Southwest re-booking flight bc they're cheaper now...worth it?

[crazymomof4]

Our sept flights with southwest were $140 (value although we used points for the purchase) each one way. Today they r down to $116 each. There are 5 of us flying. I am very new new air travel. (My 1st flight as an adult.) I've heard that Southwest is ok with you re- booking (or whatever it's called) if the price drops... True? Also, I remember reading that if you re-book you lose you "place" in line as far as boarding the plane for seating. They say you get your spot in line, so to speak, on the day you purchase flight so we would be " behind" a lot of people who have booked since March ( when we booked ) can anyone verify this? Btw, we purchased early bird check in. Wondering if I should rebook or not.

 

[richmo]

Our sept flights with southwest were $140 (value although we used points for the purchase) each one way. Today they r down to $116 each. There are 5 of us flying. I am very new new air travel. (My 1st flight as an adult.) I've heard that Southwest is ok with you re- booking (or whatever it's called) if the price drops... True? Also, I remember reading that if you re-book you lose you "place" in line as far as boarding the plane for seating. They say you get your spot in line, so to speak, on the day you purchase flight so we would be " behind" a lot of people who have booked since March ( when we booked ) can anyone verify this? Btw, we purchased early bird check in.

Southwest is the best for re-booking. They won't give you cash for the $24 you will save on each ticket, but a credit for the $24 that will be good for one year from the date of your original booking.

I've never paid for early booking with Southwest, so I can't speak to that. Not sure if that transfers. If its just a position in line, I wouldn't worry about it since you'll be high enough on the list anyway that you'll get your pick of the plane.

 

[amomma23]

I would definitely do it and get those points back into your account! Just log into your SW account and click on "CHANGE" flight for each person. Do NOT click on "cancel". Simply choose the same flight at the lesser cost. There is a bit of mystery involved in how EBCI is determined. As long as you just change the flight and don't cancel and re-book, EBCI will travel with your reservation. I wouldn't worry about that part at all.

 

[WDWFan06]

The order in which you buy your ticket has no effect on boarding the aircraft. Your seat assignment (a letter with a #) directly corresponds with when you check in for your flight. You getting a credit for the cheaper flight is the way to go but doing that has no effect on boarding assignments.

 

[paults]

Our sept flights with southwest were $140 (value although we used points for the purchase) each one way. Today they r down to $116 each. There are 5 of us flying. I am very new new air travel. (My 1st flight as an adult.) I've heard that Southwest is ok with you re- booking (or whatever it's called) if the price drops... True? Also, I remember reading that if you re-book you lose you "place" in line as far as boarding the plane for seating. They say you get your spot in line, so to speak, on the day you purchase flight so we would be " behind" a lot of people who have booked since March ( when we booked ) can anyone verify this? Btw, we purchased early bird check in. Wondering if I should rebook or not.

if you rebook you don't lose your place in line because you never had a place in line. You need to check in at 24 hrs to get your BP and that will tell you were you are in line. Now if you do EBCI at $12.50 each you will be checked in at 36 hrs (12 hrs before the normal check-in). I think your EBCI stays the same unless you cancel first, don't cancel just change.

 

[crazymomof4]

Thanks everyone! I just finished changing all 10 (one way) flights to the cheaper price. I got a total of 4190 points returned to my sw rapid rewards account! woo hoo!
I think there is a gov't tax on the "new" purchase of $2.50 per ticket.... at least it seemed that I am going to be charged that, but still.... $25 is way less than the value of 4190 points I gained in my account- for future flights!

I think it would be a good idea for me to call and make sure my EBCI (that I purchased with the original bookings) was carried over. I'm sure it is, I just want to make sure!

 

[amomma23]

Thanks everyone! I just finished changing all 10 (one way) flights to the cheaper price. I got a total of 4190 points returned to my sw rapid rewards account! woo hoo!
I think there is a gov't tax on the "new" purchase of $2.50 per ticket.... at least it seemed that I am going to be charged that, but still.... $25 is way less than the value of 4190 points I gained in my account- for future flights!

I think it would be a good idea for me to call and make sure my EBCI (that I purchased with the original bookings) was carried over. I'm sure it is, I just want to make sure!

Nice! Just pull up the reservations again. Each one should have an "EB" on it, next to each person's name. (I think it's orange.) That means you have EBCI associated with the reservation.

 

[LisaS]

Also, I remember reading that if you re-book you lose you "place" in line as far as boarding the plane for seating. They say you get your spot in line, so to speak, on the day you purchase flight so we would be " behind" a lot of people who have booked since March ( when we booked ) can anyone verify this? Btw, we purchased early bird check in.

You are correct that with EBCI, your boarding position is assigned based on the date you purchased EBCI. There is some anecdotal evidence that if you reprice your flight, it negatively affects your EBCI boarding position. It's possible (though we don't know for sure) that your EBCI date is updated to the date you changed your flight, putting you further back in the queue. (For those who don't purchase EBCI, this does not apply since they get their boarding assignment based on when they check in for their flight.)

I think there is a gov't tax on the "new" purchase of $2.50 per ticket.... at least it seemed that I am going to be charged that, but still....

There is a security charge of $2.50 per hop. If you booked a non-stop flight then you are charged $2.50, if you have a connecting flight with one stop then it's $5.00, etc. You would have paid this when you originally booked your flight. When you change your flight, it should carry over to the new flight. You are not normally charged that fee a second time though you would owe more if you had originally booked a non-stop and then changed to a connecting flight but you did not do that.

Look over your confirmation information for your changed flight. You will probably see that you had a $2.50 credit (from your original flight) that was then applied to your "new" flight.

 

[Disneycouple99]

Thanks everyone! I just finished changing all 10 (one way) flights to the cheaper price. I got a total of 4190 points returned to my sw rapid rewards account! woo hoo!
I think there is a gov't tax on the "new" purchase of $2.50 per ticket.... at least it seemed that I am going to be charged that, but still.... $25 is way less than the value of 4190 points I gained in my account- for future flights!

I think it would be a good idea for me to call and make sure my EBCI (that I purchased with the original bookings) was carried over. I'm sure it is, I just want to make sure!

You have paid for this when you first book, so you will not be recharged for it.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Our sept flights with southwest were $140 (value although we used points for the purchase) each one way. Today they r down to $116 each. There are 5 of us flying. I am very new new air travel. (My 1st flight as an adult.) I've heard that Southwest is ok with you re- booking (or whatever it's called) if the price drops... True? Also, I remember reading that if you re-book you lose you "place" in line as far as boarding the plane for seating. They say you get your spot in line, so to speak, on the day you purchase flight so we would be " behind" a lot of people who have booked since March ( when we booked ) can anyone verify this? Btw, we purchased early bird check in. Wondering if I should rebook or not.

I've posted our 1 experience with purchasing EBCI then getting a credit when the price dropped...I think it was over a year ago...

.we were traveling with another couple.....I purchased hubby and my tickets with EBCI and let our friends know,the flights pricing etc and she bought theirs at the same want to get away price

When there was a price drop I rebooked our flights to get the credits.....since our friends wouldn't be able to use a credit they didn't rebook. When we got our boarding passes they were I think A17 &18 and we were A35&36 .....not a problem getting seats.....but it did make me wonder if all the times in the past when we've just been traveling alone and got credits if the same thing happened with EBCI .....I only buy it for our return flight out of MCO and I now only rebook if it's a significant savings and I can definitely use the credits

 

[zoo2tycoon]

We just returned from Arizona and I rebooked our tickets twice at lower prices. I purchased originally in March at which time I did EBCI for 4 of us on 2 reservations. Latest fare drop was mid-May for a trip in June. Going we got A25-28 (or close to those). Return we were all in the low A30's. We had no issues and furthest back we got was Row 9 with all of us taking aisle seats.

 

[bumbershoot]

Only do it if you will be able to use the credit. Since it's good for a year from when you originally booked the ticket, that's not always a usable credit.

 

[crazymomof4]

Nice! Just pull up the reservations again. Each one should have an "EB" on it, next to each person's name. (I think it's orange.) That means you have EBCI associated with the reservation.

Good info! Thanks! Will check!

 

[crazymomof4]

You have paid for this when you first book, so you will not be recharged for it.

Oh. Ok. That's cool!

 

[Oodalally13]

Glad I found this thread! Mom and I are looking to book a universal trip during Christmas time. When we booked our summer disney trip that didn't have airfare, we went through AAA and they had travel insurance. Even if we would have went straight through disney they had optional travel insurance (we were worried about hurricanes). Now with AAA they don't book flights with southwest. Universal has a 24 hour cancel for any reason policy. That's 24 hrs before hotel check in NOT 24 hours after purchase. If I book through southwest, what are my options if so etching happens and we can't go? Refunds? Or just "sucks to be you and out of $2000 at Christmas!"

 

[richmo]

If you purchase a 'Business Select' or 'Anytime' fare with Southwest, you can get your money back. Of course, those are quite a bit more expensive than the 'Wanna get away' fares that most people buy.

Even with the cheaper fares, you can reschedule your trip at the last minute for a later time. Generally, once Southwest has your money, you won't get it back. Its still a much better policy than most airlines.

 

[LisaS]

I've posted our 1 experience with purchasing EBCI then getting a credit when the price dropped...I think it was over a year ago...

.we were traveling with another couple.....I purchased hubby and my tickets with EBCI and let our friends know,the flights pricing etc and she bought theirs at the same want to get away price

When there was a price drop I rebooked our flights to get the credits.....since our friends wouldn't be able to use a credit they didn't rebook. When we got our boarding passes they were I think A17 &18 and we were A35&36 .....not a problem getting seats.....but it did make me wonder if all the times in the past when we've just been traveling alone and got credits if the same thing happened with EBCI .....I only buy it for our return flight out of MCO and I now only rebook if it's a significant savings and I can definitely use the credits

And just to confirm, the other couple purchased EBCI as well, correct?

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

... If I book through southwest, what are my options if so etching happens and we can't go? Refunds? Or just "sucks to be you and out of $2000 at Christmas!"

Unless you book a fully refundable fare, you won't get a refund. You will get a flight credit which must be used within a year of the original booking.

 

[Gracie09]

Glad I found this thread! Mom and I are looking to book a universal trip during Christmas time. When we booked our summer disney trip that didn't have airfare, we went through AAA and they had travel insurance. Even if we would have went straight through disney they had optional travel insurance (we were worried about hurricanes). Now with AAA they don't book flights with southwest. Universal has a 24 hour cancel for any reason policy. That's 24 hrs before hotel check in NOT 24 hours after purchase. If I book through southwest, what are my options if so etching happens and we can't go? Refunds? Or just "sucks to be you and out of $2000 at Christmas!"

First a lot depends on why you would have to cancel. You cancel the whole trip. You get a sw credit. Weather issue. Generally hotels work with you and airline try to get you out when they can.
If you are concerned about it, check out trip insurance. I have used ***************** in the past to compare and purchase insurance.

 

[Oodalally13]

I talked to universal and they told me cancel for any reason within 24 hours of check in time and everything is fully refunded. If I were to book airfare through them, it would be jncluded too. Unfortunately the times on the flight that won't work with my schedule.