hello, Well on Friday Jan. 10th Im going to go to oakland CA from Los Angeles or Ontario. Im thinking of taking advantage of Southwest's $29 dollar promotional offer and well I want to know what you guys think about them.Andrew :-waveKRAL PS. Are their aircraft in good condition? (ripped chair cushions, overhead compartments falling apart, and overall cleanliness.)

Well... It's like being on a bus, but in the air. :)There is no seating assignments, first come first serve. Usually there is no meals, maybe some peanuts or something, but you get as much coke as you want. ;) From my experience with them, the service is good and they're cheap, but don't expect 5 star service. For a short hop like that I'd definately suggest either Southwest or jetBlue. Cross-Country flying... now that's a totally different story. Been there. ;)

I'd highly recommend them. Big deal about no meal and seat assignments (show up 1hr early and you'll be in the top 30 and get a very good seat). Their aircraft are well maintained and their service is original (they do not view themselves as stodgy).

I'm late to the thread, but I want to alert you to an important change with Southwest:They now issue boarding passes at the ticket counter and curbside up to 4 hours in advance. You now are assigned one of 3 groups, first come first served--A, B and C. Group A boards first, then B etc.... Showing up at the gate an hour before the flight will likely get you seated in the "back of the bus" between the two biggest people on the plane. One of them could be me :) I'm really big.I for one like this change--I found my last trip on SW in October much less the "Cattle car" experience of old. The old SW used to have passenger lines snaking through the airport concourses. Now it is more like what United Shuttle was like, with a more organized boarding process, and a more relaxed atmosphere in the terminals. Yours is a very short hop, so that's an added bonus. As for their aircraft, they are generally in very good condition. Many of their aircraft are 737-700's, and very nice due to the high flight levels they can fly at. Their older aircraft are no worse than any major carrier I've flown. And they have an outstanding record of safety. I have never had a SW flight cancelled for any maintenance reason or crew staffing reason. I've flown on all major US carriers and several European and Latin American ones. None have that distinction.You'll run into SW bashers, just like anything else I suppose. I've flown SW R/T nonstop on the PHX-BWI run twice, and on countless shorter hops, and they got me there with room for my large bones, and in the same condition I left my destination in. That's what counts the mostest, for me :)-John

They are a great airline, but don't fly X-Country on them unless you enjoy stopping at every airport in the nation! :-lolFor a short hop, I'd imagine they are the best.

I have flown Southwest into and out of Oakland many times as my company is based in Oakland. Show up EARLY for the return flight.THe way southwest issues boarding passes pressures people to show up early, but the security at Oaklands dedicated terminal to Southwest is such that they wont let you on the concourse until one hour until flight time. This means a queue that can reach out to the parking lot on the return. SW is a great airline for point to point travel, but the security measures at least at KOAK make them a problem in this airport on the outbound.Eric

Here's a hint for the Oakland issue (ran into it on my most recent flight, and I made it in through security about 2 1/2 hours ahead of the flight, enough to enjoy a relaxed meal:Enter through the other concourse. SW also flies from there, and there is a secured passage between the two concourses. I saw the long line you had mentioned for SW's dedicated concourse--very ridiculous. But I also noted the secured passage between the two terminals. Without it, people making connections between SW flights would risk missing them and/or having to go through security twice.

i flew on SW 2 years ago from Cleveland - Reno. the route was actually CLE-STL-MCI-LAS-RNO. now....i love to fly, but by the time we hit Vegas i was ready to get out of that little aluminum tube!!!SW has always let me bring food on board. if i'm flying on an extended SW flight i will make sure to stop at the airport BK, McD, or wherever and grab a meal to take on the plane. i learned this once by being very hungry on a SW jet and sitting next to a woman chowing on an awesome looking chicken sandwich.generally, i have no complaints with SW and will fly them again.chris