Last week was Southwest’s big $49 and up sale that comes around each June and October. This is in line with more of their twice weekly sales but it is advertised as celebrating Southwest’s 46th birthday. I checked some city pairs are there are some that are higher and even some that are lower than the sale last week so you may be able to save!
New Southwest Birthday Sale from $42 – Good Through December!
Link: Southwest Birthday Sale
Sale Details:
- Book from June 13 through June 15, 2017, 11:59 p.m. in the respective time zone of the originating city.
- Travel from August 22 through December 16, 2017.
- Travel to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico valid September 6 through December 7, 2017
- International travel valid August 22 through December 13, 2017.
- Blackout Dates September 1, September 4, November 21-22 & November 25-27, 2017.
- Domestic travel is not valid on Fridays and Sundays.
- Travel to Florida and Nevada and from Florida to Nevada is valid only on Sundays through Wednesdays
- Travel from Florida and Nevada and from Nevada to Florida is valid only on Tuesdays through Fridays
- Travel to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico is valid Monday – Thursday
- International travel is valid Monday – Thursday
- Travel to Cancun, Cabo San Lucas/Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta is valid only on Sundays through Wednesdays
- Travel from Cancun, Cabo San Lucas/Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta is valid only on Tuesdays through Fridays
- Travel to/from Mexico City; Liberia, Costa Rica and San Jose, Costa Rica is valid daily.
Details About this New Southwest Sale
I have been noticing a trend as of late with these Southwest sales (and they pop up often). These trends show that the rules for the sale above are not always firm. By this I mean that I found the same prices (for some city pairs) for the sale valid throughout the summer while the sale says it starts August 22. That means your bookings do not necessarily have to be within the sale timeframe to take advantage of the sale prices.
Also, do not just look at the city pair sale list on the Southwest link for sale cities. Those just give ideas of some sale prices. So, check all the city pairs you are interested in to find the best prices.
Good Point Values
Even though the value of Southwest points is “fixed” around 1.5 cents per point, there are always better redemptions available than that! Just playing around with a number of city pairs, I was able to see many that were anywhere from 1.9 cents – 2.3 cents per point! That is a nice way to get some extra value from your Southwest points!
Check Your Reservations to Save Money/Points!
The real benefit of these sales is for you to check your existing Southwest reservation and see if the fare is any cheaper right now. This is very common because many people will book as far out as they can when the schedule opens to ensure they have the flight. Then, with Southwest’s generous cancellation/change policy, you can make changes to the reservation and always make sure you are booked at the lowest price.
Cancellation and Change Policy
If you have already booked your tickets in the past, you can still take advantage of the sale. Southwest has the best cancellation/rebooking policy of the US airlines. Basically, as long as you cancel by 10 minutes before the flight, you get the points back in your account for free and with no penalty. That means you are free to make any changes you want without any problems or loss of points or cash!
New since May: with Southwest’s new system, cancelling a flight will put the taxes back as a travel voucher good for a year. Better to simply change the flight if you don’t want the travel voucher. But, for all domestic flights, the taxes are just a small amount anyway so it may not be that big of a deal.
Check Your Already-Booked Reservations For Price Difference
So, now is the time to search for your tickets within this sale and see if you have a better price available now than when you had booked it. If the price has dropped, you simply select to change the flight and look at the same dates and flights again. Once you go through and confirm, you will receive a refund of the difference in miles and the cash for the taxes will be transferred for the new ticket.
In 1 Minute, You Can Have Your Points Back!
The whole process takes less than 60 seconds and you could save a lot of money or points! If you had booked your ticket in the past using cash, you will receive a refund in the form of a credit that is usable for 1 year from the time you originally booked the ticket. If you booked it with points, you will receive the points back in your account for the difference.
Summary
It is a great time to lock in reservations now and then you can always change later (for free) if the dates or travel no longer suits you. If you booked a while ago, you will have a decent shot at getting some money/points back with this sale. That is always a good thing and a great reason to shop with Southwest.
I like the rule that says the sale is not valid on Sundays but then tell you if you are flying to certain states it is. I also don’t like that they credit tax refunds back as vouchers. Last time I booked a Southwest flight with vouchers it seems that they can’t be used for some of the misc charges like early bird, etc. So this isn’t really like a cash refund.