Southwest Air early bird boarding - how does it work, really?

[Big_Hitter]

Southwest doesn't use the rolling carts that fill the aisle. They only serve beverages and small packages of pretzels or nuts. There is no cart, they come and take your order, pour it in the rear galley and then bring it on a tray, about 3 or 4 rows at a time.

good point on the beverage trays - they definitely do not use beverage carts nowadays

this may start a separate thread but what do you all think about people who "save" seats on SWA?

IMO - if people want to travel together they should board together or "save" a seat in the rear of the aircraft. Those of us that ponied up for EB or BSelect should not have to deal with seat savers.

 

[travelover]

........this may start a separate thread but what do you all think about people who "save" seats on SWA?.............

I've never had a problem with a person saving "a" seat. If they are trying to save a whole row or two, they are out of line.

 

[Big_Hitter]

I've never had a problem with a person saving "a" seat. If they are trying to save a whole row or two, they are out of line.

I was boarding once and a woman was saving the first row aisle seat for her SO and she was in the window seat. I almost sat in it.

 

[travelover]

I was boarding once and a woman was saving the first row aisle seat for her SO and she was in the window seat. I almost sat in it.

Common ploy. Just sit in the middle.

 

[Ronstar]

The only time we save a seat is when we have a huge difference in numbers. Then DW heads to the back row of the plane and waits for me. She saves my seat, but has never had anyone contest it because nobody gets to the back row to contest it before I get there. Makes for a long wait to get off the plane though

 

[Amethyst]

We have long legs (especially Mr. A. - if the car seat is on his setting, my feet literally will not reach the pedals), so we like to get adjacent aisle seats if possible. We'll see how that goes.

 

[Johanson]

I've never flown WN and I'm glad I don't have to play their seat game. That would drive me nuts!

 

[2017ish]

I've never flown WN and I'm glad I don't have to play their seat game. That would drive me nuts!

In our domestic flying experience, the best choice from a bad lot. Even though DW has low level ("gold") lifetime status on American and we can always get nice seats confirmed, Southwest is our preference. Even worth it on the rare occasions that it is slightly more expensive per seat.

 

[urn2bfree]

I don't understand how people on the same reservation end up separated. We check in with one confirmation number and yet we often end up in very different boarding groups. That should 't happen. As for no beverage carts, I still get jostled by the flight attendants walking back and forth. If anyone wants my aisle seat I will gladly trade for a middle seat, farther forward.
The incredibly slow deplaning process drives me crazy. (Rant begins here) If you are not ready to roll -with your bag - get out of the aisle. And get going! People can be so slow, so deliberate about getting themselves off the plane. Look in front of you. If there is a gap between you and the passenger exiting in front of you, that is you holding up EVERY SINGLE PASSENGER waiting behind you. Multiply it by multiple passenger slow pokes and it adds 10 minutes to the deplaning process. Move it. Get ready to go while we are all standing around waiting for the door to open. Ask for help, if necessary. I guarantee if it helps get you moving faster, people are happy to help. Let's all help each other get out of there quicker! Your fellow inmates, er, passengers will be glad and so will the airline trying to turn the plane around. Win, win. If you are not in a hurry, fine. Sit down and stay out of the way. Others have connecting flights or other things they would rather be doing than sitting any longer on the narrow metal tube. (Rant over and out)

 

[Ronstar]

I don't understand how people on the same reservation end up separated. We check in with one confirmation number and yet we often end up in very different boarding groups. That should 't happen....

We check in as separate passengers under separate confirmation numbers so that we each get rapid rewards points. I'd check in as 2 under a single confirmation number if I can get points for 2 flights. I need to check on this.

 

[Johanson]

In our domestic flying experience, the best choice from a bad lot. Even though DW has low level ("gold") lifetime status on American and we can always get nice seats confirmed, Southwest is our preference. Even worth it on the rare occasions that it is slightly more expensive per seat.

I've been Diamond with Delta since 2011 and I fly pretty much every week and my upgrade percentage is above 95%. I also recently hit Million Miler. I'm a hub captive but Delta works well for me. I rarely ever have a connection domestically and I typically fly about 150,000 miles/year. With Diamond, I get Sky Club membership, global upgrade certificates that I use to upgrade cheap coach fares for my overseas vacations to Delta One (business class), regional upgrade certificates that I use domestically if I happen to be on a Diamond heavy route on a cheap fare, and I've used another choice benefit in the past to gift Gold status to girlfriends. I don't ever see myself flying another airline domestically or a non Sky Team partner internationally even after I retire.

 

[2017ish]

I've been Diamond with Delta since 2011 and I fly pretty much every week and my upgrade percentage is above 95%. I also recently hit Million Miler. I'm a hub captive but Delta works well for me. I rarely ever have a connection domestically and I typically fly about 150,000 miles/year. With Diamond, I get Sky Club membership, global upgrade certificates that I use to upgrade cheap coach fares for my overseas vacations to Delta One (business class), regional upgrade certificates that I use domestically if I happen to be on a Diamond heavy route on a cheap fare, and I've used another choice benefit in the past to gift Gold status to girlfriends. I don't ever see myself flying another airline domestically or a non Sky Team partner internationally even after I retire.

In your case, easy call. B.I.L. lives near O'Hare and has been AA Exec. Platinum for years; I'd be surprised if he has ever flown Southwest. For us, as "several times a year" fliers coming out of a non-hub, Southwest is a better experience than going with relatively low level status on AA (or, even worse, no status on either of the other two legacy carriers).

 

[Big_Hitter]

Try pricing BOI to ATL and then BWI to BOI for mid-June travel. Choosing SWA is a no brainer, especially since DW checks a bag (yes I will get her EB check in)

 

[Ian S]

We check in as separate passengers under separate confirmation numbers so that we each get rapid rewards points. I'd check in as 2 under a single confirmation number if I can get points for 2 flights. I need to check on this.

Even under a single confirmation number, I believe each of you get to input your Rapid Rewards number so each will get points. No need to do separate confirmation numbers.

 

[travelover]

Even under a single confirmation number, I believe each of you get to input your Rapid Rewards number so each will get points. No need to do separate confirmation numbers.

Correct.

 

[Bestwifeever]

We use RR points when one of us gets enough for a free trip, and have had to book that separately, so we will occasionally have two confirmation numbers for our six or so SW trips a year. We each do the exactly 24 hours ahead checkin and are usually separated by only a couple of mid B numbers, so no seats need to be saved. I'd rather sit separately in middle seats near the front anyway.

If there are several tickets under one confirmation number and early bird checkin is desired, the party has to pay that fee for all the tickets. So a potential seat-saver might book separately from his or her accompanying passengers and pay for a single early bird to get on board sooner.

 

[Ronstar]

Even under a single confirmation number, I believe each of you get to input your Rapid Rewards number so each will get points. No need to do separate confirmation numbers.

Correct.

Thanks - I'll definitely do that next time

We use RR points when one of us gets enough for a free trip, and have had to book that separately, so we will occasionally have two confirmation numbers for our six or so SW trips a year. We each do the exactly 24 hours ahead checkin and are usually separated by only a couple of mid B numbers, so no seats need to be saved. I'd rather sit separately in middle seats near the front anyway.

If there are several tickets under one confirmation number and early bird checkin is desired, the party has to pay that fee for all the tickets. So a potential seat-saver might book separately from his or her accompanying passengers and pay for a single early bird to get on board sooner.

We normally have our SW apps loaded and ready to go about 24 hours , 10 minutes before takeoff. Then at exactly 24 hrs, we both pull the trigger. But I jumped the gun a couple of times and I got a notice that it wasn't within 24 hours. By the time I got back in and checked in, I was into the C's.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Thanks - I'll definitely do that next time



We normally have our SW apps loaded and ready to go about 24 hours , 10 minutes before takeoff. Then at exactly 24 hrs, we both pull the trigger. But I jumped the gun a couple of times and I got a notice that it wasn't within 24 hours. By the time I got back in and checked in, I was into the C's.

DD checks in on his laptop (because he can see the seconds there) at southwest.com and I use the app on my phone. He almost always get in ahead of me even though I have much faster reflexes. I wonder if the SW website is faster/more direct than the phone app.

 

[Amethyst]

I promised to report back, so here is my report:

Both flights were Boeing 737s (3/3) and 100% full (as confirmed by the flight crew). Early Bird check-in netted us positions A34/A35 outbound to Phoenix, and A44/A45 inbound from Las Vegas. We were able to get adjacent aisle seats near the middle of the plane.

Early Bird turned out to be worth it for us, because internet access was quite sporadic during our tour. On the home flight, we would not have been able to check in precisely at 24 hours.

In the boarding area, there were signs designating where each group of five should stand. Other passengers in our group did look at our boarding passes in order to ensure we got behind them! While I don't blame them for wanting to make sure they kept their spots, it's still a creepy feeling to know that other people don't see you as fellow passengers and humans, but merely as competitors and obstacles.

Bottom line, EB was worth it for us. Thanks for all your tips and help - they really were useful.

Amethyst

 

[Ronstar]

I promised to report back, so here is my report:

Both flights were Boeing 737s (3/3) and 100% full (as confirmed by the flight crew). Early Bird check-in netted us positions A34/A35 outbound to Phoenix, and A44/A45 inbound from Las Vegas. We were able to get adjacent aisle seats near the middle of the plane.

Early Bird turned out to be worth it for us, because internet access was quite sporadic during our tour. On the home flight, we would not have been able to check in precisely at 24 hours.

In the boarding area, there were signs designating where each group of five should stand. Other passengers in our group did look at our boarding passes in order to ensure we got behind them! While I don't blame them for wanting to make sure they kept their spots, it's still a creepy feeling to know that other people don't see you as fellow passengers and humans, but merely as competitors and obstacles.

Bottom line, EB was worth it for us. Thanks for all your tips and help - they really were useful.

Amethyst

Glad it worked out! Getting adjacent aisle seats is tough to do on Southwest. As a non EB'er, I don't remember seeing adjacent aisle seats open.

It is kinda creepy how those people always look at your ticket to see if you're in the right place in line.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Glad it worked out! Getting adjacent aisle seats is tough to do on Southwest. As a non EB'er, I don't remember seeing adjacent aisle seats open.

It is kinda creepy how those people always look at your ticket to see if you're in the right place in line.

I always ask others their boarding number so I'm not inadvertantly in front of a lower number--we're assigned boarding by ones, not groups of five. I try not to be too creepy about it.

 

[Amethyst]

If we ever fly SW again, that's a good plan. I don't see how it could possibly be creepy if you're seen as looking out for others.

I always ask others their boarding number so I'm not inadvertantly in front of a lower number--we're assigned boarding by ones, not groups of five. I try not to be too creepy about it.

 

[Ronstar]

I always ask others their boarding number so I'm not inadvertantly in front of a lower number--we're assigned boarding by ones, not groups of five. I try not to be too creepy about it.

I've been putting my ticket on my phone for about the past year, So I miss the fun of having someone ogle my ticket. People sometimes ask me my number though. Most people are like you - they just want to know other people's numbers to make sure they aren't out of line. I think some fear being booted from the flight if caught out of place.

 

[Scuba]

Glad EB worked out for you. I love the SW boarding system. Totally eliminates the "gate lice" mentioned in another post.