Southwest Questions

[kbmartin]

I was so excited to see the December flight schedules last week so that I could nail down the exact dates of our trip and request off of work. However, the absence request approval has taken longer than I thought it would, and now the prices have gone up significantly (already!) and the morning flight I wanted is sold out(?!?!).

Two questions:

1. Wanna Get Away fares: It says the flight I want in December is already SOLD OUT. Could that really be true, or will more seats open up as time passes? I swear this happened to me once, but I am not 100% certain.

2. If I pick one-way flights instead of round-trip, does that change how gift cards work? I know you can only use three gift cards at a time. Can I use three gift cards for a one-way flight to MCO, and another three gift cards for a one-way flight home?

Thanks!

 

[alliecat523]

More fares will open up.

I am not sure on the gift cards but it would make sense that if you split the purchase you could use 3 for each leg.

 

[dancin Disney style]

Yes on the gift cards.

I would think that more seats will open up at the WGA fare but can't say for sure. Next time just book the seats you want as soon as you see them. If you had booked and then didn't get your vacation approval you could have changed the flight you booked without penalty.

 

[Shrfleen]

I am going to jump in here. I was searching last night for tickets for our return flight. We plan to fly back with the rest of our family. We were searching for 1 person because each of us were paying for our flights and it said only 1 or 2 left at this price for Wanna Get Away Fares. Panic mode set in, we need to be on the same flight.

I searched for 3 people at a time and it said only 4 seats left at this price. Then I searched 6 people at a time and it said nothing about a limited number of seats left. What gives? Why does it say seats are available when I search all our flights at once but not separate?

 

[Maggie'sMom]

I am going to jump in here. I was searching last night for tickets for our return flight. We plan to fly back with the rest of our family. We were searching for 1 person because each of us were paying for our flights and it said only 1 or 2 left at this price for Wanna Get Away Fares. Panic mode set in, we need to be on the same flight.

I searched for 3 people at a time and it said only 4 seats left at this price. Then I searched 6 people at a time and it said nothing about a limited number of seats left. What gives? Why does it say seats are available when I search all our flights at once but not separate?

When you searched for 6, was the fare per seat the same as the fare you got when you searched for 1? The WGA fares rise as more seats are booked and if you book multiple seats in the same transaction, you can end up paying more for the seats than if you booked them separately. Example: I'm booking for my DD and me. When I search for 1 person, the WGA fare is $140 for a particular leg. If I put in two people, it will show the price as $160 per seat. But I can go back and book 1 seat at $140 and book the second seat at $160, saving $20 by doing it separate.

I don't remember SW's website saying "x # of seats left" (very likely I just missed it), but it could be they are telling you how many seats are left at that particular price. Just speculation here since I don't know the exact fares you were getting with each search.

 

[Shrfleen]

When you searched for 6, was the fare per seat the same as the fare you got when you searched for 1? The WGA fares rise as more seats are booked and if you book multiple seats in the same transaction, you can end up paying more for the seats than if you booked them separately. Example: I'm booking for my DD and me. When I search for 1 person, the WGA fare is $140 for a particular leg. If I put in two people, it will show the price as $160 per seat. But I can go back and book 1 seat at $140 and book the second seat at $160, saving $20 by doing it separate.

I don't remember SW's website saying "x # of seats left" (very likely I just missed it), but it could be they are telling you how many seats are left at that particular price. Just speculation here since I don't know the exact fares you were getting with each search.

They were about $20 more for the fares with 6. The only 1 or 2 left at this price really made me question if we would all get on the same flight.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

They were about $20 more for the fares with 6. The only 1 or 2 left at this price really made me question if we would all get on the same flight.

Even once the WGA fares completely sell out, there can still be seats left in the higher fare classes.

 

[focusondisney]

I was so excited to see the December flight schedules last week so that I could nail down the exact dates of our trip and request off of work. However, the absence request approval has taken longer than I thought it would, and now the prices have gone up significantly (already!) and the morning flight I wanted is sold out(?!?!).

Two questions:

1. Wanna Get Away fares: It says the flight I want in December is already SOLD OUT. Could that really be true, or will more seats open up as time passes? I swear this happened to me once, but I am not 100% certain.

2. If I pick one-way flights instead of round-trip, does that change how gift cards work? I know you can only use three gift cards at a time. Can I use three gift cards for a one-way flight to MCO, and another three gift cards for a one-way flight home?

Thanks!

We flew SW to Orlando in early May. When the flights were released, I did not like the price so I waited to buy. The prices rose from $160 - $292, back & forth a few times over a few days. Then the WGA fares showed sold out for our preferred flight. I panicked & bought a different flight at $292 in late Feb. I have never seen WGA flights sold out so early for just a random week. After a few other posters also said their WGA fares were sold out, I got curious. I checked many other cities (at least 10 others) for several weekends in April & May. Every city I checked showed sold out WGA fares for most of their flights. There were WGA fares available, but only 1 or 2 per city while most were sold out. Very, very strange for flights 2 months away.

I kept checking and about 2 weeks later, all of a sudden the WGA fares showed up again. In the middle of the day on a Wednesday. I knew to keep checking, so one day I checked around 9 am & noon, nothing. Around 3pm, on a whim, I checked again. There were the WGA fares! For my preferred flight at 1/3 the price I had paid! And a few days later, that same flight went down to $79! So I booked in a panic at 292 & eventually rebooked at $79. I now have over $200 in credits to use on our December trip. The WGA fares opened up for all those other cities at the same time.

I could not book when flights opened last week. By the time I could, the price is 220 one way & 300 the other. Nope. I am waiting because I have paid 79 each way for our last 2 trips. I am confident the price will eventually come back down. I just need to keep watching. Something has changed with the way SW is pricing now. They are showing higher fares very quickly after release & then you have to play the watch & wait game to get the fares we expect from SW. Not happy with it.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

If the price is ridiculously high you might as well wait. Really nothing to lose by waiting. You'll bee able to get something at ridiculously high 2-3 weeks out on some airline.

It's those medium prices that are scary. Book it in case it just goes up to high or wait to see if they get cheap.