Why I Usually Wait Until the Last Minute To Cancel a Flight

Canceling a flight is never fun. But if I know there’s a chance I might cancel, I’ll almost always wait until the last minute.

There are several strategic reasons you may want to cancel. In many cases, waiting gives you more flexibility and sometimes even a better outcome, and being aware of these helps you become a better traveler. From schedule changes to weather disruptions, here are several situations where holding off can work in your favor.

1. Airline-Initiated Delays or Cancellations

If an airline cancels your flight or significantly delays it — whether due to maintenance, crew availability, or even weather — you will always have the option of receiving a refund back to your original form of payment.

If you cancel far in advance of your flight (meaning you initiate the cancellation), your only options will likely be to forfeit the entire ticket or receive a travel credit for future travel rather than a full refund.

2. Weather Can Work in Your Favor

Especially during the winter season, it’s not uncommon for flights to be disrupted by major weather. Some airports are more prone to weather than others, such as Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) or Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).

It’s routine for these airports to receive severe lines of storms, sometimes several times a month. If you wait until your departure day, there’s a chance a storm will hit and delay your flight, giving you a chance to receive a full refund.

Remember, there doesn’t need to be weather at your origin or destination in order for this to happen. Even a storm in a connecting city or along your flight path can be enough.

3. Schedule Changes Happen All the Time

If you book your flight many months before your travel date, there’s a high likelihood that there will be an airline-initiated scheduled change. Airlines typically publish schedules 11 months out; however, it is very routine for them to revise those schedules throughout the year.

Sometimes it’s an aircraft swap from a larger plane to a smaller plane, or vice versa. Sometimes it’s an outright cancellation of the flight, like when an airline decides to completely pull out of a certain market. Sometimes flights will change by a few minutes, causing a misconnect in a connecting city. 

Whatever the reason, if these schedule changes are lengthy enough or cause a significant disruption or cancellation, you may be able to rebook or cancel your flight for free. In these cases, many airlines will allow you to adjust your plans (even at the last minute) if there’s a record of a schedule change occurring in the months prior.

4. Basic Economy Tickets Have an Exception

Basic Economy on most airlines comes with some strict rules. In most cases, if you cancel your flight, you will not receive any credit or refund and will be charged the full amount.

But there’s an important exception. If the airline cancels or significantly delays your flight, even a Basic Economy ticket can become refundable. Waiting until closer to departure gives you at least a small chance of that happening.

If you cancel before this, you’re certain of the outcome and won’t receive a refund, so you might as well wait and see what happens.

5. You Might End Up With Better Routing

There’s another reason I wait very close to departure to cancel. If I still want to go to the destination but don’t want to take the particular flight I booked (maybe it’s at an inconvenient time), I can wait and see if it’s delayed or canceled.

Then, I can request to be put onto a better flight, sometimes even days later. If I were on a connecting flight, I might be able to move to a non-stop flight.

Some Real Examples

Oftentimes, flights to more premium destinations will cost more. Want to fly to Palm Springs International Airport (PSP) instead of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)? You’ll usually find the ticket significantly cheaper.

But if my flight to Los Angeles is delayed or canceled, I could request through the airline to be rerouted to Palm Springs, which may be closer to my final destination. Airlines are usually willing to work with you if it’s the airline that messed up the flights in the first place.

You can use the same strategy on more convoluted routings — like from Sydney to Los Angeles (LAX), then to Chicago, then to New York (JFK), a common routing that may offer some additional savings.

If the flight is delayed out of Sydney, you can request to be put on a flight from Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) to Los Angeles, then to New York (JFK), cutting out a connection. Or you could request a direct partner flight, such as the one Qantas operates from Sydney to New York via Auckland. It pays not to cancel your tickets far in advance, because if it’s cheap, the airline will move you to the new routing without any additional fees.

You can usually hold multiple tickets on different airlines to the same destination, since airlines don’t talk to one another. For example, I might have a cheap ticket from Chicago (ORD) to Denver (DEN), then on to San Francisco (SFO) ticket on United Airlines — but also hold a nonstop ticket on American Airlines.

While I’d prefer the nonstop, I’d also prefer to pay less, so I may wait to see if something happens with the United flight and then ask to be put on a nonstop. If nothing changes with my original flights, I could simply take the American nonstop flight as booked.

Of course, it doesn’t make sense to do this for every flight. Expenses for holding multiple tickets on multiple airlines can add up, but you can do it strategically.

6. Oversold Flights Can Mean Compensation

Airlines routinely oversell flights. The airline will sell more tickets than seats on the plane, hoping some passengers won’t show up. This helps ensure every seat is filled at the end of the day.

As departure approaches, airlines will routinely offer incentives to get you off your current flight when they realize it is oversold and not enough people may miss or cancel. Depending on the airline or flight, you may be offered a guaranteed voucher or additional miles if you proactively move flights in advance.

These offers usually appear within days or even hours of departure, not weeks in advance. If you cancel early, you won’t be able to take advantage of these offers. It’s worth noting that some compensation for oversold flights is issued only at the airport (not in advance), meaning you’d need to be at the gate.

7. There’s Usually No Benefit to Canceling Early

Most airlines do not have an incentive to cancel your seat early. Whether you cancel months in advance or just before departure, the outcome is typically the same — especially for nonrefundable tickets. The main exception is if you need to use a travel credit right award to book something else.

I do this many times with my own flights — I’ll realize I can’t take the original trip anymore, cancel the trip, and then turn that credit into another trip.

8. Insurance Benefits

If you wait until close to departure and your airline cancels or significantly delays your flight, you may be able to use the insurance benefits your credit card provides. Cards like the Platinum Card^® from American Express and the Chase Sapphire Reserve^® have strong built-in travel insurance benefits when you use them to pay for your flight.

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Welcome Offer

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$795

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19.49% - 27.99% Variable

Credit Recommended

Upgraded Points credit ranges are a variation of FICO^® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.

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Depending on the situation, that coverage can help reimburse expenses like meals, hotels, or alternative transportation. Should your flight be canceled or delayed, you can use this coverage by calling the credit card company or completing an online form.

Final Thoughts

I’m a big planner, and I often have dozens of flights on my calendar. If I need to cancel one of them, I’ll try to hold off until the last minute to take advantage of potential changes or refunds. If you can afford to keep multiple flights on your schedule, it’s a great way to save significant money in the long run!