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K2, it's probably the demographics of the passengers and then the boarding process for those without status. Agreed tho that Southwest is a great option that unjustly gets overlooked by consultants imo
Their rewards are hands down the best, TPG values the companion pass solely at ~11,000 dollars
Rewards are fantastic. Easy to redeem. Domestic round trips for 15k. Consider the credit card(s) too. I am incapable of spending the rewards faster than earning
No intl network and crappy in flight experience is the trade off but rewards are super easy to use. WRT companion pass I’ve never cared much about that since I am sick of traveling to domestic Locations when I finally take vacation.
Best part about Southwest is that you can change your ticket without any change fee, including if they have a sale after you bought your ticket. Same works with reward tickets.
Companion pass and free internet for top status are good perks too
Crappy inflight experience? They have free WiFi with TV on your phone.
I feel like the major domestic alternatives also offer a similarly crappy in flight experience anyway. Just sayin
I’ve averaged probably 60 round trips a year since 2011. Lots of great info on the SW forum on flyertalk. I’ve had the card and CP for a while too. The glory days were when I was at a smaller firm and put ALL my work travel on the SW card. I have CP too but as previously mentioned we don’t use it too much bc SO and I usually travel apart and meet in the destination city.
Love the no change fees and that you can refare a ticket if the price goes down and then keep the credit for future personal travel. I’m curious what’s so bad about the inflight experience. I fly all the big 4 domestics and they all seem pretty similar unless you’re up front on the legacies. But I only need 1 drink per flight anyway and the drink coupons they mail out take care of that. Free WiFi once you get a-list Prefered and free live TV for everyone. What other airline offers that?
My main issue, besides the clientele is legroom. I get economy plus guaranteed on my legacy, first is a nice bump. As A List with SWA I get mid to low A group and after 15 “preboards” I get on a a plane that is half full from its last stop since SWA has a point to point flying model. Thus the 4 good seats on the plane are occupied and I am shoving my 6-2 self in a regular aisle with my laptop on my stomach after the person in front of me reclines their seat and starving since there is no food to buy and I had no time to grab at airport. So I do “luv” their points but the product is just terrible and can’t do it week in and week out.
Companion pass is achievable and an insane benefit if you have a spouse who’ll use it.
Think you can get companion pass solely by getting both cards in one year too
Been flying them for the past few weeks. Pretty solid option if you don't mind the crowd - it skews more towards families/kids/babies.
Also, the non-reserved seating can be a pain, but once you get status that becomes a non-issue since you'll always be boarding early enough that you get a good seat.
Companion pass never seemed useful to me as a consultant since I'm often flying from the client site to meet people like my spouse in other cities, not flying with them - your situation may be different
Lack of international travel blows though
Southwest now flies to Hawaii. Big difference boarding early with status, no riff raff in front. Better on time performance than American or United. Can’t compare to Platinum Pro on American or something similar for example, though
Monday mornings for me it’s all biz. A little more of a mix on Thursday night admittedly. Alas, I live right near one of their hub airports where they have a virtual monopoly so in turn I have easier itineraries than some of my colleagues who have to connect.
Oh yeah, I work on planes, not watch TV so care nothing about IFE. Besides my airline free movies and shows too. It’s not like a SW exclusive unless you are dying to see the news or a game in your iPhone.
K1 I get annoyed at all the Preboarders and pass through pax but other than that I feel like you’re reaching a bit. Different strokes for different folks though. Leave the office 5 minutes earlier and get a sandwich before you get on the plane. It probably comes from the same factory as plane food does. Also I’m not 6’2” nor do I work on planes so I don’t have those issues. I do work when I get home if needed but on the plane is my decompression time. I am broad shouldered so I have issues when fat people sit next to me but that can happen anywhere (including to me in Delta comfort a week ago).
But what trumps all for me is availability of non-stops to/from where I need to go. So that’s what keeps me on SW metal 90% of the time