Delta Airlines is AWESOME!

[bigmama67]

At least in my book, at least for now...

Reader's Digest version: Years ago my mom wanted us to be able to visit relatives in Arizona so she and my Dad paid $$ to give us all the frequent flyer miles they had with Delta. After jumping through innumerable hoops I was not able to get a reward ticket so the points stayed in our names. DS and I went out anyway (DH was coming but had to cancel due to job stuff, and luckily we got a full refund...thanks to travel insurance and a cooperative doctor!)

Last year I decided, by hook or by crook, we were ALL going out this year (now including DD) and I got tickets in June - was able to get a reward ticket for DD using our points but paid through the nose for the other three ($548 each plus $20 ticketing fee for each which I didn't know about till afterwards...sigh...)

Today I got an e-mail from Delta with sale fares - we are going in April. I checked and they didn't go long enough to help us, but I priced out the dates we already have, and they did come up at $330 each (OK, we need to return a day earlier but I was preferring that anyway...a week is long enough for vacation, 8 days is a bit much!) The times were more convenient and we only have to change flights once each way (our original return flight was going to involve TWO changes...with a 1yo and 7yo, fun fun...NOT!)

So I called Delta just for the heckuvit, was on the phone with them for a total of an hour, and it really worked out great! We have better timed flights, only one change each way, and even with having to pay steep change fees we come out ahead...the tickets for me, DS, and DH are over $200 cheaper but the change fee was $150 per person (not per leg) so we each got a voucher for $67.50 to use on Delta within a year. They are transferable so I can use all 3 vouchers for one ticket or whatever we want. No voucher for DD but her change fee for the reward ticket would have been $100 and he WAIVED IT!

This means that I can probably get the tickets for my hoped-for trip with DS in December to WDW, for a much smaller outlay...I'll have to fly Delta but have a total of $200 credit towards it! Not to mention the convenience factor being increased in our current AZ trip. I have to change around the hotels and our night at the Grand Canyon to make it work, but...YIPPEE!

Just had to share. I am one happy Skymiles member tonight.

 

[bavaria]

Hmmm.......






That sounds like you are like some of us and flying in the parallel universe. It is a very nice place to be, isn't it?

Happy flying!

 

[mom2d&b]

love good customer service

have fun

 

[maggiew]

Isn't Delta the airline that just raised their baggage fee to $23($25) for the 1st bag? You might want to be prepared for that too.

Maggie

 

[Debbie Jean]

Isn't Delta the airline that just raised their baggage fee to $23($25) for the 1st bag? You might want to be prepared for that too.

Maggie

My thoughts exactly... will they let you use the vouchers to pay for your luggage???

 

[hockeyprincess]

I won't fly Delta, too high fares and now too high for baggage.

Only Southwest Baby for me.... no hassles at all, will issue credit if the flight you're on goes down in price, one simple phone call, no worries. NO baggage fees, we can take 8 bags with us if we wish (family of 4) for free. We never do, but 1 bag each adds up when paying other airlines fees for each bag, both ways.

Glad it worked out for you though and hope you have a great trip!

 

[DarleneW]

I have to say that we did not have a good experience with Delta a few years ago. At the time they were flying out of Atlantic City and though we usually fly Spirit I got a better price with them. Our flight was at 8:00 a.m. (it was December and it had just started snowing). We got to the airport around 6:15 and there was no body at their counter. We waited and thought it odd that there wasn't anybody else on line to check in. At 6:45 my DH walked down to Spirit's counter and asked if they knew where the Delta staff was. Also, on the board it didn't list any 8:00 flight. The Spirit staff were so helpful. They went in the back looking for somebody, paged them twice and came over a couple of times to let us know that they had done this. We tried to call Delta using their phone that was on the counter and it was like they didn't believe us. They told us that they had sent us an e-mail the day before that they had changed our flight to a 6:30 to Atlanta and then to Orlando due to the weather. The only e-mail we got was very basic with no mention of a flight change or even any mention of our original flight. We told them to cancel our return flight and then got a flight both ways on Spirit. The best we could get from them was a refund which we had to fight for because they kept insisting that they didn't cancel our flight. Yes they did...we were supposed to fly at 8:00 to Orlando and that was canceled and they were supposed to switch us to a 6:30 to Orlando via Atlanta. We finally did get refunded the $ but I also wanted them to reimburse us the difference between what we were going to pay them and what we now had to pay Spirit because of the last minute booking. After contacting them numerous times they would not budge and insisted they did not cancel our original flight. We will never fly Delta. That was going to be our first flight with them and it was not a good experience so we will never fly them. Spirit is again our airline of choice.

 

[bigmama67]

Well, that is really lousy, and I agree about their prices but we wanted to use up these miles. Once we do that and use up the vouchers I doubt we will fly them again...but there you go! ;o)

I agree the baggage fees SUCK but almost every airline has them now. That's why we will only check one bag and do laundry halfway through the trip, and that's why we went ot the trouble of getting my 1yo DD her own seat, so we have more leeway with her gear (car seat, diaper bag, etc.) but I even got her a seat on a shorter trip to Louisiana last year as I was flying solo. Only once has she sat on our lap for a flight and that was a last-minute jaunt to Maine that my Mom paid for ($$$) and only 1.5 hours long.

Rachel

 

[Debbie Jean]

Well, that is really lousy, and I agree about their prices but we wanted to use up these miles. Once we do that and use up the vouchers I doubt we will fly them again...but there you go! ;o)

I agree the baggage fees SUCK but almost every airline has them now. That's why we will only check one bag and do laundry halfway through the trip, and that's why we went ot the trouble of getting my 1yo DD her own seat, so we have more leeway with her gear (car seat, diaper bag, etc.) but I even got her a seat on a shorter trip to Louisiana last year as I was flying solo. Only once has she sat on our lap for a flight and that was a last-minute jaunt to Maine that my Mom paid for ($$$) and only 1.5 hours long.

Rachel

Jet Blue still has 1 checked bag allowed per person free and they fly non stop Newark/Orlando... plus you have the Direct TV in the seat backs... something to consider for your WDW trip maybe... we have always found their prices to be great, as well...

Enjoy your trip!

 

[andrews_dad]

How did you get off with no change fee? Good for you, but I want to know what magic you pulled for my own use!! LOL

 

[deerhart]

I am glad that everything worked out great for you.

I still hate Delta/Northwest. After spending 18 months flying for my job, I will only fly Delta if there is absolutely no other way for me to get there. In fact, after the last debacle with them (in which they almost cost me my new job because the gate agent ASSURED me 5 times and refused to rebook me on a different flight, that I would make my connecting flight in Memphis (I had an 80 minute layover in memphis) even though my flight was 60 minutes delayed (YEAH RIGHT). Get to Memphis and viola doors closed, not getting on and oh by the way not a SINGLE flight home from there. No offer to pay for a rental car so I could get home, nothing. Thankfully, my old company (who I was traveling for) paid the car rental bill for my 4 hour drive home in the middle of the night.

I didn't even use the credit voucher they sent me for my trouble! Just a deep down hatred for Delta/Northwest!

 

[deerhart]

How did you get off with no change fee? Good for you, but I want to know what magic you pulled for my own use!! LOL

A lot of times they will waive fees for premier customers or for award tickets. Sometimes they offer sometimes you just ask and they do.

With American, I wanted to use a $600 credit that was in my name only to buy both mine and my son's tickets. Since it was in my name only, I couldn't use the credit to purchase a ticket in my son's name. Instead, the agent purchased my ticket (and waived the fee) and then issued the remainder of the credit to me as a travel voucher instead of leaving it as a credit in just my name. When I received the voucher, it could be used to purchase a ticket in anyone's name. I then turned around and purchased my son's ticket with it.

 

[safetymom]

Of all the airlines I have flown Delta has been the best. Once you book your tickets it is a good idea to at least weekly check to see if there have been any changes to your flights.

Don't depend on the airline to notify you in the event of any changes.

Don't expect the airline to waive the fees if you want to change your flights, and thank them if they do.