5 Tips for Flying Standby

Flying standby is how we get to pretty much all of our destinations. Flying standby is the main perk when working for an airline and it means that you do not have a confirmed seat on the flight. You may or may not be able to have a seat on the flight depending on if there are any open seats after all the revenue passengers have been accounted for.

It’s not always easy to fly standby because of its chaotic and unpredictable nature, but we’ve put together some tips on how we get through the process and come out on top (most of the time). Below you will find 5 tips for flying standby that we do every single time we are going to fly.

1. Know your market. What do we mean by that? Well if you’re trying to go to Cancun during spring break, good luck with that. Spring break is high season for tropical destinations especially Cancun since it is an inexpensive and convenient to travel to as opposed to other other tropical places. One of the things we do is try to go to places that are in off season or in other words not in high demand at the time. You may still be able to get to your high season destination, but it definitely will be harder because as you are trying to get there so is everyone else as well. So, instead of going to Cancun during spring break we’ll go in May or April. In other words just try to avoid peak times, or high seasons, for certain destinations. Make sure to check if the city you’re planning to visit has events or holidays they’re celebrating. This will help you when it comes down to planning a vacation.
2. Check the weather. Some people forget to look at how the weather is going to be. We know that weather sometimes can be unpredictable, but it can give you a better understanding of what to expect. For instance, when traveling to tropical destinations there’s usually a period of time we call the rainy season. This may mean a downpour every day for about an hour or it may be that it continually rains and there are mudslides. Each destination is different so see exactly what the rainy season is in that area. When Lo traveled to Maui it was in November, which was the rainy season, but it would only rain a light shower every couple of days. So there was plenty of time to enjoy the amazing Hawaiian beaches. It was an ideal time to visit because prices were cheaper, you just had to sacrifice a little time to the rain.
3. To use a vacation pass or not. When traveling to some international destinations we always recommend using a vacation pass simply because it will cost you less to travel and taxes will be lower and you have a higher chance of getting a first class seat. Sometimes you may be discouraged to use a vacation pass because you know you won’t get first class on a full flight, but you will still save money just by utilizing a vacation pass if you have some in your allotted bank. Now if the flight is looking rather empty and chances are you will be getting on regardless of status then you can go ahead and save yourself a vacation pass and list normally as a standby or even better you can choose the fee waived option and maybe you’ll get first class without paying for it! And these guidelines vary airline to airline so be sure to check to see what process your airline follows in terms of upgrades and fee waived travel.
4. Check flight regularly. Loads for a flight may change from one day to another or even by the minute. This is where you have to pray for the best and do your due diligence. Loads may change due to delays or weather related events or even aircraft swaps due to maintenance issues. There are a myriad of things that go in to airline travel so always make sure to stay updated on how many seats are available. If the flight is going downhill and seats are disappearing by the minute you may want to start looking in to later flights to your destination, even different connections or even a completely different destination!
5. Always have multiple plans. As we mentioned in our last tip make sure you are prepared to go someplace else just in case all else fails. The worst thing that can happen is that you don’t make the flight you’re trying to make and then you’re stuck in the airport with no idea what to do next. It’s always recommended to have a backup plan just in case something happens to your original plans. Hence why it takes so long for us to book an Airbnb or hotel. Sometimes we have no idea if we will be making it on the flight so we have to wait it out and see what happens. More often than not we wait to book our airbnb or hotel until we are sitting on the plane. We make sure to have several places saved to ensure we can book it quickly before we takeoff.

Stand-by flying is unpredictable and definitely not for the faint of heart. This kind of traveling is more for the adventures souls who are flexible with their plans. We don’t recommend flying standby if you are promising your kids a vacation to Disney World or you are trying to make it home for an important meeting or event.

It is not always easy to show up to the airport with no real plans, but having the world at our fingertips makes it all worth the anxious moments, crazy situations and reroutes. Every little hiccup seems so frivolous when you finally make it to your destination. It’s sometimes more about the journey, right? You never know what life will throw at you so travel when you are able. We hope this post helped those with questions about flying stand by! If you have any other questions or if you have a suggestion that isn’t on here be sure to comment below!