Cancelling my cruise under the new policy, now what about airfare?

[DaveOKC]

I am going to cancel my April cruise under the new policy (thank you HAL), but now need to decide what if anything to do about my airfare costs.  Has anyone seen or heard from their airlines about exceptions to the standard cancellation rules?  I am on American and Southwest (I know that we can cancel the SW ticket for a refund but since the "time" on the ticket expires May 5, this really does not work for me).

 

Any thoughts appreciated.

[suec12]

It might depend on where you booked to, what type of ticket, thru the airline or Flight Ease?

[DaveOKC]

Good points - we are domestic US flight on Southwest and International (Vancouver to Oklahoma) on American.  Booked the lowest class airfare directly through the airlines.

 

[Kfrech]

8 minutes ago, DaveOKC said:

Good points - we are domestic US flight on Southwest and International (Vancouver to Oklahoma) on American.  Booked the lowest class airfare directly through the airlines.

 

We are basically in the same situation. Considering cancelling a June cruise (either once the date is extended or using CFAR insurance) but are afraid we're going to be stuck with the airfare. Although carriers are making exceptions for tickets purchased now, they haven't budged yet on tickets purchased months ago. We are roundtrip Pittsburgh to Vancouver. Rather than eat the airfare, we most likely will be make a vacation out of Vancouver and the surrounding area.

[suec12]

Well we live in Atl so we fly Delta - last summer we cancelled a flight from Atl to Zurich and were charged $300pp change / cancellation fee and given a voucher for a future flight to be taken with in a year for the rest of the cost  - I believe it was noted a "non-refundable" ticket. So we got no $$$ back but did use the voucher for a different destination later that fall. But in this time of chaos, you might have better luck. 

Edited March 8, 2020 by suec12

[cruisemom42]

15 minutes ago, suec12 said:

Well we live in Atl so we fly Delta - last summer we cancelled a flight from Atl to Zurich and were charged $300pp change / cancellation fee and given a voucher for a future flight to be taken with in a year for the rest of the cost  - I believe it was noted a "non-refundable" ticket. So we got no $$$ back but did use the voucher for a different destination later that fall. But in this time of chaos, you might have better luck. 

 

Delta did not charge me a change fee last month when my Westerdam cruise was canceled; they allowed me to change the ticket to pay for the airfare of an upcoming trip in October to Europe instead. However, I think there was a policy to allow this due to the coronavirus situation in Asia.

 

 

[FNSIII]

We are being held Hostage by American. They are insisting on a $400 cancel fee for us. I am thinking of wearing a full biohazard suit aboard to make a point.

[lgsshedden]

$350 pp cancellation with Air France

re-booking was not proving possible yet for May, so rather than live with the uncertainty (air traffic control is going on strike in France too)  we ate the cancellation fee

[avian777]

3 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

I am going to cancel my April cruise under the new policy (thank you HAL), but now need to decide what if anything to do about my airfare costs.  Has anyone seen or heard from their airlines about exceptions to the standard cancellation rules?  I am on American and Southwest (I know that we can cancel the SW ticket for a refund but since the "time" on the ticket expires May 5, this really does not work for me).

 

Any thoughts appreciated.

IMHO your best bet would be to call the airlines directly.

[DaveOKC]

2 minutes ago, avian777 said:

IMHO your best bet would be to call the airlines directly.

I will, but wanted to know what others have done with them first, so I know what to ask for.

 

[avian777]

1 minute ago, DaveOKC said:

I will, but wanted to know what others have done with them first, so I know what to ask for.

 

Good point, although I noticed that none of the replies appears to address negotiation strategy.

[DaveOKC]

1 minute ago, avian777 said:

Good point, although I noticed that none of the replies appears to address negotiation strategy.

In the past I have found it better to know upfront what you reasonably want - better chance to get it.

 

[avian777]

Just now, DaveOKC said:

In the past I have found it better to know upfront what you reasonably want - better chance to get it.

 

Makes sense to me - unfortunately to this point in time no one appears to have understood what you wanted.  So I'll jump in:  When I've encountered similar situations, the "negotiation strategy" I've used is to enlist the help of our TA, since TAs have as much clout with airlines as anyone.  That is also one of the very good reasons to have a regular TA who values you as a customer and is willing to go the extra mile for you when necessary.  Good luck.

[DaveOKC]

50 minutes ago, avian777 said:

Makes sense to me - unfortunately to this point in time no one appears to have understood what you wanted.  So I'll jump in:  When I've encountered similar situations, the "negotiation strategy" I've used is to enlist the help of our TA, since TAs have as much clout with airlines as anyone.  That is also one of the very good reasons to have a regular TA who values you as a customer and is willing to go the extra mile for you when necessary.  Good luck.

All I am looking for is what, if anything, people have recently gotten from the airlines regarding cancellations due to the virus situation.

 

There have been some information so far, like cruisemom2, that somewhat applies.

Edited March 8, 2020 by DaveOKC

[idiebabe]

4 hours ago, FNSIII said:

We are being held Hostage by American. They are insisting on a $400 cancel fee for us. I am thinking of wearing a full biohazard suit aboard to make a point.

 

My Daughter is on the same Cruise as us and booked American.  Did they refund you for the balance after Cancellation Fee or issue a Voucher for a future flight?

 

Thanks!

[sofietucker]

5 hours ago, FNSIII said:

We are being held Hostage by American. They are insisting on a $400 cancel fee for us. I am thinking of wearing a full biohazard suit aboard to make a point.

We are in the same boat [sic]. Delta is now issuing full credit for any flights taken by March 31st; but keep checking American as the situation is fluid.

PS--they're now flying their wide-body jets in the US, so if you do decide to keep your flights for an in-country vacay, it may be cushy...

Edited March 8, 2020 by sofietucker

[fatcat04]

11 minutes ago, sofietucker said:

Check again. They are now issuing full credit for any flights taken by March 31st.

Source?

 

On AA's website I am only seeing the exact same policy we all know by now published on March 5th which only covers tickets purchased between March 1 and March 31. Nothing for tickets purchased before.

 

This is also the same policy many airlines have now which still penalizes those who booked flights long before coronavirus was even news. 

Edited March 8, 2020 by fatcat04

[fatcat04]

Delta's present policy from  https://www.delta.com/us/en/advisories/other-alerts/coronavirus-travel-updates

 

 

•  
•  

 

Coronavirus Travel Updates

---

Nothing is more important to us than your safety. We have adjusted flight schedules to affected areas, waived change fees and are working with customers to adjust travel plans, using relationships with other airlines when needed. Check flight status frequently for up-to-the-minute information about your flight plans, or get updates sent directly to your mobile device or by email with One-Time Flight Notification. For more information on steps we’re taking to keep customers safe, visit our news site.
 

In-page Links

• _{No Change Fees For All Tickets Purchased Between March 1-31, 2020, Go to footer note}
• _{Change Fees for International Tickets Purchased on or Before March 1, 2020}, Go to footer note
• _{Transpacific Information, Go to footer note}
• _{Transatlantic Information, Go to footer note}
• _{Keeping Our Aircraft Clean}, Go to footer note

No Change Fees For All Tickets Purchased Between March 1-31, 2020

---

 

• Affected Customers: All Tickets issued between March 1, 2020 - March 31, 2020
• Impacted Travel Date(s): March 1, 2020 - February 25, 2021
• Ticket Can Be Changed One-Time To An Alternate Itinerary. Must Be Re-issued On/Before: February 28, 2021
• Rebooked Travel Must Begin No Later Than: February 28, 2021

[FNSIII]

Yep...but we booked in January. Not gonna budge for us. Will keep trying though.

[webecruzin2]

This policy of waiving change fees only for tickets purchased after March 1st makes perfect sense with the current state of the airline industry and it's drive to squeeze every dime out of their customers. 

 It seems the airlines only want to encourage people to purchase tickets now, which is understandable,

but they're not really showing compassion for those of us that had no idea this would happen and bought our tickets months

ago and so we're are the ones that are being penalized.

Seems the opposite of this policy,  waiving fees for tickets purchased before this virus spread around the globe would show greater concern for their customers.

 

 So folks this is a great time to purchase tickets for your upcoming holiday travel when this thing will probably be history.
But for those of us that planned ahead and don't want to risk getting sick now, get out your wallets. 
 

[sofietucker]

23 hours ago, webecruzin2 said:

This policy of waiving change fees only for tickets purchased after March 1st makes perfect sense with the current state of the airline industry and it's drive to squeeze every dime out of their customers. 

 It seems the airlines only want to encourage people to purchase tickets now, which is understandable,

but they're not really showing compassion for those of us that had no idea this would happen and bought our tickets months

ago and so we're are the ones that are being penalized.

Seems the opposite of this policy,  waiving fees for tickets purchased before this virus spread around the globe would show greater concern for their customers.

 

 So folks this is a great time to purchase tickets for your upcoming holiday travel when this thing will probably be history.
But for those of us that planned ahead and don't want to risk getting sick now, get out your wallets. 
 

Actually, that's exactly what we're about to do: buy our tix for a Spain trip in Sept., rather than waiting til this summer. (Yes, they've been under the radar:  have over 900 covid-19 cases--and over 50 deaths--but perhaps the cycle will have run its course  by then. If not, then by next Feb. )

[Curlingwhiz]

We have canceled two cruises.  On one we bought our tickets through  Flight Ease...full refund.  The other however we bought direct from Delta for a one way flight from Japan to Canada.  Never again.  We are being penalized 30,000 yen for each one way ticket as we bought before March 1.  I think we will hold on for a while and see if public outrage can help Delta step up to the plate like most of the cruise lines appear to be doing.  We were very pleased with our prompt refund from Holland America

[cruisemom42]

1 minute ago, Curlingwhiz said:

We have canceled two cruises.  On one we bought our tickets through  Flight Ease...full refund.  The other however we bought direct from Delta for a one way flight from Japan to Canada.  Never again.  We are being penalized 30,000 yen for each one way ticket as we bought before March 1.  I think we will hold on for a while and see if public outrage can help Delta step up to the plate like most of the cruise lines appear to be doing.  We were very pleased with our prompt refund from Holland America

 

Try again. Delta allowed me to change my ticket with no penalty for my April Japan cruise (round-trip US to Tokyo).  Now if you are trying to get a straight refund, that may be a different story.

[Curlingwhiz]

They told me same price for a change fee or a cancellation.  So I guess I will cancel as a one way fare isn’t too useful without the cruise ship component!  We had bought premium economy seats too so I thought the fee might be more minimal.......next time I will stick with Flight ease  (and read the cancellation more closely)

[parallax]

Delta and other air lines are waiving the cancellation penalties for March and April flights.

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2020/03/09/coronavirus-travel-airline-change-fees-delta-adds-waivers-flexibility/5002855002/