🤘🏼 Free same-day standby... for anyone

Estimated read time: 4 minutes and 11 seconds

☀️ Good morning and welcome back to Daily Drop — the newsletter with a very particular set of skills. Skills acquired over a long career of booking lie-flat seats, dodging fees, and accessing airport lounges.

Let’s talk about some of those skills today, shall we?

• ✈️ Free same-day standby… for anyone

• ☀️ Learn a new language for summer adventures

• 😏 Sweet talk your way out of fees

✈️ Free same-day standby… for anyone

As of July 1, anyone flying domestically on American Airlines can list for same-day standby — for free.

No elite status. No fancy fare class. Just you and your ambition to get where you’re going a little earlier.

This is a big shift. Until now, this perk was only available to:

• AAdvantage and Oneworld elite members

• Business or first-class passengers

• Travelers on unrestricted economy fares

• Military travelers

• Or anyone willing to cough up extra for flexibility

Now? It’s open to all.

What this means for you

Say you booked a cheap ticket from Dallas (DFW) to San Diego (SAN) that departs at 5 p.m. But you get to the airport early and notice a 2 p.m. option. Instead of just sitting around and waiting, you can now ask to be standby on that earlier flight — at no cost.

If there’s a seat available at boarding time, it’s yours. 🎉

You can add yourself to the list up to 45 minutes before departure (via the AA app or a gate agent). You’ll get a boarding pass with no seat — and if a spot opens up, you’re in.

Why this is a sneaky savings tool

Same-day standby isn’t just about saving time — it could save you money, too.

Because it applies to any earlier flight, you could book a cheaper flight later in the day and attempt to standby onto a pricier earlier one. If you clear? You win. If not? You still take the flight you paid for.

Of course, this is only a good move if your travel plans are flexible — standby is never guaranteed, and the final list gets sorted at the gate based on availability and passenger priority.

One final detail:

Elites still have a slight edge — they can add themselves to the standby list as late as 15 minutes before departure and are eligible to go standby on later flights as well. But this new policy gives regular travelers a lot more power to move things around.

So next time your schedule shifts — or you just want to roll the dice on an earlier flight home — don’t forget about this quiet little perk.

😏 Sweet talk your way out of fees

Last week, we asked about your biggest travel mistakes… and one theme stood out loud and clear:

Totally fair. Nobody wants to lose money over a “maybe” trip. But here’s a secret weapon I swear by:

Sweet talk your way out of the fee. 😏

Yes, seriously. I’ve done it with Aeroplan, with SAS (twice this year), and with hotels on multiple continents.

Most of the time, the person on the other end of the line (or at the front desk) is a real human — and they often have the power to waive fees, especially if you ask nicely, explain the situation, and have some kind of elite status.

Here’s a recent example:

I had a six-night stay booked at the Intercontinental Jakarta. Two nights in, I had to leave early. I figured I’d ask (politely!) if they’d let me cancel the remainder of the stay and refund the points.

The staff didn’t even blink. They said yes on the spot.

My IHG elite status (which you can get from a credit card) definitely helped — but the key was simply asking.

If this feels too nebulous to you, always remember to book travel with a credit card with excellent travel protections (I use this one for everything). It won’t cover every circumstance, but it covers a lot of them.

Bottom line? There are multiple ways to strike while the iron is hot and mitigate the fees later if needed:

• Book flexible stays/tickets

• Use a card with good travel protections

• Always try asking

Don’t let fear of a fee stop you from locking in amazing bookings. You’ve got more tools than you think — including the most powerful one of all: being nice to people. ❤️

Are you down for a little digital socialization? Come join us in our exclusive Facebook community, the Daily Drop Lounge!

Ask questions, share answers, and celebrate travel wins with us 👇

That’s all for today — now go forth and use your powers of charm and flexibility to conquer the travel world.

But before you go, I want to know if you’ve ever tried something like this for yourself:

See you tomorrow, beautiful people ❤️

6.9175° S, 107.6191° E

With contributions by Tiffany Eastham, McKay Moffitt, and Benji Stawski