Hurricane Irene: Six Airlines Issuing Ticket-Change Waivers

by  Molly Fergus | Aug 22, 2011
AirTran plane
AirTran plane / rypson/iStock

It’s deals season in the Caribbean, and with good reason: Hurricanes and tropical storms swirl through the region this time of year, squashing many bargain-hunting beach-goers’ plans. This week, Hurricane Irene is causing trouble in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, and seems to have her sights set on southern Florida. To compensate, some airlines are issuing ticket-change waivers for those areas on select travel dates; here’s what you need to know:

AirTran: Travelers flying to and from two AirTran destinations today may push their flights back as much as a week without fees:

  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ)
  • San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU)

Make ticket changes on AirTran’s website.

American: Pay nada to change flights on tickets issued to, from, and through the following destinations before or on August 21, for flyers with reservations through August 24:

  • La Romana/Casa de Campo, Dominican Republic (LRM)
  • Port-au-Prince, Haiti (PAP)
  • Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic (POP)
  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ)
  • San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU)
  • Santiago, Dominican Republic (STI)
  • Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ)
  • St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands (STX)
  • St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (STT)
  • Tortola, Beef Island, British Virgin Islands (EIS)

To make changes, call reservations at 800-433-7300.

Continental: Travelers heading to and from the following destinations through August 25 may change tickets for free, provided they reschedule by September 1. Reward flights may be canceled and re-credited, and other tickets may be refunded if the flight is canceled or delayed more than two hours.

  • San Juan, PR (SJU)
  • Aguadilla, PR (BQN)
  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ)
  • Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ)
  • Ponce, PR (PSE)

Visit Continental’s Manage Reservations page to change flights.

JetBlue: Passengers flying to and from the following airports through August 23 may rebook for flights through August 27:

  • Aguadilla, Puerto Rico (BQN)
  • Ponce, Puerto Rico (PSE)
  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic(PUJ)
  • Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic (POP)
  • San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU)
  • Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ)
  • Santiago, Dominican Republic (STI)

Call 800- 538-2583 and mention code WXB6JEEP11 to make a fee-free switch.

Spirit: Even this stingy budget airline has waived ticket-change charges in response to the weather. Customers with travel scheduled through August 23 to and from the following airports may rebook flights for no charge through September 6; fly later, and Spirit will still lift the fee but charge the fare difference.

  • Aguadilla, Puerto Rico (BQN)
  • Port-au-Prince, Haiti (PAP)
  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ)
  • San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU)
  • Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ)
  • Santiago, Dominican Republic (STI)

To change, call reservations at 800-772-7117.

United: Ticket-change waivers issued for flights to and from the following destinations, for travelers who bought their tickets before or on August 21 and plan to fly through August 25:

  • Aguadilla, PR (BQN)
  • Ponce, PR (PSE)
  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ)
  • San Juan, PR (SJU)
  • Santo Domingo, Domincan Republic (SDQ)

To rebook, visit United’s MyReservations page.

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