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1,796 thoughts on “Southwest Hawaii Stiffens Competition: 11 New Daily Flights Exposed”
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Hello,
Do you expect SWA to have flights to Hawaii by February or what time of the year possibly?
Thank you for your time,
Hi Guy.
No one knows exactly. We do expect a flight announcement in 2017 for flights starting in 2018.
Aloha.
So excited to learn SWA will fly to Hawaii. Our 60th anniversary will be in 2018 and we hope to finally go on vacation. Please keep me updated about your schedule. Thank You. Noel
From Chicago to Hawaii will there be direct flights? If so what would be a good time to travel. 3 adults
There may be direct service with a layover in a west coast city, but the new 737 Max still doesn’t have nearly the range to fly that route nonstop. And on top of it, Chicago Midway Airport (the only Chicago Airport Southwest flies out of) has significantly short runways. even if they were using bigger aircraft. So most likely there will be a stop in LAX, OAK, and I’m sure other cities throughout California on your way from Chcago…Mind you, the only airline with nonstop flights out of Chicago, is United out of O’Hare. American used to have nonstops to Honolulu for many years but got rid of the nonstop route as well. Hope that helps.
Hi there! This is an awesome site! So glad I found it! We are going to Maui-Kaanapali over Thanksgiving leaving 11/19/17 and returning on 11/26/17. Any idea where I can find the best rates from California leaving out of San Francisco, Oakland or San Jose (we are flexible since all 3 are central to us) since southwest isn’t likely to be flying there by then? Thank you so much and Mahalo!
Jessica
Hi Jessica.
You’ve got the most expensive dates over the holiday and they are priced at over $1k round trip. Not sure if that will improve or it could simply become sold out. Suggest either changing dates or buying now. Sorry to not have better suggestion.
Aloha.
Thank you for the response. What was the best deal you would suggest since our dates aren’t flexible? 😔😢
Mahalo!
Jessica
Hi Jessica.
They were all about the same price, so you can just pick based on your preferred airport, airline and schedule.
Aloha.
I am looking for flights from Kansas city (MCI) to Kona the week of March 10-17, 2018. What is the best airline and I am thinking we cannot do a nonstop flight. So, would Phoenix, LA or San Diego be the best layover? It seems really early to look for flights but the further out, the more options we will have. Right?
Hi Deb.
American via Phoenix looks best right now at $1200 RT. Those dates will remain expensive due to Saturdays during spring break.
Aloha.
Hi there! This is an awesome site! So glad I found it! We are going to Maui-Kaanapali over Thanksgiving leaving 11/19/17 and returning on 11/26/17. Any idea where I can find the best rates from California leaving out of San Francisco, Oakland or San Jose (we are flexible since all 3 are central to us) since southwest isn’t likely to be flying there by then? Thank you so much and Mahalo!
Jessica
Hi Jessica.
Your exact dates are going to be about $1100 and it won’t matter much which airport. If you’d like to fly for less, there are fares of just under $600 on 11/20-11/29.
Aloha.
What is the least expensive airline to fly from Phoenix to Kahului (PHX-OGG) from January 30, 2018 returning early morning (can take red eye leaving February 8 late at night) February 9. 2018. Also, please let me know of any hotel/flight package deals to the Kaanapali/Lahaina area for these same dates. We are seniors (70/75) and are enrolled in AAA and AARP. Your earliest response will be greatly appreciated.
Thank You
Hi Vivian.
Nonstop on American for your dates is $709.
Aloha.
Planning a group to Maui the last week in September beginning of October. We will be 2 or 3 couples, Flying from Dallas. Any suggestions on condos and airfares at that time of the year would be appreciated. Thank you
Hi Lori.
We don’t get involved in accommodations. As for airfare, Virgin America has fares of just over $600 with good connections.
Aloha.
Hi ….love your site. Read every post. Thank you! Do you have any info regarding to which islands SW will have direct flights. Mahalo, Martha
Hi Martha.
Thanks! We think they’ll fly to all of the islands, sooner or later.
Aloha.
I’m grateful for the competition but will never fly SWA, their service and quality are defiantly sub-par.Hoping to try Alaska some time. Kona is not served by all so Hawaiian has always been my preference. Thanks for the good work BEAT!
Another factor that does play into this is the overall capacity of Honolulu Airport and whether it would be able to accommodate the needs of SWA. As you might know, SWA handles its own operations exclusively. In other words, they rarely if ever contract out to other entities for items below the wing. This includes baggage handling and such. There is also the issue of gate availability at certain times of day that SWA would like. I am sure that the whole Interisland 2-step that is happening with Mokulele and Island Air is not helping matters.
I would predict that SWA gets a couple of gates in the new Interisland Terminal mauka extension for its own operations, as SWA tends to operate their flights like trains, one after the other, quick turn around and then back out.
If SWA starts flying new 737-800’s to Hawaii in ‘early’ 2018, (perhaps from LAX, LGB or SNA?), will there be an announcement and online bookings beginning in Summer of ’17… or about six months in advance?
When will this likely appear online?
Thanks.
Hi Rick.
Yes we’d anticipate about a 6 month lead time. We don’t more but as soon as we do you’ll see it here.
Aloha.
Do you anticipate online bookings to start soon, this summer to Hawaii, ie. June, July?
Another domino has just fallen. Southwest has up dated their reservation system, which allows for red-eyes.
Nice MP … I can’t wait for this to take place… I would rather fly SWA than Hawaiian ANY day!!! Hopefully they give Hawaiian a run for it’s money with direct flights from SD to HNL
Hi Brian,
I just stumbled across your website – this is GREAT!!! I really appreciate all the info!
Could you please let me know of the best flights/routes from Austin to Honolulu at Thanksgiving? (I know there are no non-stops.) Also, what car rental agency would you suggest? Thanks SO MUCH!!
Hi Marcia.
Looks like American is the best bet from Austin in terms of connections and price. From $802 generally around Thanksgiving, depending on days of travel.
Aloha.
Thanks for all your help, Brian! Unfortunately, the fares were MUCH HIGHER, but a lot of that was due to the days we want to fly (most popular days of the year :{) as well as times (we didn’t want a 10-20 hour layover anywhere). But thanks to you, we did focus on American. We ended up paying $1645 for coach seats, going out in the 6 AM time range, and a lot more to upgrade to Main Cabin Extra.
I did want to give a shout-out to what we found to be the BEST search engine on the internet – Google Flights (www.google.com/flights). They definitely had the easiest navigation, most professional appearance and, when we chose American, gave us a link to book directly on the aa website (i.e., no fees). All of the other sites we looked at (which were SEVERAL) were substantially inferior. Check it out for yourself.
Again, thanks for all your help – we really appreciate it!
Best regards,
Marcia
I have family in Kona, so I hope they consider SJC/OAK to KOA/ITO as an option. SFO is notorious for weather delays, and I’ve never flown into the Bay area to SFO because it’s kind of a mess.
Believe it or not, San Jose is the closest airport to Hawaii on the mainland, and its an airport SWA already uses. SFO and OAK are essentially tied for second. I hope they get their ETOPS certifications sorted soon, regardless.
Could you please let me know the most reasonable price for a round trip airfare for two from Philadelphia or even Newark to Oahu the week of October 9th staying for two weeks, to visit our daughter who is stationed there in the Marines. Thank you.
Hi Dee.
Save about $200 by flying from EWR. $755 nonstop (highly recommended) on UAL. Or $709 with a very long layover.
Aloha.
Not written very well as ETOPS certification is not and has never been required for Gulf Of Mexico flying. Not sure where yet his misinformation came from.
Hi Brian.
It came from multiple sources including our pilot friends at SWA. We were informed that the Gulf is a Class II airspace, part of ETOPS.
Aloha.
Hi All,
I can confirm SWA did indeed get their initial ETOPS certification flying over the gulf. The proving runs were flown between HOU and SJU. While not technically full blown ETOPS it is Class II and was an essential step in the ETOPS certification process. Hope this helps.
I disagree as a amt we never have done ETOPS on airplanes going to the Gulf of Mexico are the Caribbean now swa might be useing it for certification practices but not required
As a 32 year aircraft mechanic who’s been ETOPS qualified for 30 years and sending airplanes to the Gulf of Mexico dose not require a ETOPS . unles SWA is useing that for proving runs.
Aloha,
I’m hoping this will start a friendly competition between SWA and Hawaiian airlines to drive their pricing down as well!
Going to maui Sept mid-week. Want direct flight. Alaska has been at $240/way for months. Good chance it will go down, or should I book now?
Hi there. Could you please tell me what would be the best airline to take from San Diego to KOA nonstop WED October 11-16 arriving early afternoon. I could even change dates of travel to THURS October 12-17 to get a better deal if needed. 2 adults and 1 child traveling. Thanks so much.
Jackie
Hi Jackie.
October 12 to 17 has the best price right now at $517 on Alaska. That is the only nonstop.
Aloha.
Check out Scott’s Cheap Flights too. I just got a deal notification from them from a bunch of cities (including SAN for $351) to 3 Hawaiian islands. There are a ton that pop up every month.
what is the chance of flights out of seattle to kona?
mahalo … darlene
Hi Darlene.
If you mean on Southwest, there is virtually no chance of that. We indicated all of the likely mainland gateways.
Aloha.
Actually Southwest seat pitch is far above industry standard at 32 inches. Their new 800’s also now have even more pitch and also have the widest seat in the USA. I’m 6ft 4 and all leg. My knees don’t even touch the seat in front of me on the new 800 seats.
Southwest contracts ALL of its international out stations and has said it would contract out all Hawaii stations as well. It used to be swa hsndeled all their own ops but that changed with their entry into the international market
Aloha!
We love that Alaska flys San Jose->Kona direct, but some competition would be good. Do you see anything happening?
Hi Dave.
That’s exactly the kind of route we see Hawaiian have access to with their new planes. Starting in 1 year.
Aloha.
We need more flights from the Mainland to Hawaii cause Hawaiian Airlines is very expensive. So Southwest Airlines will be good for the Mainland ppl flying to Honolulu
Any updates on SW to Hawaii?
Have a ton of SW points and would love to use them the Summer of 2018 to go to Hawaii.
Thanks!
Murph
Hi Murph.
Not clear if they will be here by then. We’re certainly all hoping so.
Aloha.
Aloha!
Is there any reason why sna (the OC) airport is not included among your list of possible candidates for SWA using the new 737 Max8’s? It seems like it would be a perfect fit given no competition out of that airport and as a resident I could tell you demand is thru the roof! Also, the airport has reportedly offered incentives to bring sna-HNL service.
Thanks in advance!
Hi Greg.
It is certainly a possibility. We have not heard of any airline having that on their near-term radar however. Not sure why really.
Aloha.
With a fairly short 5700 ft runway, most narrow body planes would face a choice between fuel or payload. Leaving from a larger airport with the resultant longer runways gives the operators more margin/options. The max-8 might solve that problem, though!
when will SW start flying to Hawaii?
Is it better to take a cruise or land adventure in Hawaii?
I live on Kaua’i and am familiar with the cruise ships that stop here. There is a little trolley tour that doesn’t go very far from the ship but you at least get a feel for the island. Take a cab to a specific location for the day or rent a car. That being said, I would suggest a “land adventure” on Kaua’i. AloHa
Once Southwest starts servicing flights to Hawaii. Is Southwest going to hire SW employees or using airline contractors? I’m very interested working for Southwest and I live in Hawaii.
Paul
That depends on how many flights a day SWA plans on having. There would have to be roughly 12 flights a day for actual SWA ground operations to be there. It will most likely be contacted out unfortunately.
Ryan
Thanks for this information. Any intel on what the routes may be between Hawaii and the mainland? Any east coast departures? BWI to Hawaii would be sweet!!
Hi Jon.
We haven’t heard anything new. Connecting via Oakland or Los Angeles will be likely routes for Southwest.
Aloha.
BWI to Hawaii is not likely, at least not nonstop. SWA operates only Boeing 737s, which can fly to and from Hawaii from Los Angeles or the San Francisco Bay Area, but no farther inland than that.
Do you think that SWA will still let us use our Southwest Airline points to fly to Hawaii? I hope so.
Hi Judy.
Yes we do expect so.
Aloha.
Hello, do you by any chance have any updates on the Hawaiian airlines pilot strike? Mahalo.
Hi Simone.
Thanks for asking. Nothing new to report as of today. These take a long time to settle as in the 4+ years it took SWA pilots.
Aloha.
Here’s to hoping I’ll be in the clear for February to March. Mahalo again.
Another major point is that Southwest will have to begin flying REDEYE flights (something never before done at Southwest) to have connectivity from Hawaii through the West Coast to the rest of Southwest’s system. Hawaii to West Coast and/or West Coast to Midwest/Eastern gateways will have to be redeye flights.
A second point is that the 737 MAX 8 will likely not have the range for PHX or LAS to Hawaii because of the hot weather conditions. And, just a reminder that ALaska already flies regular 737-800’s to Hawaii so it is already possible.
Hawaiian Airlines and Southwest is all I fly. If those two combine, it would be a lovely marriage! And coming from Ohio, it would be so nice to not have to use multiple airlines to get to my destination. I hope they consider flying into Maui as well as Oahu.
what is the best way to fly to hawaii now? my son is stationed there & we want to visit late August/early September! Thanks in advance!
Hi Donna.
Our best suggestions are contained in this just updated 7-part series on the Cheapest Time to Fly to Hawaii.
Aloha.
One additional KEY point is that Southwest does not currently fly redeyes. To gain access to vast majority of Southwest’s network from Hawaii, it will invovle a redeye flight (either from Hawaii to West Coast OR from West Coast to midwest hub). In addition, Southwest does not currently allow for double-connections (e.g. HNL-OAK-MDW-BOS). This reduces the number of available destinations to/from Hawaii.
Once these two things are fixed (and it mainly has to do with old IT infrastructure), Southwest will most likely start service to Hawaii.
Hi Tony,
True enough. We understand these issues are currently being addressed – first the overnight issue. That was in part what we were referring to here: “SWA using existing 737-800 aircraft before 2017 is highly unlikely for logistical and other reasons.”
Aloha.
I will be curious to see if, when SouthWest decides to come to Hawaii, it chooses an airport besides HNL as a base. They may wish to make Maui, Kona, Hilo or Kauai their base to save landing fee costs, as they have done in other major markets. Of course, it will depend on whether they decide to also offer inter-island, something we all hope will happen.
We are headed to HI in Sep of 2017 for our 40th anniversary. I’m hoping SWA will be flying there by then. Airfares are outrageous to HNL from RDU these days. Roughly 5 or 6 years ago we flew RT to HNL for $475 and gas was $3.75 a gallon now that ticket is usually $900 for post Labor Day flights and gas is $2 a gallon something doesn’t jive. We surf constantly to stay abreast of fares, hoping SWA gets in the game!
I am of the opinion that SWA should have not let go of the flights they were codesharing with American Trans Air when that airline went tango-uniform. The pilots and some of ATA’s aircraft wrre already ETOPS certified, how much problem would have it been for them to keep those pilots and aircraft around while bringing newer, extended range 737s online? After all, they ultimately inherited (and then let go of) a number of 717s as part of the later AirTran acquisition. Major oversight by SWA, IMO.
I agree
Please inform me of Southwest flights to Hawaii.
Eager to fly SWA to HNL,Maui,Big Island. Have Coffee farm in Kona, so travel would be frequent!!!!!
I am hoping Southwest gets it sorted out by the time I get married in the summer of 2017. I want to use my flying miles to go on my honeymoon in Hawaii! I only fly SOUTHWEST!LETS GO SOUTHWEST!!!!!!
Thank you for compiling this information and suggesting some possibilities for why SW flights are not yet available to go to Hawaii. Still sounds like it is a realistic possibility but not any time soon. However Watterson’s comment that they “feel no need” right now sounds to me like it is a diversionary tactic. Do they not feel a need in regards to not needing additional revenue that would come from the thousands of people who live in the Midwestern states and want to vacation in Hawaii? I have plenty of family members who would love to be able to go to Hawaii but flights from where they live typically involve two to three layovers and fares that are double if not triple what they are for the west coast states, unless one of the airlines happens to offer a special discounted fare. I live in Phoenix so flights are about $100-200 more roundtrip than the West coast cities which is not too bad, but here again there are plenty of people in the Southwest, Midwest, NW and in between states (Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Idaho, etc) not to mention the NE and SE states, etc. I am not buying it when they say they have no need. I think there is a significant size market that they should be trying to figure out how to service and provide affordable flights for these people to Hawaii. Not just Southwest airlines – but all the airlines.
It doesn’t matter what kind of airplane. It’s all down to the cost. Can w agree to n that!!!????
When Aloha Air was still around I flew twice between Santa Ana and Honolulu and I think they were using 737-700s on that routing. The flight was slower than “normal” by about an hour but they took good care of the passengers and I got a little more nap time. The -800 right out of the wrappings is more than up to the job mechanically and for Southwest to offer Hawaii service, it’s mostly an issue of ironing out the details. Interisland service would be right up WN’s alley and I do agree that market needs more capacity and competition. This will be an interesting situation to watch, for sure!