Southwest Airline

[manning]

Can you book one way and then the return when date opens up for booking?

 

[DaisyDuck001]

yes

 

[Allison]

Sure, just like with any airline.

 

[AngiTN]

Folks do this all the time, due to the way they open their booking windows.
But even then, if the entire window is open, you can book each way individual. No problem with 2 one way tickets. Same difference as far as the flights go. Sometimes it's even easier to make changes. Usually makes no difference though

 

[bumbershoot]

Sure, just like with any airline.

A few years back I was arranging (trying) DME. The CM on the phone refused to do it because I had two different airlines booked. He said it wasn't possible. Um..... A LONG time ago it might have been less economical, and right after 911 it got a little more scrutiny, but within a year or less they lightened up and now there's really no fare-cost benefit to roundtrip for domestic flights.

Anyway. Not everyone knows that you can do that.

 

[AngiTN]

A few years back I was arranging (trying) DME. The CM on the phone refused to do it because I had two different airlines booked. He said it wasn't possible. Um..... A LONG time ago it might have been less economical, and right after 911 it got a little more scrutiny, but within a year or less they lightened up and now there's really no fare-cost benefit to roundtrip for domestic flights.

Anyway. Not everyone knows that you can do that.

Heck, nowawdays the online booking systems Google Flights, Expedia, Orbitz, etc; that aren't airline specific, will combine airlines for you, if that's the cheaper airfare. I get AA/Delta combos all the time when pricing trips from here to MCO

 

[writerguyfl]

A few years back I was arranging (trying) DME. The CM on the phone refused to do it because I had two different airlines booked. He said it wasn't possible. Um..... A LONG time ago it might have been less economical, and right after 911 it got a little more scrutiny, but within a year or less they lightened up and now there's really no fare-cost benefit to roundtrip for domestic flights.

I used to work at the Disney Reservations Center at Walt Disney World. When I was there is wasn't possible to book two different airlines for a package. So, it wasn't that the Cast Member was refusing. The system wouldn't allow it. Once you selected the outbound flight, the only options for a return would be on the same airline.

That restriction may have changed since I left. As AngiTN notes, the practice of using two different airlines on a trip is far more common today.

 

[NH-to-FL]

Can you book one way and then the return when date opens up for booking?

Yes. As you see when you book on Southwest that there is no "round trip" pricing. The flights are priced each direction. So it really doesn't matter if you book one direction now and the return flight later. Other than the possible anxiety from only booking a one way ticket. Which worried a friend of mine enough that he booked a round trip on Jet Blue since they had both days open for booking.

 

[cmwade77]

Honestly, I would just go with Jetblue, they have more non-stop flights around the country and really, with 1 checked bag, it cost us $12 more per person than going with Southwest and Jetblue's customer service is far superior.

 

[WishICouldSpeakWhale]

Honestly, I would just go with Jetblue, they have more non-stop flights around the country and really, with 1 checked bag, it cost us $12 more per person than going with Southwest and Jetblue's customer service is far superior.

The OP didn't mention jet blue as a possibility. I don't know where he lives, but Jet blue doesn't fly non-stop from Philly to Orlando, for example. Most of the itineraries are longer than 8 hours, where a non-stop would be 2.5 hours.

 

[AngiTN]

Honestly, I would just go with Jetblue, they have more non-stop flights around the country and really, with 1 checked bag, it cost us $12 more per person than going with Southwest and Jetblue's customer service is far superior.

You do realize they don't fly everywhere

 

[Jestocost]

No JetBlue in St. Louis. Southwest is the only carrier with non-stop flights to/from MCO.

 

[cmwade77]

You do realize they don't fly everywhere

If they don't fly there, then the place is either only drive able or really hard to fly into, to the point that it is better to rent a car and fly somewhere JetBlue does fly. (Edited to be "less offensive")

Seriously, I avoid other airlines as much as possible and avoid Southwest at all costs. For us, Southwest would take around 12 hours from the West Coast to Florida because of their stops (you might be able to get than down to 8 if you pay double), Jetblue has a daily nonstop from LAX to MCO.

 

[writerguyfl]

If they don't fly there, then the place is either only drive able or doesn't exist.....LOL

That's not even remotely funny. You're essentially saying anyone living in one of these cities doesn't exist:

• Amarillo
• Boise
• Cincinnati
• Columbus
• Des Moines
• El Paso
• Grand Rapids
• Indianapolis
• Kansas City
• Little Rock
• Louisville
• Lubbock
• Memphis
• Milwaukee
• Norfolk
• Odessa
• Oklahoma City
• Omaha
• San Antonio
• Spokane
• Tucson
• Tulsa
• Wichita

I probably missed one or two others. I find it callous to dismiss those people simply because your preferred airline doesn't fly to their airport.

 

[AngiTN]

If they don't fly there, then the place is either only drive able or doesn't exist.....LOL

Seriously, I avoid other airlines as much as possible and avoid Southwest at all costs. For us, Southwest would take around 12 hours from the West Coast to Florida because of their stops (you might be able to get than down to 8 if you pay double), Jetblue has a daily nonstop from LAX to MCO.

Seriously? Well, I can promise you where I live does indeed exist and is not, only drivable. We fly out tomorrow

 

[cmwade77]

Ok, apparently people have no sense of humor.....it was not intended as a slight, I was merely pointing out that JetBlue is one of the best airlines out there and I will seriously fly then whenever possible and if the choice was Southwest or not going, I would eitgei not go there (he certainly the doesnt exist comment) or drive there before flying Southwest (United ranks slightly worse in my opinion).

I am not saying people don't exist in these cities, I am saying that they are not flyable if they don't have a decent airline that goes there. I would seriously fly to a nearby city where JetBlue does fly and rent a car before flying many other airlines. In fact we took a train back to Seattle from Vancouver Canada just so we could fly JetBlue instead of other airlines. It didn't hurt that it cut our travel expenses in half either. Again, the point is when booking flights, I try to pretend the cities don't exist that JetBlue does fly to and find other ways to get to them if I truly desire to go there.

Really, people are too quick to take offense when none was intended, sorry if some couldn't see the context in which it was said and it offended someone.

 

[Shanti]

Ok, apparently people have no sense of humor.....it was not intended as a slight...Again, the point is when booking flights, I try to pretend the cities don't exist that JetBlue does fly to and find other ways to get to them if I truly desire to go there.

Well, if a joke isn't funny, you can't blame the listener for not laughing...Jet Blue is fine, but nothing better than SWA- I've flown both repeatedly and see no significant differences in customer service.

 

[writerguyfl]

Seriously, I avoid other airlines as much as possible and avoid Southwest at all costs. For us, Southwest would take around 12 hours from the West Coast to Florida because of their stops (you might be able to get than down to 8 if you pay double), Jetblue has a daily nonstop from LAX to MCO.

Humor is subject. Facts are not.

I picked a random date (Nov 10) and found 12 itineraries on Southwest between Los Angeles (LAX) and Orlando (MCO). The shortest trip was only 5 hours 55 minutes, with a single stop. The longest of those 12 flights is 7 hours 20 minutes. The best price involves a stop in Atlanta. Total flight time of 6 hours 30 minutes for $115.

You are correct about JetBlue offering a non-stop. However, that non-stop is a red-eye (overnight) flight that is not ideal for many, many people. For the date I chose, the price is $177. If you don't want to fly all night, the only other itineraries on JetBlue involves trips of over 9 hours and cost $318 to $453 (plus baggage fees).

There's nothing wrong with not liking Southwest. It's not an airline I'd proactively choose for a transcontinental trip. But, you aren't helping anyone by making things up.

 

[cmwade77]

Not making things up, our dates were 8 hours minimum.

JetBlue also has Long Beach to mco that aren't nonstops, but take around 6 to 7 hours. The cost of Southwest is literally double the JetBlue flights.

I have had massively rude agents on Southwest. United has been slightly worse. And both treat those with service animals and other special needs very poorly, as we have seen in the news, so no I won't call either of them decent. American Airlines is only slightly better. JetBlue bends over backwards for them.

Flying JetBlue cost us $239 round trip, including baggage fees, Southwest for the same dates was a whopping $13 cheaper round trip from LAX and took at least twice as long since there are stops, but since we are going in January and the stops on Southwest would likely be affected by weather, it would be even longer. Yes, a red eye may not be perfect, but a non-stop is far better now than that. If we flew out of Long Beach, there would be even more stops and the flights would cost double. Now granted with JetBlue, we pick the correct dates to fly for the best prices, usually Tuesdays and Thursdays and pick the right time to book our flights. I have never had a round trip to Orlando from the Los Angeles area cost as over $250 on JetBlue, even at the busiest times of the year. Yes, I may pick a different airport to save money (personally I wish they had a non-stop from Long Beach to Orlando, as that is just a couple miles from us), but the price you found is very high and the price on Southwest is abnormally low in my experience.

 

[sam_gordon]

Ok, apparently people have no sense of humor.....it was not intended as a slight, I was merely pointing out that JetBlue is one of the best airlines out there and I will seriously fly then whenever possible and if the choice was Southwest or not going, I would eitgei not go there (he certainly the doesnt exist comment) or drive there before flying Southwest (United ranks slightly worse in my opinion).

I am not saying people don't exist in these cities, I am saying that they are not flyable if they don't have a decent airline that goes there. I would seriously fly to a nearby city where JetBlue does fly and rent a car before flying many other airlines. In fact we took a train back to Seattle from Vancouver Canada just so we could fly JetBlue instead of other airlines. It didn't hurt that it cut our travel expenses in half either. Again, the point is when booking flights, I try to pretend the cities don't exist that JetBlue does fly to and find other ways to get to them if I truly desire to go there.

Really, people are too quick to take offense when none was intended, sorry if some couldn't see the context in which it was said and it offended someone.

Except there are plenty of "decent airlines" out there. It's not like Jetblue is the only one.

Look at the list PP said, you really think those cities "are not flyable"? I'd suggest getting out of your bubble. Get to Cincinnati. Would you fly into Chicago, Nashville, or Cleveland?

And whether you meant it as a joke or not, multiple people took it as an insult. I think that says more about the joke teller than the recipients.