Originally Posted by
javabytes
Why not just wait until 2 days before departure? Chances are you're not going to end up paying more than $2,400.
Or book now and just get the non-refundable ticket. You will typically get it back in the form of an eCredit, non-transferable and only usable for 1 year from the date of purchase, less a $150 ASC. Easily re-usable if you are going to fly DL again in the next year.
It's just a leisure trip, I think I'm just going to pay the extra $37 for the Southwest ticket now rather than risk the DL non-refundable fare going up if I wait until the last minute to buy it, or spend a $150 cancel fee. I should be DM before the trip in question but I don't see anything on the benefits chart that looks like it would make any difference from a cancellation fee standpoint. That would be a good DM benefit though, maybe something like free cancellations for e-credits if done before 48 hours out.