Southwest Same Day Guaranteed Standby?

[StrwLady]

I was wondering if Southwest offers same day guaranteed standby?

For instance when flying AA you can call 12 hours before your flight and pay a fee for same day guaranteed standby on a different flight. (well they did not sure if they still offer this. I was wondering if Southwest does.

We have a 6:30pm flight that gets in at 11:30pm. I would love to get in earlier if possible. I keep checking the flights to see if the earlier flights go down but so far they are staying around $250 to $300 one way. No way am I paying that much more (booked $121 one way)

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Not without paying a the fare increase.

 

[kaytieeldr]

So it sounds like you want the perks of the higher fares classes, without paying the higher fares? I found this information at southwest.com:

Same-day Changes
On your original date of travel you are free to fly standby or make confirmed changes (if seats are available) for another flight to your destination at no additional cost.
Business Select - included
Anytime - included
Wanna Get Away - applicable fare difference applies

"At no additional cost" means there's no administrative charge, but then that's always been Southwest's policy. It just looks like they're not willing to give the lowest-fare passenger the same perk as those paying the higher fares. Yes, you can absolutely fly standby - but not at your current extremely low fare.

Otherwise, what would stop people from booking ultra-low fares at undesirable times, then showing up hours earlier to get on prime-time flights?

 

[Lewisc]

PP gave you the policy, and the reason for the policy. Southwest is much better then legacy airlines if you want to change your flights weeks in advance. Legacy airlines often have a better policy if you want to change your flight the day of flight.

Exceptions to Southwest policy.

1. Impending "really bad" weather. Major storm. The website will be the first place you'll see notice.
2. The flight you're scheduled to take is already scheduled to be late. That only works if you're already at the airport and the plane you're scheduled to take is delayed incoming. Maybe the plane hasn't even taken off. That might get you on a flight an hour early. Only time it might be a great benefit is if you booked a connecting flight and can use this policy to change to a N//S flight.
3. Occasionally you're taking a connecting flight. Your flight lands early enough so you can take an earlier flight out of your connecting airport. Official policy is to charge you the fare difference but occasionally a GA will waive it. Only works if you have carryon only bags or are flying to MCO and are using DME.

AA charges $75 if you make the request within 12 hours of your departure.

Sounds like you could have made the change for $129. Decide how much, if anything, you're willing to pay. I'd be surprised if you're able to get a fare of $121. Anything around $200 and you're only paying around $75.

 

[StrwLady]

So it sounds like you want the perks of the higher fares classes, without paying the higher fares? I found this information

Kaytieeldr,

Your reply comes across as very combative. I may be reading you wrong (a downfall to this type of medium), and if I am my apologies, but it sure sounds like you are accusing me of trying to get something for nothing. This is not the case.

I picked a later flight because of the cost. I will take that flight unless I see the earlier flight fares come down to what I can/willing to pay.

Since AA has a policy that offers guaranteed stand by on same day travel for a charged fee. I wondered if Southwest did too. This is not trying to avoid higher fares it would be taking advantage of a policy they may or may not offer. And as the first poster so nicely replied they do not. So I will continue to watch fares and hope that the earlier flights come down.

Thank you for the information regarding Southwest's policy.

Take Care

 

[StrwLady]

Sounds like you could have made the change for $129. Decide how much, if anything, you're willing to pay. I'd be surprised if you're able to get a fare of $121. Anything around $200 and you're only paying around $75.

Lewisc when I originally booked the earlier flights were not available for the lower fare. I agree that I probably won't see anything in the $120's but I am hoping for lower than what they are now. And yes a $200 would be reasonable. Thankfully Southwest has such a great change policy. It has already worked in my favor as the day after I booked I added a day to my trip and I'm still crunching numbers to try to add another day

Thanks for your reply

 

[StrwLady]

Not without paying a the fare increase.

Shelly F.. Thanks for the reply. I didn't think Southwest did similar as AA but I figured I would check with the transportation experts

Take Care

 

[Lewisc]

Kaytieeldr,

Your reply comes across as very combative. I may be reading you wrong (a downfall to this type of medium), and if I am my apologies, but it sure sounds like you are accusing me of trying to get something for nothing. This is not the case.

I picked a later flight because of the cost. I will take that flight unless I see the earlier flight fares come down to what I can/willing to pay.

You're either reading the post wrong or you're overly sensitive. I would have posted a similar reply if the poster hadn't already posted.

You could have gotten the information from Southwest's website. Kay is giving you the reason. Almost the exact wording used by SW employees when they offer the reason for their policy. I figure a person posting wants more then just the dry facts

Southwest tries to charge more on the peak, more desired flights. Allowing passengers to book the fares they want but standby for the flights they want would impact their ability to price flights that way. You'd have passengers waiting at the gate hoping to standby for the flight they want.

You have to decide how much extra you're willing to pay for the flight times you really want. Fare drops enough book it.

 

[StrwLady]

Lewisc

I was speaking about this statement from Kaytieeldr..."So it sounds like you want the perks of the higher fares classes, without paying the higher fares?"

That is what I consider combative. Now as I said, in this medium things do not always come across in the manner they were meant. That is the reason why I stated that if I was reading it wrong I apologized.

And yes you are correct I could have found the information on the web myself. Much of what is asked on the dis can be found on the web. But instead I decided to ask a question of the masses.

I have no desire to start anything. Actually I pride myself in staying out of drama and often tend to ignore responses that come across in a negative way. I guess I should have done the same with this one.

Back to the issue at hand. I was simply asking if Southwest does like AA and offers guaranteed standby for a fee. I am not sure that came across.

Anyway. Have a wonderful day and take care

 

[NotUrsula]

You may as well know that we regulars have a saying here; there is no Pixie Dust on the Transportation board.

Those of us who are FF and regulars here really do try to be helpful and answer questions to the best of our ability. However, there is a tendency around here sometimes, from newer posters in particular, to ask the same questions over and over again because they don't want to take "Sorry, that won't be possible" for an answer. It can be aggravating, and yes, sometimes the cynicism that it engenders can begin to leak out around the edges. Most of us have stopped trying to be diplomatic in our language when it looks like one of those questions is coming back again. What that boils down is that you should not take it personally.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Thanks, Lewisc and NotUrsula

The OP has, a couple of times, mentioned, "...like AA...". This might be a good time/place to point out that unlike AA (and other legacy carriers), Southwest allows two - vs zero - free checked bags; and unlike AA et al, Southwest allows unlimited changes for just the fare difference no matter what fare class you're in - vs $150 per change - and credits; and unlike AA and the others, Southwest virtually never has schedule changes...

 

[leebee]

You may as well know that we regulars have a saying here; there is no Pixie Dust on the Transportation board.

Those of us who are FF and regulars here really do try to be helpful and answer questions to the best of our ability. However, there is a tendency around here sometimes, from newer posters in particular, to ask the same questions over and over again because they don't want to take "Sorry, that won't be possible" for an answer. It can be aggravating, and yes, sometimes the cynicism that it engenders can begin to leak out around the edges. Most of us have stopped trying to be diplomatic in our language when it looks like one of those questions is coming back again. What that boils down is that you should not take it personally.

The Transportation Board isn't only for "regulars," though, and some of the threads here have become unmanageable and unhelpful because they are SO long and the info I might need is SO buried, that I HAVE to post a question. Trust me, I TRY to find the info that might be here because one always is sticking one's neck out when posting on the Transportation Board. This used to be a most helpful board and now it's the one I try to avoid if I possibly can, because the "regulars" like having no Pixie Dust. There's really no need to be snippy, rude, short, or mean in your reply, but that is unfortunately often the case around here. FWIW, I took Katieelder's opening comment exactly the same way as StrwLady did, but have been reading the boards long enough to actually have been expecting a snarky comment in what is otherwise usually helpful advice.

 

[goofy4tink]

The Transportation Board isn't only for "regulars," though, and some of the threads here have become unmanageable and unhelpful because they are SO long and the info I might need is SO buried, that I HAVE to post a question. Trust me, I TRY to find the info that might be here because one always is sticking one's neck out when posting on the Transportation Board. This used to be a most helpful board and now it's the one I try to avoid if I possibly can, because the "regulars" like having no Pixie Dust. There's really no need to be snippy, rude, short, or mean in your reply, but that is unfortunately often the case around here. FWIW, I took Katieelder's opening comment exactly the same way as StrwLady did, but have been reading the boards long enough to actually have been expecting a snarky comment in what is otherwise usually helpful advice.

Well, I wasn't going to respond to any 'one' poster, but I felt I had to defend the board a bit here.
The problem here, on the Transportation Board, is that travel/transportation is incredibly serious. I'm not saying that choosing your resort or which park to go to on a particular day isn't important. BUT...if you get bogus info about your travel plans, you could find yourself in quite a mess. And we don't want that to happen.
Posters come here, all the time, with questions that they need answered. They sometimes already know the answer but are hoping to get some different answers. And when they are told exactly what they don't want to hear, even though it's the truth, they get all snippy and tell us how mean and nasty we are here. And that's just not true. We try to give out good, useful info here. We have many experienced travelers...with wonderful info to share. They take it very seriously.
With that in mind, I'm sorry you feel hesitant to post here. That makes me feel badly. I have never had an issue with anyone posting a question, even though it has been answered many times. The boards do get unwieldy and it can be hard to find what you need to find. There are no stupid, or idiotic questions here. And I do try to make sure people don't feel they can 'lord it over' others...even if they are 'regulars'.

So...with that in mind. No, there is no policy at SW like that. Why? Because they have several tiers of pricing. If you want to be able to change your flight, at any time, you need to pay the top fares. That will allow you to fly standby. Otherwise, you will have to pay the difference between your less expensive 'wanna get away' fare and the higher priced fares.
The other airlines have single tiered pricing.

Hopefully, this thread will stay on track..with no ill feelings.
Please, remember when posting that others can very easily take your response differently than you may have meant it. So, take it down a notch.

 

[leebee]

Thanks, Goofy4tink, for your explanation. I agree... making a mistake with airfare/transportation can be disastrous, and I appreciate the solid info to be obtained on the Transportation Boards. I also know that, because this is non-vocal communications, sometimes messages are read with a tone that might not have been intended, and sorry if I took things the wrong way. Actually, I have thick skin and understood what was and wasn't being said/intended, but "newer" posters might not.

FWIW I had/posted a similar question to StrwLdy's but wasn't trying to avoid the upcharge at SW (ticket's already purchased); I was trying to avoid the extra $145 to National for keeping the car 3 hours longer than it's currently reserved for, as it goes from being a 4 day rental with a good code/coupon through VISA to being a week long rental!

 

[kaytieeldr]

That actually does require its own thread, leebee - but try different codes. You're moving into a weekly rental range.

 

[leebee]

That actually does require its own thread, leebee - but try different codes. You're moving into a weekly rental range.

Yes, and if push comes to shove, we'll wait it out in the terminal. DH and I both got the SW credit card with 50K miles each, so I'm trying to maximize our miles by flying as "cheaply" as possible. I usually check out the rental car situation before booking the airfare to avoid just such a situation, but this time was excited about a really low "points" fare and didn't think about the car! I will play the rental car code game next... thank goodness it's a rainy Sunday up here in Maine!