Has anyone used refundable tickets through Delta?

[OnTheJourney]

7 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

it's a complete fallacy to think that you have booked seat 18A.

Why then do I always receive a confirmation from the airline (or something like expedia) that I not only have the flight but also the seat I requested?  I know we've moved into the days of paying extra for certain seats (it's indicated right on the charts) but every flight I've been researching is no extra cost for the seats I'm interested in. All I can say is...I don't recall ever NOT getting the seat I reserved when booking a flight. Maybe have gotten lucky all these years. 

Edited August 9, 2022 by OnTheJourney

[Globaliser]

6 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

I've been keeping track of an itinerary for the past week or so and disappointed to find that the one flight is no longer available for my date - Athens to Amsterdam. Wonder what would have happened had I already booked?

 

As a minimum, you would have been entitled to a rebooking on alternative flights, or to a full refund, at your choice.

[Globaliser]

1 minute ago, OnTheJourney said:

Why then do I always receive a confirmation from the airline (or something like expedia) that I not only have the flight but also the seat I requested?

 

It's basically a note to say that the airline has recorded your request.

 

If you've paid, there'll obviously be terms and conditions around the request. And (as I said) airlines don't generally muck around with these. But it doesn't change what it is, and it doesn't change the fact that there is a conceptual difference between air travel and theatre bookings.

 

If you fly enough, you'll get seat-shifted from time to time.

[OnTheJourney]

Globaliser....yes, thanks. I assumed as much. You might as well give up trying alternate ways of explaining the process. As you said, I still don't really get what you're saying. It would appear to indicate that the customer has no control whatsoever of what seat he/she is "booking" while also reserving the flight. I certainly understand what you're saying about a particular seat possibly not being available due to a change in planes however. I guess this whole thing boils down to feeling more secure initiating the process myself, i.e. booking directly with the airline, rather than what appears to be a bit more indefinite and uncertain booking (as to exactly what I might wind up with) going through the cruise line. 

[Globaliser]

6 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

It would appear to indicate that the customer has no control whatsoever of what seat he/she is "booking" while also reserving the flight.

 

Technically, this is exactly right. The flight booking process never involves a booking for a specific seat on the aircraft. Any request for a specific seat (even if you pay for making it) is only ever a request, and the seat you have asked for is never "yours" in the way that it would be in the theatre. After all, depending on the airline there can be entire flights, or certain passenger types, or certain fares, that simply do not qualify for any form of seat allocation before check-in (or any form of seat allocation at all before you physically plonk yourself down in one after you board the aircraft).

 

6 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

I guess this whole thing boils down to feeling more secure initiating the process myself, i.e. booking directly with the airline, rather than what appears to be a bit more indefinite and uncertain booking (as to exactly what I might wind up with) going through the cruise line. 

 

You're not wrong to feel this. But this is because if you make a booking directly with the airline, you have a confirmed booking for specific flights from that moment. If you book through the cruise line, you don't have a booking for specific flights until that point very late in the booking cycle when the airline allocates space to the cruise line on specific flights.

[Suzanne123]

On 8/9/2022 at 6:50 PM, OnTheJourney said:

Why then do I always receive a confirmation from the airline (or something like expedia) that I not only have the flight but also the seat I requested?  I know we've moved into the days of paying extra for certain seats (it's indicated right on the charts) but every flight I've been researching is no extra cost for the seats I'm interested in. All I can say is...I don't recall ever NOT getting the seat I reserved when booking a flight. Maybe have gotten lucky all these years. 

I think you’ve just been lucky.  I had three flights recently that changed my seat as I scanned my boarding pass.  One was a complementary upgrade to first from comfort + on Delta (yea!), another changing my aisle seat to a window seat on American, and yet another that moved me from Comfort+ into Main cabin on Delta (grr). Was told to fill out a form to get the difference in fare refunded.

 

[OnTheJourney]

We'll see what happens. I decided on the refundable tickets in Delta One (business) class. Already looking forward to relaxing in the lounge. 

[rkacruiser]

52 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

We'll see what happens. I decided on the refundable tickets in Delta One (business) class. Already looking forward to relaxing in the lounge. 

 

Enjoy your flight!  I really have enjoyed my experiences in Delta's Sky Lounges.  

[OnTheJourney]

2 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

Delta's Sky Lounges.  

Never been. We've only done B-class twice and the first time was free upgrade. One time with SAS premium economy we had access to the lounge - enjoyed it greatly. 

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, OnTheJourney said:

Never been. We've only done B-class twice and the first time was free upgrade. One time with SAS premium economy we had access to the lounge - enjoyed it greatly. 

 

The Sky Club in the international terminal at ATL is in a class of its own compared to some of the others.  I have enjoyed all of the others, as I said, but that Sky Club has never been too crowded and the facilities and amenities are very good.  One trip from EZE with an early morning arrival, the restroom allowed me to properly get a clean up and shave that I could not do on the plane.  Breakfast items that exceeded any offerings on the plane's breakfast menu.  I so appreciated it.  Business Class is not inexpensive, but, it is worth every penny I have found.  

[OnTheJourney]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

The Sky Club in the international terminal at ATL is in a class of its own

Nice to know. Unfortunately we won't be there anytime soon for a longhaul flight. 

 

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

Business Class is not inexpensive

A bit of an understatement 😁  Hoping it turns out to be worth it.