duckncover

I need 2 more flights to re-qualify for A-List. There's a very inexpensive set of flights that I'm thinking about booking but I seem to remember something about needing a 3 hours between flights to count as separate.

A to B arrives into B at 8:40am.
B back to A leaves B at 10:20am. I always book as one-ways to make it easier to refare/cancel as necessary.

I seem to remember something mentioned somewhere that flights that are separated by less than 3 hours count as only one. Is this still true? Was it ever true? In the above example, would I get credited for 2 separate flights as I would expect? Or do I need a longer stay at B before getting back on a plane to A. A to B and B to A would of course be booked as separate one-ways with separate reservation numbers.

lougord99

That was never true. As long as your flights are booked as one ways on separate PNR’s you will get credit for separate segments.

synergistic

Those segment runs are one of my personal exceptions for booking WN trips as one ways. If the returning flight leaves less than four hours after the incoming flight arrives, it's slightly cheaper because you only pay a single $5.60 fee. I am 100% sure a round trip like this counts as two segments for a challenge, and adds two segments to the counter in the overview section. I did not actually qualify with 25 paid segments, so I can't definitively verify that this would work for you - but it should. Don't know if the $5.60 is worth the chance... I was dragging my companion along with me so it was $10.20 saved on <$60 round trips.

toomanybooks

flyguy6

I am in a similar situation myself. I currently earned A list status for this year and am only 2,300 tier qualifying points away from earning A list preferred. I don't have any work travel for the rest of the year unfortunately. I am debating on making a short trip somewhere (such as PHX to DEN) before the end of the year to earn the needed points. Considering all of the additional points I will earn with A list proffered (100% bonus) for all of next year + credit point earning I should be able to more than make up for the cost of this trip.

Has anyone been able to get an extension on the cutoff date if there are very close to earning status? From what I have read online SWA will not make exceptions.

steved5480

Yes, they will not.

duckncover

Thanks for the information folks. That's interesting about the 4 hour window. There's a club lounge at Airport B that I'll stop into for breakfast before getting back on the plane. Flights are about $50 each way. Worth it to me. I haven't done a mileage run since my old Continental Airlines OnePass days. Those were the days with e-Ticket bonus, Platinum Elite bonus...

toomanybooks

joshua362

The 4 hour window is simply the MAXIMUM layover that WN will sell you a connecting flight on a single PNR, give you their city pair to city pair pricing (for good or worse), check you in for the connecting flight, transfer your bag automatically and "protect" you in the event of delays and cancellations (to the extent WN feels like it at that time). The MINIMUM window is 45 minutes IIRC (It used to vary by station domestically). You'll only get one flight segment for taking both legs.

You are free to book both legs separately with the connection being below, during or after the window and take advantage of pricing or routing that doesn't officially exist, and earn 2 segments.

I generally have to connect and always check both ways and have been pleasantly surprised at times with cheaper overall $ or points cost. Or just being able to go, for instance ISP-XXX-LAS was unbookable at any time or cost while ISP-BWI (1 hour) BWI-LAS was extremely reasonable. And you can ask at check-in to have your bag sent to the final destination if needed.

synergistic

I think the OP was talking about a legit round-trip (XXX-YYY-XXX) all in one short window of a few hours. Unless it has changed in the past few months (I think it was late September when I finished my ten segment challenge) those actual round trips do count as two segments. If something has changed, I want to know.

As for the connections, like XXX-YYY-ZZZ, you're totally right. Especially when I find myself stuck booking a trip later than I like and things are looking pricey, I always check the prices of individual legs - including stuff the system doesn't spit out because the connection is too long. I can work from anywhere, I usually don't mind spending several hours in an airport with a decent lounge to save a good chunk of change. That and hidden city fares can be golden on WN, though of course those are no good for earning status. I usually book HC fares on points and save 'cash' fares for times I'll actually earn.

flyguy6

Thanks for the tip but unfortunately I don't have any large purchase I can do on my CC in time to reach 10k in spending.

I have the CSR with 3 times points on flights. So even on SWA expenses it makes more sense to put them on my CSR instead of my Southwest card.

darthbimmer

It's worth working out the math to determine the cost of an extra trip to earn status vs. the value of that status over the next year. I made such a computation several months ago and decided it was worth it to stretch for CP and A+. For A+ I took advantage of the 1,500 bonus for every $10k of CC spend (as already discussed) and chose to "spend up" to BS fares on a few flights where WGA fares were available. The extra points earned on these flights I would've taken anyway meant that I didn't need to book an MR flight. But like I said, do the math to determine if an MR is worth it to you. It definitely makes sense for some. That's why we have a term for it!