Southwest has launched its in-house trip packager, Getaways by Southwest. Getaways replaces Southwest Vacations, a packager whose operations had been outsourced to Apple Leisure Group (ALG).
In an interview, Southwest vp of product improvement Phil Gouel praised the work ALG did with the airline, however mentioned the time had come for Southwest to shift its packaging technique. Gouel mentioned Southwest needed “more engagement” with clients shopping for trip packages, and that Getaways provides Southwest the “opportunity to capture more high-margin ancillary revenue.”
Travel advisors will not earn fee on Getaways bookings.
Getaways provides clients new advantages. They earn 5 Rapid Rewards factors per greenback spent on a trip bundle, they usually get two free checked baggage on the flights. Customers can alter packages with out paying a change price. And once they cancel a bundle, they get credit towards their subsequent Getaways bundle, which they need to e-book through the subsequent 18 months.
When Southwest introduced Getaways final September, the airline mentioned clients would have the choice of making use of credit towards flight-only journeys. However, that is not but accessible. Customers can also’t but use Rapid Rewards factors to purchase trip packages, although each initiatives are in Southwest’s plans.
Getaways clients can bundle air with a resort, rental automobile and floor transportation. Gouel mentioned the airline has 21 direct lodging companions, together with Caesars, MGM, Fontainebleau and Marriott. Lodging aggregator Hotelbeds can also be a accomplice.