Southwest Wanna Get Away Not Available for Return

[Sea Dog]

We have booked SW for our cruise to San Juan for November 5 and got a good price with a  "wanna get away" fare. On the return all the times that we need say that the "wanna get away" is not available. Does this mean they are really sold out of that class or are they waiting to open it up hoping that people will book the higher priced fares in "Anytime" and "Business Select"?  When  do you think they will open that class fare for booking?  If we book the higher class it will cost $1000 more than what we paid last time. Any experienced SW travelers want to weigh in on how this works?

[Zach1213]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

We have booked SW for our cruise to San Juan for November 5 and got a good price with a  "wanna get away" fare. On the return all the times that we need say that the "wanna get away" is not available. Does this mean they are really sold out of that class or are they waiting to open it up hoping that people will book the higher priced fares in "Anytime" and "Business Select"?  When  do you think they will open that class fare for booking?  If we book the higher class it will cost $1000 more than what we paid last time. Any experienced SW travelers want to weigh in on how this works?

 

Honestly, this is an impossibility for anyone on here to accurately answer. It's essentially the "will prices go down or up?" question. Airlines have super complicated, proprietary pricing models that are constantly changing, and even the most experience of us travelers aren't privy to them. 

 

So, they may release Wanna Get Away fares. They may not. That's not the answer you want, but it's the accurate one...especially if you're looking near a holiday or other major travel period. 

[Sea Dog]

35 minutes ago, Zach1213 said:

So, they may release Wanna Get Away fares. They may not.

I think you are right but wanted to ask anyway. Wanted to see if other travelers have seen trends by SW.

[travelplus]

Can you consider booking a night or two post cruise too?

[Sea Hag]

On 6/24/2021 at 3:26 AM, travelplus said:

Can you consider booking a night or two post cruise too?

This. You might very well find a flight the following day that would end up being cheaper than the Anytime or Business Select fare the day you disembark.

[FlyerTalker]

In general, once the "Wanna" tickets are sold out, only standard tickets will be available to purchase. 

 

Although it is possible that Southwest will put seats into the "Wanna" buckets (and there are more than just one "Wanna" bucket and price), it would tend to go against the standard Southwest practice of selling out the cheap seats to the quick buyers.

[travelplus]

7 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

In general, once the "Wanna" tickets are sold out, only standard tickets will be available to purchase. 

 

Although it is possible that Southwest will put seats into the "Wanna" buckets (and there are more than just one "Wanna" bucket and price), it would tend to go against the standard Southwest practice of selling out the cheap seats to the quick buyers.

Wanna Whine? It may be less expensive booking a B2B Cruise and wait a week to fly home😁. SWay not always be the cheapest.  In fact SW does not have the best schedule from SJC to LGB so I don't mind paying a bit more and fly on Alaska in First Class and use the lounge with my bags.

 

On my upcoming cruise in Feb I went ahead and booked First Class and I have a comped car servicer/t due to a mixup not my fault. I purposely arrive two days before and leave at 7;55 PM from LAX on a Saturday so I can leave port at 11 and have lunch and Supper in the Lounge and catch up on work. 

 

SW to LGB has limited service and rarely a good price. One can't tell in Feb with their schedule changes reported shortages of planes etc. For a cruise I won't take a risk. Sometimes other airlines can be less expensive if the OP is willing to open a credit card for free luggage or look at First Class .

 

I figure if I open the Delta Card first year fee then $99 a year for up to 5 free bags you could book a flight less than SW. 

Edited June 30, 2021 by travelplus

[DCPIV]

@Sea Dog I know this is an old thread, but I thought I would toss in my two cents as a frequent and long-time Southwest flier who also has friends that work for the airline and have provided some insight.

 

That Wanna fare likely is gone.  They don't hold back to open more up at the last minute.  If any more open up, it's because there were a bunch of cancellations.  However, recent experience shows that Southwest is more likely to cancel or combine flights if they are that empty as you get close to the flight date.

 

If you want that particular Southwest flight, I'd go ahead and book it.  Since it's not a Wanna fare, it's fully refundable up to the date of the flight.  If you happen to see the Wanna fare open back up, you can cancel and rebook.  You also can look for a flight the day after, as you might be able to get a hotel for less than the difference.

[Sea Dog]

@DCPIV Thank you for your insight. I have always wanted to know how it worked. We ended up going with a cheaper flight on Monday instead of Sunday when we disembark. We found a decent hotel for the night and it ended up being a little cheaper than flying out on Sunday. Again thank you for your help.

[NMTraveller]

I would fly in a couple of days early.  Lately Southwest has been notorious for cancelled flights and multiday flight delays.

[NMTraveller]

On 6/23/2021 at 8:46 AM, Sea Dog said:

We have booked SW for our cruise to San Juan for November 5 and got a good price with a  "wanna get away" fare. On the return all the times that we need say that the "wanna get away" is not available. Does this mean they are really sold out of that class or are they waiting to open it up hoping that people will book the higher priced fares in "Anytime" and "Business Select"?  When  do you think they will open that class fare for booking?  If we book the higher class it will cost $1000 more than what we paid last time. Any experienced SW travelers want to weigh in on how this works?

That means they are sold out of the least expensive class fare but you can pay more for a higher class.

[pcur]

What I do in a case like this is look for a SW flight to a stopover city.  Then, book a second one to my home airport.  Check the flight you really want, see where the stopover is, and see if you can get a flight from there.  The downside is luggage:  you have to pick it up and recheck it at the stopover city.  So, in this case I would book the continuing flight at least 3 hours later, and have a meal.