Ever see an amazing fare advertised, but you had to call your husband/wife/brother/posse to coordinate plans? Or just want to shop around for a bit to make sure it's a good deal? And while you waited, that $312 round-trip tax-included fare to Berlin suddenly jumped back up to $1,000. Or perhaps you hit the wrong button and booked the wrong dates or even the wrong destination. Are you stuck with that boo-boo fare?
Good news. Many airlines allow you to hold a fare, or if you change your mind, cancel and get a full refund or amend your booking if you chose Venice Beach instead of Venice, Italy, within 24 hours of booking.
Slight variations exist among the major legacy carriers, and keep in mind that whatever the official rules, exceptions often can be made if you plead nicely. Continental, American, United and Delta make it easy to cancel or change fee-free via their websites. Other airlines require that you make a phone call, which might incur a booking-by-phone fee.
Air Tran only allows changes within a four-hour window, and any refund comes in the form of a travel voucher.
American's "hold" feature, unlike most of its competitors, doesn't require that you pay for the fare in order to hold it.
However, as AA.com explains, "Actual 'Hold' period depends on fare rules. Some fares require purchase by a specific time."
Like American, Frontier Airlines will hold a reservation made by telephone and the associated fare for 24 hours without payment "as long as the rules of the fare are met" (in other words, if the fare requires a seven-day advance purchase and you hold it for a day and now have only a six-day advance purchase window, you're out of luck).
Continental recently launched a service called FareLock allowing you to lock in your fare for three days for as little as $5 or seven days for $9. This goes above and beyond its 24-hour cancellation policy, which remains in place for free.
