Travel Tips

Southwest Airlines is dedicated to making air travel an enjoyable experience. In our efforts to provide the best possible service to our Customers, we have provided you with some suggested Travel Tips below to help ease your travel experience at the airport. Please visit the Travel Center for more Travel Tips/Airport Information.

• Medications - Southwest recommends that Customers carry their medications in carryon baggage and that medications requiring refrigeration are cooled with nontoxic gel packs. Keep all medicines - over-the-counter drugs as well as prescriptions - in their original packaging. Medication and its administering paraphernalia must be properly marked with a professionally printed label identifying the medication or manufacturer's name or pharmaceutical label. See additional tips for traveling with medications.
• Prohibited Items - If you're not sure whether an item will be accepted past the security checkpoint, it's probably best to either travel without it or pack it in your checked luggage. Please visit our Baggage page for information on items that you can and cannot bring.
• Parking - Allow time for parking at the airport. In order to minimize the time you spend looking for a parking space and carrying luggage to the airport, choose to take a cab or have friend drive you to the airport.
• Shoes and Security - Random shoe checks are being conducted so consider wearing slip-on shoes when you fly.
• Purchasing Luggage - When purchasing luggage, select pieces that are lightweight, roomy, and durable. Material and design should be able to keep contents dry in adverse weather.
• Traveling with children - When traveling with children, be sure to bring plenty of books, games, and snacks. Also, ask about Southwest Airlines' Infant Fares when making your flight reservations. These fares enable Customers to reserve seats for children under two years of age traveling in Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved car seats.
• Packing Checklist - Prior to packing, make a list of everything you want to take and check off each item as it is packed.
• Carryon Items - Keep your jewelry, keys, wallets, eyeglasses, tickets, money, passports, cameras, and other valuables with you in your carryon luggage. Also carry on any medication that you may need during your trip.
• Luggage Identification - Always put your name and address on the outside of all baggage, both checked and carryon. We recommend placing your name and address on the inside as well, since outside tags can come off.
• Self-Inspection of Luggage - Carefully examine any bag before you pack it. Luggage you haven't used for a while may be inadvertently hiding some things that "won't fly."
• Laptop Computers - Put your name on your laptop case. Tape your business card or an address label to the laptop so you can identify what's yours. Place your laptop on the screening belt ahead of your laptop case. When your laptop comes out first you'll be reminded to return it to the case that will follow.
• Watches and Jewelry - Buy an inexpensive, plastic watch to wear while flying. Frequent travelers know that wearing metal jewelry and big diver-type watches will set off the alarm at security. But now that the security screen devices have been set to their ultra-sensitive settings, even watches with minimal bits of metal - casing, crowns, and strap buckles, for example - are ringing the bells.
• Previous Luggage Tags - Be sure to remove any old destination tags from your luggage. You certainly don't want your bags to end up in the wrong city!
• Liquids - Put cosmetics, shoe polish, nail enamel, liquor, perfume, and anything else that might spill, break, and stain your clothing into resealable plastic bags or unbreakable containers. Hazardous materials are not allowed onboard.
• Wrinkled Clothing - Placing garments in plastic bags (such as those that come from a dry cleaners) before folding and packing will help to prevent wrinkling.
• Toiletries - Purchase travel size bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and other toiletries or place just the amounts you will need of these items in small containers to take with you.
• Items in Your Pockets - The typical traveler has pockets bulging with metal: coins and money clips; keys and key chains; pens and mechanical pencils; metal-framed glasses; and even chewing gum and cigarette packs with metallic wrappers; not to mention the wireless phones, pagers and all the other pocket-size gadgets we keep close to our hearts. You can reduce minutes at the security checkpoint by using a resealable plastic sandwich bag. Rather than placing all these items into those plastic containers one item at a time, put them in the bag before you go through security. Then just put the plastic bag in your carryon or toss it in the container, go through the screening, and grab the bag when it comes through the X-ray machine.
• Fragile Items - Mom's good china should never be put in a suitcase. Fragile items may be included in your carryon allowance and brought onboard the plane. If you decide to check a fragile item, it's important to make sure it is properly packed to withstand the normal rigors of air travel. Fragile articles are accepted as checked luggage only at the Customer's own risk.
• Overpacked Luggage - Don't overpack your luggage. Overpacking can wrinkle clothing and cause baggage to rip apart or pop open during handling and transport.
• Luggage Hooks and Straps - Remove hooks and straps before checking luggage. These are easily caught in baggage handling machinery, which can cause extensive damage to your bag.
• Checking Luggage - When checking luggage, allow sufficient time for it to be placed on your flight. Baggage checked less than 30 minutes before scheduled departure at curbside or at the ticket counter will be tagged with a Late Check-In Tag. Some airports now require a 45-minute baggage checkin or the baggage will be considered Late Checked. (See additional tips for checking luggage) Although every effort will be made to get late checked baggage on your flight, in the event your baggage does not arrive with you at your destination, Southwest will not assume delivery charges to get your baggage to you.
• Claim Checks - When you've checked your luggage, make sure you receive a separate claim check for each piece of baggage you've checked. Check to make sure that the city shown on the claim check(s) matches your final destination.
• Hazardous Materials - Never pack anything considered a hazardous material. Seemingly harmless materials can be dangerous onboard an aircraft. Leave home any flammable liquids (paints, solvents, etc.), household items that contain chemicals (bleaches, drain cleaners, and the like), matches , and other flammable or potentially toxic materials. Variations in temperature and pressure can cause such goods to leak or ignite.
• Electric Wheelchairs - If traveling with an electric wheelchair, you must check in for your flight at least one hour prior to departure to allow for disassembly, when necessary, and proper packaging of batteries. Bringing along assembly instructions will help prevent damage during disassembly and will speed delivery time upon arrival at your destination.
• Perishables - Southwest does not accept Styrofoam coolers. All perishable items are accepted at the Customer's own risk. The perishables must be completely frozen and packed in a hard, durable ice chest.
• Unattended Luggage - Never leave your luggage unattended. If you must leave the area where you have placed it, even for a moment, take your luggage with you.
• Stowing Carryon Luggage - When boarding the aircraft, any carryon item with hard edges or inflexible surfaces should be placed under your seat or on the floor of the overhead bin. Don't place it on top of other items in the overhead bin. Luggage shifts about within the bin, and it could fall out and injure someone when the bin door is opened.
• Exiting the Aircraft - When leaving the aircraft, check to make sure you have all your carryon items with you. Southwest cannot be responsible for carryon items left onboard the aircraft.
• Claiming your Checked Baggage - When claiming your checked baggage, check the claim check number and name tag to make sure it is yours. Many pieces of luggage look alike, and you don't want to walk off with someone else's.
• Damaged or Missing Luggage - If your luggage is damaged or does not arrive as scheduled, immediately notify Southwest Airlines. Claims must be filed, in person, within four (4) hours of your flight's arrival.
• Pets and other Live Animals - Southwest Airlines accepts small vaccinated domestic cats and dogs. All in-cabin pets must be carried in an appropriate carrier, and are subject to a $75 Pet Fare each way per pet carrier. The pet carrier counts as the Customer’s carryon bag. See additional tips for traveling with pets.
• Conditional Acceptance of Luggage - Improperly packed and/or fragile items will be conditionally accepted and Southwest will not be responsible for any damage to items that are tagged with Conditional Acceptance.