CSquared

I came here for one question, then stumbled across the post about the new Wanna Get Away+ fares introduced earlier this year.

My initial question was - as an A-Lister, I often fly standby, jumping on an earlier flight when a seat is available using a basic Wanna Get Away fare. If my original flight is LAS to SEA nonstop and I get to the airport early and opt for a LAS to SEA with a connection in OAK, is that allowed. And Vice versa - if my original ticket is a connection and then I want to standby for a nonstop - I feel like it�s allowed via the rules, but wondering if anyone has tested it.

Was also reading the rules around the new Wanna Get Away Plus fares and the Same Day Change and Same Day Standby options. I love the flexibility of standing by for a later flight, but a few questions:

- I saw someone comment that this is now available to A-Listers regardless of what fare class you book - Incl. Wanna Get Away. Is that true? So you wouldn�t need to buy a WGA+ fare?

- if you fly standby for a later flight, how do you get confirmed? If my flight is at 9am and I want to fly on the 8pm flight, if at 8am the 8pm flight is open so I decide to take that and then come later that afternoon the flight is sold out, what happens? Maybe I�m interpreting the benefit wrong.

- for SDC, is that also a A-List benefit too now, or just a WGA+ benefit. I�m confused on whether I pay a fare difference. I get I could pay any additional taxes and fees, but do you pay a fare difference? So does this mean that if I check at 8am and I see the 8pm flight has 1 seat available, I can change it then with no problem?

Thanks.

dmbolp

A-List now gets free same-day-changes. in you example above, if the 8pm has an open seat as of 8am, you'd do a same-day-change, not standby

nsx

A-listers can change for free online or via the app at midnight local time. You may have to pay higher fees for a connection. I've seen a +$9 option for a connection vs. the original nonstop, but I never completed such a change so I don't know whether it's actually charged.

hhoope01

Check out the following page: https://www.southwest.com/html/air/samedaychange.html

Of particular note to your last question, from the above linked page: *A-List and A-List Preferred Members can take advantage of free same-day change and same-day standby benefits, even with Wanna Get Away fares. So if you are A-List or A-List Preferred, you won't have to pay a fare difference even if you have a base WGA fare. If you aren't an elite, then you would pay the fare difference if on a WGA fare.

CSquared

Oh wow, thanks. So that is a huge benefit upgrade, IMO. Sometimes I travel very spontaneously and if I have an early morning flight, think about switching later, but not wanting to pay the last minute difference in fares to make that change. I didn’t realize this change positively impacted A-List.

nsx

I�m sure there are many A-listers who will think there was a website error in their favor when they change their flights the same day at zero extra cost.

m907

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/sout...-free-wga.html

abaheti

Sorry I am still confused after reading above and their website. If I am A-list and book a flight but include my non-status spouse on my reservation, do we both get free same day change since on same reservation (even if a wanna get away discount fare)? (I know they benefit from early boarding/a-list by being attached to me)? I do not have companion pass. Thanks.

jiburi

when choosing same day change, you can sometime get a credit for a price difference for the new flight; but for a same day standby, no.

Jiburi

Troopers

No. You as an A-lister gets free same day change. Your non-status spouse on the same reservation will not get it.


https://www.southwest.com/rapidrewar...SUBNAV-RR-TIER

abaheti

Thanks! This makes the calculus a little more complicated... Buy higher fare for both of us so she can maybe change with me if needed, or put us on separate reservations where I can go cheaper and she goes higher to get free change but then she doesn't get early boarding number by being on my reservation. First world problems, I know. Just means I have to think a little bit about each flight. We tend not to switch a lot on leisure travel vs when I fly for work (e.g., the other day caught earlier flights both directions and switched for free)

synergistic

I can't tell if this benefit implementation changed, or if my prior experiences were because of schedule changes rather than A-List benefits. I'd like to get home earlier tonight, but despite listing FLL/MIA/PBI as 'Miami area airports' the system doesn't appear to be allowing a change to MIA instead of FLL. Unfortunately, all the FLL flights are booked up.

Is this how it always was, and I just didn't notice because I was always on flights that had a prior schedule change? Or did the implementation / definition of 'same cities' change at some point?

oceanbreeez

Confirmed same day change for A-List never allowed you to change between cities like MIA/FLL the way you can with flight disruptions. I can't speak for other city pairs, but I tried to do MIA/FLL changes from the start, including calling in before the online feature was implemented and it was never part of the benefit.

LegalTender

There has to be a disruption. IMO, using "sister airport", "area airport" and "co-terminal" interchangeably is misleading.

synergistic

Thanks for the verification - for a long time there, I was definitely flying on force-changed flights 90% of the time - I must have been availing myself of that policy without thinking about it.

Using the phrase 'same city pairs' instead of 'same airports' does seem to imply that coterminals might be interchangeable in some situations - California, perhaps? - but I can't really complain. It's a great benefit, even without coterminal access.