Southwest...What's The Worst Boarding Position You've Gotten With EBCI?

[Timothy02359]

Low B`s... there was still plenty of seats together on the plane though

 

[nkereina]

There's a lot of variables that can impact the EBCI position, but the worst we've gotten is low B's. We typically fly nonstop when we can. Whenever we book on schedule release day and do not make any changes, we end up around A17-A21 (ish), which is among the earliest A's since A1-15 is business select.

 

[Debbie Jean]

Mid B's. Have to say I was a little annoyed with this since I booked months in advance. Still, I was able to get an aisle seat which is what I need.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

the only time I ever buy it is if I am on a cruise and can't check in myself. Although I paid under $2 in Internet charges on the ship to check in from the cruise last time, which is a lot better than $15. As for the lowest number I got using it, it was B2.

However, I've still gotten an aisle seat with C17 (non-ECBI and flight change from a cancellation)

only time I recommend ECBI is if you must sit with certain people or if you must sit in the front of the plane. I do know a few people who will only choose an aisle seat and they only want to be in one of 3 specific rows at the front of the plane. If you're that particular about where you sit then upgrading your category is the answer, because ECBI may not help with that.

I just don't want a middle seat. I don't care if its aisle or window, the front, the back or right by the loo on the Orlando flights, they're short. I love to fly JetBlue from here because they fly those little 2x2 Embraer planes and they don't have middle seats.

 

[Marsh215]

I have only flown SW twice, the last 2 WDW trips. Both times, we got A-16 through A-21. We did book our flights and EBCI right when flights were released both times, so that could be why we had such a great boarding position.

I think that some folks don't know that A-16 is the best position you can get with EBCI. Just an FYI.

 

[JenluvsDisney]

As another quick FYI, if you buy EBCI and later on your flight time changes, make sure to contact Southwest Customer Service and ensure that your EBCI was properly transferred over too.

My family of four found this out the hard way when we took a trip in March of 2017 for which I purchased flights and EBCI on the first day of release (which was in August 2016). A couple of months after purchasing the tickets, I got an email that our return flight home had been pushed back an hour. I noted the change and didn't think anything of it. Fast forward to us checking in at MCO for our flight home. I hadn't checked in online prior to that because I had purchased EBCI on the first day the flights were released and would likely have a mid to high A-range position after being automatically checked in 36 hours prior to flight time. Or so I thought.

Colour me surprised when our tickets printed out with boarding position in the very high C range! When we asked the SW rep at the luggage check-in counter what had happened, she looked at our account and said that, yes, she could see that I had purchased EBCI but it had, unfortunately, not been applied properly to the new flight time and there was nothing they could do. Then, when we reached our gate, we spoke to the customer service rep there and she reiterated what the first rep told us - when the flight time changed, the EBCI didn't carry over (even though they could still see it in my account), so I would just have to accept the crappy boarding position and, if I wanted my EBCI money back I'd have to contact Southwest myself. They were unable to rectify this situation in any way at the airport, which seems ridiculous to me and, when I suggested that we would be happy to board the plane after family boarding in lieu of getting our correct EBCI boarding position, they would not even consider that. We ended up being dead last to board the plane, just behind another family of four who had also purchased EBCI before the flight time had been changed.

Luckily we were flying home mid-week and the plane wasn't full so we were still able to sit together (albeit in the very last two rows of the plane) and I did ultimately get my money back but it was certainly an unpleasant way to end a great Disney trip.

Moral of the story: If your fight time is changed, double check that the EBCI is showing up properly on the new time!

 

[CT Disney]

As another quick FYI, if you buy EBCI and later on your flight time changes, make sure to contact Southwest Customer Service and ensure that your EBCI was properly transferred over too.

My family of four found this out the hard way when we took a trip in March of 2017 for which I purchased flights and EBCI on the first day of release (which was in August 2016). A couple of months after purchasing the tickets, I got an email that our return flight home had been pushed back an hour. I noted the change and didn't think anything of it. Fast forward to us checking in at MCO for our flight home. I hadn't checked in online prior to that because I had purchased EBCI on the first day the flights were released and would likely have a mid to high A-range position after being automatically checked in 36 hours prior to flight time. Or so I thought.

Colour me surprised when our tickets printed out with boarding position in the very high C range! When we asked the SW rep at the luggage check-in counter what had happened, she looked at our account and said that, yes, she could see that I had purchased EBCI but it had, unfortunately, not been applied properly to the new flight time and there was nothing they could do. Then, when we reached our gate, we spoke to the customer service rep there and she reiterated what the first rep told us - when the flight time changed, the EBCI didn't carry over (even though they could still see it in my account), so I would just have to accept the crappy boarding position and, if I wanted my EBCI money back I'd have to contact Southwest myself. They were unable to rectify this situation in any way at the airport, which seems ridiculous to me and, when I suggested that we would be happy to board the plane after family boarding in lieu of getting our correct EBCI boarding position, they would not even consider that. We ended up being dead last to board the plane, just behind another family of four who had also purchased EBCI before the flight time had been changed.

Luckily we were flying home mid-week and the plane wasn't full so we were still able to sit together (albeit in the very last two rows of the plane) and I did ultimately get my money back but it was certainly an unpleasant way to end a great Disney trip.

Moral of the story: If your fight time is changed, double check that the EBCI is showing up properly on the new time!

Wow...that does not seem right at all...and what a bummer! Southwest should have accommodated you at the airport since they could see you had purchased EBCI. They should have let you board with family boarding or something equivalent!

 

[Lewisc]

Wow...that does not seem right at all...and what a bummer! Southwest should have accommodated you at the airport since they could see you had purchased EBCI. They should have let you board with family boarding or something equivalent!

Middle B's, I don't remember the exact number.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Last week we were in the C’s from Vegas to Columbus. Purchased EBCI when the tickets were purchased at six months out. Made me consider buying business select going forward.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/sw-moving-from-wanna-getaway-to-business-select.3693534/

From CMH to MCO I recently bought at 60 days out and had the high A’s for an April flight. The return was A16. Last summer at about six months out and in the B30 range both ways.

We always book an originating flight also as many people stay on direct flights that have stops in Columbus which can leave 100 seats already occupied when boarding starts.

I read your other thread that you linked.

The thing is I'm not so certain yours is actually an issue and I certaintly personally wouldn't be jumping the gun and paying over $1100 (as Business Select for us is normally mid-$500s each way) for this.

You never stated but what did you get flying from Columbus to Vegas?

I would have called it a random weird thing. One time I was flying as a Companion and got a C. In all the times I had flown when not on Companion, and the times before and after that when I flew on Companion I never got a C. And there were multiple times where the Companion ticket was booked either several weeks or a month or two in advance. I chalked it up to a random thing the one and only time I got a C.

Otherwise my mind would go to..did you really physically have EBCI for that leg of going from Vegas to Columbus or did the system not acknowledge this thus when you 'checked in' you were given what the Boarding position was at that time rather than the Boarding position 36hrs in advance.

 

[CT Disney]

OP here

We printed our boarding passes this morning. As you may recall from my initial post, we purchased our tickets 10 days prior to our flight. We were thinking that because we bought EBCI so late, we may end up with less-than-ideal boarding positions. Well...

For the flight down we ended up with A39, A40, A41 and A42

Way better than I thought we'd get given the late purchase!