Southwest offering 3-day sale on airfare, redemptions, with up to 50% savings

Southwest Airlines is celebrating its birthday this week by offering some deals on both paid flights and reservations booked using Rapid Rewards points.

The Dallas-based carrier is running a sale on certain late-summer and autumn flights over the next few days. It could help you save as much as 50% on certain bookings.

We found steep discounts that could help you save on August flights to Florida, weekend getaways to Nashville and flights to Dallas during football season.

It's the latest in a series of recent deals and discounts TPG has tracked, fueling questions over whether 2024 might mark the "return of the airfare deal."

Considering you won't pay for a seat, a checked bag or a full-size carry-on when flying Southwest, this deal could be reason enough to book a trip for the second half of 2024.

Deal basics

Airline: Southwest Airlines

Routes: Many options throughout the Southwest network

How to book: Directly through Southwest's mobile app (a web browser won't work) using promo code "BDAY"

Travel dates: Aug. 6 through Dec. 18, with certain dates and flights excluded

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Book by: June 13

There are a few additional rules and caveats you'll need to know about to take advantage of this sale:

• Not all trips are eligible. Even when booking within that Aug. 6 to Dec. 18 window, I found many potential dates and itineraries that didn't offer a discount.
• I checked flights from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) to Cancun International Airport (CUN) and was out of luck, searching numerous dates. However, unlike many airline sales, there are plenty of Fridays and other weekend dates that are eligible, so you aren't strictly limited to, say, Tuesday and Wednesday flights.
• You have to be a Rapid Rewards member logged into your account to take advantage of these deals. Don't bother searching with a web browser: This is a mobile app-exclusive sale.

Sample flights

Despite many ineligible dates, we also found plenty of great savings opportunities, whether you're hoping to squeeze in another late-summer trip or get something on the books for this fall.

For instance, here's a one-way flight on a Saturday in August from Chicago's Midway International Airport (MDW) to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) for $94, discounted from $127 (a 25% savings).

The sale technically includes potential savings of "up to 50%," but many of the deals we found hovered closer to 25%

For instance, you can save about 27% on this Friday flight in September from BWI to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX).

Notably, you can also save on redemptions using this deal.

For instance, here's a flight from Denver International Airport (DEN) to Nashville International Airport (BNA) for just over 6,900 Rapid Rewards points — down nearly 3,000 points from the usual cost. That's a great option for a fall getaway to Music City.

Your best bet is to plug in some dates and cities you might be interested in; then, check both cash and points prices to see if there are potential deals you can take advantage of.

Maximize your purchase

If you book this deal, use a credit card that earns bonus points on airfare purchases such as:

• American Express® Gold Card: 3 points per dollar spent on airfare when booked directly with the airline or through amextravel.com
• The Platinum Card® from American Express: 5 points per dollar spent on airfare when booked directly with the airline or through American Express Travel® (on up to $500,000 of these purchases per calendar year, then 1 point per dollar)
• Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees): 8 points per dollar on all Chase Travel℠ purchases and 4 points per dollar on flights booked directly through the airline
• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees): 2 points per dollar spent on travel

If you're a regular Southwest flyer, you may also want to consider adding one of the airline's cobranded credit cards to your wallet. All three personal Southwest credit cards are offering 85,000 points after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening. These points are worth $1,190, according to our valuations.

Bottom line

It's a great time to pull up Southwest Airlines' mobile app and check out prices — cash and points — for a potential late-summer and fall getaway. Over the next three days, you could save as much as 50% on a booking.

Related reading:

• Key travel tips you need to know — whether you're a beginner or expert traveler
• The best travel credit cards
• Where to go in 2024: The 16 best places to travel
• 6 real-life strategies you can use when your flight is canceled or delayed
• 8 of the best credit cards for general travel purchases
• 13 must-have items the TPG team can't travel without