Southwest Airlines has ‘open seating’. You line up to board based on your ticket type (“business select” fares are first), elite status, whether or not you purchased a spot in the queue (early bird) and check-in time.
There’s no assigned seats. People may already be on the plane from an earlier flight segment, but otherwise it’s open season – the earlier you board the better your selection of seats. Savvy travelers early in line head for the exit row window with no seat in front of them, but otherwise it’s usually an aisle seat towards the front.
I ask at the gate how full the flight is. If it’s not booked to capacity I’ll take an aisle closer to the back and lay out some of my stuff in the middle seat. I hope to get a that middle seat next to me empty, though I do not go as far as some people who crumple up tissues and stick those in the empty middle.
There’s an exception to ‘first come, first served’ though with seat choice: saving seats. Some people will board and save seats for others in their travel party with lower boarding numbers than they have. When my wife’s parents fly Southwest I have one of them pay for Early Bird check-in, and then save a seat for the other one. There’s no reason for them both to pay.
Southwest Airlines has no policy on the practice of saving seats one way or the other. It’s entirely up to social customers, and always struck me as something that could lead to conflict. Although most people saving seats are successful, and most people just skip on by the seat when they’re told it’s saved for someone else.
Still, the practice of saving seats can be taken to extremes. How about saving three rows of seats for a travel party? That actually takes some skill, almost like a boxer – ‘float like a butterfly, sting like a bee’ moving around and covering a large area of blockage.
We regret any disappointment during the boarding process today. As you may know, all Southwest flights are open seating, and we don't have a specific policy for or against saving seats. We apologize for any frustration, and hope for smoother sailing in the future. -Hannah
— Southwest Airlines (@SouthwestAir) March 28, 2022
It seems to me that it is one thing to save a seat or even a row, and other thing entirely to save multiple rows. Still it is not against Southwest’s rules. I’m not sure how a passenger trying to save a row behind them would block a passenger from sitting there, but social custom seems to make it a plausible strategy.
Is saving multiple rows of seats going overboard? Would you honor someone’s claim that they’re saving seats in a row they aren’t physically in?
In a city that is a hub of no one and Southwest has the most nonstop flights, I still take connectings with the others because I don’t hate myself enough to ever fly Southwest.
I generally love SW – it’s very convenient for me and the flight attendants are mainly friendly. The saving seats in general is fine ( obviously 3 rows is excessive), but if you try to save an exit row, a) you’re a jerk, and b) I’m sitting down. I’m surprised at the lack of comments because usually this topic creates hundreds of responses.
Why save only one? I would save the entire row for myself and have a great time stretching out during the flight. Heck, I’ll save the seats in front of me so I don’t get people moving their seatbacks into my space. Rockin’!
If you’re saving a middle seat, who cares. An entire row or rows, nope.
Save a seat, perhaps. An entire row: pushing it. Multiple rows — nope. I’m sitting down.
Just because your friend is too cheap to buy Early Bird.
The significant phrase on SWA.flights is “open seating”. Which means that anyone that purchased a ticket on a given flight, is “open” to occupy “any seat” that is not yet occupied by another person. “Saving a seat or seats or rows of seats” is not an option and extremely SELFISH and/or CHEAP! These are the same people that continually punch the back of your seat if you wish to recline a bit. All seats on all commercial airlines are constructed to recline (except emergency) for relaxation on flights for those that choose to do so. That is an option provided by the airlines industry for everyone whether others prefer “not to relax”. The above mentioned are socially-inept individuals that grew up with a “lack of social training or failed kindergarten.” Just my opinion….nobody asked.
I am now sitting on Southwest MSY-TPA having paid $400+ one way for biz select. Even though I had A7 I boarded at the end of A bc went to restroom. I tried to sit in rows 1,3,7,8 and was thwarted by seat savers. Now in row 9. Agree this is a first world problem. But seriously if these people want to save seats for their families or colleagues do they really need to take the best seats on the plane?
That notwithstanding I am now a convert to Spirit on this route. On the way TPA-MSY, I boarded last and paid for big front seat. Got a much larger seat at the front and no annoyances with seat savers for $100 less than what I just paid Southwest. So tell me why is Spirit so terrible?
Saving seats is rude, against norms and should be condemned by you publicly. You want early boarding and seats together? Everyone in your party pay for it. It’s gross to pay for one early bird snd the rest of your clan hop on last minute.
https://community.southwest.com/t5/Check-In-Boarding/Saving-Seats-Problem-Here-is-what-you-can-do/td-p/58974