Need advice on booking flight......WWYD?

[Crazy4Disney06]

So this is the issue I am up against.....

We are flying to MCO in December from PDX (December 14 to 20th), and have invited my mother to come along with us, however she needs to wait and see "if" she can get approval for the time off her job. I really want to book our flight as there is affordable rates right now, but the fare I am looking at right now is NON-REFUNDABLE so I am hesitant to book a ticket for my mom and take the gamble that she will be able to go.
I guess my options are:
Wait and book everyone at the same time in a few weeks when she knows for sure if she can go or not.

Book everyone now and take the chance of losing out on the $$$ spent for her ticket if she is unable to go.

or

Only book my family now and gamble the flight not selling out so we can book her once she knows.

What the chances are of the flight selling out in the next two weeks or so? If I act like I am booking and preceded to chose my seats there are plenty left at this point...... just not sure what to do, as I really don't want to waist my money on her ticket if she is not able to join us.

 

[*Flower*]

IF you want to bite the bullet, if you're sure that you would go whether or not your Mom can go- book your tickets now.

If she gets her time off approved, the amount that you've saved on the purchased tickets would probably cover the cost of her ticket- even if the price has gone up some.

The downside is that she probably wouldn't be able to reserve a seat on the flight near you.

Option 2:

If you wouldn't go if your Mom can't go- then wait to book the tickets until she knows for sure and take your chances on the cost of the tickets.

I hope that this input clarifies the issue for you (and the alternatives).

 

[Disneybuckeye]

Based on what you have written I would go ahead and book the airfare your immediate family now if you feel comfortable with the price. It is highly unlikely the flight will sell out in two weeks if you need to add your mother. Airline prices can change pretty rapidly without rhyme or reason, so when I see a price I am comfortable with I book it. Even if it turns out your mother can't get on the same flight as you I am sure you could find one pretty close.

This is assuming that even if your mother can't go you will still go. If her not being able to go will keep everyone home, then I would probably wait.

Have a nice trip!

 

[bankgirl05]

Has she approached the question with her boss or other channels yet? Maybe the "my daughter bought me plane tickets" would help get her approved?

 

[Marionnette]

So this is the issue I am up against.....

We are flying to MCO in December from PDX (December 14 to 20th), and have invited my mother to come along with us, however she needs to wait and see "if" she can get approval for the time off her job. I really want to book our flight as there is affordable rates right now, but the fare I am looking at right now is NON-REFUNDABLE so I am hesitant to book a ticket for my mom and take the gamble that she will be able to go.
I guess my options are:
Wait and book everyone at the same time in a few weeks when she knows for sure if she can go or not.

Book everyone now and take the chance of losing out on the $$$ spent for her ticket if she is unable to go.

or

Only book my family now and gamble the flight not selling out so we can book her once she knows.

What the chances are of the flight selling out in the next two weeks or so? If I act like I am booking and preceded to chose my seats there are plenty left at this point...... just not sure what to do, as I really don't want to waist my money on her ticket if she is not able to join us.

If the fares are decent for the dates that you are traveling, book them for your family. Let your mom book her airfare if/when she gets permission to take the time off. I'll assume that as a working adult, she is capable of sitting in a separate part of the plane if there are no available seats near your family when she books. And if your flight is full, she should be able to take another flight

 

[Crazy4Disney06]

We are going for sure and hope to bring my mom along, however she may have a hard time getting approval from her job during that time of year. She hopes to know within two weeks, but I am worried the price may skyrocket during that time. I also don't want to waste the money if she can not join us. She has to get approval from the home office which is across the state. She emailed them on Monday and has yet to get a reply
LOL......I am so not a gambler

 

[Crazy4Disney06]

If the fares are decent for the dates that you are traveling, book them for your family. Let your mom book her airfare if/when she gets permission to take the time off. I'll assume that as a working adult, she is capable of sitting in a separate part of the plane if there are no available seats near your family when she books. And if your flight is full, she should be able to take another flight

Yes my mother is fully capable of sitting alone, however we would not want to put her on separate flight.

 

[leebee]

Buy the tickets for your family NOW and add mom at a later date, once she gets permission to go. Is she OK with flying by herself if she can't get on your flights? Perhaps a different airline will have flights arriving at approximately the same time. DH is flying to WDW on United, DD and I on AirTran, but we arrive within 30 mins of each other... so worth it for us to get cheap tix and him to use frequent flyer miles for his ticket!

 

[SandrA9810]

With how early you have to get there, how bad would it be for her to leave a little later or earlier than your flight?

It's not like you're talking different days. What airline are you flying on? Even if it's not refundable, they'll usually give you credit to use towards another flight. I'm really enjoying Southwest's terms. I book flights for around the dates I want to go, even if it's not set in stone. Then I can change it according to my needs.


What happens if she gets approved for only 5 of the 7 days? Would she still be willing to fly down part way through your vacation?