We are flying to Italy in a couple of weeks and then plan to take a Ryan Air flight to Bulgaria. (Spending time in both countries) We've noticed that they've had a lot of cancellations recently and read an article that they expect to have quite a few more in Nov due to strikes.

I did some searching for alternative locations that we could travel to on other carriers and came up with a few options that are under $100. I know that you guys can't read the future, but do you think it's worthwhile for us to book refundable tickets through one of those other carriers as a backup plan? I'm concerned that if they do a last minute cancellation (1-2 days before the flight) that the backup plan will be 3x as expensive for the same flight.

I've never purchased refundable flight tickets before. Are you able to cancel for any reason and still receive your money back or do you have to prove illness and such? Thanks!