Southwest Airlines Launches Week-Long Sweepstakes for 51st Birthday
For its 50th anniversary last year, Southwest Airlines had June 18 designated ‘Wanna Get Away Day’ as a national holiday in perpetuity. This year, as the carrier is celebrating its 51st birthday and the second-ever ‘Wanna Get Away Day’ by offering customers daily sweepstakes opportunities during the week-long countdown to its official birthday.
Each day, customers can enter to win such prizes as round-trip travel for two or bonus points for Rapid Rewards loyalty program members, all leading up to major prizes, like the highly coveted promotional Companion Pass, which will be awarded on June 18.
Starting today, Customers can visit WannaGetAway.com on each day of the countdown to enter the Giveaway by playing fun sweepstakes games, which are themed to spotlight the various perks of Southwest’s newest fare product, Wanna Get Away Plus. Benefits of the new fare include transferable flight credits, free same-day flight changes and more Rapid Rewards points per dollar spent.
Themed days include:
— 6 Days until Wanna Get Away Day: Sweepstakes launch day!
— 5 Days until Wanna Get Away Day: 8X Rapid Rewards bonus points
— 4 Days until Wanna Get Away Day: Transferable flight credit
— 3 Days until Wanna Get Away Day: Same day change or standby
— 2 Days until Wanna Get Away Day: Bags fly free
— 1 Day until Wanna Get Away Day: No change/cancel fees
— Wanna Get Away Day and Southwest’s 51st Birthday!
Southwest first coined the phrase ‘Wanna Get Away’ back in 1996 to highlight the airline’s expansion and as a marketing tool to connect with its customers by creating humorous, relatable travel moments. Over the years, ‘Wanna Get Away’ became an iconic and instantly recognizable phrase representative of the brand. In 2021, for the 50th anniversary of the carrier’s first commercial flight, Southwest officially registered June 18 as ‘Wanna Get Away Day’ with the National Day Calendar.
“Wanna Get Away Day is about celebrating our colorful, 51-year history of connecting People to what’s important in their lives,” said Bill Tierney, Southwest Airlines Vice President of Marketing & Digital Experience. “We are thrilled to not only have a day that celebrates our past and present history, including our iconic Wanna Get Away campaign, but also highlights our future expansion, and brings together our amazing Employees and Customers.”