http://www.southwest.com/rapidrewards
Rating (out of five stars): ***
In 2004 and 2006, Southwest earned a Freddie Award for “Best Website”. Times have changed, and there is no longer a “Best Website” Freddie Award category; however, our review of the Rapid Rewards website makes us wonder if we should bring that category back? With the transition of A+ Rewards to Rapid Rewards, perhaps the website has taken a back seat to other priorities, because while the Southwest.com main website has been updated and is now more mobile user friendly, Southwest hasn’t yet updated the Rapid Rewards portion of the site.
Rapid Rewards information can be accessed from the home page of Southwest.com by clicking on the Rapid Rewards button on the top right of the screen.
Once you’re on the Rapid Rewards main page, a simple menu bar is displayed highlighting the main aspects of the program: About, How to Earn, How to Redeem, Tiers & More, Partners and Promotions. Those wishing to enroll in Rapid Rewards or log in to an existing account will find a sidebar on the right of the screen. The enrollment form is straightforward and allows members to opt in to receive The Report (monthly account statements), Rapid Rewards Email Updates (program updates and information), Click N Save (weekly sale and promotional emails) and Southwest in a Nutshell (monthly emails on new routes, products, contests and discounts). Opting in to receive The Report and Rapid Rewards Email Updates and staying subscribed for three months will automatically earn you 500 points.
Those new to Rapid Rewards will find most everything you need to know in the program overview under the About tab. Terms and Conditions, Frequently Asked Questions and information on buying, gifting and transferring miles is easily found on a sub-menu bar.
Navigating through the rest of the main menu is easy and intuitive, providing the details of earning points through flights and partner activities, simple instructions on how to redeem points, the details of Southwest’s three-tier status program and extensive information on credit card, hotel, dining, retail and rental car partners.
Members can find the latest bonus offers and can apply for the co-branded credit card through the Promotions link. Members can book and make changes to award tickets, request missing points, estimate points needed for a destination and learn about the More Rewards program for credit card holders through the How to Redeem tab. Information, deadlines and frequently asked questions about the integration of A+ Rewards and Rapid Rewards can be found in a variety of locations throughout the site.
While the Rapid Rewards site is functional and fast to navigate from your desktop, we found the text-heavy pages hard to read and somewhat tedious to click through on our mobile devices. We’d love to see an update soon with a fresh design incorporating the bold, shiny look of the new Southwest.com and a focus on mobile compatibility.
