lowfareair

New product has been announced, with additional benefits for Anytime getting included EarlyBird boarding as well as priority/express lanes for checkin/security.

WGA+: 8x RR points, transferable flight credits (also applies to Anytime / BS), same day confirmed changes and standby


Official release: https://www.swamedia.com/releases/re...media-briefing

NoStressHere

https://www.swamedia.com/releases/re...media-briefing

Mar 24, 2022 Southwest Airlines is excited to announce Wanna Get Away Plus�, a new fare that joins Wanna Get Away�, Anytime, and Business Select� in the Company’s fare product lineup. This fare will be available to Customers late in the second quarter of 2022.

Wanna Get Away Plus� provides Customers even more flexibility, choice, and rewards for a modest buy-up from Wanna Get Away. In addition to the benefits offered across all our fares (2 free checked bags, no change fees, free TV/movies/messaging, Wanna Get Away Plus� offers:

• Transferable flight credit(s), a new benefit that enables Customers to make a one-time transfer of eligible unused flight credit to a new traveler for future use.4
• More flexibility through same-day confirmed change/same-day standby
• More earning power with 8X Rapid Rewards points.

In addition, Customers who opt for a refundable Anytime or Business Select fare and our Tier Members will receive more benefits. Business Select and Anytime fares will have the same transferable flight credit benefit as Wanna Get Away Plus�. Anytime fares will also gain EarlyBird Check-In6, Priority Lane7, and Express Lane8 benefits. Tier Members (A-List /A-List Preferred Customers) will now receive same-day confirmed change in addition to same-day standby

These changes to Business Select and Anytime will all be available to all Customers when Wanna Get Away Plus� is available for sale in all Southwest channels

See the small print, etc in the link above

isaacchambers

Ha! Nailed it.....no surprises here.

N830MH

Either did I! I'm actually a big surprised!

You still can get 2 free checked bags, same-day flight change and no change fees.

nsx

Cue the whining by A-list members who are aced out of their free standby by WGA+ confirmed changers. As load factors climb this will make the extra edge of A-list preferred over A-list more valuable.

Edit: My bad. A-Listers get confirmed changes too, so it's first come first served.

Reaching

It will be interesting to see how confirmed same day changes will work for WGA+ fares with companions.

Boraxo

It's hard to get excited about this one. There is some marginal benefit to me to be able to transfer TTF within my family. But that's not worth a whole lot. The other perks are useless to me.

As for full fare aka Anytime tickets does anyone really buy them unless they are the only fare left? On the rare occasions when I had to buy Anytime (usually Vegas weekends) I will always pay extra for BS if it is not sold out. But I guess it will be nice to know I won't be nickel and dimed for EBCI when I am already getting gouged.

IMO the smarter move would have been to package EBCI with WGA+ . This is essentially the strategy utilized by legacy carriers to sell up from basic economy; you are essentially buying assigned seats, and for elites, you are preserving your perks. I am sure the beancounters did not want to cannibalize the extra revenue from EBCI. But I don't think the current WGA+ package will cause anyone to buy up from WGA except those non-elites who value SDC (and maybe save $$ over the higher fares on the more popular times).

I get that WN needs to find new ways to increase revenues but I wouldn't bet much on this strategy.

Loose Cannon

I'm glad that two free checked bags is safe at least for now and hopefully forever.

bwallet

To me, the big change is that AL and ALP now get free same day confirmed changes. In the past, it was only same day standby. That's a plus in my book.

TBD

I wonder if this is part of WN's continued push to be more "corporate friendly". I think the answer will depend on who the credit transfer is really for - do consumers really need this or is it actually aimed at name change policies from the big three for corporate clients?

pinniped

It will be interesting to see two things: (a) the price differential between WGA+ and WGA and (b) what effect, if any, this has on the historical WGA fares for my common WN routes.

If they had gone with a Basic Economy type offer, I'd be pretty skeptical that the plan was to recondition my former "normal" far-in-advance fares on a given route to be the new BE fare, effectively forcing me to "buy up" to get what I always had. But with WGA+, it's different...it might be genuinely valuable if it's priced right. Essentially it's a small bit of insurance for people who are likely to change flight times within a day. Or, as has been pointed out, likely to want to transfer the credit to a colleague.

dlaue

If you are A-list preferred and traveling with a companion, the same day standby is currently useless, so no whining from me.

I wish that Southwest would return to the original policy of allowing a traveler on a companion pass same day standby privileges along with the revenue passenger. Or charge a $30 or $40 fee for the companion's stand by.

I predict frequent chaos just before flight time at the check in desks as purchasers of this new ticket category come running to claim their same day standby.

Edit: the new fare bucket allows same day CONFIRMED reservations, not standby.
In the words of Emily Litella, "never mind."

nsx

I corrected my post because A-Listers get confirmed changes. I think the trick will be to cancel the companion, make the confirmed change an hour or more before departure, then add the companion to your new flight. Since this is so obvious, I think gate agents will just do it for you.

dmbolp

Is this posted anywhere? As AL+ I've been handed a boarding posting before when asking to fly standby, GA seemed to check loads and saw it was safe to not have me wait and simply give me a boarding position. Or, maybe an unspoken benefit like the auto/sequential CP check-in?

I attended a focus group last year that I now realize was for this new bucket. Transferable was mentioned, but there was confusion among the group when same-day change was discussed, and whether or not it was a current tier benefit (and not just a bucket benefit)

bwallet

That's a gate agent for an earlier flight. Confirmed same day means that I can call and get my flight changed, not standby, if seats are available. I don't have to show up early, not clear, and then wait for 5 hours until my original flight (been there, done that). Also, standby requires it to be an earlier flight. Confirmed same day means I could take a later flight instead.