Hold a ticket, not your breath with these airline hold policies in 2021.
Booking an airline ticket always comes with a level of anxiety.
The stats bear this out in plain sight for all to see. The “look to book” ratio – i.e. the number of fare searches made per flight booking – is a staggering 1000 to 1 according to Amadeus. If it’s taking you even a fraction of 1,000 searches to book your next trip, it’s bound to cause some headaches.
Let’s face it – pulling the trigger and clicking “buy” on an airline ticket never comes with assurances that the fare won’t drop tomorrow or next week making you feel like you just got duped.
Again.
There are also the non-financial reasons. Many people, for this reason and others, feel like they have an adversarial relationship with the airlines. All it takes is a bad experience like a lost bag to kill a person’s trust. Maybe that “free” elite upgrade you’ve been waiting for still hasn’t arrived. Maybe the airline launches a sale on the route you’re flying, right after you commit to the ticket.
All frustrating situations that make it harder to click “buy”…
Wait A Minute!
Last year we published a special report about how to lock-in or freeze great premium “flash fares” (really low ones) long enough to make sure you’d actually be able to use them. Yes, I can cancel that meeting in September. Yes, I can get the kids out of school a week early. Yes, cousin Pierre is cool if his visit happens in June, not July.
I’m talking about the Fare Hold Option. Today, more airlines have jumped on board and others have started to make theirs much more attractive. They range from a 24-hour grace period to up to seven days, and now even 14 days with United. When we’re talking about booking anxiety, it’s a total game-changer. We liken it to that scene in The Matrix film where a bullet fired from a gun could be slowed down in incredible detail and viewed from different angles.
So it’s time to slow down your booking and revisit hold options a year later and see where the airlines stand in 2021.
Why Put Off Today What You Can Do Tomorrow?
Yes, you read that right (though generally, it’s said the other way round). My rationale is this: why make a decision today when you can make a better one tomorrow with more intel? The airlines are making this possible with fare holds. And not just for tomorrow, or even next week. That’s a lot more information to consider and benefit from when you’re booking.
This is a principle at the heart of what we call The Upgrade Mindset, in other words, not accepting the “travel status quo” that airlines want you to.
Let’s spend a few minutes on that thought, or if you’d like to get straight to current airline hold policies, you can scroll down to the table further below.
Average Mindset: All you really want right now is a price for the flight you have in mind so you can buy now and get it over with. You’d happily take a potential fare hit to avoid any added stress.
Better Mindset: Locking-in (for one to 14 days) the fare for the flights you want without committing not only takes the edge off, but also actually increases your odds of getting a better deal tomorrow, should airfare volatility shift in your favor. Then, you can just book the new one and cancel your fare freeze. Either way, you feel good about it. Less stress.
Ultimate Mindset: Imagine if you could lock in a bunch of different flights today, more tomorrow, and more the day after that–perhaps on different dates or airlines? You don’t have to imagine because that’s exactly what’s possible. You can always hold an airline ticket, locking in whatever the prevailing rate is at any given time. While that’s cool on the surface, knowing you can repeat the process is amazing. Let’s see where Fare Holds currently are.
Airline Fare Hold Policies in 2021
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