However, one Member may transfer their points to another Member. Costs to transfer points to another Member must be paid for with a credit card, and transfers can be made through Southwest. Points may not be transferred to a Member's estate or as part of a settlement, inheritance, or will.
When travelling on reward travel, you will receive all fare product features except for earning Rapid Rewards points. Reward travel will follow Southwest's rules for the fare product purchased.
When traveling on points the ticket will be redeemed based on the one-way segment that was flown origin-destination , and any remaining unused points for additional one-way segments will be returned to your account.
Please allow up to four days for any unused points to post back to the original account. If your reward travel was booked using your own points, you may modify or change your reservation for reward travel at Southwest.
If you do not have enough points in the original account, you may purchase additional Rapid Rewards points with a credit card and use those points to pay for your ticket. The points automatically will be redeposited in your account.
Please allow up to four days after the date of the last flight in the reservation. If the reservation needs to be rebooked, the Member will be required to do so at the current available fare. However, all tickets are subject to any fare difference that may apply. Usually, they cost more than triple the points cost of a Wanna Get Away fare. Like all Southwest fares, you can change or cancel Southwest award tickets for free.
With this in mind, I highly recommend keeping an eye on award pricing after you book a flight — if the fare goes down, you can request a refund for the additional miles. Canceling a Southwest award ticket is just as simple. When you cancel your ticket, the miles you used to book will be refunded to your Rapid Rewards account. There are no additional cancellation fees involved, meaning that Southwest award tickets the most flexible of all the major U.
You are liable for paying certain types of taxes and fees when you book Southwest award tickets. Related: Top 9 Southwest international destinations for families. As mentioned earlier in the article, Southwest is one of the few airlines without international airline partners. This is far lower than redeeming for Southwest flights, so we recommend steering clear of this option and using other types of points and miles to book international travel.
The Southwest Companion Pass is undoubtedly one of the most valuable perks in the travel world. After earning the pass, you can choose a companion to travel with you for just the cost of taxes and fees on Southwest flights booked with cash or miles.
You can earn a Companion Pass of your own by flying Southwest segments or — more practically for most — earning , qualifying points. Qualifying points include Rapid Rewards points earned by flying, spending on credit cards and earned through Rapid Rewards Dining and Rapid Rewards Shopping. Welcome bonuses on Southwest cobranded credit cards count towards the Companion Pass, so you can make some serious progress by opening one of the Southwest credit cards featured earlier. If you plan on earning your Companion Pass through credit card welcome bonuses , try to time your spending so that you earn the required mileage at the beginning of the year.
This will give you the most time to enjoy your hard-earned Companion Pass since it will be valid for almost two years! You can only set one companion at a time, but you can change your companion three times per year. You can change your companion by calling Southwest at Related: Southwest Companion Pass: Lessons learned over a decade. Continue to plan your travel strategy and plan out the trips you want to take once things return to normal.
If your travel plans include domestic travel, I highly recommend that you consider building up a stock of Southwest Rapid Rewards points. Terms Apply. This is, therefore, a baseline value for Southwest points, based on real-world data collected from hundreds of economy routes, not a maximized value. In other words, you should aim for award redemptions that offer 1. You can earn points several ways: by flying on Southwest, by shopping and dining with partners, or with a Southwest Rapid Rewards credit card.
As of October , Southwest Rapid Rewards points do not expire. However, if you opt to close your account, the points in your account will be terminated.
All fares include two free checked bags up to 50 pounds each, no change fees and reusable funds for up to 12 months if you cancel your flight or fully refundable flights depending on the type of fare booked. Anytime: Anytime fares are a little more flexible than Wanna Get Away fares, because canceled trips can be refunded to the original form of payment or used toward another flight for up to 12 months.
Business Select: For travelers who want the Southwest "luxury" experience, Business Select fares are the most expensive but offer the most benefits. In addition to the previously mentioned benefits and the flexible cancellation policies of the Anytime fare, Business Select passengers can use the priority security lane at the airport where available after checking in. At the gate, Business Selects are guaranteed to be among the first 15 people to board.
And in the air, these passengers also get one free complimentary premium drink of their choice. However, you can use points to book hotels, cruises, rental cars or travel to Hawaii and around the world aboard over 50 airlines through the Southwest More Rewards platform — but given the low redemption value, we don't generally recommend it.
Southwest offers five co-branded credit cards through Chase: three consumer credit cards and two business cards. It comes with a sign-up bonus that can get you part of the way toward earning the coveted Southwest Companion Pass: Earn up to , bonus points. And each year, cardholders get a 6,point anniversary bonus. Hotels: You can earn Rapid Rewards points at some hotel chains. See partner hotels here. Transportation: Car rentals and ground transportation can earn you more Rapid Rewards points.
See partner car rental agencies here. Shopping and dining: Earn points at more than retailers through the Rapid Rewards Shopping. Both are excellent ways to earn and double-dip points earning, especially if that's spending you're doing anyway. Gas at Marathon gas stations: Rapid Rewards members can earn 1 point for every gallon of Marathon fuel they purchase, plus additional points on select in-store purchases and other specified achievements through the MakeItCount program.
To earn, members must sign up ahead of time and select Rapid Rewards as their earning partner. Switching electricity providers: Members in some states can also earn a sign-up bonus and ongoing bonuses when they switch their power service to NRG Home or Reliant.
Check the Rapid Rewards website to see if your home is eligible. Taking surveys: Participate in market research and earn points when you share your opinion via the e-Rewards and e-Miles platforms. Generally, you can buy Rapid Rewards points at a rate of 2. NerdWallet values Rapid Rewards points at an average of 1. You must transfer a minimum of 1, points. You can also transfer points from rental car and hotel programs to Rapid Rewards, though — unless you don't anticipate using those points in their original form — the exchange rate is pretty bad, so we don't typically recommend this.
To book flights on Southwest, go to the booking tool on Southwest's website, enter your travel information and choose the option to see the fare in points rather than dollars. If any fare classes are sold out for a given flight, that will be indicated in the results. While all fare options are available, prices in points are directly tied to their cash price.
But if you hold a Southwest credit card, you'll also have access to the More Rewards program , where you can redeem your Rapid Rewards points for hotel stays, rental cars, gift cards and more. When you earn Companion Pass, you get to use it for the remainder of the year you earned it, plus the entire next year.
The easiest way to earn your Companion Pass is through credit card sign-up bonuses. Sign up for a card like the Southwest Rapid Rewards Performance Business Credit Card , and you can earn an additional 80, bonus points.
If you recall, when you earn the Companion Pass, you earn it for the remainder of the year in which you earned it and the entire following year. This means, you ideally want to earn the pass in January so you essentially get two full years out of it.
Southwest partnered with Chase to deliver a handful of credit card options for Southwest flyers. If you don't have a Southwest card, you can still fly Southwest with miles if you have one of the best travel credit cards through Chase. For every 1, Club Rewards points you can get 1, Rapid Rewards points. In other words, even if your Club Rewards lose a little value when transferring to Rapid Rewards, it may still be worth more to you personally than redeeming for something else, such as a gift certificate to a restaurant.
Additionally, you can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points at a ratio. So for every three Marriott Bonvoy points, you can get one Rapid Rewards point. As a bonus, Marriott will add 5, miles for every 60, points you transfer to airline miles. Not a bad deal at all. With this knowledge, you can now consider the different ways you can earn, create an effective strategy that works best for you, and maximize your point-earning potential.
You now know how to earn Rapid Rewards, but how do you put all those points into action? Flying Southwest with points is just as simple as paying with cash and is basically the same process:. Take a look:. If you have flexibility in when you can travel, this is the best way to get the best deal on Southwest airfare.
Rapid Rewards points are directly tied to the cash price of the flight, so the value of each point depends on your flight and the fare you choose. For instance, a one-way flight from Ft. This puts each point at roughly 1.
0コメント