southwest airlines

[lllGurulll]

Sorry if I missed something in a previous post, but I'm not following. No one is going to make underage children board alone. There is no requirement that children use EBCI, and in many, many years of flying SWA with kids I have never once been separated from them on a SWA flight even with "B" bp's. There is always a choice.

The reality of the unwritten rule on seat saving is that the FA's will turn a blind eye to saving ONE seat as long as that seat is NOT in the first 10 rows or an exit row, as long as it is being saved for a real passenger, and as long as no one else wants it. (Part of the unwritten understanding is that savers need to head aft if they want to be successful.) If another passenger challenges you for the seat, the FA will always take that person's side. Attempts to seat-save using "stuff" in the seats will be frowned upon by the FA's -- they really HATE that practice. If you want to save a seat, be prepared to politely verbally defend it, and understand that you will always be expected to graciously concede if challenged. Saving for a phantom passenger in the hope of holding open an empty seat is considered to be very bad form, and the FA's *will* call you on it if all expected passengers have already come through the jetbridge. (Larger passengers who have paid for the add'l seat get an official "reserved" placard to be placed there.)

The official policy regarding children is that they must be 4 or under and would board between A and B groups. the only way that policy allows me to bring them with me in the A group is if I paid for EBCI. I'm sure I could cheat the system and get away with it but it doesn't change the fact that they don't inform you of that up front. I paid for all three of us because I was under the impression it was fully required for all three of us to board together. Nothing on the site states otherwise. I am just being an honest paying customer. Just like everyone else should be.

 

[NotUrsula]

The official policy regarding children is that they must be 4 or under and would board between A and B groups. the only way that policy allows me to bring them with me in the A group is if I paid for EBCI. I'm sure I could cheat the system and get away with it but it doesn't change the fact that they don't inform you of that up front. I paid for all three of us because I was under the impression it was fully required for all three of us to board together. Nothing on the site states otherwise. I am just being an honest paying customer. Just like everyone else should be.

With all due respect, that bolded statement is untrue unless your kids are on the no-fly list (and my apologies if I missed that in a pp.) If the children have "A" bp's then they board along with everyone else in the A group.

If you ended up on the group cusp when you checked in, and you had a high-number A while the kids had a low-number B, then you would just hang back and board with them in their group (having let your higher-priority group become smaller because you were not there. We do this whenever necessary; it is completely legitimate.) Note that this can still happen if you use EBCI, if there are a lot of A-listers on the flight.

In those truly odd cases where children under 12 end up on the No-Fly list and cannot check in online for that reason, but their parents do check in and get an A group BP, then SWA will allow a special age exception and allow the family to board between A and B if the flight is fully booked and the children have high-C BP's that they received at the ticket counter. All you have to do is explain the situation to the gate agent; they can check to make sure that you are telling the truth. (They won't do it if you just blew off checking in, but if the system blocked you from doing so, then they will work with you. Note that they will not allow this exception if the person who could not check in is an adult, unless that person is the only adult accompanying children.)

 

[lllGurulll]

You are getting more in depth with this than need be. I wanted to be in the high A group so I purchased EBCI for each of us because that is what SW stated I would have to do. This saving seats thing is what ticks me off as it allows families to cheat the system if they want to by only purchasing 1 EBCI and then saving seats for everyone else. How is that fair to the paying passengers?

 

[SaraJayne]

We wanted to fly southwest again this year because the baggage fees are getting way out of hand on other airlines, but all of southwests flights are now 1 or 2 stops instead of direct flights! Why are they doing this? It makes it harder for families with young children. Are there any other airlines out there that don't charge for baggage?

I'm flying direct from MKE to MCO next month...though they did have other options with stops.

 

[NotUrsula]

You are getting more in depth with this than need be. I wanted to be in the high A group so I purchased EBCI for each of us because that is what SW stated I would have to do. This saving seats thing is what ticks me off as it allows families to cheat the system if they want to by only purchasing 1 EBCI and then saving seats for everyone else. How is that fair to the paying passengers?

It's fair because in practice it doesn't actually work that way. You cannot sit your tush in one up-front seat and expect to save 4 seats -- it won't work. Someone will challenge for at least two of them, and you'll lose them. If customer service agents promise people that it will work, then they are being irresponsible, because 99% of the time, it won't. SWA FA's will NOT help passengers defend saved seats.

The thing is, what paying EBCI gets you is a 3d priority spot in the boarding line, and nothing else. No guarantee of an A, and even with an A you might end up fairly far back. As an example, I've been in situations at PBI or TPA in the springtime where even with a low A I was about the 50th person to board. Why? Wheelchairs carrying snowbirds. Miami and St. Pete have a lot of retirees, and those airports have a higher-than-usual ratio of medical preboards. BWI, MDW and LAX sometimes have a lot of A-Listers. Both of those groups have higher boarding priority than EBCI.

SWA didn't create EBCI for people who want to sit together; they created it for people who want to board earlier in order to try to snag up-front overhead bins and "good" seats, which as a general rule are in the first 10 rows, especially aisles, or the exit rows. So far it really isn't necessary to purchase EBCI if all you want is a row of three contiguous seats. You can get that in the B group at most airports as long as you head straight for the rear of the aircraft. The exceptions might be when boarding continuing flights at BWI, MDW, LAS, or PHX, as those places function as de-facto hubs. Depending on the flight, planes can already be at least half-full there when the A's board, so a totally open row might be hard to find if you board as a low B. Contiguous pairs are usually still available, however.

The reason that I've gone into all this is that you said that you had "no choice" but to pay for EBCI if you wanted the children to board in the A group with you, and that just is not really true. (I don't mean to imply that you lied about it, as I'm sure you did feel that way, but a feeling and a requirement are two different things.) A lot of first-time fliers take what is written here as gospel, and that idea is one that could unnecessarily cost someone a lot of money. Yes, pay it if you want to for whatever reason, but don't do it because you've been mislead into thinking that it is required; because it is not.

PS for all those folks talking about "direct" flights: for your own good, please stop using that word when discussing non-stop flights. I know I'll be accused of nitpicking again, but I'm trying to save you frustration. In the airline world, "direct" is technical term, and it is NOT the same thing as non-stop. If you call an airline or look at a website and select a flight that is described as "direct", you need to understand that you have just accepted a flight that has a stop before your end destination. SWA in particular has a LOT of "direct" flights that actually have stops, and sometimes more than one. The only advantage to booking a direct flight over one that has an ordinary connection is that because all legs share a single flight number, there is a guarantee that the airline will hold the departure of the second leg until after the first leg arrives, so you cannot miss a connection because a flight is delayed.

 

[SaraJayne]

It's fair because in practice it doesn't actually work that way. You cannot sit your tush in one up-front seat and expect to save 4 seats -- it won't work. Someone will challenge for at least two of them, and you'll lose them. If customer service agents promise people that it will work, then they are being irresponsible, because 99% of the time, it won't. SWA FA's will NOT help passengers defend saved seats.

The thing is, what paying EBCI gets you is a 3d priority spot in the boarding line, and nothing else. No guarantee of an A, and even with an A you might end up fairly far back. As an example, I've been in situations at PBI or TPA in the springtime where even with a low A I was about the 50th person to board. Why? Wheelchairs carrying snowbirds. Miami and St. Pete have a lot of retirees, and those airports have a higher-than-usual ratio of medical preboards. BWI, MDW and LAX sometimes have a lot of A-Listers. Both of those groups have higher boarding priority than EBCI.

SWA didn't create EBCI for people who want to sit together; they created it for people who want to board earlier in order to try to snag up-front overhead bins and "good" seats, which as a general rule are in the first 10 rows, especially aisles, or the exit rows. So far it really isn't necessary to purchase EBCI if all you want is a row of three contiguous seats. You can get that in the B group at most airports as long as you head straight for the rear of the aircraft. The exceptions might be when boarding continuing flights at BWI, MDW, LAS, or PHX, as those places function as de-facto hubs. Depending on the flight, planes can already be at least half-full there when the A's board, so a totally open row might be hard to find if you board as a low B. Contiguous pairs are usually still available, however.

The reason that I've gone into all this is that you said that you had "no choice" but to pay for EBCI if you wanted the children to board in the A group with you, and that just is not really true. (I don't mean to imply that you lied about it, as I'm sure you did feel that way, but a feeling and a requirement are two different things.) A lot of first-time fliers take what is written here as gospel, and that idea is one that could unnecessarily cost someone a lot of money. Yes, pay it if you want to for whatever reason, but don't do it because you've been mislead into thinking that it is required; because it is not.

PS for all those folks talking about "direct" flights: for your own good, please stop using that word when discussing non-stop flights. I know I'll be accused of nitpicking again, but I'm trying to save you frustration. In the airline world, "direct" is technical term, and it is NOT the same thing as non-stop. If you call an airline or look at a website and select a flight that is described as "direct", you need to understand that you have just accepted a flight that has a stop before your end destination. SWA in particular has a LOT of "direct" flights that actually have stops, and sometimes more than one. The only advantage to booking a direct flight over one that has an ordinary connection is that because all legs share a single flight number, there is a guarantee that the airline will hold the departure of the second leg until after the first leg arrives, so you cannot miss a connection because a flight is delayed.

I'm flying "directly" (or straight to, if you so prefer) from Milwaukee to Orlando ~ AKA non-stop.

 

[TillyMarigold]

Southwest is the ONLY carrier that flies nonstop to Orlando from my home airport. In fact, it's the only carrier that flies nonstop to anywhere that doesn't actually border my home state.

 

[lllGurulll]

It's fair because in practice it doesn't actually work that way. You cannot sit your tush in one up-front seat and expect to save 4 seats -- it won't work. Someone will challenge for at least two of them, and you'll lose them. If customer service agents promise people that it will work, then they are being irresponsible, because 99% of the time, it won't. SWA FA's will NOT help passengers defend saved seats.

The thing is, what paying EBCI gets you is a 3d priority spot in the boarding line, and nothing else. No guarantee of an A, and even with an A you might end up fairly far back. As an example, I've been in situations at PBI or TPA in the springtime where even with a low A I was about the 50th person to board. Why? Wheelchairs carrying snowbirds. Miami and St. Pete have a lot of retirees, and those airports have a higher-than-usual ratio of medical preboards. BWI, MDW and LAX sometimes have a lot of A-Listers. Both of those groups have higher boarding priority than EBCI.

SWA didn't create EBCI for people who want to sit together; they created it for people who want to board earlier in order to try to snag up-front overhead bins and "good" seats, which as a general rule are in the first 10 rows, especially aisles, or the exit rows. So far it really isn't necessary to purchase EBCI if all you want is a row of three contiguous seats. You can get that in the B group at most airports as long as you head straight for the rear of the aircraft. The exceptions might be when boarding continuing flights at BWI, MDW, LAS, or PHX, as those places function as de-facto hubs. Depending on the flight, planes can already be at least half-full there when the A's board, so a totally open row might be hard to find if you board as a low B. Contiguous pairs are usually still available, however.

The reason that I've gone into all this is that you said that you had "no choice" but to pay for EBCI if you wanted the children to board in the A group with you, and that just is not really true. (I don't mean to imply that you lied about it, as I'm sure you did feel that way, but a feeling and a requirement are two different things.) A lot of first-time fliers take what is written here as gospel, and that idea is one that could unnecessarily cost someone a lot of money. Yes, pay it if you want to for whatever reason, but don't do it because you've been mislead into thinking that it is required; because it is not.

PS for all those folks talking about "direct" flights: for your own good, please stop using that word when discussing non-stop flights. I know I'll be accused of nitpicking again, but I'm trying to save you frustration. In the airline world, "direct" is technical term, and it is NOT the same thing as non-stop. If you call an airline or look at a website and select a flight that is described as "direct", you need to understand that you have just accepted a flight that has a stop before your end destination. SWA in particular has a LOT of "direct" flights that actually have stops, and sometimes more than one. The only advantage to booking a direct flight over one that has an ordinary connection is that because all legs share a single flight number, there is a guarantee that the airline will hold the departure of the second leg until after the first leg arrives, so you cannot miss a connection because a flight is delayed.

Jeez man. Let it go. I said my piece and that was all. Just say you disagree and leave it at that. My whole point was that saving seats is unfair to paying passengers. It didn't require your book.

 

[DAZY3BYZ]

It's fair because in practice it doesn't actually work that way. You cannot sit your tush in one up-front seat and expect to save 4 seats -- it won't work. Someone will challenge for at least two of them, and you'll lose them. If customer service agents promise people that it will work, then they are being irresponsible, because 99% of the time, it won't. SWA FA's will NOT help passengers defend saved seats.

The thing is, what paying EBCI gets you is a 3d priority spot in the boarding line, and nothing else. No guarantee of an A, and even with an A you might end up fairly far back. As an example, I've been in situations at PBI or TPA in the springtime where even with a low A I was about the 50th person to board. Why? Wheelchairs carrying snowbirds. Miami and St. Pete have a lot of retirees, and those airports have a higher-than-usual ratio of medical preboards. BWI, MDW and LAX sometimes have a lot of A-Listers. Both of those groups have higher boarding priority than EBCI.

SWA didn't create EBCI for people who want to sit together; they created it for people who want to board earlier in order to try to snag up-front overhead bins and "good" seats, which as a general rule are in the first 10 rows, especially aisles, or the exit rows. So far it really isn't necessary to purchase EBCI if all you want is a row of three contiguous seats. You can get that in the B group at most airports as long as you head straight for the rear of the aircraft. The exceptions might be when boarding continuing flights at BWI, MDW, LAS, or PHX, as those places function as de-facto hubs. Depending on the flight, planes can already be at least half-full there when the A's board, so a totally open row might be hard to find if you board as a low B. Contiguous pairs are usually still available, however.

The reason that I've gone into all this is that you said that you had "no choice" but to pay for EBCI if you wanted the children to board in the A group with you, and that just is not really true. (I don't mean to imply that you lied about it, as I'm sure you did feel that way, but a feeling and a requirement are two different things.) A lot of first-time fliers take what is written here as gospel, and that idea is one that could unnecessarily cost someone a lot of money. Yes, pay it if you want to for whatever reason, but don't do it because you've been mislead into thinking that it is required; because it is not.

PS for all those folks talking about "direct" flights: for your own good, please stop using that word when discussing non-stop flights. I know I'll be accused of nitpicking again, but I'm trying to save you frustration. In the airline world, "direct" is technical term, and it is NOT the same thing as non-stop. If you call an airline or look at a website and select a flight that is described as "direct", you need to understand that you have just accepted a flight that has a stop before your end destination. SWA in particular has a LOT of "direct" flights that actually have stops, and sometimes more than one. The only advantage to booking a direct flight over one that has an ordinary connection is that because all legs share a single flight number, there is a guarantee that the airline will hold the departure of the second leg until after the first leg arrives, so you cannot miss a connection because a flight is delayed.

I very much appreciated your explanation of how EBCI works and what you're really paying for. I've always flown SW and never have I been too concerned with where I sit on the plane just as long as my family gets to sit together. I really didn't want to have to pay $100 to insure this. It sounds like we can just do what we've always done and check in at T24 and save the money. We've gotten "B" passes in the past and still always sat together. Glad to know that's still the case. Thanks for your explanation.

 

[Bullseye]

So I take it that you have flown SW since EBCI has been in effect? We always fly SW to Orlando and always just check in at the 24 hr. mark. Now with EBCI, I'm concerned that if I don't purchase it (another $50 each way for my family!) that I'll get stuck in boarding group C. I really don't care where we sit as long as we are not scattered throughout the plane in single seats. What has been your experience with checking in at the 24 hr. mark now that SW has EBCI? What boarding group did you get? Thanks for any help!

Last year or the year before was when they started EBCI and I just know last year I was ready to hit the enter button to check in online at about the 30 second mark and we were in the 50's which is the last tier of seating as far as I know. I have yet to not be an "A", but we were close. Before EBCI, we would be in the first 20 "A"s. I highly doubt if you check in at the 24 hour mark you would end up a "C". I'm in the same boat as you, it would also cost me an additional $50 each way for that service. I'll pass and take my chances!!

 

[DAZY3BYZ]

Last year or the year before was when they started EBCI and I just know last year I was ready to hit the enter button to check in online at about the 30 second mark and we were in the 50's which is the last tier of seating as far as I know. I have yet to not be an "A", but we were close. Before EBCI, we would be in the first 20 "A"s. I highly doubt if you check in at the 24 hour mark you would end up a "C". I'm in the same boat as you, it would also cost me an additional $50 each way for that service. I'll pass and take my chances!!

Thanks! After all the advice I've gotten here I think I'm going to do the same thing. It really is pricey to pay $50 each way just to insure you're one of the first people on the plane. Since I don't really care about where I sit just that we're not scattered all over the plane, I too think I'll take my chances and just be diligent about checking in at T24.

 

[lllGurulll]

I think it is more pressing to get EBCI for the trip back rather than the trip up. If I had to choose one it would be coming back just so I don't have to worry about being available to do it at 4 in the morning.

 

[katallo]

I think it is more pressing to get EBCI for the trip back rather than the trip up. If I had to choose one it would be coming back just so I don't have to worry about being available to do it at 4 in the morning.

I agree. We booked for the return flight and had A 17. It was great!

 

[5boyz]

I think it is more pressing to get EBCI for the trip back rather than the trip up. If I had to choose one it would be coming back just so I don't have to worry about being available to do it at 4 in the morning.

I totally agree....it is a total pain having to be somewhere near a computer 24 hrs before you leave to make sure you get an A. I only care that we get 2 aisle seats. the kids will sit middle or window.