Southwest ? from Philadelphia

[motofox4]

I've never flown on SW before and had a question. I know they don't pre-assign seats and from the website it says you get a boarding pass grouped by A, B or C. Is it better to check-in as early as possible in order to get a "Group A" boarding pass for better seats and to be able to sit together (there are just 2 of us)?? Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[labst60]

You can check-in online 24 hours before your flight - it's best to get the A pass, you'll be able to sit together for sure - but you still need to be IN LINE before the B's and C's start boarding.

If you are flying with small children, we've always been able to preboard (in both Philly & MCO), though I have heard reports that they sometimes didn't allow families to preboard in MCO. But, like I said, in our 4 RTs w/ DD in the past 2 years, we have always been able to preboard without a problem (I'm not sure of the age cut-off as DD was 0 and 1 at the time and clearly a "child"!)

 

[motofox4]

ok, so if we check in on-line ahead of time, what do we do to get our boarding pass?? I'm sorry if this sounds stupid, i've just never done this before!!

 

[zurgswife]

When you checkin it will show your boarding pass and if you have a printer available. Hit print. If you do not once you see the boarding pass you are checked in and can get a boarding pas from the checkin area at the airport. Either skycap or regular. We usually op for skycap at Philly as the line is usually shorter.

 

[labst60]

Yes, to confirm what the pp said, if you PRINT your boarding pass (up to 24 hours in advance) from the southwest website and then use the drive-up skycaps to check your luggage (present the photo id and boarding pass for each member of your party checking luggage) you can then proceed directly to security (with your boarding passes, photo id and carry-ons). You need to have a least one person in the car (no unattended vehicles), but one can be with the skycap while the other stays with the car (doesn't need to be behind the wheel the whole time.) Then you can jump back in the car, park, and head right to security --- if you have a lot of stuff, it is MUCH easier than lugging it all up to the check-in desk. Hope this helps!

 

[Mkrop]

Ok but how did you preregister the children? They dont have IDs just birth certificates. I read online that you need to mail them copies two weeks before in order to get your boarding passes online, if not then you have to go to the desk and present the birth certificates there?????

I am so confused as well

BTW travelling with me, DH, DS9, DS4

 

[labst60]

Ok but how did you preregister the children? They dont have IDs just birth certificates. I read online that you need to mail them copies two weeks before in order to get your boarding passes online, if not then you have to go to the desk and present the birth certificates there?????

I am so confused as well

BTW travelling with me, DH, DS9, DS4

I have never done anything different for DD- except didn't present an ID for her, and we have always checked her in online and printed off her boarding pass 24 hours in advance. I think maybe I BROUGHT a copy of her birth certificate the first time, but I don't think I even did after that because no one looked at it. I would just say "She's Sarah" and they nodded. Maybe it was because she has always been under 2 so far?

 

[Mkrop]

well that is what my neighbor said too except when DH called SW said to bring the birth certs, so I hate to get down there and then have issues. We have not flown with kids since 9/11

 

[DoleWhipMom]

We flew last year with the kids (after the no liquid rule) and they didn't ask for any id for any of our kids. If you have very young kids you get to board first at SW. Maybe if you have a child 2 and under you have to prove it with a birth certificate if they are sitting on your lap.

From the SouthWest site:
Requirements for Online Checkin
To proceed through Security Checkpoint, you will need a government-issued photo ID and either a Boarding Pass or Security Document. Customers under 18 years of age are not required to show government-issued photo ID.

However, if you have a special fare it says you must be age verified if traveling on Senior, Youth or Child, or Infant* fares. (I've never used any of these fares) It also says: Children under 2 who are riding as lapchildren must still present a valid birth certificate and checkin with a Customer Service Agent at the airport.

 

[motofox4]

we are using a parking facility off-site from the airport so we will be using their taxi shuttle to get from the parking lot to the airport. where is the sky cap and is there where you're supposed to check-in your luggage or do you go inside to check it in?? When we used to fly US Air, there were luggage checkers outside, but you had to pay for them - if you went inside, it was free. How does it work with Southwest?

 

[zurgswife]

we are using a parking facility off-site from the airport so we will be using their taxi shuttle to get from the parking lot to the airport. where is the sky cap and is there where you're supposed to check-in your luggage or do you go inside to check it in?? When we used to fly US Air, there were luggage checkers outside, but you had to pay for them - if you went inside, it was free. How does it work with Southwest?

The skycaps you tip like any other airline. Though I have found it is usually shorter at the skycap line so I just toss them a few dollars and I'm on my way.

 

[mickey2000]

I flew Southwest out of Philly in October. I didn't like waiting in lines like cattle an hour before boarding. I would rather have a seat assignment and wait in a chair for my row to board. I also don't think its safe on how you can sit where you want. How secure is that. I just don't understand with all the security.
Example: Pilot gets radio message that John Doe aboard is going to cause a problem on the flight and he is on the plane. Well with this type of seating how do you find him ?????? IMO its a joke, security wise, and I have no idea how they can get away with it. They need to know where people are seated for many reasons including medical and accidents.
On my flight they also let you board with liquid cans and bottles showing in your hands!
I WON"T fly Southwest again...........

 

[Olaf]

Southwest has been boarding like this for years. It greatly cuts down on the time it takes to load a plane, which decreases costs. They get more planes in and out of their gates. Which enables them to charge less. I like having a reserved seat as well, but I'm not willing to pay more for it. It's telling that Southwest is one of the few profitable airlines.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I flew Southwest out of Philly in October. I didn't like waiting in lines like cattle an hour before boarding. I would rather have a seat assignment and wait in a chair for my row to board. I also don't think its safe on how you can sit where you want. How secure is that. I just don't understand with all the security.
Example: Pilot gets radio message that John Doe aboard is going to cause a problem on the flight and he is on the plane. Well with this type of seating how do you find him ?????? IMO its a joke, security wise, and I have no idea how they can get away with it. They need to know where people are seated for many reasons including medical and accidents.
On my flight they also let you board with liquid cans and bottles showing in your hands!
I WON"T fly Southwest again...........

They are not breaking TSA rules. You are allowed to carry drinks onto the plane but only if they're bought after passing thru security. You can't carry drinks through security from outside the airport. As for assigned seats making you feel secure, people trade seats often even with assigned seats. We've done it plenty of times, esp. when "assigned" seats separated us on our honeymoon to Ireland! Seat assingment is not a guarantee of identity. If security onboard was questioned, the whole plane would probably have to evacuate anyway.

 

[pamjb]

where is the sky cap and is there where you're supposed to check-in your luggage or do you go inside to check it in?? When we used to fly US Air, there were luggage checkers outside, but you had to pay for them - if you went inside, it was free. How does it work with Southwest?

The skycaps are right outside the terminal entrance for Southwest. At PHL, it is either D or E. The skycaps are right outside the door. I have no wait and a wait of 20 minutes at the curbside (skycap) check in. With the 20 minute wait, the line was MUCH longer inside. For the tip ($1 a bag) it is much easier to do the skycaps. The same goes for at MCO. The check in procedure at MCO is a bit of a pain inside the airport, especially if it is busy.

 

[pamjb]

I flew Southwest out of Philly in October. I didn't like waiting in lines like cattle an hour before boarding. I WON"T fly Southwest again...........

It is your option to stand in line "like cattle". The first time I flew SW (before the Disboards)I asked the gate attendant why everyone was standing in line. He told me it is the "mob mentality". Everyone else is standing in line, I better too. I didn't stand in line. I did have an A boarding pass and I was traveling with my family. We sat in the chairs and when the "A" line started dwindling onto the plane, we then got in line. AND we all got to sit together. No problems, no waiting in line.
It was a full flight with 30+ preboards. The entire boarding process from the beginning of the preboards to pulling away from the gate took 20 minutes.
I Happily Fly Southwest

 

[kimpossible]

Is there a place down at Disney that you can check-in and print a boarding pass 24 hours in advance. Can they do that at your hotel or at the parks anywhere?

 

[pamjb]

Kimpossible,


The concierge desks as the resorts have been able to check me in. You don't actually need the boarding pass, as you can reprint that at the airport.
If you have a web-enable cell phone, you can also check in on there.

In the past, I have also offered to check Dis members in, as someone was kind enough to do that for me before I had a web-enabled phone.