Delta Agent misunderstanding
 

I called Delta to switch my itinerary to another flight from SFO to EWR on Christmas Day since Delta for no reason changed my itinerary 3 times already. Now instead of Detroit I fly through Atlanta. The problem is, I told the agent specifically that I wanted flights 1480 and 2242, so I can have a 2 hr 40 min layover in ATL . Instead, she books me on 1480 and 2142, thereby giving me only a 1 hr 30 min layover.

1_Is that enough time layover, especially in the winter season?
2_Will I still be able to change my itinerary for no cost?

An hour and a half should be fine assuming your incoming is on time. My limit for ATL is an hour.

I hope so, for the past few weeks 1480 has been on time and 2142 usually delayed

Any more I prefer an hour and a half for ATL. Long flights are a little better though since they do not get hit with as many ground holds.

Welcome to FlyerTalk, jetlikesdimsum!

There probably is a reason why the original flt was changed. But whatever, you could always call DL and ask for 2242 instead if this was a recent change (you don't want to get hit with a change fee).

That said, most of my t-con flts from the west coast to ATL arrive early and I have made 35-min connections in ATL a few times. You should be quite fine with what you have unless you run into some serious winter weather issues.

I would not worry about the time, thats plenty.

Forgive me if I misunderstood you, but I changed the flights to 1480 and 2142 and I told the agent 2242.
I am also traveling with 5 other people and with checked bags, would those all make the connecting flight ?

Not that ATL is awesome, but all should be just fine...bags included. I agree with those above, 1 hour is my minimum in ATL. Any less and I have spent the night...more than once...

If there are delays in ATL due to snow, the whole place will be shut down.

Don't think there is any misunderstanding here. You want 2242, got 2142. Call DL and ask if this can be changed to 2242. Don't know how long ago you made this change but that may have a bearing on whether there will be a change fee.

But you did throw in another wrinkle. If there are six of you traveling together, it could be a concern if weather becomes an issue. Note that it doesn't have to be a weather problem in ATL. A storm anywhere could cause delays in Atlanta.

What I am saying is if you are on 2142 and for some reason miss that flt, they would probably re-book you on 2242 anyway as long as there are seats available. However, trying to get 6 seats on the same flt, much less together, might be impossible.

Others have answered the question about the 90 minute connection time, but...

There likely are going to be a several more schedule changes between now and Dec. and if they change to a connection you can't make, you can change your itinerary at no cost.

One other comment -- you may have purchased your tickets too far out and the price is likely to come down the next few weeks -- particularly if you're traveling on Xmas day.

Bob H

Christmas Day 90 minutes will be fine in ATL. Even if you're a few minutes late. I book connections an hour or more, 2 hours on int'l inbound though I'm revisiting that now that I have Global Entry.