What should I do if my flight is canceled or delayed?

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(CNN) -- 

What if you're one of the unfortunate passengers whose flight is canceled or delayed?

Here are some tips to help travelers navigate when flights are delayed or cancelled, whether due to understaffing, weather or other issues.

Avoid being stuck at the airport

As bad as it is to find out your flight was long delayed, or worse, cancelled, it's better to find out from the comfort of your home or a hotel room and make further arrangements from there.

"Check the status of your flight before you go to the airport. Most of these notifications don't happen until the last minute," says Scott Keyes, founder of Scott's Cheap Flights.

"Save yourself the trip to the airport."

Keyes told CNN Travel that you should sign up for airlines' free text alerts about flight status when you buy your ticket.

You should also download your airline's app.

You can also put the airline and flight number directly in the Google search bar to get the status of your flight.

This is also useful for friends or family who are waiting to pick you up.

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Keyes also suggests checking the FlightAware website to track the biggest flight trends.

If you are already at the airport

Sometimes flight delays and cancellations occur after you have arrived at the airport.

Once the bad news is received, what is to be done?

Keyes says get to the airline agents' counter as quickly as possible, and be prepared to multitask while you're in line.

Fast is a keyword here.

"It's going to make a difference whoever gets there first. First come, first served. Getting closer to the counter can pay off," says Keyes.

So, call the airline while you wait.

Depending on where you are in line, it may be quicker to go to a call center.

"Whichever comes first, great," she says.

Calls to US domestic numbers can have very long wait times.

Keyes suggests that you try calling an international call center for your airline.

"Most American travelers don't think about calling Delta's Canadian helpline. You may be able to get in touch with an agent much faster. They can all handle your reservations equally."

You can also use a self-service kiosk, says American Airlines.

"Scan your boarding pass or enter your check-in locator to see updated details of your trip. From there you can also change your flight and print your new boarding passes."

Attitude and research are important

Whether you're dealing with an agent in person or over the phone, how you approach the situation can make a big difference.

That starts with attitude.

"Honey attracts more flies than vinegar," says Keyes.

"Look at it from the perspective of airline agents. They've been dealing with angry customers since the pandemic started. The agent is the one who has the best ability to help you.

"By asking nicely and sympathetically you are much more likely to get what you want than by being a jerk about it."

He gave another piece of advice when it comes to speaking with an agent to make further arrangements: "Come prepared to offer your own options now. Doing your own research is absolutely helpful."

Your agent can speed things up if you've already looked up new routes and possible suggestions while you wait.

Be prepared to explain what you want.

If you booked through Expedia or another third party website, you will have to deal with them when there is a cancellation.

If the price is the same, Keyes suggests you book directly with the airline.

In case something goes wrong, it "gets a lot more complicated with multiple policy sets" when booking through a third party.

Consumer advocacy group US PIRG suggests avoiding layovers when booking whenever possible.

The more times it stalls, the more chance there is for something to go wrong.

The group also endorses Keyes' advice to be nice and polite to agents, but also says that consumers need to be persistent in trying to get the situation resolved to their satisfaction.

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What to do if it seems that you will not be able to fly until the next day and you are not in your city?

"Ask the airline to put you up in a hotel or give you a hotel voucher. They may or may not. The law doesn't require it," Keyes says.

They're less likely to do so if it's weather-related, he says, than if the problem is aircraft mechanical or personnel.

Keyes points out that staffing is a major issue in this latest wave of cancellations, as the spread of omicron makes employees unable to work.

What can be achieved depends on the airline itself and the specific circumstances of why a flight has been cancelled.

Learn about the policies.

For example, Delta Air Lines says it will provide a hotel voucher in some circumstances if travel is interrupted more than four hours after the scheduled departure time when the delay occurs between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Whatever you do, at least ask, says Keyes.

They probably won't just offer you a voucher for hotels and even ground transportation and meals.

You should also look for your credit card information.

Keyes points out that your card may have passenger protections, including free hotel rooms if you get stranded and perhaps even cover food and a taxi ride to the hotel.

Find out what you have to do to get reimbursed.

If your flight is delayed rather than canceled outright, you may want to consider whether to wait at the airport.

Depending on your personal circumstances, staying there for five or six hours may be easier than getting to and from a hotel.

Also, Keyes says to check if there is a hotel inside the airport.

The Points Guy advises trying to get into an airport lounge if you can, where you can recharge your phone and rest more easily.

Cancel the trip and fly later

If you had a flight scheduled for this week and you're worried about omicron, the airlines were offering free changes to your flight, Keyes says.

If you wanted to change the dates of your trip, you could do so without penalty.

It also mentions that if the new travel dates are cheaper, you can get a travel credit.

(On the contrary, you will pay more if the flight is more expensive).

"By moving a flight from this holiday to February, you're less likely to run into this omicron situation. You could save yourself a couple hundred bucks."

Reimbursement rights for your flight

In the case of the United States, the Department of Transportation (DOT) says that you are entitled to a refund of the cost of your ticket if there is a cancellation or "significant delay" and you decide not to travel.

This is the policy regardless of the reason the airline canceled or delayed the flight.

However, what is a "significant delay" is left open to interpretation.

According to the DOT website, "What constitutes a 'significant delay' has not been specifically defined. Eligibility for a refund depends on many factors, including the length of the delay, the length of the flight, and your particular circumstances. DOT determines whether You are entitled to a refund after a significant delay on a case-by-case basis."

CNN's Forrest Brown, Gregory Wallace, Jordan Valinsky, Chris Liakos and Sonnet Swire contributed to this report.

Editor's Note

: This text was initially published in December 2021 and was updated in 2022.

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