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An actual improvement to delta.com!

Previously, you could search award space one month at a time with a calendar on delta.com, but that calendar only took into account award space on Delta flights. Because much of the Saver award space available to people with Delta miles is available on partner airlines, that meant that in practice, you really had to search delta.com one day at a time to get the full picture. See “A Major Problem with Delta.com and the Only Solution.”

The nearly useless delta.com used to display

Now, multi-day award searches can display a grid of +/- 3 days, and do take into account partners. This is a big improvement in my mind. It will certainly save me a lot of time when I am booking awards for clients of my Award Booking Service.

  • How does the new delta.com search work?
  • What airlines are searchable on delta.com?
  • Why should you still call in to book most Delta awards?

How Searches Work on Delta.com Now

On the home screen, you can search for awards by selecting “Miles” instead of “Money” as shown below in my search for Los Angeles to Sydney for February 2015. You should select “Flexible Days” to see the +/- 3 day grid of results.

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.19.13 PM

The results have the following menu at the top where you can make changes.

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.19.34 PM

The “Economy” and “First Class” buttons are a bit of a misnomer. Delta doesn’t allow you to book three-cabin first class awards with its miles, and the clicking it displays international Business Class results.

Here was the award grid for my dates.

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.19.42 PM

Each box shows the roundtrip price in miles for the given “Depart” and “Return” dates. You can cross-reference the prices with the Delta award chart to see if you are getting the Saver price.

Note that the grid also displays whether the routes are nonstop or with stops.

Here were the results for Business Class.Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.20.02 PM

There were less options at the Saver level, but still some options for peak season only three months out. Not bad at all.

If you select a depart/return date, you are taken to more information about your flight options that day. Delta flights are at the top. Scroll past them to see Saver space on partners.

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.20.17 PM

After selecting the outbound, you do the same for the return. The graphic on the left shows layover airport, layover time, and total travel time.

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.20.40 PM

In the end, I selected one way in Korean Business Class and one way in Virgin Australia. The total price displays as 160,000 miles + $177.

Screen Shot 2014-11-17 at 12.21.01 PM

Which Airlines Are on Delta.com

On Delta.com, you can see award space for:

  • Delta
  • Alaska
  • Air France
  • KLM
  • Alitalia
  • Korean
  • Virgin Australia
  • Virgin Atlantic

Most Delta partners must be searched elsewhere like airfrance.us and Expert Flyer.

If you have to search elsewhere, you will need to call Delta to book your award.

If you want to book an international roundtrip award with a stopover, you will also have to call Delta because Delta has already removed this functionality from its website.

Bottom Line

Delta awards just got a little quicker to book because the +/- 3 day grid that has replaced the calendar of award space online includes partners in its calculations.

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