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Missing a Connection (on purpose)
I have a question that I know has been covered but most of the threads are pretty old that I could find. Thought I'd ask it here as it directly applies to me.
I've booked travel to San Diego but the outbound is via Los Angeles with a seven-hour layover and then the return is direct. I was going to just rent a car and drive from LA to SD but now I'm reading that the airline could cancel my return if I do that. Is that still the case? Even if I call the customer service line as the flight's departing w/ a tale of woe? Help! |
The typical rule is that they cancel the rest of your itinerary if you miss a segment. I don't think calling customer service will matter.
Flight delays/cancellations can grant you some options, but in practicality that doesn't help you much as your LAX-SAN segment isn't likely to cancel or become seriously delayed 7 hours in advance. You are probably going to have to fly it. (I'm assuming you're talking about a legacy carrier and a nonrefundable round-trip coach ticket here.) Lots of stuff you can do in LA for a few hours. You don't have to sit in an airport bar the whole time... :) |
Originally Posted by SND
(Post 26051693)
I have a question that I know has been covered but most of the threads are pretty old that I could find. Thought I'd ask it here as it directly applies to me.
I've booked travel to San Diego but the outbound is via Los Angeles with a seven-hour layover and then the return is direct. I was going to just rent a car and drive from LA to SD but now I'm reading that the airline could cancel my return if I do that. Is that still the case? Even if I call the customer service line as the flight's departing w/ a tale of woe? Help! |
Originally Posted by SND
(Post 26051693)
I have a question that I know has been covered but most of the threads are pretty old that I could find. Thought I'd ask it here as it directly applies to me.
I've booked travel to San Diego but the outbound is via Los Angeles with a seven-hour layover and then the return is direct. I was going to just rent a car and drive from LA to SD but now I'm reading that the airline could cancel my return if I do that. Is that still the case? Even if I call the customer service line as the flight's departing w/ a tale of woe? Help! What you're reading is correct...once you miss a segment of your itinerary, the rest of your ticket will be cancelled. You could, in theory, try the "tale of woe" approach, but your mileage may vary. Some airlines may still try to re-route you, or charge you a change fee for the re-ticketing, or still just cancel your ticket since you were a no-show. If you'd like to do further reading, look for the term "hidden city ticketing" - here are a few recent threads: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...-last-leg.html http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...re-flight.html http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...over-city.html http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...dden-city.html http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/trave...-last-leg.html |
Originally Posted by Tchiowa
(Post 26051887)
Yes, if you miss a segment they will cancel the remainder of your trip. If you call them and reschedule an open jaw you'll find the ticket price go up.
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depending on airline policy, OP could always try to get on an earlier flight via same-day standby or a same-day confirmed change ... in some cases this can be done as early as 24 hours before departure of the originating flight, in others it's airport only
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It looks like it's only legacies who fly LAX-SAN nonstop. Since this entire thread is moot if the OP has a refundable ticket, I think it's safe to say it will incur a change fee and a refare.
It won't be cheap to change the ticket. If you were buying a new ticket, then yes...open-jaw LAX/SAN is probably doable since neither is a fortress hub and both have some semblance of competition (including from non-legacies that often lead to fair one-way pricing). |
I take you've already bought this ticket? On a lot of domestic flights, it's the same price for two one-ways vs a round-trip. If SAN one way is significantly cheaper than LAX one way then you can "accidentally" miss your connection and drive. Then since your return is actually a separate one-way, it's unaffected.
If your deal was indeed only if you bought round trip then you'd need an open jaw into LAX and out of SAN. Open jaws price as round trips though could be marginally different based on pricing difference between LAX & SAN. None of this will help much now if you're stuck with a non-changeable ticket or unreasonably high change fee, but could be useful next time. |
Missing a Connection (on purpose)
What time does your flight arrive in LA? Have you ever driven in SoCal traffic? Seven hours in an airport bar may be preferable.
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one possible option... is that strip club near LAX still open? (the one that's almost within walking distance to the terminals)
edit: it's gone, but there are other.... |
Walk to In-n-out Burger by runway 24R and back, and you will use up a nice size chunk of your 7 hour layover.
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