Southwest is now a Partcipating Airline....Rumor

[dburg30]

I'm here, I'm here. Tell you all what....I'll check at the RAC counter tomorrow morning. What a great moderator I am to do these things for you all. To the best of my knowledge, SW is still in pilot phase at the values...haven't heard or seen anything down here to contradict that.

BTW.....Yes, I'm old...but I'm doing a fair to middling job of keeping up with the youngsers down here. And I'm checking in on you all daily...loving that free internet for DVC, but not at POP, so I couldn't check as often as I would like.

Aww, thanks for taking one for the team
Hope you are having fun..

 

[DebbieB]

I'm on my flight home now (love in flight wi fi!), we used RAC with Delta this morning. It was so nice to return the rental car and not be lugging baggage to the terminal. Just went straight to the gate.

 

[Flossbolna]

I think that I am just frustrated because yet again this site has become a place where factual information is being overshadowed by misinformation. The people who have the real facts (ie the airport employees, the airline employees, the TSA agents, etc etc) are not being heard, because often their responses are unpopular. Many of them gave up long ago, even though there were excellent resources.

Instead, many readers want validation, not information, and again are getting upset when the factual information is not what they wanted to hear.

I know several posters who this week have decided yet again to give up on this website because posting facts results in getting beaten up by those who don't want to hear it, or who prefer to listen to misinformation from well-intentioned but ill-informed posters. I don't know why people would prefer to be ignorant over informed, but somehow posting facts became a bad thing here.

Again, I believe that OP had the best of intentions, but I rarely post facts without linking to supporting documentation for exactly this reason. Some of the people who read the first few posts may not be back to read updates or corrections.

This is one thing I love about the transportation board: I can be pretty certain that I get valid information here!

But I think the responsibility goes both ways: everyone using a discussion board as source of information needs to be aware that anyone can answer questions wether they have knowledge or are making up things. It's the same issue with people using Wikipedia as a reliable source of information. That way the then new German minister of finance ended up with additional middle names in nearly all of the German media because someone had fun adding those in Wikipedia...

 

[nemofans]

Oh, when I saw this thread I got so excited. We are flying SWA next month & am so hoping SWA would be participating by then.

 

[bavaria]

This is one thing I love about the transportation board: I can be pretty certain that I get valid information here!

But I think the responsibility goes both ways: everyone using a discussion board as source of information needs to be aware that anyone can answer questions wether they have knowledge or are making up things. It's the same issue with people using Wikipedia as a reliable source of information. That way the then new German minister of finance ended up with additional middle names in nearly all of the German media because someone had fun adding those in Wikipedia...

Oh, we make things up all the time don't you know, just to keep it interesting here!

Oddly enough, the Germans seem to be willing to do some audits and checks on information for accuracy (well, at least the Transportation Board Germans and honourary Germans from America like NHDisneylover) Yet some of the other dirty foreigners (meant as course as a term of endearment as we use it here) seem to get very upset when their glaring errors and misinformation is pointed out to them. I suppose that some people just prefer to be kept in the dark?

I don't understand that rationale at all. None of us is perfect; we all make mistakes, but misleading people isn't very nice even if done with good intentions.


Oh, and hello Mom! Nice to see you! I suppose that means that you were reading daily but found no need at all to step in and control the kids - perhaps the kids are growing up and don't need Mom quite so often? That is a sign that you raised us well.

 

[Kanga1]

I'm agreeing with the OP. Here it is copy and pasted from "Passporter News", the official Passporter Newsletter. This article was NOT in a forum, but on their main page of "What's New."

What's New and Changed

Here are a few items of relevant news:

Southwest Airlines Now Part of Resort Airline Check-In. Southwest Airlines is now part of the Resort Airline Check-In program. Guests flying Southwest can now check their luggage at their resort on their last day then make their way to the Orlando Airport and head directly to their gate. This updates page 300 of PassPorter's guidebook

 

[Lewisc]

Our moderator promoised the real information, directly from the RAC desk at her resort, later today.

The Passporter News gets their information from members. The information might be accurate, but it might not be either.

SW announced, on their blog, the exapnsion of the pilot prorgram to the Value resorts weeks before they were included. There is no announcement on their blog. The SW employee that was posting updated information on DIS and FT hasn't provided any updated information.

I would have thought other sites would also have the information, if true.

 

[goofy4tink]

Oh, we make things up all the time don't you know, just to keep it interesting here!

Oddly enough, the Germans seem to be willing to do some audits and checks on information for accuracy (well, at least the Transportation Board Germans and honourary Germans from America like NHDisneylover) Yet some of the other dirty foreigners (meant as course as a term of endearment as we use it here) seem to get very upset when their glaring errors and misinformation is pointed out to them. I suppose that some people just prefer to be kept in the dark?

I don't understand that rationale at all. None of us is perfect; we all make mistakes, but misleading people isn't very nice even if done with good intentions.


Oh, and hello Mom! Nice to see you! I suppose that means that you were reading daily but found no need at all to step in and control the kids - perhaps the kids are growing up and don't need Mom quite so often? That is a sign that you raised us well.

Yep..you all have been pretty well behaved...Mom is proud of you.

Our moderator promoised the real information, directly from the RAC desk at her resort, later today.

The Passporter News gets their information from members. The information might be accurate, but it might not be either.

SW announced, on their blog, the exapnsion of the pilot prorgram to the Value resorts weeks before they were included. There is no announcement on their blog. The SW employee that was posting updated information on DIS and FT hasn't provided any updated information.

I would have thought other sites would also have the information, if true.

Oops. Sorry, didn't get to the RAC counter this morning...had to leave BW early and I forgot. I promise I'll ask when I checkout tomorrow morning and post from MCO.

 

[dburg30]

Oops. Sorry, didn't get to the RAC counter this morning...had to leave BW early and I forgot. I promise I'll ask when I checkout tomorrow morning and post from MCO.

You forgot?!?! Had something "more important" going on I suppose...


Well, ok, I guess that's alright..

 

[goofy4tink]

Okay boys and girls....official word from BW RAC, as of 6:05am, today (12/13) is 'no, SW is not participating at all resorts..only at the values. yes, they will eventually be at all resorts but not now'..right from the horse's mouth, so to speak.
THere you all go. Now off to amuse myself whilst waiting to board for my flight home...two weeks at WDW is too long!!!

 

[Lewisc]

I knew we could count on you.

I know the OP thought he was being helpful but by you didn't have to read very far down in the thread on passporter before it was obvious the "information" was faulty.

Okay boys and girls....official word from BW RAC, as of 6:05am, today (12/13) is 'no, SW is not participating at all resorts..only at the values. yes, they will eventually be at all resorts but not now'..right from the horse's mouth, so to speak.
THere you all go. Now off to amuse myself whilst waiting to board for my flight home...two weeks at WDW is too long!!!

 

[CarolMN]

Well, RATS! I got all excited when I saw the title. Should have known it was too good to be true. We're giving SWA a try next April and I am hoping they will expand to all the resorts soon.

Perhaps the OP will come back and edit the title to say the Rumor isn't true YET, LOL.

 

[BCV23]

We flew home on the 11th. The lobby concierge printed boarding passes for my son and I but my DH used RAC for his flight (and all our luggage ). He asked about SW expansion to other resorts as his mother and sisters will be using ME in January. The employee he spoke with thought that SW would be participating at all resorts by Jan 1. So there's another rumor.

Of course, two years ago a RAC employee told me that SW would be a participating airline by the end of that year.

We can only hope.

Diane, I hope you had smooth travels home.

 

[goofy4tink]

We flew home on the 11th. The lobby concierge printed boarding passes for my son and I but my DH used RAC for his flight (and all our luggage ). He asked about SW expansion to other resorts as his mother and sisters will be using ME in January. The employee he spoke with thought that SW would be participating at all resorts by Jan 1. So there's another rumor.

Of course, two years ago a RAC employee told me that SW would be a participating airline by the end of that year.

We can only hope.

Diane, I hope you had smooth travels home.

Yes, things went reasonably well....a bit bumpy in places with a longish wait at JFK but I'm happily at home.

Remember....there is a lot of rumor out there. I put much more stock in what the RAC CMs at BW said....'SW will eventually be part of the RAC system at all resorts' rather than those reports of any 'date'....way too much room for error there. We all remember hearing that SW would be 100% participating by the end of the year. How's that working for us??

 

[kaytieeldr]

Well, which year? I used to work with a woman who was engaged and, when asked when they were getting married, always said, "Next year".

They were actually engaged for SIXTEEN years before they got married (no, I don't know why)

 

[dudspizza]

Well, which year? I used to work with a woman who was engaged and, when asked when they were getting married, always said, "Next year". )

It is kind of like the sign I have by the bar in my basement.... "Free beer tomorrow"......

 

[dburg30]

Or in my days of online game playing, the big thing was
"This feature will be coming 'soon' " that word can cover a LOT of time

 

[pooch]

Yes, things went reasonably well....a bit bumpy in places with a longish wait at JFK but I'm happily at home.

Remember....there is a lot of rumor out there. I put much more stock in what the RAC CMs at BW said....'SW will eventually be part of the RAC system at all resorts' rather than those reports of any 'date'....way too much room for error there. We all remember hearing that SW would be 100% participating by the end of the year. How's that working for us??

But, Diane, can I ask why you go through JFK? I see you live in Central Mass & I'm in North Central CT. Do you fly out of BDL? Do you have a great flight secret to share with me? DD and I always fly SWA non-stop although we used Delta down last year because of a great fare ($69) and an upgrade to First Class.

 

[cranbiz]

I've got to wonder too. The nonstops out of Logan are usually very convenient and usually cost less than the flights with the stopover at JFK.

Did you get a better price on a BOS-JFK-MCO leg or was it the only one left?

Or did you go out of BDL?

Just Curious, you don't have to answer. I'm not your father

 

[BCV23]

It is kind of like the sign I have by the bar in my basement.... "Free beer tomorrow"......

Exactly. When we're told "it will eventually happen" or "it might happen by the end of the year," both are suppositions on the part of the CMs.

SW has had 5 years to become a participating airline. Whatever the reasons for their reluctance to join, it is obviously not a slamdunk for them.

Still hoping here though. We would certainly fly SW more often if they became a PA.