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Southwest deal alert: Fares as low as $69 one-way to beach destinations

Dec. 16, 2021
5 min read
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Calling all Southwest fans and even those of you who consider yourselves to be above the low-cost carrier airline (tsk tsk), because it is currently running a sale to various beach destinations such as Mexico, the Caribbean and Florida, with one-way fares starting at just $69.

There's another sale with fares as low as $59 that runs through Dec. 30, but the best deals we found were for the "beaches sale."

Be warned you'll need to hunt around to find these bargains and the sale ends tonight, so let's get to it.

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Deal basics

(Screenshot courtesy of Southwest Airlines)

Airline: Southwest Airlines.
Routes: From any city SWA departs from to various beach destinations, including TZA/CUN/CZM/FLL/JAX/MIA/MBJ/SRQ/TPA/PBI and others.
How to book: Directly through the airline's sale page. You can also select your departure city to search for low fares.
Travel dates: Jan. 5-March 9, 2022, excluding travel to/from San Juan, Puerto Rico, which is valid Jan. 10-March 9, 2022.
Book by: 11:59 p.m. CT on Dec. 16.

Sample flights

As I mentioned above, you can search for low fares by setting your departure city of choice, which is where I would start with this deal.

(Screenshot courtesy of Southwest Airlines)

From there, you'll find numerous one-way fares, in this case ranging from $69 to $203 depending on the route.

(Screenshot courtesy of Southwest Airlines)

Some of the best one-way deals I found in the sale include:

  • Washington, D.C. (DCA), to Jacksonville, Florida (JAX), for $69, nonstop.
  • Los Angeles (LAX) to Honolulu (HNL)/Kahului (OGG)/Kona (KOA)/Lihue (LIH) in Hawaii for $99, nonstop.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Jacksonville (JAX)/Long Beach, California (LGB), for $99.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Savannah, Georgia (SAV), for $103.
  • Washington, D.C. (DCA), to Fort Lauderdale (FLL)/Fort Myers (RSW)/Sarasota (SRQ)/Tampa (TPA) in Florida for $104, nonstop.
  • New York (LGA) to Nassau, Bahamas (NAS), for $104.
  • New York (LGA) to Sarasota (SRQ)/Tampa (TPA) for $114, nonstop.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) for $114, nonstop.
  • New York (LGA)/Washington, D.C. (DCA), to Orlando (MCO) for $121, nonstop.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Fort Myers (RSW)/Sarasota (SRQ)/Tampa (TPA) for $121.
  • Washington, D.C. (DCA), to Panama City Beach (ECP)/Pensacola (PNS) in Florida for $123.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Orange County, California (SNA), for $129, nonstop.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Miami (MIA) for $132.
  • New York (LGA) to Pensacola (PNS)/Destin-Fort Walton Beach (VPS) in Florida for $133.
  • Washington, D.C. (DCA), to West Palm Beach, Florida (PBI), for $135.
  • New York (LGA) to Fort Myers (RSW) for $146.
  • Washington, D.C. (DCA), to Providenciales, Turks and Caicos (PLS), for $153.
  • St. Louis (STL) to Los Angeles (LAX) for $153, nonstop.

Once you've found a flight that works for you, simply click on "select dates" to search the "Low Fare Calendar."

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Related: TPG releases brand-new points calculator to make award bookings easier

(Screenshot courtesy of Southwest Airlines)

In this case, I was able to find both legs of STL-RSW for $69 each way via the "Wanna Get Away" fare, so I booked a round-trip as normal. Otherwise, book two one-way tickets separately.

(Screenshot courtesy of Southwest Airlines)

Rapid Rewards members can also use points to book this deal. TPG currently values RR points at 1.5 cents each, and you can use our new Awards vs. Cash Calculator to determine whether a deal is a better value in cash or points.

There's another advertised sale out there that runs until Dec. 30 with fares as low as $59 one-way, but we didn't find any screaming deals when we searched. Your mileage may vary!

Southwest fare sale. (Screenshot courtesy of Southwest)

Maximize your purchase

Don’t forget to use a card that earns bonus points on airfare purchases, such as The Platinum Card® from American Express (5x on airfare booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel, on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year), Citi Prestige® Card (5x on airfare), Citi Premier® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x on airfare), American Express® Gold Card (3x on airfare when booked directly with the airline or via Amex Travel) or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel). Or, use your Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card for 3x on Southwest Airlines purchases. Check out this post for more on maximizing airfare purchases.

The information for the Citi Prestige Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Bottom line

Act quickly because this deal ends in a matter of hours!

Featured image by Getty Images/EyeEm
Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

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Why We Chose It

Build your loyalty to Delta by applying for the carrier's mid-tier card option, the Delta SkyMiles Platinum card. The annual fee is quickly recouped by the card's travel perks, such as an application credit to Global Entry or TSA Precheck, annual companion certificate and so much more. Plus you can fast-track to elite status simply through card spend.

Pros

  • Earn bonus Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) and an Medallion Qualifying Dollar (MQD) waiver when you hit specific spending thresholds with your card within a calendar year
  • Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year
  • Statement credit for TSA PreCheck/Global Entry fee (up to $100)
  • First checked bag free

Cons

  • Doesn't make sense if you don't fly Delta
  • SkyMiles aren't the most valuable airline currency
  • Earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
  • Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
  • Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights. Plus enjoy Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding and settle into your seat sooner.
  • New: Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
  • Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.
  • Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide including takeout and delivery in the U.S., and at U.S. supermarkets.
  • Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.
  • Enjoy a per-visit rate of $50 per person for Card Members and up to two guests to enter the Delta Sky Club when traveling on a Delta flight.
  • Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® after you apply through any Authorized Enrollment Provider. If approved for Global Entry, at no additional charge, you will receive access to TSA PreCheck.
  • Earn up to 20,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) with Status Boost® per year. After you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can earn 10,000 MQMs up to two times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status. MQMs are used to determine Medallion® Status and are different than miles you earn toward flights.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
  • $250 Annual Fee.
  • Terms Apply.
  • See Rates & Fees