Skip to main content
News

Southwest Cancellations: Rental Car Tips To Battle the Crisis

Written by Kevin V. NguyenPublished Dec. 29, 2022 • 2:01pm
A backlog of returned cars sit at the Avis lot at San Jose International Airport. | Kevin V. Nguyen/The Standard

Travelers who booked flights with Southwest Airlines this holiday season now have limited options: Find an entirely new flight with a different airline (with limited protections from alleged price-gouging), or hit the road in a rental car. 

Since Dec. 22, the second biggest airline in the country has canceled about 15,700 flights in total. According to FlightAware, a flight tracking service, Southwest has canceled nearly 3,000 flights a day this week, accounting for around 84% of all canceled flights in the United States at one point. As of writing, that percentage has dropped down to around 58%. 

Southwest officials said the only way the carrier could restore its regular flight schedule was to cancel most of its flights this week, aiming for a recovery before next week—taking the crisis into the new year.

READ MORE: 'Santa' Misses Christmas Stuck in San Jose Thanks to Southwest

Avis customers wait in line at the car pickup area at San Jose International Airport on Dec. 28, 2022. | Kevin V. Nguyen/The Standard

If you cannot wait that long and are opting to pay for a rental car to drive to your final destination, here are some tips a local reservation agent recommends:

Make a reservation online before heading to the rental center. Don't just show up expecting there to be cars readily available. Due to high demand, rental companies are operating on a razor thin margin of error.

Take advantage of digital check-ins. Customers often think that they can only sign their rental contracts in-person with an agent when they can actually do so online. An agent at Avis, a major car rental company, told The Standard that customers who signed their contract online can skip the first line in the lobby and proceed to the car pick-up area.

Avoid booking rentals on third-party sites. The Avis agent said during a crisis of this scale, that popular sites such as Kayak or Expedia might not have the most up-to-date inventory data. They recommend booking straight with your preferred rental company to avoid accidentally booking a car that is no longer in stock.

Southwest Airlines canceled most of its flights this week in order to "reset" and won’t be fully operational until 2023. | Kevin V. Nguyen/The Standard.

READ MORE: Southwest Airlines Disaster Forces Travelers To Wait Hours For Rental Cars

Questions, comments or concerns about this article may be sent to info@sfstandard.com


A tall office building is lit with blue lights.

Blue Shield of California Members’ Personal Information Stolen by Hackers


A composite photo 4 pictures that include of a person wearing a computer on their head while in a costume of cords while standing on the red carpet, an evening exterior Mel’s Drive-in with neon signage and lights reflecting off parked cards , a screaming protestor sitting on the ground with a sign that reads "Xi Jin Ping, Give me back My Father, My Property, My family, My justin, My human rights" and a closeup of a flame as seen in a workshop with a man in the background.

Best Photos From San Francisco: November 2023


People lightning incense in the a Forrest area.

Abandoned Chinese Cemetery in Historic Gold Rush Town Restored by San Francisco Activists


Demonstrators calling for a ceasefire in Gaza block traffic during a protest on the Bay Bridge on Nov. 16, 2023.

How the Bay Bridge Protest That Blocked Traffic for Over 4 Hours Went Down 


According to BART, Howard allegedly entered the tube by pulling the emergency door release of a train moving through the tube.

San Francisco Man Arrested in BART Transbay Tube Trespassing