Travel expert gives advice in case things go sideways at the airport this season
Flying out of the D.C. area could be a bit messy if you’re leaving on Friday evening, thanks to unpredictable weather. But even if things are fine weather-wise, they may not be in other parts of the country.
That’s why it’s important to both know your rights and know how to come up with a Plan B quickly — provided there is one available to execute.
“We always talk about speed being your best friend when it comes to dealing with flight disruptions,” said Katy Nastro, with the travel app Going.
“Because so many people are traveling over a peak time period, like the winter holidays, there’s not going to be an endless supply of extra seats to rebook yourself on if you need to.”
If a domestic flight you’re booked on is delayed by more than three hours, or an international flight by more than six hours, you’re entitled to a full refund or a rebooking by the airline you’re already flying with — though not both.
That’s why Nastro said it’s important to have a backup flight in mind as a possible option if things with your original flight go sideways. To move faster, have the airline’s app already downloaded so you can find the flight and rebook yourself.
However, if you need to speak with someone, rush to the customer service counter. If the line is long, start calling your airline over the phone while you wait. If lots of other people are on hold too, did you know you can call that airline’s customer service desk in another country?
“A lot of domestic carriers in the U.S. have agents across the world in various offices that are able to look at the same schedules and rebook you just the same, even if they’re not in your home city and state,” Nastro said.
“If I’m experiencing a flight disruption, I’ll try the office located in London, or maybe I’ll try the office located in Sydney, and just try to see if one of those lines works to get through to somebody faster than the domestic line,” she added.
However, if you take the refund route so you can rebook with another airline in order to get home faster, you can expect that refund to show up on your credit card statement within about a week. But rebooking elsewhere could end up costing you even more, so you’ll also have to decide if it’s worth it.
Are you checking a bag because Santa dropped your gifts off at your destination and not your house? That means you’ll need to allow yourself more time at the airport.
“Airlines have check-in bag time frames or windows where you need to check that bag in by, and I think a lot of people forget that, especially as more people look to only travel with a carry-on,” Nastro said.
“If you are … going to the airport with a checked bag, you want to give yourself at least an hour, if not more, to be able to get that bag checked in and on its way so you see it at the other end.”
Cut it too close and you might get there before your bag, instead of with it.