When will Southwest schedule flights for March and April 2025? I personally stay on top of the release dates, which change OFTEN, and keep this post updated so you can make plans for booking travel.

Want real-time, same-day notifications of Southwest flight release changes and announcements along with up-to-the-minute notifications on the day flights are released? I recommend joining my Families Fly Free membership. This is our premium membership program designed to help you maximize your travel savings and planning.

When Will Southwest Schedule Flights for March and April 2025?

We have checked and the Southwest Flight Schedule is now open for booking through October 1, 2025.

So you can book March and April now. Yay!

Southwest has announced the next flight release date will be February 6th, for booking flights through November 1, 2025. Be sure to check back for any updates or changes.

Want to learn the EASY way to fly for free by collecting and redeeming travel rewards? Join us in Families Fly Free, the premier online travel program where you can learn our SIMPLE, step-by-step system and save thousands of dollars in the process, while enjoying 1-on-1 support, a vibrant community and timely travel webinars and alerts.

It's helped hundreds of families and thousands of people be able to travel MORE while spending less -- all while making priceless memories with their families. Don't put off traveling with your family any longer...

 


What Time Will Southwest Release Flights?

Southwest plane gate; release March April flights

Southwest says they can’t tell you an “official” time that flights are released, but based on our study of many Southwest flight releases, they typically happen between 7 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. EST.

This depends on many factors and one never knows for sure if it will be super early or super late or right on time!

 

What to Know About Booking a Southwest Flight on Release Day

Colorado One Southwest plane

To prepare for the Southwest flight release, here are some of my top tips.

Be sure to check for flights on a mobile browser, the Southwest app AND your desktop or vice versa, as sometimes they come online in one place before another.

Additionally, the flights seem to progressively “roll out,” so you may find some flights available before others.

This can be a somewhat frustrating — and tiring (especially if you get up at 5 a.m. Pacific to check for flights!) — process, but if you can score a cheap fare, it’s worth it in the end!

Join our Families Fly Free membership, so you’ll get an alert by phone AND email that flights are available for booking!


Top Spring Break Destinations on Southwest

Cheap Flights Southwest
My family at Rum Point on Grand Cayman

Here are some great Spring Break recommendations from Families Fly FREE. Read our posts on these destinations below:

 

Cancel or Change With NO Penalty on Southwest!

Watch our video on how to change a Southwest flight or read below.

Remember, when you book a flight on Southwest, there is no fee if you need to change or cancel a flight.

It’s best to pay in Southwest points, because if you cancel or change because fares have dropped, the points go right back into your account. No questions asked!

If you don’t have a Southwest Rapid Rewards account, it’s easy to create one by visiting Southwest.com. Plus, you’ll be able to start earning points when you pay for flights and that you can use to book FREE flights (always my goal :)).

If you pay in cash/credit and purchased a Wanna Get Away fare, you’ll instead get a “credit,” also called an Unused Southwest Travel Fund, good for one year (must be used by the same person) for the difference in fare price or as your “refund.”

[Read our complete guide to Southwest Travel Funds]

 

How to Find A Low Fare on a Southwest Flight

Southwest Reservations New Look Low Fare Calendar

To find the absolute LOWEST price for a flight, I always recommend starting your search at the Low Fare Calendar.

This fab Southwest tool lets you see the lowest fares across each month, and you can click forward or backward to check other months, as well.

Once you find a date with a low price, choose that date along with a return date. On the next screen, you’ll see all the flight options for that day where, again, you can select the lowest option (if that’s what you want).

Keep in mind that Southwest does not list fares on comparison sites like Google Flights or Expedia, so you’ll need to check directly on Southwest.com.

Book Your Southwest Flight to Hawaii!

Southwest Airlines Hawaii
Credit Southwest Airlines

Southwest now flies to Hawaii (hooray!). They now fly direct to Maui, Oahu, the Big Island and Kauai nonstop from Long Beach, Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento and San Diego airports in California.

My family has personally flown to Hawaii twice on Southwest, including to Maui prior to its devastating fire and later Kauai.

Southwest Hawaii flights continue to be in high demand, so booking them as soon as they are released is a good plan. Southwest prices always tend to go up over time and especially as planes fill!

Here’s everything you need to know about Southwest Hawaii flights.

My Favorite Travel Credit Card: card_name 

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If you want to earn EVEN MORE Southwest points, the card_name, my FAVORITE travel credit card, allows you to bonus_miles after meeting a $4,000 minimum spend in the first three months and a low annual_fees annual fee.

Thanks for using our affiliate link to apply below...

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  • Flexible points transfer to Southwest at a 1:1 ratio instantly and are worth DOUBLE if you have a Southwest Companion Pass
  • 3X points on dining 
  • 2X points on travel
  • 10% points bonus annually on spending
  • Primary car rental insurance
  • Trip interruption and cancellation insurance

Please note, this card’s points DO NOT qualify for the Southwest Companion Pass but CAN be used to book FREE flights on Southwest.

Read my full review of this card.

Want More Points for Free Flights on Southwest?

card_name

 

Check out the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Credit Cards, which let you earn tens of thousands of points that you can use to book free flights on Southwest!

These points also qualify for the 135,000 you need to earn the Southwest Companion Pass, so one person can fly free with you for up to 2 years.

These include...

    • card_name: bonus_miles_full (annual_fees annual fee)
    • card_name: bonus_miles_full (annual_fees annual fee)
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    • card_name: bonus_miles_full (annual_fees annual fee)

Keep in mind you can only hold ONE personal Southwest card at a time, though you can hold 2 Southwest business cards.

To ensure you time these cards in the best way possible to easily ALWAYS have a Southwest Companion Pass, join hundreds of others inside our Families Fly Free membership, the simplest, most organized, most supportive system for flying your whole family for free.

Compare and contrast the varying Southwest credit card options HERE.

Thanks for using my affiliate links within this post to apply for any travel cards to help support my small business. I greatly appreciate it!

Author

  • Lyn Mettler is a longtime travel writer for US News & World Report, USA Today 10Best and The TODAY Show who created Families Fly Free, a program that teaches families her simple system to use travel rewards to fly for free. She is one of the industry's foremost experts on collecting and using travel rewards with her expertise featured in major media outlets and on podcasts, television and radio.

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