Southwest, Give me the Scoop

[DawnAK]

Can anyone give me the scoop on booking with Southwest, and trying to get the best fares?

We live in Alaska and only get to fly on Alaska Airlines (no competition equals high airfare!). However, this trip to Orlando we will be departing from Denver so we have options. So far SW is looking like the best fare. I looked yesterday and found one way fares starting at $118. Today it is up to $124. Will the fares continue to creep up, or do they get lower as the dates get closer? We are departing Denver on 1/22.

I realize no one can predict the future or what the airlines will do. But, wondering if anyone has experience with SW and what the norm is.

Thanks a bunch. Any info you can give me on this Airline would be great too. Do they have pre-boarding for those with little kids? Pre-assigned seating? TVs in the back of the seats? etc.

Thanks, Dawn

 

[helenk]

The fares have a tendency to flucuate. I book once I know my dates and I am happy with the flight times.
Southwest does not have pre assigned seats. You check in 24 hours to your flight time for your boarding pass. You are assigned either an A, B or C boarding pass with numbers from 1 to 60 for each section.
first to board are the person's travelling with health issues or disabilities. Then they board the A 1-30, and then A31-60, after which they board the families with children under 4, then they board the Bs and then the Cs.
There are no TVs on the back of the seats, no movies in flight and no music either. Southwest is a no frills airline.
But I love them, the boarding usually goes smoothly, and most times we take off early or right on time. Also they do not charge for the first two bags which can be a great savings for a family travelling on vacation.

 

[Rpsemont]

I'm planning trips from BDL (Hartford) to Orlando for Early Feb and mid March. I'm holding out for right now. I think my best shot at lower fares for early Feb will be in mid Dec, and for March in Jan. That's not to say I might not book something sooner. For out trip next week, 4 people some of us flying at different times/days I first booked 4/14 for $116, on 5/15 changed to $99, on 6/22 was able to change a couple of us to $79 but in early sept, when I could really finalize everything we all ended up at $90. What I love about SWA is that I can make all these changes and there are no penalty fees. Since we fly them frequently, I can always use up my credits. Whether to book now or later depends on whether that's a holiday weekend of any sort in Denver, whether you can adjust your flight times or flight days (flying on Tuesday- Wednesday is usually less) and how nervous you may get NOT being booked.
I've heard Frontier can be very competitive in the Denver market, but I don't know if they fly to Orlando
helenk covered most of the other stuff. When I book SWA I almost always book OW itineraries, and frequently book us each individually. Because of this, we don't always have boarding numbers in exact sequence, but in probably over 30 swa flights, we've only sat apart from each other twice, I think.
I just love their flexible rebooking options. If anything would come up that we couldn't go at the last minute, I can easily cancel and just use those funds to rebook at some date in the near future.

 

[DawnAK]

Thanks for the replies. So, let me see if I understand this...

If I book now at $124 per person, one way and the airfare goes lower...I can rebook at that rate? And, there are no change fees?

I love that there isn't a fee for our checked baggage! That is great. Alaska Airlines just changed and has started charging for even the first bag. Blah.

thanks again,
Dawn

 

[KarlaG4Kids]

Thanks for the replies. So, let me see if I understand this...

If I book now at $124 per person, one way and the airfare goes lower...I can rebook at that rate? And, there are no change fees?

I love that there isn't a fee for our checked baggage! That is great. Alaska Airlines just changed and has started charging for even the first bag. Blah.

thanks again,
Dawn

You can change your flight (or just change the rate) if your flight goes on sale. You receive CREDIT on your SWA account that can be used for a future flight. You do have to use your credit within a year of the original booking date I believe. It is wonderful that there are no change fees. It is also great that there are no baggage fees for up to 2 bags. I love SWA.

 

[Bobo912]

Since you're in Alaska and might not have an opportunity to fly SWA within a year, just wanted to point out that if you rebook at a lower rate and have ticketless travel funds left over, you don't have to use them yourself. You can give or sell them to someone else. I rebook all the time and I usually use my funds but occasionally I'm not sure I'll be able to use them before they expire and I just check with my friends and see if anybody can use them. All you need to do is give them your confirmation number. So if you have friends or family in Denver (or somewhere else that SWA flies) they can also use your ticketless travel funds.

 

[webworm]

Can anyone give me the scoop on booking with Southwest, and trying to get the best fares?

We live in Alaska and only get to fly on Alaska Airlines (no competition equals high airfare!). However, this trip to Orlando we will be departing from Denver so we have options. So far SW is looking like the best fare. I looked yesterday and found one way fares starting at $118. Today it is up to $124. Will the fares continue to creep up, or do they get lower as the dates get closer? We are departing Denver on 1/22.

I realize no one can predict the future or what the airlines will do. But, wondering if anyone has experience with SW and what the norm is.

Thanks a bunch. Any info you can give me on this Airline would be great too. Do they have pre-boarding for those with little kids? Pre-assigned seating? TVs in the back of the seats? etc.

Thanks, Dawn

You may want to fly into Tampa as well which we have done in the past. It is about 1hr 20 minute drive from Tampa to Orlando. There are nonstop flights for $114.00 with Southwest from Denver to Tampa or $249.20 return including taxes.

Depart Jan
22 Denver, CO to Tampa, FL
Friday, January 22, 2010
Travel Time 3 h 20 m
(Nonstop) #252 Depart Denver, CO (DEN)
10:15 AM
Arrive in Tampa Bay, FL (TPA) 3:35 PM

Return Jan
29 Tampa, FL to Denver, CO
Friday, January 29, 2010
Travel Time 4 h 10 m
(Nonstop) #728 Depart Tampa Bay, FL (TPA)
4:05 PM
Arrive in Denver, CO (DEN) 6:15 PM

 

[DawnAK]

Thanks again for the SW info. It is good to know that credit can be transferred. I do have a friend who travels SW frequently.

Thanks for the Tampa suggestion. We won't be renting a car, so that won't work this time around. I will keep it in mind for future travels though.

Dawn

 

[backyardponder]

I usually watch SW fares for a few days. It seems to me that there fares tend to go down a bit early in the week and rise again on weekends.