Southwest Airlines Offering Rapid Rewards Members A Limited-Time Promotion To Accelerate To A-List Or A-List Preferred Tier Status

Southwest Airlines Co. announces the return of its limited-time tier acceleration promotion, making it easier for Southwest Rapid Rewards® Members to earn tier status through 2025. Starting today, Rapid Rewards®1 Members have four opportunities to accelerate their way to the highly coveted A-List or A-List Preferred tier status: qualifying flight purchases, qualifying flight purchases with Rapid Rewards points, Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Cards from Chase purchases, and Rapid Rewards partner spend. Visit Southwest.com® for the full list of terms and conditions.

"We're bringing back this popular promotion to give our Rapid Rewards Members an extra boost to reach our coveted A-List and A-List Preferred tier status faster, so they can take advantage of all the benefits that our Rapid Rewards program has to offer, such as earlier boarding, boosted points, free same-day standby, and same-day change," said Jonathan Clarkson, Vice President & Chief Product Officer at Southwest Airlines. "A-List Preferred Members can enjoy all the same benefits plus free WiFi, and premium drinks."

Earn Double Tier Qualifying Points on Flights

Southwest Rapid Rewards Members who register for this promotion, purchase Southwest® qualifying flights, and travel through Nov. 30, 2024, can earn double tier qualifying points that count toward A-List or A-List Preferred tier status for the remainder of 2024 and through Dec. 31, 2025.6 Southwest Business travelers also benefit by booking through Southwest Business channels (SWABIZ.com, GDS, or SPS) for the individual traveler to earn three times the tier qualifying points per flight for travel through Nov. 30, 2024.

Reward Travel Counts

Southwest Airlines® makes travel even more rewarding by applying reward travel toward tier status segment requirements. Every one-way qualifying flight segment purchased and traveled using Rapid Rewards® points or Rapid Rewards Business points counts as one tier qualifying flight segment when Customers register for this promotion, purchase Southwest qualifying flights, and travel through Nov. 30, 2024.

Earn with Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Cards from Chase

Rapid Rewards Credit Cardmembers who register for this promotion can earn their way to tier status faster with credit card spending. From Sept. 1, 2024, through Nov. 30, 2024, Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Cardmembers can earn 2,000 tier qualifying points for every $5,000 in purchases made with their Rapid Rewards Priority, Premier, and Plus Consumer Credit Cards, as well as Premier, Plus, and Performance Business Credit Cards from Chase. These tier qualifying points are in addition to current tier qualifying points that Cardmembers already earn.

New! Earn with Rapid Rewards Partners

For the first time, Members can earn their way to tier status with qualifying purchases made with Rapid Rewards car rentals, hotel bookings, and other select Rapid Rewards partners. Every base point earned on qualifying purchases made with select Rapid Rewards partners between now and Nov. 30, 2024, counts as one tier qualifying point, up to a maximum of 5,000 total tier qualifying points.

Join Rapid Rewards

The Southwest Rapid Rewards program is designed around a simple concept—to make earning reward flights faster and easier. With Rapid Rewards, every seat is a reward seat, there are no blackout dates, and points don't expire.1 Customers can create an account to become a Rapid Rewards Member at Southwest.com to take advantage of Southwest's award-winning loyalty program benefits.

Southwest Airlines' Rapid Rewards Program Offering More Flexible Payment Options & Hotel Redemptions

Southwest Airlines Co. introduced Cash + Points,1 a new flexible payment option for Rapid Rewards®2 Members. For the first time, Southwest Rapid Rewards® Members can now use a combination of points (starting with as few as 1,000 points) and other eligible forms of payment to purchase Southwest® flights on Southwest.com/cashpluspoints.

"We launched several enhancements to our award-winning program last year that made it easier to earn more points and achieve tier status, said Jonathan Clarkson, Vice President Marketing at Southwest Airlines. "This year, we're continuing our commitment to lean into Customer preferences by giving them extra flexibility to make points go further by offering new ways to use their points."

Business Travel Counts, Too!

Southwest also is launching new capabilities for Southwest Business Customers. Corporate Travel Managers can now use a combination of cash and Rapid Rewards Business points to purchase flights for their company's travel using Rapid Rewards Business points3 through swabiz.com.

From Flights to Hotels

But wait, there's more! Southwest Airlines® is going the extra mile and is now offering its Rapid Rewards Members the ability to use their Rapid Rewards points for hotel stays on hotels.redeemrapidrewards.com powered by Rocket Travel by Agoda. Additionally, Members booking travel with points can choose to pay for hotel bookings using only points, or a combination of cash and points, and can benefit from competitive rates for redeeming points for flights and hotel bookings at more than 400,000 properties worldwide.

"Our Purpose is to connect People to the places that matter most to them by offering a seamless travel experience," said Phil Gouel, Vice President Travel Products at Southwest Airlines. "These enhancements allow Members additional opportunities to redeem their earned points for hotel stays, with more flexibility and more value."

Join Rapid Rewards
The Southwest Rapid Rewards program is designed around a simple concept—to make earning reward flights faster and easier. With Rapid Rewards, every seat is a reward seat, there are no blackout dates, and points don't expire. Customers can create an account to become a Rapid Rewards Member at Southwest.com®.

1 Cash + Points will allow Rapid Rewards Members to combine points with other eligible forms of payment to purchase flights. Members will be presented with up to five options for Point redemptions, starting with as few as 1,000 points. The minimum redemption option for the selected flight(s) will be presented on screen. While Members who book using Cash + Points can make changes to their reservation, Cash + Points cannot be used for any fare increase related to a modification. Cash + Points bookings will not earn Rapid Rewards points, tier qualifying points for A-List or A-List Preferred status, or Companion Pass® qualifying points. Flights paid for with Cash + Points will count toward a Member's qualifying one-way flights for A-List, A-List Preferred, or Companion Pass status when flown.

2 All Rapid Rewards rules and regulations apply and can be found at Southwest.com/rrterms. 3 All Rapid Rewards Business rules and regulations apply and can be found at business.Southwest.com/Terms-and-Conditions. 4 Based on U.S. Dept. of Transportation quarterly Airline Origin & Destination Survey since Q1 2021 5 Fulltime-equivalent active Employees 6 1973-2019 annual profitability 7 Our net zero by 2050 goal includes Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 Category 3 emissions only and excludes any emissions associated with non-fuel products and services, such as inflight service items.

SOURCE Southwest Airlines Co.

Travelore Tips: Southwest Airlines Launches Limited-Time Companion Pass Offer

Southwest Airlines Co. today launches a special promotional Companion Pass® offer for Rapid Rewards® Members ready to take flight with a family member, friend, or loved one. Qualifying Customers can designate their Companion and travel with the Companion Pass which is valid for unlimited usage from January 8 through March 8, 2024.

To qualify, Rapid Rewards Members must:

Register for the promotion and purchase a Southwest® revenue flight (one round trip or two one-ways), starting today through August 30, 2023; Travel by September 30, 2023; and Designate a Companion to fly for free (does not include taxes and fees from $5.60 one-way) with them from January 8 through March 8, 2024

The Companion Pass allows Rapid Rewards Members to designate one person to fly with them, free of airline charges (does not include taxes and fees from $5.60 one-way) every time the Customer purchases or redeems points for a flight.

"The Companion Pass is one of the most coveted airline perks in the industry, rewarding Customers for being part of our Rapid Rewards loyalty program," said Jonathan Clarkson, Vice President Marketing at Southwest Airlines®. "As the airline with Heart, we want our Customers to feel appreciated for flying with Southwest, and what better way to do that than to offer the opportunity to travel and share experiences with a Companion."

Visit Southwest.com for the full list of terms and conditions.

Southwest Airlines Offers Rapid Rewards Members Three New Opportunities To Accelerate Their Way To A-List & A-List Preferred Status

Southwest Airlines Co. is rewarding its Rapid Rewards® Members for their long-term loyalty by making it easier to earn tier status through 2023. Starting today, Rapid Rewards Members have more opportunities to accelerate their way to the highly coveted A-List or A-List Preferred tier status.

"We're thanking our Customers for continuing to fly Southwest, engaging in Rapid Rewards, and trusting us to connect them to the people and places that matter most in their lives," said Jonathan Clarkson, Vice President of Marketing, Loyalty & Products at Southwest Airlines. "Our Members deserve to be rewarded, which is why with this limited-time offer, we're giving Customers three new opportunities to reach our coveted A-List and A-List Preferred tier status faster."

Earn Double Tier Qualifying Points

Southwest Rapid Rewards™ Members who register for this promotion, purchase Southwest® qualifying flights, and travel through May 31, 2023, can earn double tier qualifying points toward A-List or A-List Preferred tier status for 2023.

Reward Travel Counts

Southwest Airlines® is making travel even more rewarding by applying reward travel toward tier status segment requirements, allowing Members to continue enjoying the benefits and rewards they love and value. Every flight purchased with Rapid Rewards points counts as one flight credit toward tier status, and 10% of points redeemed count as tier qualifying points for use on any flights when Customers register for this promotion, purchase Southwest qualifying flights, and travel through May 31, 2023.

Earn with Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Cards from Chase

Rapid Rewards Credit Cardmembers who register for this promotion can earn their way to tier status faster with credit card spending. Now through May 31, 2023, for every $5,000 in purchases Cardmembers make with their Rapid Rewards Priority, Premier, and Plus Consumer Credit Cards, as well as Premier, Plus, and Performance Business Credit Cards from Chase, they can earn 3,000 tier qualifying points. These tier qualifying points are in addition to current tier qualifying points that Cardmembers already earn as Cardmembers.

Visit Southwest.com® for the full list of terms and conditions.

Best Frequent Flyer and Hotel Guest Programs Chosen Among 3.6 Million Ballots In The 2020 Freddie Awards

Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards was named frequent flyer Program of the Year for the fifth straight year while Marriott Bonvoy took top honors among hotel programs in the Americas region for the eleventh consecutive year and Chase Bank wins the popular credit card category with their Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card

- In a virtual presentation, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards was named frequent flyer Program of the Year and Marriott Bonvoy took the same top honors among hotel programs in the Freddie Awards results released on Thursday April 30th. Internationally, the Norwegian Reward program and Accor Live Limitless took top honors in the Europe/Africa region and Virgin Australia Velocity and Accor Live Limitless took top honors in the Middle East/Asia Oceania region.

More than 3.6 million ballots were cast worldwide by members of travel loyalty programs to determine the winners in recognizing the best of travel loyalty programs for the 30th year. The Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards win marks the fifth straight year of the Program of the Year honor while Marriott's loyalty program has now won the Program of the Year honor for eleven consecutive years. Also impressive is the nine consecutive years streak that American Airlines AAdvantage has won Best Elite Program in the Americas.

In the popular credit card category, Chase Bank was a big winner by issuing the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Premier credit card in the Americas. American Express Membership Rewards took top honors in the Middle East/Asia Oceania region while Norwegian Reward won in the Europe/Africa region with their credit card issued by Bank Norwegian. All three are repeat winners of this honor.

Also announced were the 210 Award for programs whose value vote rating was trending higher (rising stars). Winners in this category included Air Canada Aeroplan and Accor Live Limitless in the Americas region, TAP Air Portugal Miles&Go and Choice Privileges in the Europe/Africa region and Air Arabia Air Rewards and Wyndham Rewards in the Middle East/Asia Oceania region.

The Freddie Awards represent excellence among travel loyalty programs around the globe and rate the best programs in six categories: Program of the Year, Best Promotion, Best Redemption Ability, Best Customer Service, Best Elite Program and Best Loyalty Credit Card. Voters had six weeks to vote and were permitted to vote for programs in one of three global regions: Americas, Europe/Africa and Middle East/Asia Oceania. Voting also was available in nine different languages.

The awards were announced by Freddie Awards Founder, Randy Petersen during a virtual presentation.

"For this 30th year of the Freddie Awards, we are delighted to once again allow frequent flyers throughout the world to voice their choice of frequent travel programs that truly rise up in excellence," Petersen commented. "This is not an elitist view of these programs but rather the 'best' are determined by the votes of those who spend a great deal of their life on the road and in the air."

The Freddie Awards honor quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the overall merits of each program as reflected in a "Value Vote." Value Voting asks the voter to assign a number between one and three to the program for which he or she votes. To be eligible to win a Freddie Award, however, a program must receive at least two percent of the category vote.

The Freddie Awards are named after the late Sir Freddie Laker, who attracted fame (and a knighthood in the United Kingdom) for pioneering low-cost air travel across the Atlantic in the 1970s.

Sponsors of the virtual presentation included iSeatz—loyalty tech solutions, luggage maker Knack and BoardingArea—required reading for frequent flyers. The Freddie Awards were custom designed by Society Awards.

The results were presented virtually and may be viewed online at freddieawards.com/.

THIS YEAR'S WINNERS ARE:
AMERICAS
Airline Category
Program of the Year — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards
Best Elite Program — American Airlines - AAdvantage
Best Promotion — Avianca - LifeMiles 
Best Customer Service — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards 
Best Redemption Ability — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards 
210 AWARD — Air Canada - Aeroplan

Hotel Category
Program of the Year — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy
Best Elite Program — Hyatt - World of Hyatt
Best Promotion — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy
Best Customer Service — MGM - M life Rewards
Best Redemption Ability — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy
210 AWARD — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless 

Credit Card Category
Best Loyalty Credit Card — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards from Chase Bank

EUROPE/AFRICA
Airline Category
Program of the Year — Norwegian Air – Norwegian Reward
Best Elite Program — Aeroflot – Aeroflot Bonus
Best Promotion — Norwegian Air – Norwegian Reward
Best Customer Service — Norwegian Air – Norwegian Reward
Best Redemption Ability — TAP Air Portugal - Miles&Go
210 AWARD — TAP Air Portugal - Miles&Go

Hotel Category
Program of the Year — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless 
Best Elite Program — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless
Best Promotion — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless 
Best Customer Service — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless 
Best Redemption Ability — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless 
210 AWARD — Choice Hotels – Choice Privileges

Credit Card Category
Best Affinity Credit Card — Norwegian Reward - Bank Norwegian Norwegian Card

MIDDLE EAST/ASIA OCEANIA
Airline Category
Program of the Year — Virgin Australia – Velocity  
Best Elite Program — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
Best Promotion — Virgin Australia – Velocity  
Best Customer Service — Virgin Australia – Velocity  
Best Redemption Ability — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
210 AWARD — AirArabia - AirRewards

Hotel Category
Program of the Year — Accor Hotels – Accor Live Limitless 
Best Elite Program — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy
Best Promotion — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy
Best Customer Service — ITC Hotels - Club ITC 
Best Redemption Ability — ITC Hotels - Club ITC
210 AWARD — Wyndham Hotels – Wyndham Rewards

Credit Card Category
Best Affinity Credit Card — American Express Membership Rewards

SOURCE Freddie Awards

These Are The Best Frequent Flyer Programs for 2019

7.1 million ballots determine Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy take top honors at this years Freddie Awards

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Recognizing the best of travel loyalty programs, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards has been named frequent flyer Program of the Year for the fourth consecutive year. Marriott Bonvoy held the top spot, for the twelfth time, taking the highest honor among hotel programs in the Americas region at the 2019 Freddie Awards. The Freddie Awards were on Thursday, April 25th, hosted this year at the CR Smith Museum, Ft. Worth, Texas. 7.1 million ballots submitted by frequent travelers from around the globe were counted in this year's campaign.

Internationally among airline loyalty programs, Norwegian Reward is Program of the Year for the Europe/Africa region and Virgin Australia Velocity received the Program of the Year Freddie Award in the Middle East/Asia/Oceania region. Among hotel programs internationally, Le Club AccorHotels was named Program of the Year for the Europe/Africa region and IHG Rewards Club took top honors as Program of the Year in the Middle East/Asia/Oceania region.

In the popular credit card category, Chase Bank was a big winner by issuing the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards Premier credit card. American Express Membership Rewards took top honors in the Middle East/Asia/Oceania region while Norwegian Reward won in the Europe/Africa region with their credit card issued by Bank Norwegian.

Also announced were the 210 Award for programs whose value vote rating was trending higher (up-and-comers). Winners in this category included Aeroplan, Caesars Rewards, TAP Miles&Go, NH Rewards, ANA Mileage Club and Club ITC.

The Freddie Awards represent excellence among travel loyalty programs around the globe and rate the best programs in six categories: Program of the Year, Best Promotion, Best Redemption Ability, Best Customer Service, Best Elite Program and Best Loyalty Credit Card. Voters had six weeks to vote and were permitted to vote for programs in one of three global regions: Americas, Europe/Africa and Middle East/Asia/Oceania. Voting also was available in fourteen different languages.

The awards were announced this evening during a gala event at the CR Smith Museum in Ft. Worth, Texas. More than 225 airline, hotel and credit card representatives attended the ceremony, along with frequent flyers who voted in this year's awards. "We are delighted to once again allow frequent flyers throughout the world the opportunity to select the travel loyalty programs that they believe have achieved excellence," said Randy Petersen, founder of the Freddie Awards. "This is not an elitist view of these programs nor a popular vote, but rather the 'best' are determined by the votes of those who spend a great deal of their life on the road and in turn are appreciative of the value they bring to their members."

The Freddie Awards were first introduced in 1988 and are named after the late Sir Freddie Laker, who attracted fame (and a knighthood in the United Kingdom) for pioneering low-cost air travel across the Atlantic in the 1970s. They are known as the "Voice of the Frequent Flyer".

The presenting sponsor this year was Barclays. Supporting sponsors included Ascenda, Collinson, Points and BoardingArea. The Freddie Awards trophy was custom designed by Society Awards.

AND THE WINNERS ARE: 
Americas 
Airline Category 
Program of the Year — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards (4th consecutive year) 
Best Elite Program — American Airlines - AAdvantage (8th consecutive year) 
Best Promotion — Avianca - LifeMiles 
Best Customer Service — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards 
Best Redemption Ability — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards 
210 AWARD — Air Canada - Aeroplan (Trending)

Hotel Category 
Program of the Year — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy (for the 12th time) 
Best Elite Program — Hyatt Hotels – World of Hyatt 
Best Promotion — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy 
Best Customer Service — Caesars Entertainment - Caesars Rewards 
Best Redemption Ability — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy 
210 AWARD — Caesars Entertainment - Caesars Rewards (Trending)

Credit Card 
Best Loyalty Credit Card — Southwest Airlines - Rapid Rewards from Chase Bank

Europe & Africa 
Airline Category 
Program of the Year — Norwegian Air – Norwegian Reward 
Best Elite Program — Aeroflot – Aeroflot Bonus 
Best Promotion — AIR FRANCE/KLM – Flying Blue 
Best Customer Service — Aeroflot – Aeroflot Bonus 
Best Redemption Ability — AIR FRANCE/KLM – Flying Blue 
210 AWARD — TAP Air Portugal – Miles&Go (Trending)

Hotel Category 
Program of the Year — Accor Hotels – Le Club AccorHotels 
Best Elite Program — Marriott Hotels - Marriott Bonvoy 
Best Promotion — IHG – IHG Rewards Club 
Best Customer Service — Accor Hotels – Le Club AccorHotels 
Best Redemption Ability — IHG – IHG Rewards Club 
210 AWARD — NH Hotel Group – NH Rewards (Trending)

Credit Card 
Best Affinity Credit Card — Bank Norwegian – Norwegian Card

Asia/Middle East & Oceania 
Airline Category 
Program of the Year — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
Best Elite Program — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
Best Promotion — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
Best Customer Service — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
Best Redemption Ability — Virgin Australia – Velocity 
210 AWARD — ANA – ANA Mileage Club (Trending)

Hotel Category 
Program of the Year — IHG – IHG Rewards Club 
Best Elite Program — Hyatt Hotels – World of Hyatt 
Best Promotion — IHG – IHG Rewards Club 
Best Customer Service — Accor Hotels – Le Club AccorHotels 
Best Redemption Ability — IHG – IHG Rewards Club 
210 AWARD — ITC Hotels – Club ITC (Trending)

Credit Card 
Best Affinity Credit Card — American Express Membership Rewards

SOURCE Freddie Awards