I had no rebooking options after my flight was canceled. Here's how transferable points got me home
Editor's Note
Let me paint the picture: You're on a trip with your mom for the weekend, and on the day of departure, you wake up at 4 a.m. to read a text no one wants to receive from your airline: "We're sorry that your flight is canceled."
There I was, at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare Chicago, trying to get back to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) with my mom after a weekend in the Windy City. A strong storm system had moved through the night before, and it appeared to still be causing issues in Georgia.
I rubbed my tired eyes just to make sure I understood. My mom and I really had no way to get home?
With only standby options on Delta Air Lines for the entire day, I switched gears. It was time to dive into my transferable points balances and see what I could find.
Here's what to do when your flight is canceled — including a guide on how to use points to get home the same day, even when your airline can't rebook you.
How to use points and miles when your flight is canceled
In ideal situations, your airline will automatically rebook you on the next available option when your original flight is canceled.
However, when cancellations pile up, you may be left with no automatic rebooking. This was the case for my mom and me when we tried to get back to Atlanta on Delta from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD).
Check your airline's rebooking options
I checked the in-app options to confirm getting rebooked was not an option. All I saw was standby.
I wasn't comfortable relying on standby here, so I quickly gave up on flying Delta back to ATL. I'm from South Carolina, and my mom lives in North Georgia, so we met in the middle in Atlanta when we flew together.
Expand your search to nearby airports
I knew this was the kind of situation where we needed to get back to the South, and I'm familiar enough with both Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) in South Carolina and Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) that I could navigate us to Atlanta, either by getting a ride with a loved one or renting a car.
This is my first tip: If you truly need to get home, expand your flight search outside of your original airport. Consider flying to nearby cities and renting a car to get back to where you need to be. It isn't always convenient, but it's better than being truly stuck.
Use transferable points to find last-minute availability
The cash price of same-day flights can soar, especially when nearby routes are canceled. We didn't want to shell out anywhere from $600 to $900 dollars per person just to get home, so points were the perfect place to turn.
This is where my transferable points were a godsend.
The more flexible your rewards, the more options you can unlock. I have a decent stash of American Express Membership Rewards points, Bilt Points, Capital One miles and Chase Ultimate Rewards points, keeping it nice and diversified.
Book using a distance-based award chart
If you know which programs use distance-based award charts instead of dynamic pricing for their award redemptions, you know where to start your search when cash prices rise. My go-to programs with award charts based on location rather than price are Air Canada Aeroplan, Atmos Rewards and British Airways Club.
This is where knowing fixed award charts pays off.
I love Atmos Rewards for this purpose, as flights from ORD to ATL, GSP or CLT were set at 4,500 points one-way in economy and 9,000 points one-way in first class, no matter how high the cash price rises.
But even if you don't have this knowledge, free tools like Seats.aero are perfect for this situation. You don't have to be a paid subscriber to search for same-day flights on Seats.aero. You can also search for availability between multiple airports in one search, and you may be surprised by how many options you find.
Of course, you can also narrow your search in Seats.aero for programs and transfer partners you can access.
The example above is a same-day search made the day I wrote this article. But when I searched that early morning in Chicago, the only options were two first-class seats on an American Airlines flight to Greenville, booked through Oneworld partner Atmos Rewards.
I didn't even wake my mom to make the arrangements. I acted fast; there were only two seats left on the entire plane. I moved 18,000 Bilt points to Atmos Rewards, paid $36.20 in taxes and fees, downloaded our boarding passes and drifted back to sleep knowing we (hopefully) would have a way to get home — or close to it.
Related: Why it's worth keeping an emergency stash of travel points
Book a backup flight
If you're traveling on a shaky day for delays and cancellations, booking a backup flight with points is an excellent way to make sure you'll end up somewhere.
Once my mom and I arrived at ORD, we entered the chaos.
Flights to Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina were still being canceled, and when our new AA flight to Greenville was delayed by an hour, I started drumming up a plan C backup to our plan B.
In my case with Atmos Rewards, I knew I would be automatically refunded in full if I canceled my award ticket before departure time. So, having two awards working for me at once gave me a better shot at getting home.
Thankfully, our plan B flight took off, albeit a little delayed. My mom and I were overjoyed to board. And as soon as I clicked my seat belt, I canceled my backup award. The Atmos Rewards points were back in my account in no time.
The most important factor here is to remember that transfers cannot be undone.
So, when I moved an additional 10,000 Bilt points over to Atmos Rewards for my plan C flight, I could have them refunded to Atmos Rewards. But they couldn't go back to Bilt. Since I love redeeming Atmos Rewards points anyway, this wasn't a huge deal for me.
However, if you're booking a backup flight with an airline or program you don't frequently use, know that you won't be able to move them back to your transferable balance. And they'll be subject to any expiration policies that the airline enforces.
Related: 10 mistakes to avoid when redeeming airline points and miles
Why transferable points are best in cancellation situations
I mentioned earlier that transferable points were extremely helpful in this situation, and I cannot emphasize that point enough.
I used Bilt points earned with my Bilt Palladium Card (see rates and fees) to get me home in this situation.
If you want to boost your balance, I recommend checking out these cards that earn transferable points:
- American Express Membership Rewards: American Express® Gold Card
- Capital One miles: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
- Chase Ultimate Rewards: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees)
- Citi ThankYou Rewards: Citi Strata Premier® Card (see rates and fees)
When you have the ability to transfer points or miles to multiple airline partners, you're opening yourself up to a wide range of options.
Of course, I can't forget to flag that transfer times could create some challenges when you're in a hurry. While you can assume most transfers are instant, there are some key outliers where delays could trip you up.
Related: Why transferable points and miles are worth more than other rewards
Bottom line
I'll never forget the look on my mom's face when we finally boarded our plane to Greenville. She was so grateful that I took control of our stressful situation, and I was glad that I had the knowledge (and the rewards) to get us where we needed to be.
That's why I always recommend keeping a healthy stash of transferable points and taking the time to learn about a few of your favorite transfer partners.
There's no reason to bog yourself down with every partner, but having some go-to options can save the day in a pinch.