You can redeem your accumulated Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus points for Southwest Airlines flights, international flights on global carriers, gift cards, hotel stays, car rentals, and merchandise. To start, log into your Rapid Rewards account on the Southwest.com homepage.
As far as value goes, points are worth at least 1.3 cents and can be worth roughly 3 cents apiece for certain flights. In general, short-haul flights offer better value.