When can I buy airline tickets without getting stressed?

[Pluto777]

I have to buy 5 tickets for an international flight if we want to come to WDW in 2021. Naturally, I understand the airlines are concerned and trying to protect themselves from being asked to refund or rebook, but when I call to get clarification on cancellation policies, I just seem to get a lot of 'we will have to wait and see if there are quarantines/restrictions etc' or 'limited rebooking fees for the next few months' etc etc.

No airline I can find seems to just say buy the tickets, and if you need to rebook, you'll get full credit anytime in the future - period. By the way, why is it that you can not change the names on the tickets once you pay? In any case, there are some good prices out there, but spending a lot of money on plane tickets that may be useless is a big concern for us. Anyone out there come up with a solution?

 

[starry_solo]

Wait until a month or two before the trip to buy tickets? We don’t know what the rules are for international travelers

 

[Pluto777]

Wait until a month or two before the trip to buy tickets? We don’t know what the rules are for international travelers

Yeah I thought about that but 2 problems;
1 - as we all know WDW trips require a LOT of planning (which is why most of us are on this site) far in advance
2 - intl flights may get very expensive as you get close to the departure date,
Still though, maybe you are right; in this crazy situation it is tough to know whether to take a cheaper deal and risk it, or wait till close to the time and risk a high price

 

[focusondisney]

When are you thinking of traveling, early or late 2021? I would at least wait & see what happens with the virus as the colder weather hits. Countries could close boarders or issue quarantine orders if things get really bad. I have 3 trips/ 2 flights booked from NY state to Orlando for November, March & April. But everything is refundable resort wise & flights are on points which are also refundable. I just think there are too many unknowns right now to book non refundable travel.

 

[BadPinkTink]

I have to buy 5 tickets for an international flight if we want to come to WDW in 2021. Naturally, I understand the airlines are concerned and trying to protect themselves from being asked to refund or rebook, but when I call to get clarification on cancellation policies, I just seem to get a lot of 'we will have to wait and see if there are quarantines/restrictions etc' or 'limited rebooking fees for the next few months' etc etc.

No airline I can find seems to just say buy the tickets, and if you need to rebook, you'll get full credit anytime in the future - period. By the way, why is it that you can not change the names on the tickets once you pay? In any case, there are some good prices out there, but spending a lot of money on plane tickets that may be useless is a big concern for us. Anyone out there come up with a solution?

Where are you flying from, what country? Most airlines right now are cancelling routes and laying off huge numbers of staff in all departments. As a result, airlines are only giving updates on flights and policy changes until December 31. Flights in 2021 right now are an unknown situation.

Right now due to international travel bans, the USA Government is only allowing international flights to land in 14 airports. Airlines are either cancelling flights to USA or arranging for passengers to reach their final US destination through USA domestic codeshare airlines.

I have a flight from Ireland booked for October, which has been rescheuled from June 2020. My airline has waived fees for change of dates for all flights currently booked between now and December 31.

My airline is also offering a 100% refund or travel voucher if my flight is cancelled or rescheduled or if I choose not to fly. However this is only for flights between now and December 31.

The airlines just do not know what will happen when the travel bans are lifted. They also do not know when the travel bans will be lifted.