Bizarre WN fares
#46
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Tucson AZ
Programs: Global Entry, United Silver, Marriott Platinum Premier, Hilton Gold
Posts: 380
This seems to me to be a rather silly thread. The carping without substance gets old.
Still no assigned seating, still low fares, still no bag fees, still good employees, still 737s, and still throngs at BWI lining up with an insatiable appetite for Southwest. Not much has changed.
Still no assigned seating, still low fares, still no bag fees, still good employees, still 737s, and still throngs at BWI lining up with an insatiable appetite for Southwest. Not much has changed.
I don't think it's silly to point out that, from a frequent business flyer's perspective, WN is starting to price themselves out of the market for people like me.
Their WGA fares are almost always just fine. $400 - $600 for a round-trip ticket is easily absorbed into most business project budgets. However, WN seems to be shutting down access to WGA fares earlier and raising the prices on the higher tiers of fares. It has the appearance of being a squeeze on business travelers. They've jacked up the price of the "Anytime" fare so much that most are now more than double the price of WGA fares and maybe only 10 - 20 dollars cheaper than the BS fare. There's very little graduation upwards -- once they shut down the WGA fare it's all monumentally expensive.
Last edited by flyerfmaz; May 28, 2014 at 4:12 pm
#47
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: MCI
Programs: CBP Global Entry, WN A-List Preferred, WN Companion Pass
Posts: 2,006
Silly thread? Carping without substance? One of my entire itineraries was just canceled and I was rerouted to another carrier by my employer because Southwest was deemed much too expensive. And this isn't the first time it's come up at the office -- but it is the first time that action was taken.
I don't think it's silly to point out that, from a frequent business flyer's perspective, WN is starting to price themselves out of the market for people like me.
Their WGA fares are almost always just fine. $400 - $600 for a round-trip ticket is easily absorbed into most business project budgets. However, WN seems to be shutting down access to WGA fares earlier and raising the prices on the higher tiers of fares. It has the appearance of being a squeeze on business travelers. They've jacked up the price of the "Anytime" fare so much that most are now more than double the price of WGA fares and maybe only 10 - 20 dollars cheaper than the BS fare. There's very little graduation upwards -- once they shut down the WGA fare it's all monumentally expensive.
I don't think it's silly to point out that, from a frequent business flyer's perspective, WN is starting to price themselves out of the market for people like me.
Their WGA fares are almost always just fine. $400 - $600 for a round-trip ticket is easily absorbed into most business project budgets. However, WN seems to be shutting down access to WGA fares earlier and raising the prices on the higher tiers of fares. It has the appearance of being a squeeze on business travelers. They've jacked up the price of the "Anytime" fare so much that most are now more than double the price of WGA fares and maybe only 10 - 20 dollars cheaper than the BS fare. There's very little graduation upwards -- once they shut down the WGA fare it's all monumentally expensive.
And most flights continue to be monumentally full/oversold. On all carriers.
#48
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 1,832
Their WGA fares are almost always just fine. $400 - $600 for a round-trip ticket is easily absorbed into most business project budgets. However, WN seems to be shutting down access to WGA fares earlier and raising the prices on the higher tiers of fares. It has the appearance of being a squeeze on business travelers. They've jacked up the price of the "Anytime" fare so much that most are now more than double the price of WGA fares and maybe only 10 - 20 dollars cheaper than the BS fare. There's very little graduation upwards -- once they shut down the WGA fare it's all monumentally expensive.
Moreover, have you actually compared the price of fully refundable fares on legacies to Southwest? I think you'll find that WN's AT refundable fares are quite competitive to those of legacies as many others have reported here.
#49
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: ORD, MDW or MKE
Programs: American and Southwest. Hilton and Marriott hotels primarily.
Posts: 6,454
But the valid point, is that within a week or 2 you can only buy AT fares on Southwest and you can buy much cheaper non-refundable fares on other airlines.
#50
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Tucson AZ
Programs: Global Entry, United Silver, Marriott Platinum Premier, Hilton Gold
Posts: 380
Thanks for the input and feedback, all. I'll keep pursuing WN at every turn at the office. Maybe part of the issue is my location (Tucson) -- possibly there aren't as many favorable fares out of here. Got a TUS-MDW-CHS run on WN tomorrow, then back Friday. Almost to A-List Preferred. I'll do my best to make some productive contributions to these forums rather than just whine. :-)
#51
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Chicagoland, IL, USA
Programs: WN CP, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,164
Looks to me like WN cannot really claim any more to have "low fares," compared to the legacies. Yes on some routes/times, no on others.
Plenty of posts here about this phenomenon of the last few years.
Plenty of posts here about this phenomenon of the last few years.
#52
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: MCI
Programs: CBP Global Entry, WN A-List Preferred, WN Companion Pass
Posts: 2,006
Thanks for the input and feedback, all. I'll keep pursuing WN at every turn at the office. Maybe part of the issue is my location (Tucson) -- possibly there aren't as many favorable fares out of here. Got a TUS-MDW-CHS run on WN tomorrow, then back Friday. Almost to A-List Preferred. I'll do my best to make some productive contributions to these forums rather than just whine. :-)
A friend that does LAS-TUS-LAS weekly opined recently that "fares are way up in the past few years". Well duh.
He also reports that his run has gradually dropped to only 4 legs a day (not sure how many there used to be, but apparently more than that). Yet another factual report of how the smaller stations/shorter routes keep getting nipped-at so as to (presumably) grow the longer/more profitable routes.
As for whining, well....that's what we DO here is whine. Well, at least some of the people some of the time
Please report back on your trip and let us know how it goes (timeliness, etc.)
#53
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 1,832
If the point is that there are often last-minute (or within a week or so) fares on legacies cheaper than Southwest, no one is debating that. In fact, I recently posted that would have flown AA to MSP for $450 rather than burn $1,100 worth of AT points on WN.
But no matter the argument or debate, the solution/problem is the same: WN is charging a lot for their seats because their planes are full. If anyone doesn't want to pay that premium, fly another airline with a better fare. No one will fault you for it. I was going to same thing. And many other WN supporters/FF's will as well.
#54
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: San Diego, Ca
Programs: AA 2MM LT PLT; AS MVP Gold75k; HHonors Diamond; IHG PLT
Posts: 3,489
If fares are the same with a full service carrier, why would a frequent business traveler choose WN? AT=Y typically means an automatic upgrade to first or at least a reserved seat in premium economy. At least on AA it also means free changes, including same day standby. Most importantly it also means a higher probability of an on-time flight --- priceless to road warriors, anxious to get home.
#55
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Chicagoland, IL, USA
Programs: WN CP, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 14,164
#56
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Tucson AZ
Programs: Global Entry, United Silver, Marriott Platinum Premier, Hilton Gold
Posts: 380
I've got a three hour layover at MDW tomorrow right around lunchtime -- time to check out Harry Caray's in the food court.
Last edited by flyerfmaz; May 28, 2014 at 9:14 pm
#57
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: National Capitol Region
Programs: Delta Dirt Medallion,AA,USairways, WN Rapid Rewards, National Emerald Club
Posts: 3,912
Thanks for the input and feedback, all. I'll keep pursuing WN at every turn at the office. Maybe part of the issue is my location (Tucson) -- possibly there aren't as many favorable fares out of here. Got a TUS-MDW-CHS run on WN tomorrow, then back Friday. Almost to A-List Preferred. I'll do my best to make some productive contributions to these forums rather than just whine. :-)
Several years ago I found TUS fares to be outrageous and schedules to be inconvenient. I wound up flying to PHX and drove from there to my business in Sierra Vista.
WN, like all the airlines, seems to be no longer in market expansion mode. It's not WN that's changed it is the airline biz.
Last edited by hazelrah; May 29, 2014 at 6:41 am
#59
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Dallas, TX USA
Programs: Rapid Rewards/AAdvantage
Posts: 1,245
If fares are the same with a full service carrier, why would a frequent business traveler choose WN? AT=Y typically means an automatic upgrade to first or at least a reserved seat in premium economy. At least on AA it also means free changes, including same day standby. Most importantly it also means a higher probability of an on-time flight --- priceless to road warriors, anxious to get home.
#60
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: IAH / HOU
Programs: UA GS, DL-Plat, Hilton Gold, IHG Platinum, Hyatt Somethingist, Marriott Titanium Lifetime
Posts: 2,852