curbcrusher

The schedule opened through August 13, 2010 at about 9:00 AM Central Time this morning. The next extension is planned on March 23, for travel through November 5, 2010.

Service to Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP) begins May 23.

Enjoy your holiday season!

nsx

The schedule opened through October 30, 2010 at about 10:10 AM Central Time this morning. Ding! announced the opening precisely at 10:00 AM Central, but the schedule was not actually open until 10 minutes later.

Southwest's Travel Tools page says: "On June 10, we will open our schedule for sale through January 7, 2011."

In other news:

Southwest's overhaul of its website has been drawing unfavorable reviews: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...site-look.html

Get an extra credit each way for your flights within California. Register by April 6 and fly by May 26. Reservations must be booked between March 11, 2010 and April 6, 2010. See http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...alifornia.html

Be sure to read your email Rapid Rewards Report. There have recently been some excellent targeted offers for the Rapid Rewards Visa card. Some people got 32 credits for first use; others got 16 credits plus $500 in Southwest gift cards once they reached $5000 in purchases.

nsx

The schedule is now open through January 7, 2011. The opening occurred earlier than usual, around 9:15AM Central time. The servers have been crushed, giving all sorts of error messages. This may be partly due to the widespread dissemination of the timing of the extension: Ding pre-announced the extension over the weekend.

In other news, Southwest recently confirmed that the launch of Rapid Rewards 2.0 will not occur until 2011.

nsx

No annual fee for first year, 16 credits on first use, and $500 in gift cards if you spend $5000 within 3 months.

FT member jackcrawfish has just posted an improvement on the deal originally posted by goldenbear:
See http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...l#post14258379 for discussion.

curbcrusher

The schedule is now open through March 11, 2011. The opening occurred around 7:00 AM Central time, with DING! notification firing at exactly that time.

In other, recent news:

Ticketless Travel Funds are losing much of their famed flexibility on January 28, 2011:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...ange-ttfs.html

Southwest's policy of accepting all drink coupons regardless of expiration is being wound down over the course of the next year:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...-1-2010-a.html

Bonus credits for PHL, BWI, and IAD:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...l15-sep30.html

Bonus credits for PHX, BOS, MHT, and PVD:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...vd-promos.html

curbcrusher

The schedule is now open through April 25, 2011. The opening was observed by ftnoob around 5:48 AM Central time. DING! notification has not occurred as of this writing.

Recent threads of interest:

Southwest is acquiring AirTran for $1.4B:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...y-airtran.html

Southwest will start service at EWR in March 2011:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...ch-2011-a.html

The Partnerpalooza bonus credit promotion and game has returned:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...a-returns.html

Bonus credits for BWI, BOS, MHT, and PVD:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...it-promos.html

Bonus credits for PHL and DEN:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...s-phl-den.html

Rapid Rewards 2.0 *is* coming next year. Join the discussion and speculation here:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...on-thread.html

nsx

The schedule is now open through June 3, 2011.

The opening was observed by FT member swag who posted at 5:44 AM Central time. DING! notification follwed about 1.25 hours later. I was still sleeping on Pacific Time. This is the second schedule extension in a row to occur very early in the morning.

To find the expected date for the next extension, wait a week or two and check the text near the top under the words "Travel Tools" at http://www.southwest.com/html/travel-tools/

Currently, that page says:

nsx

This is a 72 hour sale with really good prices. Book by Thursday 10/28, midnight Pacific time. Allowable travel dates are 12/1-12/15 and 1/4-2/16.

Fares are by mileage:
$30 0-450 miles
$60 451-1000 miles
$90 1001-1500 miles
$120 1501+ miles

http://www.southwest.com/landing/hal...ROHALWOW101026

Book all travel you think you will need during this period NOW! Keep in mind that any ticketless funds will be tied to the specific passenger if you don't move them to a new reservation before January 28, 2011.

nsx

The schedule is now open through August 12, 2011.

The opening was observed by FT member colin_sfo who posted at noon Central time, late in the day relative to most extensions. I was on the road and still asleep. Sorry for the delay in posting this news flash.

To find the expected date for the next extension, wait a week or two and check the text near the top under the words "Travel Tools" at http://www.southwest.com/html/travel-tools/

Currently, that page says:

On February 8, we will open our schedule for sale through September 30, 2011.

nsx

You may want to re-book your December flights today if you can find low enough fares. Below is the triple credit lightning deal, as posted by curbcrusher 3 hours ago on the forum. Note that there is also a bonus credit for new RR member signups today using a special link, but the triple credit for travel offer applies to both existing RR members and new members:



WN hit the 1 Million Fan milestone on its Facebook page on Monday. To celebrate, they are offering triple credit on flights booked today for travel during this month. They state you must register through the link on the Rapid Rewards tab of their Facebook page to qualify, but a direct link exists:

http://luv.southwest.com/servlet/formlink/f?kOHpjQTSCB

Offer:
Terms and Conditions:
Additionally, there is a RR signup promo available today that will get you three bonus enrollment credits instead of the usual two. Add the credits received for subscribing to the email lists (and staying subscribed for three months), and that makes five credits total available through this offer.

http://www.southwest.com/1millionfacebookfansrr/

Note that this page contains the direct link to today's Triple Credit promo ("Already a Rapid Rewards Member? Register now to take advantage of this promotion!") that allows you to avoid Facebook if you desire.

Offer:
Terms and Conditions:

nsx

See the discussion at http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...l#post15364377

These sale fares have appeared, partial disappeared, and now mostly reappeared. They could end at any time, so make your decisions quickly!

nsx

Southwest has announced its long anticipated (and feared here on FT) overhaul of Rapid Rewards. The new program will begin on March 1, 2011.

Read all the details on FlyerTalk at

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...-1-2011-a.html

See Southwest's Flashy (pun intended) description at

http://www.southwest.com/newRR

and see Southwest's FAQ at

http://www.southwest.com/newRR/faq.do

curbcrusher

Tailgater spotted a new offer today for the Chase Southwest Visa that provides two Rapid Rewards award tickets after your first purchase.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...-cc-offer.html

Also, the much maligned TTF inflexibility that was scheduled for implementation toward the end of this month has been postponed indefinitely per SWABrian.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/15676870-post292.html

curbcrusher

The schedule opened this morning through September 30, 2011.

ftnoob has joined our forum's moderator team. Welcome!

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...ator-team.html

Rapid Rewards 2.0 is in range and pulls into the gate in just three short weeks. Our members have been busy dissecting the new program, and discussing strategy for maximizing its value and preserving the value of the departing program just a bit longer. Some actions to consider before March 1:

1) Extend long-expired awards or lose them forever. See:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...ing-3-1-a.html

2) Earn enough credits to earn a Standard Award with one or two credits left over going into the transition. This will give you the choice of converting points for another Standard Award or abandon your small amount of orphan credits.

3) Remove your Rapid Rewards number from upcoming reservations to the extent that you will have more than one or two credits left over going into the transition. Request retroactive credit (1200 points each way) after March 1. Keeping your surplus credit count down to 1 or 2 maximizes your freedom to choose to convert points to a Standard Award or not.

For up to date information on Rapid Rewards 2.0, see post 1 of:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...-1-2011-a.html

Additional tips are found at:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...ps-tricks.html

Southwest starts service to the Palmetto State at Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP) and Charleston, SC (CHS) on March 13. Will they offer a Rapid Rewards signup bonus to celebrate?

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...harleston.html

nsx

You have until February 28 to request a transfer from Starwood Preferred Guest points to Rapid Rewards if you want to earn Standard Awards or if you want to avoid the risk of devaluation.

It's reasonable to expect the new transfer rate to be no better than 1.25 SPG to 1 RR. It's also possible that SPG and Southwest will not be able to negotiate a mutually acceptable transfer rate for the new program, leaving us with no transfer option at all.

The SPG to RR transfer is a great way to top off your quest for a Companion Pass. It's also useful for rescuing orphan credits. The variations are explained at http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...n-options.html