Southwest Sign-Up Bonuses Still Count Towards the Companion Pass

Posted by on Jan 12, 2013 in Companion Pass, Southwest | 13 comments

Noob contributer, Ethan, chimes in about the Southwest Airlines Companion Pass. Enjoy!

 

The Companion Pass is Working!

There have been mentions for about a week on FlyerTalk that the 50k bonuses on the Southwest Airlines cards were in fact still counting toward the Companion Pass. There were some concerns that this lucrative opportunity might go away, and I wanted to hold off to be sure, but my first statement closed and take a look!

I’m more than halfway to the Companion Pass! The 2 bonuses, points to meet spending, and my flights on Southwest this month will have me to the threshold by the end of January! That’s almost TWO FULL YEARS of Companion Pass awesomeness!

 

Ok… What are you talking about?

Southwest’s top “tier” is a Companion Pass, which allows you to take a designated person along with you on Southwest flights COMPLETELY FREE! You have to pay the $5 security fee, but that’s small potatoes compared with a free flight! It even works with points, which means when you get the credit card bonuses you can fly for free, and bring a companion with you!

You need 110,000 “qualifying” points. But, as you can see from my progress, credit card bonuses count! Both the personal and business Southwest Plus cards are offering 50,000 bonus points when you spend $2,000 in 3 months (the Premier cards are only 25k). The spending also counts for points, so after completing minimum spend you have 104,000 points! Then you can earn the additional 6,000 points through other qualifying activity, which can be spending on your credit card, earning points through Rapid Rewards shopping or buying flowers, or just flying Southwest (like me)!

edit: 50k Offers Are No Longer Active

 

The Timing Is Perfect.

Geoff posted about getting his Companion Pass back in November. The better time to do it, though, is right now, because like elite status the Companion Pass is valid the year in which you earn it and another entire year. So while the Noob Master will have his CP through the end of 2013, mine will be
good through the end of 2014. It seems the student has outdone the master this time. I sense a lot of weekend trips in my future. (Ok, done with the Star Wars references, I promise).

This is a really great offer to cut your travel expenses in half if you travel with someone, and earn a lot of Southwest points in the process for free travel!

— Noob Master

  • Beth

    where is the link for the 50,000 mile bonus Plus business card? Only the personal card is popping up and I can’t seem to find an active business link showing 50,000 points. thanks!

  • JL100

    I am so psyched about this! My 50k points should in Feb and then my wife will apply for the Plus and points should post in Mar/April. Then I will transfer hotel points or other spend to get to the 110k! We’ll have the companion pass for about 20 months if everything keeps working!

    • http://www.NoobTraveler.com/ Noob Traveler

      That’s 20 months of domestic travel bliss!!

  • http://twitter.com/PatMikeL PatMike

    Let’s not talk about this too much. I got the pass in Feb 2012 good thru 12/31/13, so I’d like to get it again in Feb 2014 IF THE DEAL IS NOT KILLED BY TOO MUCH PUBLICITY…

    • http://twitter.com/PatMikeL PatMike

      Respectfully said. Didn’t mean the caps to make me sound like a jerk…

      • http://www.NoobTraveler.com/ Noob Traveler

        I respect that. :-)

      • Ethan

        This is the ever-present question of travel blogs. Hope you’re enjoying the CP though!

  • Becky

    Glad to know it’s still working, I was counting on it and hoping Murphy’s Law wouldn’t kick in. I do have a question, though… can I move up the points-posting date by paying my bill early? I’ve met min spend, but the statement close date isn’t for another 2 weeks. If possible, I’d love to use the CP for a flight in Feb, and want to book now to avoid losing wanna-get-away fares…

    • http://www.NoobTraveler.com/ Noob Traveler

      Unfortunately paying the bill early won’t result in receiving the points earlier. They usually post a couple days after the billing cycle closes.

  • Dmh12011

    Where on the Southwest portal can you see if the companion pass has been awarded?

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