Have a couple of questions. I’ve talked about this trip before.
My kid is having a destination wedding. I purchased refundable tickets shortly after the flights were released. Thinking if they go down, I would rebook.
Prices have only gone up.
Unfortunately, there is a short layover to get to our destination.
Here’s the complication. American has added a second flight to our destination from our connection city that would give us a little better layover time. But all of the flights are substantially more expensive.
I can call American and see if they could switch us to the later flight for what we paid. Would that be feasible at all?
Or I can upgrade to first class for $200 a person. That way we would be first off and it would give us better options to get to our next gate.
Any advice? After this weekend of flying and the unbelievably rude behavior of fellow flyers, I’m afraid that this tight connection would be doomed if in economy
How long is that flight that would be first class? If it’s the long leg of your flight, maybe consider first class. But that upgrade isn’t going to help you at all if your first flight is delayed.
When we had our tight connections on our last trip (45 min!), I didn’t book first class, but I chose seats as close to the front as I could. Sometimes premium economy is right behind first class, but MUCH cheaper. I’ve done that before. First class is out of our price range…
But agree - it doesn’t hurt to call and ask first!
In general, an airline would charge you the new rate (higher rate) if you should make a change, and plus any change fee. I have sweet talked them into waiving it sometimes, but they are usually pretty strict.
If you are looking for comfort then upgrade, but if you are just worried about the connection then I would just stick with what you have. maybe get seats closer to the front as mentioned by others.
Unless your connecting flight is rescheduled or changed in some way, the airline will charge you the new higher fare to change. However if you’re booked far enough ahead sometimes the flight does change - even if it changes from like 2:00 departure to 2:10 departure, then AA will likely allow you to change to the other flight without charging (we did this earlier this year with a flight to Italy).
As for the tight connection. If you have to switch terminals, which has higher odds for a domestic to international connection, then that’s pretty tight. Check the terminals for your arrival and departure, but be aware those can change.
Depending on where you’re sitting in coach, switching to 1st could save you from 5-20 mins and personally I’d take the upgrade if it’s not a financial hardship unless you’re already in first few rows of coach. Also consider your walking speed - I’m a fast walker but W is a slow walker - which is a big factor in larger airports.
All of that said, we did make an international connection this year with a 1 hour layover with departing flight in a different terminal in Dallas, and had plenty of time to spare. But we were in first class which definitely helped.
Huh? 50 minutes is not uncommon. Generally, when an airline has a short connection time, the computers have factored in that such planes are in nearby gates, so its a short walk. (sure, a problem can occur when a plane has a mechanical problem and can’t leave the gate that your plane is supposed to park at…)
But for $200 pp, I’d upgrade to 1st. 1st also allows you priority boarding on the connecting flight.
@deb922 This is an important point. We’ve frequently gotten notices of changes from AA to future flights. The changes can range from minor (a few minutes) to major, but as @anomander says, they can provide an opening to reschedule without penalty. We’re going to Hawaii in January and over a period of months I think we’ve gotten at least half a dozen notices. Most were minor but one was a major change that caused us to take the opportunity to reschedule. I’m just guessing here but I would think the fact that you have connecting flights increases the possibility that you’ll get a notice of change.
I’m an American Platinum Pro member and I rarely get a connecting gate close to me unless Im flying into a small airport like Reagan.
A 30 minute delay could really screw you, especially if it’s in the middle or later in the day. 1 delay in the morning can start a chain effect.
The other thing I look at is how many flights are there per day to the destination? If it’s only 1 flight/day and you need to get there on the same day, Im not risking the shorter layover. If it’s CLT to BNA, sure Ill take a chance on a short layover.
I try to aim for at least an hour fifteen, just in case but Im also more cautious.
In a perfect world, 50 mins is fine. But I don’t know anyone who travels regularly who’d say that air travel is a perfect world.
Departures often slip. Every once in a while there’s people who just can’t manage to take their seat, causing delays. Sometimes your plane “departs” on time which just means the doors close and you push back, but then you’re 20th in line for takeoff which adds 20-30 mins. Or when you land you get stuck behind other planes while taxiing to the gate, or sometimes there’s even a tardy plane sitting at your gate and you have to wait for them to push off.
While deplaning, I’ve gotten stuck behind inordinately slow passengers which requires the patience of Job. A few times the moving walkway in terminal was broken, increasing walking time; once the monorail was even out resulting in a huge hike. I’ve frequently had to travel from one terminal to another and then all the way down the last gate at the end - which is fine for me as a light traveler and healthy fast walker, but time-consuming for slower walkers.
Anyway, I personally view 50 mins as an absolute minimum when traveling on business the day before a meeting where I don’t care if I miss the flight and have to catch a later one. When traveling on vacation I prefer 90 mins as a minimum.
With our flights NYC to OKC and from OKC to HNL, we had connecting flights and 1.5 to 2 hour layovers. We had an electric cart meet us at the gates because the flights were delayed and wheelchairs would have never gotten us to gates in time—walking would have been even worse. As it was, they were boarding when we arrived at the gates.
I’d upgrade if it was in my budget—I’d hate missing the wedding of my kid. I’d also be alert to trying to switch flights and invariably schedules change and you may be able to switch for free due to changes. I’d like just a bit more cushion between flights because it makes me less nervous.
The issue is that there was one flight per day to the island that my daughter is getting married on. At 10ish from Miami. It’s the only place in the continental USA that flys to their destination.
I have a 6am flight. It was my only option that has one connection from my home state to this island. Every other option was 2 connections (plus a ferry ride to the particular island they are getting married on but that isn’t part of this equation).
I think I will hold and hope for a schedule change and then try to switch. They have now added a 3pm flight. It wasn’t available when I booked and now flights are 600+ more.
On a large plane being in business can get you off the plane much faster. We have flown multiple times with our adult kids with us in business and them in economy. We were off much sooner. I’ve also had tight connections where by being in business we have made the connection and those in economy did not.
If you have a 6am flight, you are far more likely not to encounter delays because the plane will not be arriving from another airport. It’s probably the first flight of the day. The most typical non-weather related delays for the flight are mechanical or when the crew hasnt had enough rest time. A 6 am flight could even get there early.
Since they added a second flight, if you miss the connection, they will probably try to put you on the 3pm flight. I would go on their website and look at seat availability to see how many empty seats they have the day before. If the flight is full, they could put you on standby. If the flight has open seats, the airlines may put you on that one.
I would download the airline app because they give the most up to date information in real time, even faster than at the airport. That’s been my experience with American.
If everything works perfectly, you’ll pay extra for comfort.
But if there’s a delay, you paid extra for missing your connection in comfort.
If your real concern is not to miss a connection, then I’d apply the $200 towards the earlier-departing flight.
Uh, okay. I’d keep the 6 AM flight, and at 10 AM the day before, make a one-way reservation on the 3 PM flight (but make sure, they allow you to cancel within 24h of reservation.)
If you arrive in Miami on time, you immediately cancel your 3 PM reservation once you get to the departure gate. If the AM connection is missed, at least you have a guaranteed seat on the PM flight, in case it’s full.
If they manage to rebook you on the 3 PM flight, you also cancel the “backup itinerary”. If the 3 PM flight is nominally full and they try to rebook you on the next day (after the wedding), then you have to work with them closely, because you don’t want to lose the return flights.
Ive never done this but maybe you can try it. If you’re really concerned about the connection and cant be rebooked on the 3pm flight because it’s full (if you miss your connection), you may want to call the airlines and see if you can fly to Miami the day before and take the 10am flight the next day.
There are tons of hotels right next to Miami airport and most probably have a free shuttle. You can probably find a hotel for less than $200 and it could be cheaper than changing your tickets.
