What Would You Do?: Flight Edition

[lmt219]

We live in MA and are flying out of Providence on Saturday morning at 11:45. We're supposed to get a huge Nor'Easter with extremely powerful winds and rain/snow on Friday with lingering effects into Saturday morning. They're not able to say whether or not it's going to change to snow at this point and if it does they change, they don't know the amounts. I can change my flight to 7:30 am on Sunday. We'd just have to take a taxi directly from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, which hopefully shouldn't be an issue. Would you cross your fingers and hope for the best on Saturday or would you switch to Sunday. I never like to fly the day of the cruise, but I think it might be best in this case. Thoughts?? Just trying to calm my nerves ;)

[pebbles1102]

I think I would cross my fingers and hope for the best on Saturday. Worse case scenario you get cancelled until sunday

[DebQ5]

We live in MA and are flying out of Providence on Saturday morning at 11:45. We're supposed to get a huge Nor'Easter with extremely powerful winds and rain/snow on Friday with lingering effects into Saturday morning. They're not able to say whether or not it's going to change to snow at this point and if it does they change, they don't know the amounts. I can change my flight to 7:30 am on Sunday. We'd just have to take a taxi directly from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, which hopefully shouldn't be an issue. Would you cross your fingers and hope for the best on Saturday or would you switch to Sunday. I never like to fly the day of the cruise, but I think it might be best in this case. Thoughts?? Just trying to calm my nerves ;)

 

Providence sometimes has limited flights. Did you go online to see if the Sunday flights are pretty full? If so, I would suggest rebooking. If not, you could, as the other poster noted, wait and see how it goes. are there any other flights on Saturday? The wind is supposed to be really high, and Green is right on the ocean.

 

I have to say I'd be scrambling to get out tonight... Anything not to miss the cruise! :)

[lmt219]

Providence sometimes has limited flights. Did you go online to see if the Sunday flights are pretty full? If so, I would suggest rebooking. If not, you could, as the other poster noted, wait and see how it goes. are there any other flights on Saturday? The wind is supposed to be really high, and Green is right on the ocean.

 

I have to say I'd be scrambling to get out tonight... Anything not to miss the cruise! :)

 

There are definitely seats, but it's Southwest, so I don't know how many. There afternoon flight is sold out, so that's a no go.

[robmac330]

Fellow Northeasterner here (MA born, CT living), my two cents is with the forecast this close being primarily for rain with a small mix of snow, I'd hang on to the 11:45a Saturday flight. Even if there's some snow overnight, it doesn't seem (with the current forecast) to be a storm that should have much in the way of equipment interruptions getting planes to the proper airports. You may face a delay on Saturday, but at least you're there well in advance of your ship's embarkation.

 

At the same I'd prepare for the worst. Go to Google Flights and copy down every combination of flights (times, connecting cities, and individual flight numbers) on Saturday and Sunday that can get you from Providence to Miami or Fort Lauderdale, both on your current airline and others. That way in the event you are cancelled, you're armed with all the information you need to play the Match Game with a ticket/gate agent or customer service rep.

 

If you're really worried about the flight not happening, look into flights on your chosen airline from Bradley outside of Hartford. We're forecast to get just rain and (slightly) less wind on Friday, with Saturday being clear, and every major airline flies from BDL to MIA (American w/ 1 nonstop and Delta) or FLL (Jetblue w/ 4 nonstops a day, Southwest w/ 2 nonstops, and United) on Saturday. The right attitude ("I really need to be in Florida on Saturday and I was wondering if it was at all possible for you to waive the rebooking fee due to the storm...") with the right customer service rep could probably move you to flights there. Not ideal, but piece of mind in getting to the ship on time.

[lmt219]

Fellow Northeasterner here (MA born, CT living), my two cents is with the forecast this close being primarily for rain with a small mix of snow, I'd hang on to the 11:45a Saturday flight. Even if there's some snow overnight, it doesn't seem (with the current forecast) to be a storm that should have much in the way of equipment interruptions getting planes to the proper airports. You may face a delay on Saturday, but at least you're there well in advance of your ship's embarkation.

 

At the same I'd prepare for the worst. Go to Google Flights and copy down every combination of flights (times, connecting cities, and individual flight numbers) on Saturday and Sunday that can get you from Providence to Miami or Fort Lauderdale, both on your current airline and others. That way in the event you are cancelled, you're armed with all the information you need to play the Match Game with a ticket/gate agent or customer service rep.

 

If you're really worried about the flight not happening, look into flights on your chosen airline from Bradley outside of Hartford. We're forecast to get just rain and (slightly) less wind on Friday, with Saturday being clear, and every major airline flies from BDL to MIA (American w/ 1 nonstop and Delta) or FLL (Jetblue w/ 4 nonstops a day, Southwest w/ 2 nonstops, and United) on Saturday. The right attitude ("I really need to be in Florida on Saturday and I was wondering if it was at all possible for you to waive the rebooking fee due to the storm...") with the right customer service rep could probably move you to flights there. Not ideal, but piece of mind in getting to the ship on time.

 

That's reassuring! Thanks for the input :)

[bottomfeeder]

We live in MA and are flying out of Providence on Saturday morning at 11:45. We're supposed to get a huge Nor'Easter with extremely powerful winds and rain/snow on Friday with lingering effects into Saturday morning. They're not able to say whether or not it's going to change to snow at this point and if it does they change, they don't know the amounts. I can change my flight to 7:30 am on Sunday. We'd just have to take a taxi directly from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, which hopefully shouldn't be an issue. Would you cross your fingers and hope for the best on Saturday or would you switch to Sunday. I never like to fly the day of the cruise, but I think it might be best in this case. Thoughts?? Just trying to calm my nerves ;)

 

Delta is waiving change fees for its passengers with flights involving all the NE corridor's airports that are scheduled for tomorrow AND Saturday, and they are usually pretty on top of things. That tells me that Saturday is really iffy--even if the wind has calmed down by Saturday morning there may be lots of planes in the wrong places because of Friday's weather and that may cause problems with Saturday flights.

 

I think the advice to try to get on a flight today if at all possible is good.

 

Otherwise, I don't know Southwest's policies as I usually fly Delta...but I remember a few years ago around Christmas there was a huge nor'easter and people were stuck in airports for 5 or 6 days...not what I'd expect this time BUT when it happened my son was scheduled for a flight AFTER the storm was gone and he had no problem making his flight while the people who had flights scheduled DURING the storm were still stuck at the airport. All a matter of luck as to when the storm hits. The person who has reserved the seat has dibs over the person whose flight was canceled yesterday...and planes fly very full these days...so I'd question whether if your flight is canceled on Saturday, you'd be able to get a flight later Saturday or on Sunday morning when everyone else is also trying to get on those flights.

 

At least you are in an area where there are lots of possible airports within a few hours' drive.

[joyful1nh]

I'll echo Robmac330 - have a contingency plan. The wonderful thing about the Northeast is the number of alternate airports available and the number of ways to get between airports (trains, busses and cars). BDL is a great alternative - but don't overlook MHT (Manchester, NH), BOS, LGA (Laguardia), EWR (Newark) -- anything that gets you out of the storm zone and into south Florida can work since you have some time cushion available.

 

Remember there will be a lot of other people trying to get out of town as well. In the event of a flight cancellation, be sure you have fully charged your cell phone and while one person waits in line for the gate agent the other should be on the phone trying to reach the airline.

 

My air travel motto is 'always keep moving in the direction of your final destination.'

[Laszlo]

I would try and leave Friday / Friday night

[packer99]

I would definitely try to leave SOONER than Later. Don't move it to Sunday because those flights will most likely be screwed up because of the Saturday storm.

[lmt219]

Getting out today doesn't seem like a possibility, unfortunately.

[fastpitchdad]

Does Southwest allow you to be protected on a later flight in case of irrops?

[lmt219]

Does Southwest allow you to be protected on a later flight in case of irrops?

 

I don't believe so.

[phillyguy31]

There are 2 other options available. 1. Drive, I know a lot of people drive to Fl all the time. You leave Friday you'll be there Saturday night and that includes an overnight stay some where.

2. Amtrak runs to Miami as well and the trains won't be as effected as much as the planes.

Either way I would leave Friday.

[lmt219]

There's a 5 pm non-stop flight out of Hartford that I'm looking at now....

[Notnewtoit]

I'd stick with what you have now, you'll likely be delayed but SW have never failed to get me where I'm going in 20 years; my guess is they'd get you out later in the day. SW will turn and burn aircraft when others give up...

 

Optional strategy:

 

Amtrak down to BWI on Friday (ostensibly south of the worst of the trouble and not on the SW list). It's a big SW hub and basically has many more aircraft movement options when things (literally) go south.

Edited March 1, 2018 by Notnewtoit

[setsail1975]

I live in CT and if I were you I’d change your flight. Can you even try to go out on Friday? I think wind is going to be a major factor from the forecast I’ve been following.

 

They’re predicting hurricane force winds. I’m not sure what airline you’re flying on, but I see JetBlue is already offering flight changes for this coming weekend. I have friends on the Epic right now ,flying back to Hartford on Saturday.. so I’ve been watching it for them. Good luck, hope everything works out for you!

 

 

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[macandlucy]

It's a tough call, but I think if it were me, I;d change to the earliest flight Sunday morning. That leaves time for ground crews to clear overnight snow, and (if I am correct about this) less planes to de-ice, if necessary, first thing in the morning. I'm no expert, but my guess is that it's more difficult to fly out the afternoon a snowstorm is happening, where delays are almost guranteed and cancellations are possible. In that case, if your flight is cancelled, you'll now be competing for space with all the others whose flight was cancelled. If your flight is cancelled, you could go out on the next available, or maybe the one after that. That's a lot of time to be at the airport.

 

It could work out just fine, but I would personally prefer knowing I had a spot for sure (having changed my flight) the next morning.

 

Whatever you choose, I wish you happy and safe flying and a wonderful cruise!

[tobyt]

We are weather watching as well here in CT as we have an early Sunday morning flight. Noon forecast is still a question on if storm heads north or dips south then things change but up near Bradly BDL limited snow in the 2-5 inches over super early on Saturday morning. Of course wait a moment and that could change. Southwest tends to try to keep to schedule as much as possible but will a delay be an issue for you?

[lmt219]

We are weather watching as well here in CT as we have an early Sunday morning flight. Noon forecast is still a question on if storm heads north or dips south then things change but up near Bradly BDL limited snow in the 2-5 inches over super early on Saturday morning. Of course wait a moment and that could change. Southwest tends to try to keep to schedule as much as possible but will a delay be an issue for you?

 

No, a delay would be ok. Our cruise isn't leaving until Sunday.

[BirdTravels]

We live in MA and are flying out of Providence on Saturday morning at 11:45. We're supposed to get a huge Nor'Easter with extremely powerful winds and rain/snow on Friday with lingering effects into Saturday morning. They're not able to say whether or not it's going to change to snow at this point and if it does they change, they don't know the amounts. I can change my flight to 7:30 am on Sunday. We'd just have to take a taxi directly from Fort Lauderdale to Miami, which hopefully shouldn't be an issue. Would you cross your fingers and hope for the best on Saturday or would you switch to Sunday. I never like to fly the day of the cruise, but I think it might be best in this case. Thoughts?? Just trying to calm my nerves ;)

 

If the weather is bad on Saturday, there won’t be a plane to take you on Sunday morning (the aircraft that overnights would have been cancelled). Stay with Saturday or earlier (tomorrrow). Airlines have waived charge fees.

[jdvmd]

I would try and leave Friday / Friday night

Exactly what I was going to say. I would get out of there.

[BostonGal35]

youll be fine. wont be that bad.

[lmt219]

Thank you to everyone for the responses! We've decided to stick with what we have. If SW ends up cancelling, we have options within driving distance (Boston, Hartford, Newark, BWI, etc). I'm still stressed out, but i'm reassuring myself that it'll all be ok :D

[packer99]

It's a tough call, but I think if it were me, I;d change to the earliest flight Sunday morning. That leaves time for ground crews to clear overnight snow, and (if I am correct about this) less planes to de-ice, if necessary, first thing in the morning. I'm no expert, but my guess is that it's more difficult to fly out the afternoon a snowstorm is happening, where delays are almost guranteed and cancellations are possible. In that case, if your flight is cancelled, you'll now be competing for space with all the others whose flight was cancelled. If your flight is cancelled, you could go out on the next available, or maybe the one after that. That's a lot of time to be at the airport.

quote]

 

Disagree. All the delays on Saturday WILL carry over to Sunday and that Sunday flight might not even happen depending on where the planes end up on Saturday.