Southwest has made a flurry of changes in 2025 — from charging for bags and introducing assigned seats to rolling out brand-new fare types and tweaking credit card perks, including increasing their annual fees. And they’ve managed to make things very complicated. But here’s the good news: I’ve cut through the clutter to get to the heart of what actually matters in my trademark "keep it simple stupid" approach 😉.
In this episode, I’ll show you the few simple adjustments you need to make so you can:
- Keep flying Southwest for the same cost (or less) as before (yes, really!)
- Make only slight changes to the way we’ve always flown Southwest for free
- Understand how to KEEP getting free bags, as well as free assigned seating and navigate the new fare rules
You’ll walk away knowing exactly what to do to keep your Southwest travel FREE, easy and smooth.
💡 Free Bonus: Get my one-page cheat sheet that explains all the changes in plain English — plus the exact tweaks you need to make to your own Southwest strategy, including how to change a Basic Fare (yes, it's possible!):
👉
SecretsofaTravelJournalist.com/ChangesJoin Families Fly Free
Southwest — and travel rewards in general — can get
complicated fast. But inside
Families Fly Free, I show you how to skip the confusion, ignore the noise and use my simple
Fly Free Formulaâ„¢ to get maximum travel with the
minimum number of cards.
I’ve been flying my family of 4 free 6x a year on Southwest (and beyond) since 2015, and I’ve boiled it down to a clear, repeatable plan that anyone can follow. Whether you’re traveling with kids, a spouse, friends or solo, this formula works. Let me make it simple for you.
What is Families Fly Free With Lyn Mettler?
Travel rewards doesn't have to be overwhelming and it can work for entire families! In the Families Fly Free podcast, hosted by longtime travel journalist Lyn Mettler, you'll learn how to simply and easily fly your whole family for free using travel rewards and with minimal cards in your wallet. Lyn has taught nearly 1,000 families a simple, repeatable process to always have enough miles to fly wherever you'd like, so you can make more memories with your family before your kids or grandkids leave home.