We all hope we’ll never get The Call, but at some point in your life it may come. You’ll pick up your phone at 2 a.m. and learn that someone you love is very ill, or has been hurt in an accident, or has passed away. When that loved one is far away, and you need to get there fast, what can you do?

How to book a bereavement flight

A few airlines offer something called bereavement fares: discounted, last-minute flights for people who need to travel because of a death or a family emergency. Bereavement flights used to be a common offering, but now, only two U.S. airlines still offer them: Delta and Alaska Airlines.

Delta’s medical emergency flights are restricted to SkyMiles members (although you can sign up immediately for free). They may be used in three scenarios: when an immediate family member is hospitalized or in hospice care; when an immediate family member is injured while serving in the military; and when an organ donor is traveling to or from a hospital for a transplant. Documentation is required for each of these situations, and you must call Delta to book a medical emergency flight. No specific discount is promised, although Delta says it will make your return flight flexible by waiving service fees.

Alaska offers bereaved travelers 10 percent off the lowest refundable fare, booked seven days or less before travel, SmarterTravel reports.^1

What should you do if no low-cost bereavement flight is available?

When you’re facing a family emergency and you need to fly, fast, you don’t have a lot of time to comparison shop. Your best course of action is probably to compare flights on an aggregator, like Kayak, and see which last-minute flights are available and how much they cost. If Alaska or Delta flies the route you need, it may be worth calling and asking for the bereavement fare, or flexibility on your return flight.

What if you’re searching last-minute flights and the few available fares you find are way, way out of your budget? Don’t panic! FareCompare has a few suggestions. First, search for vacation packages to your destination. Because flight prices are typically fixed ahead of time, you may be able to buy an entire package (air plus rental car, for instance) for less than the cost of the flight alone.

Another option is to look at first-class fares. It may seem counterintuitive, but “many travelers do not realize that last minute full-fare coach prices can actually be higher than business or first class prices,” writes FareCompare CEO Rick Seaney.² Or, do you have a friend or family member who could give you some frequent-flyer miles?

When you’re flying for a family emergency and you’re not sure when you’ll be coming home, remember that Southwest Airlines has an extremely flexible policy. The airline never charges change fees (although you’ll have to pay the difference in fares).

Should you cancel a trip to be with a sick family member? 

Blogger Amanda Topinka shares the story of the time she considered canceling a family vacation to South Dakota because her beloved mother-in-law was terminally ill. It was, “quite possibly the hardest decision we’ve ever had to make,” she wrote. “Do we go on our trip, or do we stay home?” In the end, the family decided to make the planned trip, because they knew that’s what Nana would have wanted them to do. Sadly, she passed away while they were traveling — “but we have no regrets to this day,” Topinka said.

In the end, it’s up to you to make the decision: to rush to be with a family member who’s ill, to wait and see, or to continue with plans that are already set. Having travel insurance can make the decision much easier, however. When you purchase a travel insurance plan that includes trip cancellation and trip interruption benefits, the death or covered illness of an immediate family member is a covered reason for trip cancellation/interruption. When you cancel or cut short your trip for a covered reason, you can be reimbursed for nonrefundable, prepaid trip costs. One thing to remember, however, is that foreseeable events aren’t considered covered reasons. If you purchase travel insurance when your family member is already in the hospital, his or her illness probably won’t be considered a covered reason for trip cancellation. We know it gets complicated. Contact our insurance advisers at 1-866-884-3556 and they can answer any questions you have about your specific situation.

Whatever the circumstances that require family emergency travel, just remember this: Take care of yourself, too. When you’re grieving or acting as a caregiver for a loved one who’s ill, you need to make sure you can rest, recharge and stay healthy.

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