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Southwest Airways’ Companion Go is likely one of the finest journey perks within the trade. With the move, a pal or member of the family can fly with you totally free (plus taxes and costs) on Southwest flights a limiteless variety of occasions till the move expires. Whereas this may appear to be a kind of “too good to be true” situations, it’s fully legit and simply nearly as good because it sounds. In actual fact, I’ve personally been a Companion Go holder for nearly 15 years.
As soon as the move is earned, it’s legitimate via Dec. 31 of the next calendar 12 months (so long as it’s earned via the standard technique and never throughout a particular promotion). This offers you as much as two years to make use of the move, providing many alternatives to your designated companion to fly with you in your subsequent journey.
Associated: Find out how to earn the Southwest Companion Go
However do you know that you simply don’t must fly with the identical companion on every flight? Southwest allows you to change your companion as much as thrice per calendar 12 months — and that’s along with the preliminary collection of your companion. And since your move is usually legitimate over the course of two calendar years, this permits as much as seven individuals to fly with you totally free.
And whereas altering your designated companion has all the time been a slight nuisance, Southwest simply made it considerably simpler. Up till not too long ago, you’d must name Southwest and request a change. However now, altering your companion will be accomplished all by yourself, proper inside your Southwest account.
Altering your Southwest Companion Go
As of September, Southwest is making it considerably simpler to vary your companion. Initially, once you earn the move, you’ve gotten the chance to designate a companion. There’s no change to this course of, and figuring out your preliminary companion will be accomplished on-line via your Southwest account or over the cellphone with Southwest straight.
Nonetheless, now you can additionally make adjustments to your move on-line. Beforehand, the one choice was to name Southwest. Whereas the precise course of solely took the agent a couple of minutes, it might usually require a prolonged wait on maintain, relying on the time of day.
To alter your Southwest Companion Go on-line, you’ll first need to sign up to your Southwest account both via the app or on-line. From there, you’ll see your Companion Go info, with the choice to vary your companion. Inside your account, it’ll additionally let you know what number of extra occasions you possibly can change your companion this 12 months, which is extremely useful.
Associated: Find out how to earn and use the Southwest Companion Go
As soon as you choose the choice to vary your companion, you’ll then must fill out your companion’s info. Once more, you’ll be notified of the variety of companion adjustments you’ve gotten left for the calendar 12 months.
Nonetheless, the large concern that you simply’ll discover is that there’s nowhere to enter your companion’s Southwest Fast Rewards quantity. Studies point out that Southwest will mechanically create a brand new Fast Rewards quantity for the traveler, and for many, this isn’t an issue — even when they have already got a Fast Rewards account. It’s because once you fly as a companion, you don’t obtain factors to your flights anyway, so not having the flight tied to your account isn’t an enormous concern. Nonetheless, your companion received’t be capable of see the flight particulars of their account, which might be bothersome to some.
However the primary concern is that in case your companion has Southwest A-Checklist or A-Checklist Most popular standing, they received’t obtain any perks throughout your journey.
And when you can all the time name Southwest to have it tie the right Fast Rewards quantity to the account, studies have proven that this technique requires the agent to vary your designated companion once more, counting towards one in all your three companion adjustments for the 12 months.
If you wish to be sure that the right Fast Rewards account is tied to your new companion, your finest guess is to name Southwest straight at 800-435-9792 and keep away from the net course of. Hopefully, the choice so as to add your companion’s Fast Rewards quantity on-line might be added sooner slightly than later.
Associated: 15 classes from 15 years of getting the Southwest Companion Go
Issues to know when switching your Southwest companion
Regardless of being a real no-strings-attached move, there are some issues to know alongside the way in which to set you up for achievement. For starters, your designated companion can repeat themselves. So let’s say Joe is your preliminary companion and also you wish to fly with him in January and September, however you need your pal Sarah to fly with you in between the 2 flights in March. You’ll be able to change your companion to Sarah and again to Joe once more, but it surely’ll nonetheless rely as a change.
Moreover, the person listed have to be your companion each on the time of reserving and on the time of journey. So, with the instance above, you received’t be capable of change your companion to Sarah till after your flight with Joe is full. And, for those who already added Joe as a companion to your flight later within the 12 months, you’ll must cancel Joe’s flight earlier than you modify your companion to Sarah. As soon as your flight with Sarah is full, you possibly can then add Joe again on as your companion.
Simply be aware that there needs to be no less than one seat accessible for buy on the subject of reserving a companion ticket. In the event you’re reserving throughout peak journey occasions, you’ll need to add your companion as quickly as attainable. To make sure your companion has a seat at a later time, when you have one other designated companion, you possibly can all the time e book the passenger a seat with factors to “save” their seat after which change it to a companion reserving as soon as that passenger is designated as a companion. And within the uncommon state of affairs when the flight is offered out earlier than a companion is added to the flight, carry on checking as there’s a really excessive likelihood {that a} seat will in the end develop into accessible.
Backside line
I’m glad to see that Southwest now permits vacationers to vary their passes on-line and keep away from a doubtlessly prolonged maintain time on the cellphone. With the ability to see what number of adjustments you might be nonetheless allowed can be big and may permit you to put together for the 12 months. Nonetheless, there are nonetheless some kinks within the course of on the subject of not having the ability to add your companion’s Fast Rewards quantity. Hopefully, this might be mounted within the close to future, however for now, there’s nonetheless the choice to name for those who want the right account tied to the ticket.
