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Should I Rebook AAdvantage Awards When the Price Drops?

July 31, 2016
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3 min read
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Should I Rebook AAdvantage Awards When the Price Drops?
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TPG reader Dwayne sent me a message on Facebook to ask about changing award tickets:

“If I book an American Airlines award at the standard level and then saver availability opens up, should I rebook at the lower price?"

Most airlines charge a fee for changing award tickets, which can become especially costly when traveling with family or in a group. Each carrier has its own policies, so it's good to be familiar with all the different strategies for avoiding change and cancellation fees. That can help you save money when your plans shift, but may also help you redeem points and miles more efficiently when saver awards become available.

One great feature of the AAdvantage program is that you can change award tickets for free in certain circumstances. The stipulations are generally that your origin and destination must remain the same, you can't change to a different operating carrier and you can't change the award type. Since Dwayne is looking to remain on the exact same flight, the first two factors don't come into play. However, rebooking from a standard AAnytime award to a MileSAAver award qualifies as a change in award type, so he won't be eligible for the free change.

Instead, an AAdvantage agent would have to reinstate the original award and issue a new one at the lower level. You'd incur a fairly steep reinstatement fee of $150 for the first ticket, though additional award tickets could be reinstated at a more reasonable cost of $25 each. That fee (along with various other award fees) is waived if you have Executive Platinum status and you're redeeming miles from your own account.

Even if you can't avoid the fee, rebooking an award could be worthwhile depending on how much you stand to save. For example, if you booked an AAnytime economy award to Europe for 47,500 miles each way, changing to a MileSAAver award for 30,000 miles each way would be a no-brainer. You'd basically be paying $150 to recoup 35,000 miles; that works out to around 0.43 cents apiece, which is much less than what AAdvantage miles are worth. On the other hand, reinstating a one-way domestic award to save 12,500 miles probably wouldn't make sense.

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Rebooking
The reinstatement fee may be worthwhile if you can snag a MileSAAver award to Europe or other faraway destinations.

Some airlines have more flexible award change policies. For example, Southwest actually lets you rebook on the same flight at no charge, so you can easily save (points or dollars) when the price drops. Still American's policies can come in handy if you know where you're going, but your travel dates haven't been confirmed.

For more on AAdvantage changes and avoiding fees in general, check out these posts:

If you have any other questions, please tweet me @thepointsguy, message me on Facebook or send me an email at info@thepointsguy.com.

[card card-name='Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite™ MasterCard®' card-id='221410949' type='javascript' bullet-id='1']

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  • Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
  • You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
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  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
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  • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
  • $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
  • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees.
  • Annual Fee is $325.
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