Southwest discounted points

[firegurl]

I'm stuck. SW has a 30% off deal for point purchases over 5,000. I have done the math and it would save us about $100. Not too bad, although I would always like more. There are 3 of us on the trip, DS and I have some, but not many points. DH has none. I would need to buy about 40,000 points. Airfare has not yet been released for my trip but I am estimating flight prices based on what I have observed as far as release date prices and the fact that we are somewhat flexible on our travel time of day. I have never booked with points so I am trying to figure out the advantages or disadvantages (other than having money tied up with SW). Am I correct in that a purchase has to be points or other but no combination? I am slightly concerned about not having enough points but at the same time, I don't want to overbuy as we only fly every 2 or 3 years. Any insight would be appreciated. Is there a better way to do save money with SW? Discounted cards at Target wouldn't save me close to the same amount.

 

[supersnoop]

I have done the math and it would save us about $100.

Do that math again. With the discount, Southwest charges 1.7 cents per point. Those points are worth about 1.5 cents towards flights. You don't come out ahead buying points.

 

[firegurl]

Do that math again. With the discount, Southwest charges 1.7 cents per point. Those points are worth about 1.5 cents towards flights. You don't come out ahead buying points.

I think the math is correct. I'm coming out ahead because I would only need to buy 12,000 each for DS and myself but 16,000 for DH. Really, the math comes out the same if I just pay to transfer DS's points to myself and buy 1 way for myself with those points. It seems easier to so it that way. Is there any advantage to just using Points?

 

[supersnoop]

I think the math is correct. I'm coming out ahead because I would only need to buy 12,000 each for DS and myself but 16,000 for DH. Really, the math comes out the same if I just pay to transfer DS's points to myself and buy 1 way for myself with those points. It seems easier to so it that way. Is there any advantage to just using Points?

With your math, are you assigning any value to your current points?

Remember that you can book one flight one way with points and pay cash for the others. Those points do have some value and can be used for at least part of your trip.

 

[kristenrice]

With your math, are you assigning any value to your current points?

Remember that you can book one flight one way with points and pay cash for the others. Those points do have some value and can be used for at least part of your trip.

If I am reading the OP's post correctly, she has only 4K each for her and her son. Since she needs to buy 16K for her DH, who has no points at all, I am assuming that the round-trip fare is 16K. Assuming they only have 4K each, there is probably not enough points available to book even a one-way ticket.

@firegurl, in your situation, booking with points may not be the cheapest option, but it would give you "insurance". When you book with points, the fare is essentially refundable. If you have to cancel your trip, the points simply go back into your account. If you book with cash, you can get a credit, but it has to be used within one year of when you booked your original ticket. Since you say you only fly every 2-3 years, you would likely lose the credit. Same thing happens if the fare price drops. With points, you simply change your flight (to the same one) and the difference in points goes back into your account. Another thing to keep in mind is that you can use points in YOUR account to book tickets for ANYONE. You do not need to buy points to put into DH account or DS account. If you buy one lump sum into your account, you can book all three tickets with your points. This is also a benefit to booking with points instead of cash because, in the case of a price reduction or cancellation, the cash credit would be available only to the person listed on the ticket.