When does SWA release dates? How do I book if only one date is open??

pjlla

DIS Legend
Joined
Oct 21, 2003
Messages
11,654
I know that this has been asked before, but I did a search and couldn't find the full answer. When does SouthWest Airlines release/open its dates to book flights? I have read that it is historically on a Thursday...but how far in advance? I know that they recently went from being open only until some time in April to being open until June 6. We are looking to travel in July and I really need to book the cheapest fares possible.

One other question.... what do I do if they open up our departure date but not our return date? We are planning on leaving MHT for ABQ on July 7 (Thursday) and probably returning July 15 or 16. What if they only open until July 8 or something like that? How would I book a rnd trip then?

Thanks so much for any help out there!...........P
 
Usually they open up 3-4 month before the fist new travel date. Last year, on 1/15, they opened up for travel 5/9-6/11 and on 2/13 opened up for travel 6/12-8/7. The fact that this year the opened up 4/2-6/6 in December only reinforces the fact that history does not necessarily help in looking forward.

I know that some people have booked the one way flight, if that was all that was available when it opened up, but when I have come across that situation, I always wait for both dates to be available before I book. Of course, if there's a really great one way fare with times that are good for you, go for it.
 
We are in that same situation where our departure flight is available but our preferred return date (June 12th) isn't.

I'm assuming if you call Southwest they aren't able to tell you when the other dates will become available?
 
Go ahead and book your departing flight. southwest doesn't discount's roundtrips...they are all considered one-way flights. then when the later dates come out you can just book your return flight. The only difference is that you will have two reservations with two confirmation numbers.
No biggie!
 

Similar thing happened to us for our trip last month. When booking our airfare, SW's update first included our departure date, which we booked. After a few weeks, the return date opened, and we booked that. No problem at all, and we had excellent flights both ways.

Have Fun:)
 
Do all fares with Southwest have that promotional rate? I'm afraid if I book my outbound flight (which is a promotional fare and a good deal), there might not be a similar deal coming home. I've never flown with SW so I'm not familiar with how their pricing normally works.
 





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