Hawaii interisland deals, tips: Southwest Airlines offers $39 tickets for the rest of the year

Zach Wichter and Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY
·4 min read

Travelers looking to get between the Hawaiian islands can find great deals on Southwest Airlines through the end of the year.

Since July 26, Southwest has made all tickets on interisland flights $39. The company said it will offer the same fare on all neighbor island flights through the end of 2022.

"We’re seeing a great response to this promotional price on interisland flights and that’s meeting our goal of having folks give us a try," Southwest spokesperson Brad Hawkins said in a statement. The promotion, he added, "has put us more top of mind as an option, even for last-minute trips tied to plans that change – business trips, journeys for medical care, and also tourism."

These Hawaii deals are separate from a fare sale in the rest of the country, with tickets on some routes on certain days available for as little as $59.

For comparison, interisland flights this week on Hawaiian Airlines hover around $80.

"As Hawai‘i’s hometown carrier, we remain focused on continuing to serve our guests with the most value," Hawaiian Airlines spokesperson Alex Da Silva said in a statement emailed to USA Today. "In addition to competitive fares, our guests enjoy the largest and most convenient Neighbor Island network – this summer averaging 146 daily flights connecting our islands from the early morning until the evening – the warm hospitality of our team, our leading punctuality, and they’ll earn double miles that never expire on every neighbor island flight through the end of the year."

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Southwest expanding Hawaii network

After Labor Day, the airline will almost double its flying in Hawaii, going to 60 interisland departures per day from the current 38. All those new flights will also be included in the fare sale through the end of the year.

"We’ve served Hawaii for more than three years, but we still think a lot of people know about Southwest, that we move people among five airports in the Aloha State, but that they don’t yet know us – and so we’re inviting them to give us a try," Hawkins said.

Hawaii interisland travel tips

Once in Hawaii, island-hopping is an easy way to enjoy the unique offerings of each island. After all, flights between the islands are short – the longest is between Kauai and Hawaii Island which typically lasts 50 minutes. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when traveling interisland in Hawaii:

  • Day trips to other islands are easy to do since the last interisland flights of the night are often around 8 or 9 p.m., giving visitors a full day of exploring. Just keep in mind that if you don't rent a car, you'll be toting your stuff around all day.

  • Prepare for possibly long TSA lines at airports, especially during the weekends and mid-day. Just recently, travelers without TSA Precheck waited for 84 minutes in the hot sun at Maui's Kahului Airport.

  • Plan your activities ahead of time so you know which airport to fly in and out of. Maui and Hawaii Island both have two airports on different sides of the islands. For example, if you want to do a day trip to the west side of the island, make sure you don't fly into Hilo since the two towns are an hour-and-a-half drive apart. -

  • If you're staying overnight on another island, consider check-in and check-out times in your schedule.

  • The views from the airplane over each island are stunning, so definitely try to book a window seat.

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Customer flexibility

Southwest has a strong focus on customer-friendly policies, which the airline said may make it even more appealing to travelers in Hawaii taking advantage of the interisland sale.

"Flexibility has never been more important a theme and our brand attributes can’t be matched – with two bags included, no change fees, flight credits that don’t expire, and a frequent flyer program that allows you to take any seat on any flight as a reward seat," Hawkins said.

Southwest also has one of the friendliest policies for plus-size travelers, offering refunds for those who choose to purchase extra seats.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Southwest selling $39 flights around Hawaiian islands through December