FSUNole

I searched for information regarding this question but came up empty. Does anyone know what Southwest's policy is on End-to-End ticketing? Between my start/end cities there is no scheduled fare, but I can end-to-end ticket (Monday, Flight 1: 8 AM departure, 9 AM arrival; Flight 2 ("Return Flight"): 10 AM departure, 11 AM arrival) for cheaper than any other carrier. (Reverse order on the true return flight home.)

Is this allowed?
If my first flight is delayed and I miss the 10 AM, would I be placed on the next flight or be out of luck?
Has anyone had experience doing this before?

Thanks for the help!

curbcrusher

First, welcome to FlyerTalk, FSUNole!

This is allowed, and many folks here have done it without incident. If you miss your second flight, you should be accomodated on the next flight.

nsx

It's in the FAQ, but I'm quite impressed that you figured this out on your own.

wanaflyforless

How much of a right vs a courtesy is this?

If the next flight is sold to capacity, will they allow standby in this situation?

FSUNole

Thanks to everyone who responded. Does anyone have any input to wanaflyforless's question regarding the right versus courtesy? Thanks in advance!

SAPMAN

I do not think it is a "right". But SWA will try to get you on another flight.

If you take an 8am, it is rare that you will be late departing unless you have severe weather there. The late afternoon flights are more of a problem as any snag during the day can cause delays later on. One hour "layover" is usually more than enough time.

By the way, be sure to have them check your bag all the way to your final destination -- which they will do. You will likely not have time to retrieve bags and recheck in and get to plane in 1 hour.

Also: Get to airport at least 1.5 hr. ahead -- in case you have a minor issue with the baggage check. You will then have time to resolve. And get both boarding passes the day before on line.

iTanNicNic

I think if you are on a Y fare, it's a right, for the rest, it's a courtesy.

nsx

Doesn't the standard flat tire rule apply? Arrive at the gate less than 2 hours late and you can standby for no extra charge.

redraiderkcc

I have done this similar situation and have four trips booked like in a similar fashion this summer. The trips either had a published connection and two tickets are cheaper OR there was no published connection.

I did this last week purchasing two tickets on a published connection because it was cheaper. Quiet a bit actually, if I remember correctly over $100. However, when I checked in, the agent gave me all sorts of attitude and would not check my bags all the way through.

Luckily for me, I had about an hour and half between connections and could retrieve my bags and recheck them. When I rechecked them I asked what the policy was, and they told me the bags should have been checked all the way through. The agent appologized.

However, the orginal ticket agent was by far the rudest employee I have ever met that works for SWA. I noticed her not only being rude to me, but others as well.

crhptic

Unless this was at BWI, trust me, she isn't the rudest SW employee.

gregorygrady

My guess is that if you book the flight this way on one PNR (Depart: City A, Arrive: City B, Return: City C), then they would have to check your luggage all the way through. If they refused, I think they would be liable and would have to deliver your luggage to your hotel/house in City C. Most agents these days are fairly nice about it, but years ago I had a problem as well with one agent who wouldn't do this for me.

msblrobs

I did this last month on a SEA-MDW, MDW-ALB flight for my family of four and I will reiterate that the SEA agents gave me a serious hard time about checking my luggage through to ALB. My fare doing it this way was $75 as opposed to $179 per ticket. They did oblige but I have never experienced such rudeness from Southwest employees before. I was shocked but sucked it up for a $400+ savings .

tusphotog

I do this quite often between on flights out of Tucson, saving me a substantial amount of money. I've had a couple agents agents give me a blank stare, but when I explain how to do it, they do it. In Portland, there's one agent who gives me a really hard time, telling me I'm "costing the airline a lot of money" and they are going to put a stop to it.

My reply is I do this all the time at airports around the country and never have a problem checking bags. If all else fails, get a supe over to do it.

On an aside when the agent told me that I was costing the airline a lot of money, I told her that until Southwest forbids it, I'm going to continue doing it.

SAPMAN

Tell her if you were on American, WN would be getting none of your money. If an agent forbids to check bags all the way though for me, I will nicely complain as I have had others do it often (so it must not be against the rules). If they persist, I will write a stern letter to WN.

If WN does not want people making End to End reserv. to save $$ -- they can just raise their fares (and probably get less revenue overall).

FSUNole

Thanks, everyone! Does anyone know whether or not you receive a credit for both legs of the flight, or does it credit to your account like you had purchased a flight with a layover? If you get double, that makes this an even more appealing option!