Summer travels are quickly approaching and we couldn’t be more excited; our calendars are filled with wellness retreats, getaways with our BFFs, and romantic long weekends that we’ve been waiting for — potentially since what feels like last summer. For many of us, the bucket-list-worthy trips that we have planned this summer are at least a plane ride away, and while it can feel exciting to pick out the perfect airport outfit and snap an aesthetic bird's eye view pic while in the air, traveling via plane can be anxiety-inducing and stressful.
Taking a trip that requires a plane ticket — as opposed to a road trip — forces travelers to give up a lot of control; you might be confined to only packing in a carry-on, and you don’t get to decide the exact time that you start your travel day, and you might encounter cancellations or delays that are entirely out of your control. United Airlines has predicted that summer’s kickoff holiday, Memorial Day weekend, is going to be their busiest MDW to date with more than 3 million passengers expected to fly between May 23rd through May 24th, 2024. During MDW United will fly more than 4,400 times a day; that’s more than 73 take-offs every minute!
With that many flights in the air, there are bound to be a few hiccups and inevitable flight delays that we want you to feel prepared for, instead of panicked about, this summer. To get the inside scoop on what you should do if your flight gets delayed, we spoke with various travel experts who shared the best tips and tricks for navigating flight delays in a way that benefits travelers below.
How to Prepare for Flight Delays Before Take-off
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Flight delays are usually unplanned, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t plan ahead for them. Although obstructions to an exciting trip that awaits aren’t something you want to think about, there are a few simple steps that can make dealing with a delay much simpler should your departure time be pushed back.
With over 21+ years with United and over 15 countries visited under his belt, Chicago-based Mike Kempner, Director of Irregular Operations for the airline is well-versed in irregular travel adjustments. Mike’s top tip for travelers who might experience flight delays can be done before they even get to the airport; download the app of the airline you’re traveling with. Kempner shared that United’s app was recently revamped to provide travelers with a “seamless day-of travel experience.” United’s app, for example, has a “self-service feature that automatically presents travelers with personalized re-booking options, bag tracking information, and meal and hotel vouchers when eligible if their flight is delayed or canceled.”
Having the mobile app of the airline you’re flying with can be extremely helpful for staying in the loop about your flight status and avoiding anxiety about the unknown. Kempner explained this further by sharing that “when a flight is delayed by more than 60 minutes or canceled, [United] customers will be notified through text message and the app and prompted to check flight and re-booking status, book other preferred flight options, view and receive eligible hotel, meal and/or rideshare vouchers, and track bags.” By having these resources at your fingertips in real-time following a flight delay, you’ll feel prepared for the actions that you need to take next to keep your trip on track.
What to do When Your Flight Has Inevitably Been Delayed
Photo by Jessica Raisor/Dupe
Even if you’ve taken all of the smart steps prior to the day of your flight to minimize stress, there are a few tricks that you should have up your sleeve that larger travel corporations might not be willing to share. To get the skinny on delay loopholes and best practices, we leaned on ATX-based Melanie Demi, the content creator behind HerBoozyTails on Instagram. Melanie has been creating travel content that inspires others to explore the world before retirement for several years and has been to 30 countries in the process. While her passport is full of stamps and her Instagram captures her trips beautifully, she’s also fallen victim to many flight delays during her adventures.
“The first thing I do when my flight is start a note in my phone with the OG flight time and updated (delayed) flight time to have for reference” explained Demi. “It’s important to have documentation of your delays in case you need to submit anything to the airline, either for reimbursement or to get additional aid to get you through your delay, such as meal vouchers or even a hotel for the night should your delay cause you to miss connections or move your flight to another day.” The notes don’t stop there; Demi shared that travelers should “Make sure to note whatever the cause [of delay is] is,” whether it be weather, mechanical, etc., because oftentimes the “compensation” you’re entitled to depends on the cause of the delay.”
Photo by Jessica Raisor/Dupe
It’s normal not to know everything about the airline you’re flying with, but knowing extra details definitely helps during a delay. HerBoozyTails elaborated on this with the following scenario: “Let’s say your flight with Delta is delayed, and you need to get onto another flight to make it to your final destination ASAP, but [the representative] tells you there are no more Delta flights that day, so you’ll have to wait until tomorrow.” This is where doing your due diligence comes in; Demi went on to explain that hypothetically, “there is a Virgin Airlines flight that night… Delta should also be able to book you on that flight because Virgin and Delta are partners.” Long story short, it’s important to “look up to see what partner airlines the airline you’re flying with has, and you can find more flight options there!”
Overall, submitting refund requests as soon as possible after a delayed flight inclusive of all of the information from your flight and its delay is the best starting place for handling a flight delay with ease, but we hope that the extra secrets shared by our experts come in handy during future trips.
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Header photo by Nguyen Hung/PEXELS
