SW Airlines boarding policy

[eandrsmom]

We haven't flown SW in years, however we were able to get decent airfares for our upcoming trip. We will be traveling with our 4 kids, one of which is an infant on lap. Is it their policy to allow people with small children to board first? I know that this used to be the policy, but was wondering if it had changed.

[vicster]

A few months ago Southwest changed their boarding policy and people with small children no longer get to board first.

[TheRustyScupper]

Boarding is by check-in number in each group (example: A-32 goes before A-33)
. . . Group A/B/C - handicapped (wheel chairs, etc)
. . . Group A - families with kids under two (must be from Group A-16 thru A-30)
. . . Group A - #1-#15
. . . Group A - #16-#30
. . . Group B/C - families with kids under two (from Groups B&C)
. . . Group B - #1-#15
. . . Group B - #16-#30
. . . Group C - #1-#15
. . . Group C - #16-#30

NOTE: The new system prevents all the seats being taken by families with small kids. A MAJOR COMPLAINT BY BUSINESS TRAVELERS. Now, business travelers are GUARANTEED a seat between A-1 and A-15, regardless of when they check-in, even if it is 30-minutes before the flight. They do not have to check-in 24-hrs ahead of time to get a good seat. It stops anyone else from getting an A-number below A-15.

NOTE2: I like the new policy. One gets tired of having to get behind all the families and get struck in an undesirable seat. When you travel on business and do it frequently, you should get some perks. With boarding families only from A-15 thru A-30, it doesn't get a lot of families on board before us.

[AZ Disney]

I just wanted to give you the info on what the changes are. The best thing to do is checkin online exactly 24 hours ahead of time. This will get you an A boarding pass in all likely hood. If you get A, you're set and you just board according to what A number you have. If you get anything beyond A then this is where the new procedures come into play...Family boarding begins immediately following all A's and the gate agent will make an announcement. It's easy, don't worry. Southwest is the best!

[aurora, ariel, and bell]

Is children only under 2 allowed to board early. We are travelling with a 2, 3, and 4 yr old. We will check in 24 hrs before but if something happens that we do not get an A boarding would they really split up the parents and kids...i would not want the 4 year old sitting next to a stranger on her first flight...:(

[faline]

Even if families with small children don't happen to secure an "A" boarding pass, they are still allowed to board between the "A" and "B" groups. This should guarantee that you don't need to worry about your children sitting away from the rest of your family!

[eandrsmom]

Thanks for the info. Also, we will have our laptop at the resort, but not our printer. Can you check-in online and print your boarding passes when you get to MCO?

[lindique]

Thanks for the info. Also, we will have our laptop at the resort, but not our printer. Can you check-in online and print your boarding passes when you get to MCO?
Yes, you can. In addition, if you are in the parks at the 24 hour mark, you can go to Guest Services and they will get and print your boarding passes for you.

[mickey&missy]

When we went to WDW in March we flew SW with our 7, 5, and then 9 month old. The 9 month old had his own seat with his car seat. We had no problem board at all. I was a little affraid it would be a problem but it wasn't.

Going down we ended up with 1/2 of our party being in the end of A and 1/2 being the beginning of B and it still wasn't a problem. Going home I had our grouped checked in and the boarding passes printed at the guest service place at DTD. We were in the middle of A and we also had no problem.

Enjoy the lower fares of SW! Boarding shouldn't be a problem!

[DumboMom]

Thank you for the tip about Guest Services at DTD. I had no clue. We flew SW on our last trip and our son was young enough to have us board after the A group.
For our next trip in Feb he is past the age of getting us this privilege. Thanks!
:mickey:

[momofdisneyprincess]

The preboarding between A and B only applies to immediate family. If only one of your children is under 2 your entire immediate family can board together. What I mean by that is if you are travelling with grandparents, aunts/uncles etc. they have to board according to their ticket. Checking in 24 hours before no longer guarantees you an "A" boarding pass since you can pay more for a business class ticket and automatically get in an A group. On your boarding pass, along with the letter is the corresponding number of when you can board. There are dividers in the lines that have groups of numbers. You then line up by number. As mentioned, the exception is families with children under 2. They can "pre-board" after group A. Hope this helps! SW is the only airline I fly and I have never had an issue with not being able to sit with my children. Depending on how many families are going, you not get connecting rows though. I have had an issue where DH went with one child and myself and another child sat a few rows back.

[aurora, ariel, and bell]

There are 7 of us going. Mom and Dad to sit with 2yr old. Grandpa to sit with 3 yr old and Grandma to sit with 4 yr old. that way no fighting. We don't mind being split up if we at least sit with one child.
We will make sure to book in on line 24 hrs ahead to hopefully avoid any problems.

Just a thought though. How many seats together in a row...3 or 2?

[fupresti]

3 on each side of the aisle. Southwest exclusively uses Boeing 737's.

[Goofster]

We flew Southwest on our trip in February and we were not impressed with this boarding process (not to mention both of our planes were late). :ack: We decided to go with AirTran next year to avoid this headache.