Save your points: Southwest offering award discounts on select early and late flights

There’s a lot to like about Southwest’s Rapid Rewards program. From flexible change and cancellation policies to no blackout dates on award tickets and an array of rewarding credit cards, many travelers value the simple, flexible nature of the program — as do TPG staffers.

Now, the airline is offering an apparently new feature on select flights that can make your Rapid Rewards points go even further.

If you use your points to book select early morning flights (8 a.m. or earlier) or evening flights (7 p.m. or later), you could save 20% off the standard award rate.

We first noticed this when searching for an early 2025 flight from Orlando International Airport (MCO) to Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY).

Even though both the 3:20 and 7:20 p.m. departures have the same cash price ($176.98), you’ll save 2,499 points by booking the evening flight through Rapid Rewards. This boosts your redemption value from 1.37 cents per point to 1.71 cents per point — well above TPG’s July 2024 valuations.

This award redemption savings was also available in the other direction and across multiple dates — including high-demand travel periods like Thanksgiving and on one-stop itineraries.

The discount applies on both Wanna Get Away and Wanna Get Away Plus fares, though not on higher-priced Anytime and Business Select tickets.

Unfortunately, these discounts seem to be available on a very limited selection of flights. We searched dozens of routes across the U.S. on various dates, and we only found them on a handful:

• MCO to MSY and MSY to MCO
• MCO to Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) and BWI to MCO
• MCO to Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) and PIT to MCO
• Nashville International Airport (BNA) to Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport (VPS) and VPS to BNA

However, multiple other routes out of MCO, including flights to Chicago’s Midway International Airport (MDW), Dallas Love Field (DAL), Denver International Aiport (DEN) and Kansas City International Airport (MCI) in Missouri, weren’t showing the discount at all.

It’s unclear if the savings will become more widespread over time, but for now, it’s worth checking to see if any are available that match your travel plans.

And since Southwest makes it really easy to change an award ticket when the price drops, you could potentially modify an existing trip to an early (or late) flight to enjoy a partial refund of Rapid Rewards points.

We’ve reached out to Southwest for more details on this offering, and we’ll be sure to update this story with any additional information we receive.

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