By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Travel Blogger
All good things must come to an end. Even the lone remaining airline that did not charge its passengers to check a bag.
Southwest Airlines has joined all the other carriers and will no longer be offering free checked bags. It goes into affect with all flights booked starting May 28. The one good thing is that the date is just after Memorial Day 2025, which is May 26.
The announcement did not state how much the airline would charge for a bag but did state that Business Select fares or people who are members of the airline’s frequent flyer program Rapid Rewards at the A-List Preferred level will still get two free bags. Passengers who are A-List members will receive one free checked bag. If a passenger pays for their bags with a Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Credit Card, they will be credited one free bag.
So this means Southwest, like the other airlines, will have people showing up with stuffed carry-on bags and cramming their crap into the overhead bins, causing gate agents and flight attendants to make the annoying announcement about “there is limited space in the overhead compartments…”
But it could have bigger ramifications for the company. In an era where every single aspect of the hospitality industry has fees for things that used to be free – paying for a window seat and three inches of more legroom to the baggage fees on airlines to the ridiculous “resort fees” charged by hotels and even some cities charging visitors to visit – the one relief we all had was two free bags on Southwest.
It’s a reason when booking a flight, I always looked first at Southwest. Many people also flew Southwest just to be able to say “screw you” to the other airlines by not paying for bags.
Not anymore, tho. That was one big difference in Southwest and the big carriers and it has just given away its top competitive edge.
Many of those people – myself included – may not look at booking a flight on Southwest as a result. We’ll simply go with the best times/best price route.
If enough people do this then n the end, the move could cost Southwest more than it earns. And that’s not good business.
Leave a Reply