How to Book Flights So They Can't Be Canceled Without Compensation

Most people who fly know that they are entitled to 200 to 600 EUR in compensation if the flight is delayed by more than 3h - mostly thanks to ads from intermediaries on social media.

And a large part of them, like probably you too, associates that the carrier must pay compensation only if they are at fault, and it wasn't caused by for example a strike or weather.

In reality, flights are mostly not cancelled by the weather itself, but by the airport's lack of preparation for weather conditions that can occur in a given region. The difference in preparation of airports or even top transfer HUBs for the same weather conditions is huge.

So if you book a flight with a transfer at this and not another HUB, you are exposing yourself to a flight cancellation without compensation (except for a refund for food and night/s).

That is why it is worth choosing better prepared HUBs - unless you don't mind getting tired and trying to get 600 EUR compensation for the delay anyway - but more on that in a moment.

This year, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol cancelled around 3,200 flights between January 2 and January 7, 2026.

Some people were forced to spend over 5 days in Amsterdam (Schiphol, AMS). Imagine that you are flying to the Caribbean with a transfer in Amsterdam for 10 days, out of which you spend 70% of the trip at the airport, camping at the gate every day. After all, they won't tell you right away that you will fly in 5 days - they hope that it will work today, so they won't risk having to give you back 600 EUR.

A year earlier they grounded me there too.

To be fair only for one day, but it's not something that happens rarely there. You could say that winter surprises aviators there every year. Maybe not so much the aviators as the airport authorities, who calculated that it doesn't pay to buy too many machines for de-icing planes, since global warming is coming. They prefer to cover the costs of accommodation, because they won't have to pay you compensation anyway - after all it's "because of weather", and not because they have 25 machines for de-icing planes when they should have a minimum of 60 along with the crew.

Airport authorities consciously accept a shortage of 50-60% of equipment and people compared to real needs during a winter attack.

This is not a "surprise", this is a business model.

When flying to both Americas, it often pays off to choose the combined Air France-KLM lines. One owner, so prices are more or less the same, and often the flight one way is on one airline and the return on the other. However, if the initial flight takes place in winter, it is smarter to choose a transfer in Paris which is better prepared for frosts. Generally it is always worth checking the airport's preparation for weather conditions - especially since ticket prices are often identical.

How the cancellation looked in practice

At the end of November we were supposed to fly to Rio de Janeiro from Berlin. With more expensive flights recently I follow a rule: I prefer to be at the airport much earlier. Instead of leaving at 4 in the morning, I prefer to leave at midnight and nap in the car in the parking lot. Less stress, more time in case of a car breakdown on the route and I don't drive sleep-deprived.

As soon as we reached the parking lot in Berlin, I got a notification: our flight to Amsterdam (and further to Rio) was cancelled - the plane that was supposed to take us couldn't take off in Amsterdam because of snow. We have to wait for information. We immediately went to the terminal, where the first people were starting to gather at the check-in counters.

Two hours before the planned takeoff someone from the staff finally appeared, but the only thing we heard was: Wait for an email. When the email finally arrived, reality turned out to be brutal. Instead of a 6:00 am departure, I got a new route: a flight to Amsterdam at 2:00 pm, later at 5:00 pm to Lisbon, from which TAP Air (A worse airline than KLM) was supposed to take us to Rio only around midnight.

Our first mistake

Staff told us it's "because of weather". I took it for granted and assumed that in that case we wouldn't get compensation. I went to buy us food, not regretting the expenses, because I knew that the airline has to pay back for meals anyway (it is their duty for every cancelled flight, regardless of weather).

We were very sleep-deprived - we were just about to sleep on the plane. I wanted to rent sleeping cabins by the hour, but all were occupied. A hotel in Berlin we would only have until checkout at 11:00 am anyway, so paying 150 EUR for 3 hours of sleep seemed pointless to me then. We slept at the airport until that 2:00 pm - which was a mistake.

When I caught angina in Rio. Only after calmly reading the travel insurance policy did I understand that I could have easily taken any hotel in Berlin and the insurance company would have paid for it. Therefore always check your policies - maybe something is due to you that you don't remember in the stress at the airport. Also check credit cards - some give free access to lounges in case of delay, where in comfort, with free food, you can wait for a delayed flight. In Poland at the moment such a card is given by the bank with the bison. Even if at least for me it works tragically, I have already used the lounges and you can collect quite a lot of miles with it - something for something.

How to get 600 EUR compensation for weather

Food vouchers, you can easily spend more and later bill the airline, if it's a better airline there should be no problem with compensation

We couldn't check in for the flight to Lisbon - we were surplus passengers, added just in case someone didn't show up at the airport, and not at all the first in line. As you can guess, overbooking happened. For that you are already entitled to 600 EUR - but only if you don't arrive at your destination by another flight (that the airline signs you up for) faster than 4h after the originally planned landing time.

In case of delay you gain compensation after 3 hours, while with overbooking it is due immediately, although the airline can reduce it by half when it takes you to your destination by a substitute flight in less than 2 hours (<1500 km), 3 hours (1500-3500 km) or 4 hours (>3500 km).

After the overbooking we didn't get information on what to do next. So we went to the service center for delayed flights at the terminal. Actually it was impossible to get there - all staff was redirected to save the situation, so they sat and manually determined the routes of passengers. Security made one line to one window, but after hours of waiting they said they won't take us anymore and we have to wait for an email.

We left the terminal and before security, at another passenger service point, we were already served. The lady proposed a flight to Buenos Aires, and from there to Rio. We said that we are tired and asked if she couldn't send us on a flight tomorrow, so we could sleep normally today. She agreed. If she had refused and pushed us onto that flight (via Buenos), we would still have arrived faster than the one through Lisbon. Probably we wouldn't have the right to 600 EUR then.

Therefore if you are victims of overbooking, try to make it so they don't manage to send you too fast. As long as those few hours difference don't make a problem for you, you can get compensation and sleep for free in a hotel. Of course contact with staff is important, but sometimes it is worth sensing the moment so they don't "fix" your situation too fast at the expense of your compensation.

Final 1400 EUR compensation

Finally I won over 1400 EUR: 1200 EUR compensation for flights (mine and Alex) and over 200 EUR refund for the hotel in Amsterdam, transfers and food at the airports in Berlin and Amsterdam, which we bought outside the airline vouchers.

If I had used the services of intermediaries who advertise everywhere - they would probably take half of this amount. Avoid them, unless all other means fail, although I honestly doubt it. In most cases it is enough to click through the reason for compensation on the airline website, attach receipts and after a few weeks you should see the money in your account.

What is very important: do not agree to vouchers or other "simplified" compensations proposed at the airport or in emails. If you accept a voucher, the airline will consider the case closed and you will close your way to getting cash.

Compensations for flights outside the EU do not work

We often do not appreciate EU regulations, but solid flight compensations exist practically only here. For reminder - you will get compensation according to the EU:

• Flying within the EU
• Flying from the EU to any place by any airline
• Flying to the EU by an airline registered in the EU

Returning for example with Turkish, you won't get compensation (even if the flights are on one ticket) or you will have to struggle a lot. Meanwhile Air France or KLM will pay without a bigger problem.

During our trip from Rio to Iguazu (the largest waterfalls in the world, where you will meet the cute coatis from the photo above) our flight was also delayed - some have all the luck. Here however the staff didn't have to hide behind the weather. In Brazil as in other places nobody will pay you compensation, so they told us straight up:

We don't know when we will take off, the captain didn't arrive, we are calling him all the time but he doesn't answer, when he answers we will inform you what next

The captain fortunately arrived after a few hours - apparently he was stuck in traffic and his phone died or something like that. We even got a coffee voucher as compensation.

I have had many situations with delays, but two in particular stuck in my memory. Once, when a flight from Wroclaw to Greece took off over 4 hours late, and me with my friend Damian were already drinking to the free 400 EUR, the plane however decided to catch up a lot and be only 2 hours and 55 minutes late, just so it wouldn't pay any compensation, you can guess the airline.

Another time, when with my partner Alex we were moving from Dubai to the Seychelles (we lived in different places for 1-3 months), we only found out about the cancellation of the flight by Air Kenya at the airport. The flight wasn't even on the departure board, and we were with many bags of luggage, required Covid tests, whose validity time was only 48 hours. This was not our fault - they simply did not inform us in any way. But that's a more extensive story, which I will write in a separate post along with the tips following it.

Summary

If you want your next trip to be safer (or at least free), remember these points:

• Choose HUBs wisely - Paris (CDG) usually handles winter better than Amsterdam (AMS), Dublin (DUB) or London-Heathrow (LHR).
• An EU airline is your insurance - Flying with EU airlines (KLM, LOT, Lufthansa), you are protected by EU law both ways. Lines from outside the Union (Turkish, Emirates) do not have to pay compensation for flights to Europe.
• Overbooking is your chance - If there is no seat for you, do not ask for the fastest possible replacement flight. If the delay to your destination exceeds 4h (on a long route), you have a guaranteed 600 EUR.
• Check insurance and credit cards - Before you sleep on the floor, check if your policy or card does not offer a free hotel or entry to the VIP lounge in case of delays.
• Receipts are a treasure - The airline must refund for food and drinks regardless of the reason for the delay (even with weather). Collect receipts, do not be afraid to buy a proper dinner instead of a dry sandwich from a machine.
• Say NO to vouchers - Never take vouchers for future flights as part of compensation. You close your way to cash, which is usually worth more and has no expiry date.
• Avoid intermediaries - Filling out the form on the KLM or Lufthansa website takes 15 minutes. You will do it yourself and keep the whole 600 EUR for yourself, instead of giving away 200-300 EUR in commission.