Delta Seat Assignments-Anyone Else Give Up?

[pk1959]

We booked our airfare for our December 9th trip a l-o-n-g time ago. Our flight schedule has changed more times than I can count, and each time we lose our seat assignments, I call and get re-assigned, then a couple of days later another change and we lose them again. Has anyone just waited until right before their flight and called to get them reassigned for hopefully the last time?? I just don't see what good it is doing to keep calling them only to have changes happen again and lose them again. I guess the worse that can happen is that hubby and I will not be sitting together if we wait to get seat assignments when we check in at the airport? We fly in and out of a small regional airport if that makes any difference.

 

[MomofCKJ]

I hear ya! We booked our Dec flights in February and they change all the time. It is a pain to have to call them each time to reassign the seats.

If I were travelling just with my DH I would consider not calling as you mention. If it were just he and I it would be nice to sit together but not critical. For us we are travelling with our 3 kids and it is their first time ever on an airplane. I don't want to risk being seperated so I call right away when I notice the changes. I just want to keep us all together.

Allyson

 

[magiroux]

Also, they overbook some flights.

My experience with them last Easter.....

Like everyone here, Delta constantly changed the schedule and I had to call for my seats to be re-assigned. Well, at some point they changed the flight and I didn't check it for a couple weeks and by the time I called all the seats had been assigned and there were none left for me. I was basically put on stand-by. I was told that a number of seats are put aside for assignment at the gate hours before the flight. I would have to get the gate as early as possible to try to snag one. I had booked this flight very early on and the plane was 3/4 empty. No amount of begging could get me my seats back. Believe me, I tryed every day for a month. I even said I was traveling with a child (granted, she was 10 ), but still, no one would budge.

So, as far as waiting till the last minute to call to get your seats back, I would not advise it. Not only do you risk your family not being seated together, you could be totally bumped off the flight.

 

[MammaNicholas]

We're going through the same thing. Our December flights have been changed 3 times since we booked them in March. The first two times I called and called because they had my dd(5) in the front of the plane by herself and my husband and I far away from her and seperated. After repeated calls with no luck they told me they wouldn't let her ride by herself, they save 40% of the seats to accomidate things like this. On this last change, they put us all together with out us having to call, so I'm taking this as a sign they may be finished changing our flights (being optimistic here).

 

[pk1959]

I went ahead and called and had them re-assigned AGAIN. Certainly don't want to end up with NO seats We thought everything was fine on a trip we took to Vegas 2 years ago, but when we checked in to come home at the Vegas airport, we were told that on our connecting flight in Atlanta we would have to check in and get seats assigned there. We thought that was strange and when we got to Atlanta, sure enough, they had no seats for us and we were forced to spend the night in Atlanta. Luckily it didn't matter to us that we couldn't get home till the next day, plus we got the $200 travel vouchers to use on another trip, so in the end it was ok, but some people may not like to be forced out of their seats, especially when they bought and paid for their seats on the flight way in advance like we did. Good luck to everyone using Delta. It's certainly a lot harder to depend on them in the last few years compared to what it used to be.

 

[seashoreCM]

. After repeated calls with no luck they told me they wouldn't let her ride by herself, ).

Now they are not going to bump you and have to pay compensation when they hafve plenty of seats but none together for you and DD!

Anyone want to allege there is a conspiracy to give business travelers better seat selections by changing schedules by a few minutes every month or so in order to lose all the seat assignments, and those who call back quickest get first choice of seats?

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

 

[goofy4tink]

The only problem with that scenario is that you don't get a 'choice' of seats when you call them back. You get the same seats you have always had...they just reactivate them, so to speak. It's almost as if this is Delta's way of confirming that you know of the little, teeny, tiny change they made. No need to send out any emails or make any calls...we'll make the customer call us to keep their seats!!
Only time I have gotten different seats was when the equipment changed or they combined two flights into one flight (that one was interesting!).

This is one reason I try to fly with JetBlue now. I'll fly Delta but only if no other airline can compare with price/flight times.

 

[aynt79]

You can also email them from Delta.com (under "contact us"). It takes a few days for them to respond, but if you're still far out from your flight and tired of calling it works. They'll "reissue" your tickets and email you your new schedule.

 

[Diznyfan68]

You can also email them from Delta.com (under "contact us"). It takes a few days for them to respond, but if you're still far out from your flight and tired of calling it works. They'll "reissue" your tickets and email you your new schedule.

I did that 8 weeks ago when the first change came through and they never emailed me back - I waited 10 days and finally called them. I now check our ressies 2 to 3 times a day - once in the morning, once in the afternoon and once in the evening. Every time they make any change I am on the phone with them immediately. Three of the four changes they made changed all our seats - from the front to the back of the plane.

This is the last time we were are flying Delta - JetBlue and AirTran will soon be flying out of Stewart Airport in Newburgh - we'll fly them from now on.

 

[pk1959]

They don't always give you the same exact seats as what you had in the beginning. When we bought our tickets for December way back in Feb, we chose all our seats as close to the front of the plane as we could pick. Picked row 6. Now we are in rows 36 going one direction and 37 coming back on one of the legs. If they would just give you the exact same seats as you picked origionally, I would be thrilled!! Just makes you shake your head when you read how people are having to check their flights as many as 3 times a DAY. Believe me, I am less than thrilled with flying Delta, but they are the major carrier out of our small regional airport which is so handy to get to and from. I guess this is the price we have to pay for that convenience.

 

[aide4]

I was on the phone with Delta last night, as our flight times changed, though only by a few minutes. I, for one, want to sit with my family, and it did not take very long on the phone.

 

[mommyrom]

We are going to WDW and Wonder starting 11/30...Booked airfare with NWA back in March and got a great deal. Well, those flights ended up being handled directly by Delta and what a terrible experience that has been and we haven't even left for the trip yet! First, we were downgraded to a 50 seat plan on the leg from CT to Atlanta. Then, we would have been placed on a 757 from Atlanta to MCO

We were trying to get used to that fact and deal with it. In the meantime though, we also experienced numerous seat changes and NWA could not help us, so we "luckily" got to deal directly with Delta. (3 young kids made us want to stay together, which was not a fun arrangement of seats on a 50 seater plane )

Then, we kept watching our connections change in our reservations and the clincher was when our layover in Atlanta went down from 2+ hours to 30 minutes!!! Delta said their was nothing they could do about it and we should not be concerned. Well, we grew concerned, because we did not want to spend our first day of vacation in an airport waiting to catch a new connection and be at the whim of Delta airlines and their schedules.

Soooooo, to make this long story short, we cancelled NWA/Delta flights and are keeping that $ on our account with them to use for travel between now and Nov. 2007. We then booked with good ol' Southwest...Direct flights, with a DING fare on one way and saved $200 so far! So relieved to know that we will be at MCO in less than three hours and can start our visit to Mickey about 2 hours earlier than we had originally planned!

 

[canwegosoon]

I did that 8 weeks ago when the first change came through and they never emailed me back - I waited 10 days and finally called them. I now check our ressies 2 to 3 times a day - once in the morning, once in the afternoon and once in the evening. Every time they make any change I am on the phone with them immediately. Three of the four changes they made changed all our seats - from the front to the back of the plane.

This is the last time we were are flying Delta - JetBlue and AirTran will soon be flying out of Stewart Airport in Newburgh - we'll fly them from now on.

I hear you.

 

[disneybride96]

We gave up on Delta a long time ago!
They are consistent on one thing - they consistently lose our luggage.

 

[bornwiththeears]

My Delta reservations have me so nervous I am actually loosing sleep. It has been two weeks since the last change...I am fearful of a last minute change. Have any of you actually been bumped from your flight? I can't believe you can make reservations 6-12 months in advance and have this much trouble. Delta...never again!

 

[KevinM]

I bought our Delta tickets in June for our December trip and they have changed schedules 3 times already. I called yesterday to get seat assignments and we are not sitting together on our first commuter flight into Atlanta. My wife and daughter are in row 7 and I am in row 11. Now we have a 6 hour layover in Cincinnatti on our way home.

I was told they change schedules 4 times a year and this past one should be the last change, but I still check every few days.

 

[bornwiththeears]

Kevin - that makes me feel somewhat better. I will continue to check them daily. Our last change actually gave us better seats that the three before. Hopefully we will have no surprises.

 

[gokenin]

I think the worst thing that happened to me besides the three time changes and reassigning of seats was the last one they moved my flight from 745 in the evening till 4 oclock talk about killing my last day at Disney had to make changes with places to eat and what park to go to since i had to be close to the Wilderness lodge i am heading to MK instead of Epcot my final day. I am thinking of switching over to jetblue for my next trip used to fly Song but since delta took it back its gone downhill so thinking of changin airlines in the future

 

[Brneyznfl]

I fly Delta quite a bit and they are always changing their schedules..so frustrating. Just a tip...you can do your seat selection online at Delta. You can also change them anytime if you want. When I get notified that Delta has changed flight times, the first thing I do is go to their website to check my seats!

 

[bornwiththeears]

On Delta airlines - what is the difference between Coach "K" and Coach "U"?