline system within a specific time before flight time (this is the case with all RAC airlines).

Does Southwest Airlines have baggage fees?
At this time, Southwest allows for passengers to fly without fees for two checked bags per ticketed passenger. Fees are assessed for overweight/oversized luggage and additional bags over two. Guests who need to pay fees follow the same process as all other RAC airlines and pay these fees at the Desk or to save time by calling Baggage Airline Guest Services at (407) 284-1231
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