Southwest’s new Basic fare is live, replacing the iconic Wanna Get Away fares and along with it eliminating the bundled free checked bags and flight credits that didn’t expire. Leading up to this change I was curious how this new Basic fare class would fare (pun intended) against the old Wanna Get Away option and what would change, if anything, for Wanna Get Away Plus. Since two checked bags would now cost $80 ($35 for the first and $45 for the second), did Southwest have that valuation baked into the fares? It’s impossible to draw long-term conclusions on day one, but to get a sense of the short-term impact I looked at 4 routes on 4 different days a few days ago and again this morning to see what we can learn.
Routes:
- Chicago to New Orleans (MDW – MSY)
- Phoenix to Nasvhsville (PHX – BNA)
- Dallas to Baltimore (DAL – BWI)
- Orlando to Houston (MCO – HOU)
Dates:
- 8/1/2025
- 10/18/2025
- 11/23/2025 (Thanksgiving week)
- 12/22/2025 (Christmas week)
What’s the punchline?
At a high level, nothing has really changed with the fares, so the baggage fees are a pure price increase. As of Monday, the average Wanna Get Away fare across these 16 flights was $199 while toady it is $197 for the Basic fare. The Wanna Get Away Plus average fare went from $226 to $228. Those $2 deltas are not really relevant nor is the average spread between the Wanna Get Away/Basic and Wanna Get Away Plus of $31 vs $27 previously.
In total, across 64 flight/fare class combinations:
- Only 8 of the 64 had a price change from Monday (12.5%)
- 5 went down in price and 3 went up in price
- The net savings if you booked all 64 flights today vs Monday was a whopping $6 total
Here is the actual data collected for this analysis, first the old Wanna Get Away and Wanna Get Away Plus, gathered on Monday, then below the new Basic and Wanna Get Away Plus gathered this morning:
Dallas to Baltimore
Chicago to New Orleans
Phoenix to Nashville
Orlando to Houston
TL;DR: Southwest started selling their new Basic fare class today, with no changes possible, 6-month expiration of flight credits if you need to cancel, and no free checked bags and the results are disappointing. With fares essentially flat to pre-May 28th, the bag fees represent a true price increase.
If SOUTHWEST is trying to drive loyal customers away they are doing a marvelous job at it. What does SWA have to offer besides an occasionally entertaining crew and the cheapest snacks of any airline?
We fly often beteen our homes on the mainland and Hawaii, always on SWA. No longer. We’ve switched to Alaska and feel disappointed that SWA values luggage fees more than loyal customers. To the private equity group driving these chances within SWA, your greed is boundless and has changed all of the positive qualities of a good airline culture to shit. 💩💩💩
southwest lost its way years ago. They haven’t been the low cost provider for a long while & the bag fee changes along with no longer using open seating so they can charge for aisle seats just confirms that. Their employees no longer have the attitude of lets have fun. They are just old worn-out FAs & gate agents that all seem so unhappy & pissed off that you are there.
Now they are just like delta but with crappier planes.
Herb is turning over in his grave!