Nationwide fare sale for winter trips

Today Southwest Airlines kicked off a significant sale for winter trips with some seriously good deals. As usual, we expect other carriers to begin matching this sale later today. (See below for updates.)

Round trip fares for trips in December, January and early February drop to as low as $99 round trip for short haul trips and then increase in four steps: $198, $248, and $298. (Peak holiday season is not included)

If you have winter travel plans, now’s the time to book…this sale lasts only three days: starting today, Tuesday, October 14 and running through Thursday, October 16, 11:59 p.m. for the respective time zone of the originating city.

This sale brings transcon (coast to coast) roundtrip fares below $300 for the first time we’ve seen in a while. For those in the Northeast, fares to Florida are below $200 round trip. Most intra-California roundtrips are $99. Fares from across the country to Denver are nice a cheap if you are interested in a winter ski vacation.

Some examples of the low roundtrip all-in fares on offer:

• Atlanta- Washington National or New York LGA: $198
• San Francisco-Atlanta: $298
• Las Vegas-Oakland/San Francisco/LAX: $99
• Baltimore/Washington – San Diego: $298
• Oakland/San Francisco-Denver: $198
• Chicago/New York: $198
• Phoenix-Oakland/San Francisco $198
• Seattle-San Diego: $198

For a full list of these special fares, visit www.southwest.com.

These low fares are good for flights December 3 through December 17, 2014 and then January 6 through February 11. They are good for travel every day of the week except Fridays and Sundays. As usual, there are only a few seats on each flight at the lowest fares. Early bird gets the worm!

This sale is good for flights during what’s known in the biz as the “dead weeks” when travel demand plummets to annual lows– this means that hotel and car rental costs are also at annual lows, so it’s a great time to take a cheap trip. It’s also a good time to get home and see the family if peak holiday season fares have priced you out of the market.

New: Sign up for a new credit card and you could get a FREE trip home for the holidays… 

For business travelers who have not been able to get out and see clients due to this year’s extraordinarily high fares, this is a great opportunity save by traveling when most folks are staying at home. You can take off for a quick visit just before Christmas or drop by during the cold dark months of January and February.

As usual, other airlines will likely match this Southwest sale, so keep an eye on their websites over the next 24 hours as fares are loaded. We’ll monitor fare matching over the next 48 hours and post results here on TravelSkills.

Updates:

>JetBlue is matching fares for November & December trips only

>United is now matching most of these fares

>American launched a sale good for flights through Mar 6, but fares are not as low

>Delta has matched some of these fares

–-Chris McGinnis

Here’s the fine print from Southwest:

Purchase from Oct. 14-16, 2014, 11:59 p.m. for the respective time zone of the originating city. Travel December 3 through December 17, 2014 and January 6 through February 11, 2015. Travel to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico valid Dec. 3-11, 2014 and Jan. 13 through Feb. 11, 2015. Travel valid every day except Fridays and Sundays. Travel to Florida or Nevada is valid Sunday through Wednesday only.  Additionally, travel from Florida or Nevada is valid Tuesday through Fridayonly. Travel between Nevada and Florida is valid on Tuesdays and Wednesdays only. Some flights operated by AirTran® Airways. Fares valid on nonstop service only. Displayed prices include all U.S. and international government taxes and fees. Seats are limited. Fares may vary by destination, flight, and day of week and won’t be available on some flights that operate during very busy travel times and holiday periods. Travel is available for one-way Wanna Get Away Fares. Fares may be combined with other Southwest Airlines combinable fares. If combining with other fares, the most restrictive fare’s rules apply. Sale fares may be available on other days of week, but not guaranteed. Fares are nonrefundable but may be applied toward future travel on Southwest Airlines, so long as you cancel your reservations at least ten minutes prior to the scheduled departure of your flight. Failure to cancel prior to departure will result in forfeiture of remaining funds on the reservation.  Any change in itinerary may result in an increase in fare. Standby travel requires an upgrade to the Anytime Fare. Fares are subject to change until ticketed.  Offer applies to published, scheduled service only.

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