Southwest Companion Pass

I read a lot of travel blogs that give hacks on how to travel for free on points or how to cut cost when you travel.  Of course it never works out for me since I can only travel when school is out and the travel industry knows those dates so it isn't so cheap either.  One of the most recent mentions that flooded every travel blog I read was the companion pass from Southwest Airlines.  So what is this companion pass?  It allows the owner of the pass to fly a friend with you for free on any and all flights that has a seat available.  It is not totally free as you must pay the tax which is $5.60 so in my book that is about as free as it gets.  So if I book me a flight from Austin to Denver for $79 then I can add Colin and just pay the tax of $5.60.  So we both fly to Denver for less than $85!  I know I know hardly ever are flights that cheap but trust me sometimes you can find really good deals that cheap!  When I have a trip in mind, it is not uncommon for me to check the prices at least half a dozen times a day! 

I am not a die hard dedicated loyal flyer with Southwest but will use them if the prices are good and times work out too . . . usually once maybe twice a year.  This companion pass is known to be one of the best free travel reward around the travel industry but it comes with a lot of flying . . . like a lot meaning 100 segments (one way flights) or 110,000 points in a calendar year.  Trust me that is a lot!  I barely make my bottom tier American Airlines status each year with 25,000 miles.  So in mid January when Chase Bank offered a free companion pass for the remainder of 2019 by singing up for a credit card, I thought about it for a few weeks and one day went for it.  I wasn't sure if I would be instantly approved even though I have excellent credit, but I was.  Which now meant the real work had to start.  It wasn't just sign up and get the free pass, you had to spend $4000 within three months.  The one reason I finally decided to go for it was my refrigerator and dishwasher went out so I knew I needed to buy two new appliances.  I still needed a couple thousand dollars more so then paid every utility bill that was due and the next month or two.  I loaded up Colin's school lunch account, paid for a few summer flights (on Southwest of course) and pre-paid several expenses that I normally pay each quarter.  Just like that within one week of receiving my actual new card my spending limit was done!  And for the record, I pay off my credit card balances at the end of each month so no fees for me!

And then in two more weeks my magic card arrived in my mailbox . . .

. . . I sure hope Colin realizes what this means!  Now the question is do I try to fly with only Southwest the rest of 2019 and to earn the companion pass for 2020?  I mean I did also get 30,000 miles as a sign up bonus so time will tell if it all works out . . . until then we are off . . .