Southwest Airlines announced today that they’ll be offering double Rapid Rewards points for flights through August 31. In addition business travelers booking through SWABIZ receive 20% discounts on Anytime and Business Select fares.
Registration for double points is required, and trips must be booked and flown May 12 through August 31 (so previously booked travel doesn’t earn a bonus, but you can cancel and rebook at no fee but watch out for changes in fare). Promotion registration should become available shortly.
Members will receive 12 bonus points per dollar spent on Business Select® fares, 10 bonus points per dollar spent on Anytime fares®, and six bonus points per dollar spent on Wanna Get Away® fares. Bonus points are in addition to the standard flight points earned through Rapid Rewards.
The SWABIZ corporate booking tool 20% discount is valid for flights booked and flown by August 31 with promo code SAVE2020.
On top of Marriott’s gift card and points sale and American’s new booking bonus, Southwest’s move suggests travel providers see an opportunity to bring back travel that hasn’t existed over the past couple of months.
I’ve certainly seen ‘trip shaming’ subside. We can now at least talk about who should book trips now to certain destinations.
Southwest has made earning elite status and a companion pass easier and also made credit card spend more lucrative for earning elite status too. Adding double points for flights into the mix makes it an especially rewarding time to travel. I suspect this is only the beginning.
