Why be better ... We can suck like everyone else

[Matt1735]

Southwest Airlines ending Bags Fly Free as of May 28.

Their email:

Today we announced updates to some of our policies and benefits within our fare bundles. Sharing them with you is important to us, as we’re working to offer you more choices to create travel experiences that fit your needs.

Updates to Checked Baggage Policy

We will offer two free checked bags to Rapid Rewards® A-List Preferred Members and Customers traveling on Business Select fares. We will also offer one free checked bag to A-List Members and other select Customers. In addition, Southwest will credit one checked bag for Rapid Rewards Credit Cardmembers. All remaining Customers will pay to check their first and second bags, and we will continue to charge for the third and fourth checked bags. Changes will apply to flights booked on or after May 28.

Updates to Our Fare Bundles

We're updating the benefits of our fares bundles in phases. Whether you’re looking for a lower price with fewer perks, or more benefits for added flexibility, you’ll have the choice to pick what works best for your trip.

Phase 1: Beginning this month, we increased our Rapid Rewards earn ratio on our Business Select fares and lowered the earn ratio on our Wanna Get Away® and Wanna Get Away Plus™ fares. We will also begin to vary our redemption rates across our fare products on some high- and low-demand travel periods.

Phase 2: Beginning May 28, we will introduce a new Basic fare. This new Basic fare will be our lowest price point and will have less flexibility than other fares. Additionally, we will be adding expiration dates to our Flight Credits, which will vary based on which fare you choose to purchase.

The chart below gives you a full picture of the revised fare products as of May 28, 2025, ranging from most flexible to value-first.

We recognize these changes may be a disappointment to some, but know we’re committed to building a Southwest that will continue to offer you low fares, convenient flights to destinations you want, and a travel experience that is rewarding. You can count on the Heart of Southwest, our People, to guide you through the changes and welcome you on your next journey with their friendly, award-winning Customer Service.

 

[DanielSimpsonDay]

"A disappoinment to *some*"

Damn right. I, for one, was gleeful to see these new fees and bare-bones options. As a consumer, it's high time we started paying more for the same (or even lesser) product.

 

[BitterYoungMatador2]

Somewhere, Herb Kelleher just opened a bottle of Wild Turkey.

 

[Brooklyn Bridge]

Donald Trump’s America, everyone.

 

[dixiehack]

I am the very antithesis of a frequent flier but when I do SWA is my default carrier, in no small part because of the pricing and straightforward way it is presented. The no assigned seating thing (also going away soon) works for me too.

Lo and behold word comes down last week that what was supposed to be a three-day business trip to Nashville is now in Chicago, so I’m in the market for a last minute ticket. Southwest has several flights out of Birmingham (another reason I like it) but all of the options to Chicago threatened to eat up an entire day, either through needing to arrive at the airport pre-dawn, landing late night or making some asinine connections through the likes of Orlando or Phoenix or Denver.

So I hit Expedia just to see what else was out there. United had room on a regional jet nonstop to O’Hare that’s about two hours each way AND roughly $20 cheaper than the lowest SWA fare. Boom, done.

So I’m like everyone else - what’s left to make me pick Southwest if they’re becoming just another pain in the ass airline?

 

[TigerVols]

Donald Trump’s America, everyone.

Wealth extraction is the key to everything everyone in power is doing these days

 

[BTExpress]

I am the very antithesis of a frequent flier but when I do SWA is my default carrier, in no small part because of the pricing and straightforward way it is presented. The no assigned seating thing (also going away soon) works for me too.

Lo and behold word comes down last week that what was supposed to be a three-day business trip to Nashville is now in Chicago, so I’m in the market for a last minute ticket. Southwest has several flights out of Birmingham (another reason I like it) but all of the options to Chicago threatened to eat up an entire day, either through needing to arrive at the airport pre-dawn, landing late night or making some asinine connections through the likes of Orlando or Phoenix or Denver.

So I hit Expedia just to see what else was out there. United had room on a regional jet nonstop to O’Hare that’s about two hours each way AND roughly $20 cheaper than the lowest SWA fare. Boom, done.

So I’m like everyone else - what’s left to make me pick Southwest if they’re becoming just another pain in the ass airline?

"Do you go where I want to go when I want to go there?" has been my only airline criteria for decades.

Southwest STILL does not fly into Knoxville or anywhere internationally other than the Caribbean. Hence, it's barely ever been on my radar,

 

[dixiehack]

Never flown in or out of TYS, but I wonder if it doesn’t suffer from the Huntsville problem of having a good chunk of its business traffic generated by federal employment (and thus price insensitive). That leads to Huntsville costing an arm and a leg for ordinary schlubs and thus a lot of people flying out of Nashville or Birmingham instead. And discount carriers don’t really stick there.

 

[John]

Airlines and everyone have gotten the bags thing all wrong from the beginning. To check a bag should be free: it's out of the way, they can know exactly how much it weighs, it's not holding up boarding or exiting. To carry on, and few things are abused the way the "one carry-on bag" is abused, is when you should be charged.

 

[poindexter]

we’re working to offer you more choices to create travel experiences that fit your needs.

It isn't possible to roll my eyes any more than when reading this

 

[I Should Coco]

Airlines and everyone have gotten the bags thing all wrong from the beginning. To check a bag should be free: it's out of the way, they can know exactly how much it weighs, it's not holding up boarding or exiting. To carry on, and few things are abused the way the "one carry-on bag" is abused, is when you should be charged.

Having flown Alaska a couple times in the past few months (way more air travel than usual for me), I noticed on every flight there would be too many carry-ons to fit in the overhead bins. These bags would be checked for free at the gate just before boarding.

Made me feel like a sucker for paying the $35 to check my bag.

 

[poindexter]

Airlines and everyone have gotten the bags thing all wrong from the beginning. To check a bag should be free: it's out of the way, they can know exactly how much it weighs, it's not holding up boarding or exiting. To carry on, and few things are abused the way the "one carry-on bag" is abused, is when you should be charged.

You are right. I have never thought of it.

 

[Roscablo]

I'm a Southwest loyalist for the most part, but have been loyal to a few other airlines over time and switched -- it may sound funny, but Frontier was great when it was locally owned and before it went full barebones discount.

I like the Southwest pricing tiers and ability to easily change flights, especially same day. The fact they have so many to so many different places is great. Helps that Denver is basically a hub, I can get almost everywhere nonstop. The bags thing was mostly a bonus, but I almost always used it even when I didn't have to just because it saves having to carry through the airport or fight for overhead space, which even on Southwest can be dicey. The no assigned seats I can take or leave, but it did help them stick out some and their boarding process is honestly the best there is probably because of it.

All that said, they have not been the cheapest option in a long time. You can often find better fares on the main airlines. And they've obviously had some operational failures the past few years.

I'm not a business person, but how does this get them new customers, keep old ones or differentiate them at all? Like all other corporate greed out there it just bows down to shareholders who think they can make another buck (one story I saw said they lose an estimated $1.8 billion in bag fees, but gain $1.5 billion in customers because of it). I have a card and points, but it won't make me automatically look at Southwest moving forward.

 

[SixToe]

Never flown in or out of TYS, but I wonder if it doesn’t suffer from the Huntsville problem of having a good chunk of its business traffic generated by federal employment (and thus price insensitive). That leads to Huntsville costing an arm and a leg for ordinary schlubs and thus a lot of people flying out of Nashville or Birmingham instead. And discount carriers don’t really stick there.

Flying out of Nashville or Birmingham or driving to Hellanta to avoid the hop results in paying for parking, thus negating all or almost all of the savings. Other issues are the drive time, traffic on psychotic I-65 or back roads with Dolla Genruh MeeMaw or Tractor Bob, having to leave early before the flight or being dog-ass tired upon arrival and having to drive home.

Pros, cons. I'm at the point in my life, though, where I'm like @BTExpress and don't care. Do you fly where I need to go, with minimal legs? Yes? Thanks. I'll have my small roller/carry-on and backpack.


Weird Travel Thing -- Anyone else do this? I pack old t-shirts, socks, underwear that I can toss or donate, and not have to bring home. I've done this with shoes, too, older ones that I could knock around in for a 7-10 days and then leave behind.

 

[FileNotFound]

“Activist investor” is the business equivalent to “domestic terrorist.”

 

[BTExpress]

Never flown in or out of TYS, but I wonder if it doesn’t suffer from the Huntsville problem of having a good chunk of its business traffic generated by federal employment (and thus price insensitive). That leads to Huntsville costing an arm and a leg for ordinary schlubs and thus a lot of people flying out of Nashville or Birmingham instead. And discount carriers don’t really stick there.

Back in the mid-late 80s there was a discount airline called Florida Express that flew to TYS. And Allegiant flies there today. So I don't know.

 

[sgreenwell]

The no assigned seating thing (also going away soon) works for me too.

This is a severe detriment to my wife, and I'm not a huge fan of it either. If the cost is within $50, $100, she pretty much always opts for the non-Southwest option, partly because of this. Just let me pick my damn seat ahead of time.

 

[BTExpress]

So if you're the last passenger to board a full Southwest flight . . . you're basically hunting for that one open seat with no idea where it is? Or is there some system they use?

 

[John]

Flying out of Nashville or Birmingham or driving to Hellanta to avoid the hop results in paying for parking, thus negating all or almost all of the savings. Other issues are the drive time, traffic on psychotic I-65 or back roads with Dolla Genruh MeeMaw or Tractor Bob, having to leave early before the flight or being dog-ass tired upon arrival and having to drive home.

Pros, cons. I'm at the point in my life, though, where I'm like @BTExpress and don't care. Do you fly where I need to go, with minimal legs? Yes? Thanks. I'll have my small roller/carry-on and backpack.


Weird Travel Thing -- Anyone else do this? I pack old t-shirts, socks, underwear that I can toss or donate, and not have to bring home. I've done this with shoes, too, older ones that I could knock around in for a 7-10 days and then leave behind.

I do the leave behind thing when I go on vacation, have been for years. I figure I'm going to pick up a few items on my trip, so I always pack some stuff on its last legs so that my bag essentially breaks even when I head to the airport for home.

 

[sgreenwell]

So if you're the last passenger to board a full Southwest flight . . . you're basically hunting for that one open seat with no idea where it is? Or is there some system they use?

Yes, pretty much. If you're cheap, then the Southwest policy allows you to get a "good" seat, because you can just line up early (and waste your time instead). People running late or on standby get the last, ****ty seats. Also, the flight attendants then get to be the kindergarten teachers of the plane, as they guide people to the last few remaining seats.