No moist towelettes, but meets expectations nicely
Written: Jul 27 '05
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Most people gravitate toward Southwest Airlines for one reason: cheap flights. While there has been a slow and steady rise in their fares over the past several years, it is still a good option for those who value the bottom line over other travel amenities and services. Their website (www.southwest.com) is a good resource and I definitely recommend it.
The site features your typical options for selecting departing and arrival cities, flight dates and time. When you put in the information, you are presented with a handy little matrix showing all of the flights for the days you sleected, as well as listing every level of fare for the route (from super-low specials to full-far). That way, you can see what flights are close to selling out and what flights have the lowest prices for any given day and flight plan. The best part is the drop down menus that let you effortlessly switch what day's schedule you are looking at. Not sure whether to take off Friday or Monday for that long weekend? A couple clicks of the mouse and you can see which would be cheaper. Once you settle on the flights you want, booking is easy and ordinary. You also have the option of booking car rentals, hotels, and other activities through the site, often at a discount.
Southwest operated primarily with E-tickets, so you'll get an email with a confirmation number and your flight arrangements. Then you can print your boarding pass at home or check in with an agent at the airport.
You can easily access your frequent flyer account from Southwest.com as well. Southwest is unique among airlines, in that you do not accrue miles. Instead you get a "credit" for each one-way that you fly. If you get 16 credits in a year, you get a free round-trip ticket. There are often promotions that give you 1 or 2 extra credits per round trip if you book online, so that free ticket could be just 4 round-trips away, much faster than the big guys.
I would be remiss if I didn't discuss Southwest's very generous policies regarding changing flight plans and refunds- let's face it, sometimes you have no choice but to alter your plans. I've never been assessed a fee to change or cancel a flight. At the very least, you get the full amount that you spent on the ticket as a Southwest voucher that is good for a year. if you fly Southwest even occasionally that is a good deal.
Bottom line, while Southwest isn't fancy, and that mad rush to get in line to board is never fun, they have a good variety of destinations at this point, and they are almost always competitive in price. The well-laid out website is a nice bonus, give it a try!
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Air travel
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Epinions.com ID:
gosox5
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Member: Andrew
Location: DC metro area
Reviews written: 30
Trusted by: 27 members
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