Anyone changed flight with out fee?

[YoungDiamond]

Hey everyone! I am about to go on the Enchantment next Saturday and my flight is scheduled for that morning. Well I would love to change it to the day before, Friday, because i want to spend a day at the beach in ft.Lauderdale. I have booked with air tran. So i was wondering if anyone knew some tricks around the change your flight fee. Any help would be great.

[greatam]

Hey everyone! I am about to go on the Enchantment next Saturday and my flight is scheduled for that morning. Well I would love to change it to the day before, Friday, because i want to spend a day at the beach in ft.Lauderdale. I have booked with air tran. So i was wondering if anyone knew some tricks around the change your flight fee. Any help would be great.

 

No tips or tricks to change the flight to the day before for free because you want to. General rule-pay the change fee and any difference in airfare.

 

Have you looked to see what it would cost??? IF a flight is cheaper on the day before (doubtful because Friday's are usually "high" air fare days), you COULD come out almost a wash=original ticket minus change fee minus reduction in fare=original ticket price. Do your homework!!!!

[YoungDiamond]

if i change it online the day prior flight would cost me $79, $4 more.

[greatam]

if i change it online the day prior flight would cost me $79, $4 more.

 

You are not willing to pay $4.00?????? Guess you don't want to go to the beach very badly!!!!!

[Lookingforfacts]

Try to make a reservation on your original flight. Assuming you're unable to make a reservation your original flight might be overbooked. If that's the case call. It's possible Airtran will waive the fee if your original flight is overbooked. Even that's not a given.

 

You want to fly in the day before? It will cost you a hotel plus $80 for your air fare.

 

Greatam--The OP is willing to pay $4 but doesn't want to pay the $75 change fee.

[parody]

So i was wondering if anyone knew some tricks around the change your flight fee. Any help would be great.

 

Not really a "trick", but if there is ever some uncertainty about the parameters of your upcoming flight, consider booking with an airline that doesn't charge a change fee. For example, on one flight with Southwest about 1 year ago, I made 2 changes at no additional cost. In fact, one change was the result of a Ding! special where a fare reduction had occurred and I was able to obtain a credit for a future flight. Depending on how precise you want to be, you could always do some comparisons between airlines on an expected value basis.

[YoungDiamond]

Thanks for the replies. The hotel would be free, I have some Embassy points and would stay there. I will try the over booked thing, sounds like a possibility.

[martinchem]

If one of your flights changes by 90 minutes, you can cancel the flights for no charge.

[pms4104]

If one of your flights changes by 90 minutes, you can cancel the flights for no charge.

But ... I believe the fee-free replacement flight needs to be the same day as the original. Seriously doubt that you can move your reservation to the day before without incurring a fee unless there are serious weather issues and the airline offers to re-schedule pax before the big storm moves in.

[greatam]

.

 

Greatam--The OP is willing to pay $4 but doesn't want to pay the $75 change fee.

 

That makes no sense. CHEAP flights on AirTran from ATL to FLL are sold out for May 22/23 (if that's what the OP means by "next Saturday"). UNLESS the OP booked business, the fare difference will definitely be more than $79.00. Most business class tickets have NO change fee, even on AirTran.So I sure don't understand the $4.00 reference.

 

Wide open availability for same parameters on May 29/30.

 

Not a lot of options without paying the change fee.

[pms4104]

if i change it online the day prior flight would cost me $79, $4 more.

Is that a $79 fare plus the $75/ticket change fee?

[Globaliser]

So i was wondering if anyone knew some tricks around the change your flight fee.

This one works every time: Buy a flexible ticket to begin with.

[YoungDiamond]

Is that a $79 fare plus the $75/ticket change fee?

 

to change my original flight would be $75, but to book an entirely new flight would be total cost of $79. the four dollars is the difference b/w changing it and booking an entirely new ticket. hope that clears things up

[Lookingforfacts]

That makes no sense. CHEAP flights on AirTran from ATL to FLL are sold out for May 22/23 (if that's what the OP means by "next Saturday"). UNLESS the OP booked business, the fare difference will definitely be more than $79.00. Most business class tickets have NO change fee, even on AirTran.So I sure don't understand the $4.00 reference.

 

Wide open availability for same parameters on May 29/30.

 

Not a lot of options without paying the change fee.

 

Some people might say 5/23 is this saturday and 5/30 is next saturday. I agree with your interpertation. It's always easier if a poster provides the specific date (and airport).

 

I don't agree with some of the previous posters, it's very unlikely Airtran will be making a schedule change a couple of weeks before the flight.

[YXU AC*SE]

Congratulations on your engagement btw ...

 

It would seem by reading your footer that you cruise quite often. Why not just purchase the ticket for the date you want and save the the unused ticket as a credit against a future Air Tran purchase? You aren't going to be out of pocket much more than the change fee ... I know how you feel, I hate paying change fees (I don't - I take Globaliser's advice and only book Y/M/U fares that are unencumbered), but given how much the flight is costing you relative to the 75$, it might be an option for you.

 

 

Scott.

[pms4104]

to change my original flight would be $75, but to book an entirely new flight would be total cost of $79. the four dollars is the difference b/w changing it and booking an entirely new ticket. hope that clears things up

But, if you book a new flight for $79, rather than paying the $75 change fee plus any increase in air for the new flight ($4?) on the original reservation, are you expecting AirTran to refund to you the original ticket cost? Not gonna happen. Or are you planning to make that a donation to AirTran?

[jerseygirl3]

But, if you book a new flight for $79, rather than paying the $75 change fee plus any increase in air for the new flight ($4?) on the original reservation, are you expecting AirTran to refund to you the original ticket cost? Not gonna happen. Or are you planning to make that a donation to AirTran?

 

 

I agree...unless I'm missing something, if the OP books an entirely new flight for $79 (one way, I'm assuming), there are some issues involved. First of all, if she doesn't use her previously booked ticket for her flight TO Ft. Lauderdale, it automatically cancels out her homebound flight. You can't not show up for your outbound flight without your homebound flight being automatically cancelled.

 

Secondly, if you book a new flight for $79, aren't you still wasting your original ticket? Then it's costing you more than $4, isn't it? If the price of the ticket to go down the day before is the same and all you have to do is pay a $75 change fee, that's what I would do.

 

BTW, to the poster who said they didn't think they'd allow you to change to the day before if your flight time is changed by more than 90 minutes...we had a similar experience on Spirit Air. Our flight from Atlantic City to Ft. Myers was changed from 11:45 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. I called and told them that was unacceptable. I told them I wanted to be changed to the day before and they did so at no charge even though the price of the ticket for the day before was more expensive.

[Jade13]

I agree...unless I'm missing something, if the OP books an entirely new flight for $79 (one way, I'm assuming), there are some issues involved. First of all, if she doesn't use her previously booked ticket for her flight TO Ft. Lauderdale, it automatically cancels out her homebound flight. You can't not show up for your outbound flight without your homebound flight being automatically cancelled.

 

Secondly, if you book a new flight for $79, aren't you still wasting your original ticket? Then it's costing you more than $4, isn't it? If the price of the ticket to go down the day before is the same and all you have to do is pay a $75 change fee, that's what I would do.

 

BTW, to the poster who said they didn't think they'd allow you to change to the day before if your flight time is changed by more than 90 minutes...we had a similar experience on Spirit Air. Our flight from Atlantic City to Ft. Myers was changed from 11:45 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. I called and told them that was unacceptable. I told them I wanted to be changed to the day before and they did so at no charge even though the price of the ticket for the day before was more expensive.

 

As far as I know AirTran has true separate one way flights. I fly them at least 4 times per year. I have many times bought one ticket one way (usually at Thanksgiving) and bought the home bound sometime later because I wasn't sure about a date.

 

For an additional $75.00 or so if I was the OP I would just purchase a new ticket and enjoy the vacation...

[wrp96]

Jade 13, just because the tickets are priced as one ways does not mean that they aren't handled like a roundtrip. The OP definitely needs to check with AirTran BEFORE purchasing a brand new ticket to make sure their return flight won't be cancelled if they don't show up for their original outbound flight.

[Jade13]

Jade 13, just because the tickets are priced as one ways does not mean that they aren't handled like a roundtrip. The OP definitely needs to check with AirTran BEFORE purchasing a brand new ticket to make sure their return flight won't be cancelled if they don't show up for their original outbound flight.

 

I agree.

 

Also, to the OP and your original question, the answer is Yes. I had forgotten but last year I did get AirTran to change a ticket and did not incur any fee. I just asked nicely if I could move from the 8:30am to the 10:30am (this was on Thanksgiving day) because my sister was on the later flight with her 2 children and needed my help because her DH was not flying with her (partly true but my sister did not want my father to make two separate trips to pick us up and especially because he was supposed to go back that evening to pick-up my DH who had to work during the day). Airtran just switched me and did not charge any fee. I do recall they had to be careful because they did not want to get in trouble with their management. In my case the flights were the same day and identical cost.

 

AirTran is actually my favorite airline within the US (big plus for satelite radio that you can listen to all the way to the gate upon landing and they still give a drink and snack. The US Airways shuttle is my number 2 - drink and snack in the morning - granola). Both do not charge you for "better" seats including bulkheads and emergency exists.