Southwest Has $49 Flights for 3 Days Only, and Deals Are the Best We've Seen This Year

If the water quality on budget airline flights doesn't put a bad taste in your mouth, extra fees and barebones amenities will. A Frontier carry-on bag costs $35, Spirit has only 28in of leg room (standard is about 32in), and this year, WOW Air went bankrupt, stranding thousands all over the world. The list goes on, but we deal-thirsty travelers proceed, until a better airline comes around with competitive flight deals. 

Well, the time to live our 32in legroom dream is now, because Southwest Airlines is running a new flash sale as of Tuesday, featuring plane tickets for as little as $49, one way. Act fast, though, because the deal ends in three days -- on October 3. 

Southwest has a cult following for a reason. It's easy to make flight changes, the food's good 'n complimentary, and the employees are encouraged to have fun on the job. But a normal ticket from, say, Atlanta to Nashville is normally $100+ this time of year. Right now it's $49. Here are some of our other favorite deals: 

• Columbus, Ohio to Chicago, Illinois (and vice versa) for $49
• Boise, Idaho to Sacramento, California (and vice versa) for $49 
• Chicago, Illinois to Cincinnati, Ohio (and vice versa) for $49
• San Francisco, California to Las Vegas, Nevada (and vice versa) for $49
• Los Angeles, California to Albuquerque, New Mexico (and vice versa) for $59
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands for $71
• Atlanta, Georgia to Turks and Caicos for $74
• Washington, DC to Atlanta, Georgia (and vice versa) for $79
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (and vice versa) for $79
• Austin, Texas to Denver, Colorado (and vice versa) for $79
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida to San Juan, Puerto Rico for (and vice versa) $99

No spin, but these deals are truly the best I've seen from Southwest this year. It's rare for there to be a round-trip discount offering for a San Juan trip, for example.

There are, of course, some rules and regs. You need to book by October 3 at 11:59pm, Pacific Time. Tickets are non-refundable and blackout dates apply: Continental US travel is blacked out November 22 through December 3, 2019 and December 19, 2019 through January 5, 2020.

Check the discount page for the specific time range when the discounts are valid. For example, Continental US travel is valid November 13, 2019 through February 12, 2020. And you can't travel on Fridays and Sundays.

Otherwise, enjoy Southwest's great in-flight service. Or, if the flight's significantly delayed, ask your flight attendant if he or she can start up an ugliest license contest. It went well last time.