Southwest Airlines Now Has a New 4th Fare – What is it All About?

It was in late 2021 that Southwest Airlines announced that they would be adding a new fare with 'perks' that customers would be willing to pay extra for. The new fare has arrived.

For the majority of all the flights I've ever taken, I'd have to say that I've flown on Southwest the most. Recently, a friend and I flew to Las Vegas on Southwest, it was his first Southwest flight; I laughed at how he wasn't accustomed to the boarding process, with the lanes and numbers. He was kind of freaking out.

Up until now, Southwest has had three fares:

BUSINESS SELECT

ANYTIME

WANNA GET AWAY

I don't think that I've ever used Business Select; I'm more of a Wanna Get Away fare person; they are usually the cheapest ones. I'm in radio after all, I gotta pinch those pennies. Plus, on Southwest, with any fare option, I get to bring two bags for free. You have seen how those little things add up on those 'cheap' Frontier flights, right? Good gravy.

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WHAT IS THE NEW FARE?

It's 'Wanna Get Away Plus.' How many of these 'Pluses' are we going to get? Disney+, Paramount+, CNN+, now Wanna Get Away+ (though they don't use the symbol.)

HOW DOES THIS NEW FARE WORK?

According to USA Today, Southwest is saying that 'Wanna Get Away Plus' is about more choice, flexibility and rewards. I think the main perk that they want to push is that you can transfer credits or refunds that you have to another flier, as long as you are both Rapid Rewards members.

The second perk is that can make same-day changes to your flight without a fee, as opposed to the regular 'Wanna Get Away' fare. Finally, with this 'Plus' fare, you'll get two extra Rapid Rewards points for every dollar spent.

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Looking at these perks, I'm not floored. It could be that I just don't fly often enough to be intrigued by these. In addition, Southwest isn't even saying how much more the 'Plus' ticket will be, right now. Not even a 'percentage' amount.

Look for new 4th fare to appear when booking before the end of June, 2022.