Ready for my #1 Southwest Airlines travel hack?
As you may or may not know, Southwest Airlines has a $0 cancellation and change fee as well as two free checked bags. I will be the first to admit, it is not my favorite airline from a comfort perspective, but I love it for the flexibility and the cost savings.
First Thing's First, Get a Rapid Rewards Account
A Rapid Rewards account is Southwest's version of frequent flier miles. It is free to make one and once activated, you will start to earn points on all your flights.
Kayla's Southwest Method
Flights on Southwest are always cheaper the earlier you book them. Indecisiveness often prevents us from booking flights and then later we regret it after prices go up.
Step 1: Book flights now, make decisions later
Since Southwest has free cancellation and no change fees, why not book multiple flights? Say you are booking your next ski vacation from San Diego to Denver for 3 months from now to visit your friend, but you are not sure whether you want to leave on Thursday or Friday. In this example, I would book a flight for both Thursday and Friday. Doing this 3 months ahead, I will lock in around a $70 fare for one-way, and if you did this the week before your trip it would have been closer to $300. You would save almost $130 by locking in earlier flight prices and without having to decide which days you want to go.
This is also a great trick for around the holidays when flights get very expensive. For example, last year I wasn't sure how long I wanted to go home for Thanksgiving. In August, I booked flights for both Tuesday and Wednesday before and after Thanksgiving. This is helpful because in August, it is hard to know what life will look like in November! Based on my work schedule and things happening at home, I decided a few days before my flights which ones I would actually take, and canceled the others. I paid about $120 round trip in comparison to booking that same week in which the same flights were almost $500 round trip!!
The point is: there is no limit to how many flights you can book or cancel.
Step 2: Cancel the flight you don't want as late as the day of
Again, there are NO cancellation fees so you don't have to make decisions on your trip up until the day of! You can change or cancel your flight up to 10 minutes before your scheduled departure time.If you booked it on points, they will go back into your Rapid Rewards balance. If you booked it with money, it will be reimbursed back to you as a voucher.
Step 3: Monitor Southwest Flight Sales
If Southwest starts a sale after you have booked a flight, you can still cash in on it. Click "change flight" on your current flight and you can rebook the exact flight for the exact same time (thus not actually changing it) and get points/money back if the price is now cheaper! I have saved hundreds of dollars by doing this, so always make sure to check you are getting the best fare.
Best Airline for Ski Trips
If you are an avid skier (like I am) and have your own skis, this is the best budget option for flying. This is because you get two free checked bags when flying Southwest, so your ski bag will fly for free!
At the Airport Early? Hop on the flight before
If you are traveling from an airport Southwest has a ton of flights to, chances are you can hop on an earlier flight if you are standing around. I have done this many times from San Jose Airport since they fly to San Diego every 30 mins. If I happen to get through security before the flight is done boarding, I will go to the gate and ask to go on standby. Since SW has no assigned seating, I think of it more like a public bus than an airplane in the sense that if there are seats they will usually let you on. I would not count on this for your travels, (as it is a bit of luck) but is a nice perk when it works out to get you to your destination faster.
Bonus: Get a Southwest Credit Card
I also have the Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards credit card! I love collecting the points. In the last 2 years, I have not had to pay for a flight out of pocket. To me, traveling on points feels "free” and makes booking flights more exciting! I also love Chase in general, they have great customer service and online banking. Do note, this card does have foreign transaction fees, so it is not the best for traveling abroad.
Great tips KW so smart.