Southwest Airline - YEAH!!!!!!

[Hsminnie]

Oh my goodness!!! I was so worried about the "cattlecar" loading and how to preboard but for no reason. Everyone we encountered was friendly and helpful and they allowed our whole family to board together. (Mom, Dad, 10yo, 7yo, 2yo). We always waited to get in line until all the wheelchairs and older folks were in place, and then had no trouble boarding. We go to the back of the plane anyway so there were always plenty of seats, even if Bob had needed to come on seperately with the older girls. They even had an issue with offloading our luggage at CMH on the return trip and were right on the speaker making the announcement and letting us know what was up. (Mind you, it was maybe and extra 5 or 10 minutes, NO big deal.) But they seemed to want the communication out there, which is cool. I noticed all their "out front" employees (flight attendants, ticket agents, etc) were wearing khakis and polo shirts (long and short sleeve) with tennis shoes. Some had sweaters or sweater vests too. That has to make a long day easier in the comfy clothes. They were all pressed and sharp looking - no slouches taking advantage of a casual dress code.

Our tickets for 5 RT CMH to MCO were $572. I was prepared to "get what I paid for" but was pleasantly surprised and will check Southwest first for any future travel. GREAT JOB!!

 

[tinaluis]

I'm glad to hear you had a good experience with SWA. We prefer them over any other airline because of their low prices and no frills attitude. I do a lot of travel planning for my boss and sometimes we have to cancel or change reservations and never have a problem with SWA. The other carriers, on the other hand, charge change fees and penalties on top of already high airfares. SWA gets my vote (and business) anyday!

 

[pooh.kim]

We also fly out of CMH to Orlando. We have not flown since 9/11 though, have driven instead. We will be flying again Jan 1st. Just wondering how long before your flight you arrived. We will not be able to preboard - how early did they give out boarding passes with A, B, etc.? Thanks

 

[Hsminnie]

pooh.kim,

We arrived no more than 1 hour before flight time at CMH and MCO. At CMH we all had "B" boarding passes and at MCO we had 2 "A" passes and 3 "B". Security was quick and efficient at both locations. Now, since it is New Year's day you may want to go earlier. Remember, they board 30 min before takeoff so there really isn't that much time to kill if you go 90 min ahead. The fact that they issue your boarding pass at curbside checkin is a big help too.

 

[pooh.kim]

I'm very excited about our trip, though I must admit flying is the worst part for me. It beats a 15 hour drive though.