Rival airlines selectively match Southwest's sale fares
Rival airlines have selectively lowered or matched the sale fares rolled out by Southwest during its three-day flash sale.
American, Delta, United, Alaska Airlines and JetBlue are among those matching some – but not all – of the fares offered by Southwest. The sale has dropped round-trip ticket prices under $100 on dozens of Southwest's shorter U.S. routes, though the sale ends midnight Thursday.
A Tuesday spot-check of fares by Paste BN’s Today in the Sky blog looked at several routes where rivals compete head-to-head with Southwest.
TODAY IN THE SKY: 72-hour sale: Southwest fares fall below $100 round-trip
On some routes – like San Diego-Phoenix and Washington National-Providence – at least one rival had matched Southwest’s $98 round-trip fares, though the availability of those fares on other airlines had declined throughout the day Tuesday. On other routes, such as Boston-Baltimore, rivals’ offerings of $103 round-trip came close to Southwest’s $98 sale fare.
Still, customers of other airlines should know that rivals may not match fares on all competing routes. Even routes where they do match, it may not be on all flights or on all days.
Fares also could rise as the cheapest fares sell out, including on Southwest.
It's also important to remember that on routes where major airlines are matching Southwest's sale fares, most are Basic Economy fares that come with significant restrictions, including bag limitations, late boarding and no advance seat-assignment.
As for the Southwest fares, remember the sale is good for travel from Nov. 28 through Dec. 19 and from Jan. 3 through Feb. 13. It’s also not valid for flights on Fridays and Sundays. The fare-sale travel window is slightly different for Southwest’s flights at airports in Florida, Nevada and Puerto Rico.
Scroll down for a snapshot of fares as of Tuesday afternoon on a handful of routes:
ARCHIVES: Southwest's first day of international flying is in the books (story continues below)
Washington Reagan National-Providence
Cheapest Southwest fare available: $98 (some availability)
Notable rivals’ fares: $98 American
Dates searched: Jan. 24-28
San Francisco-Los Angeles
Cheapest Southwest fare available: $98 (high availability)
Notable rivals’ fares: $98 on Alaska, American, Delta and United
Dates searched: Nov. 29-Dec. 3
Phoenix-San Diego
Cheapest Southwest fare available: $98 (high availability)
Notable rivals’ fares: $98 on American
Dates searched: Jan. 17-21
Baltimore-Boston
Southwest fare: $98 (multiple flights)
Notable rivals’ fares (nonstop): Spirit, $103; JetBlue $135
Notable rivals’ fares (connecting): Delta, $124
Dates searched: Jan. 24-28
Minneapolis/St. Paul-Chicago
Cheapest Southwest fare available: $98 (low/moderate availability)
Notable rivals’ fares: $98 on United; $127 Delta
Dates searched: Nov. 29-Dec. 1
Dallas-Houston
Cheapest Southwest fare available: $98 (moderate/high availability
Notable rivals’ fares: $147 American
Dates searched: Jan. 10-14
Oakland-Los Angeles
Cheapest Southwest fare available: $98 (moderate availability)
Notable rivals’ fares: $105 on Spirit
Dates searched: Jan. 10-14
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