I booked my flight from Portland, OR to Maui in August for a flight in December. Considering December is high season, I was advised (by Fodorites!) not to wait much longer than that to book. I paid $525 RT, not bad but not great. Today the fare is $401. I called Hawaiian and asked if they would give me a credit or a voucher for the difference and they said no dice.

Has anyone had any luck getting a credit or travel voucher when a fare drops and, if so, how did you go about it? This is just so frustrating!

The policy varies by carrier. With some, the value of the fare difference can be negated by a change fee required to issue the new ticket so it's not worthwhile. Some may simply not do it. Some may require that there be availability in the same fare class that you originally purchased.

I have received credits in the past when a fare dropped, but it hasn't come up for almost two years.

With American Airlines, I called and had no problem at all. Did it twice on the same ticket. They credited my charge card with the difference.

But the lower fare has to be available on the exact same flights in the exact same class.

Hawaiian's policy may well be different, but it would be a worth calling again and seeing what a different agent says.

Keith

Same thing happened to me a couple of months ago.

Booked tickets on Alaska Airlines from Anchorage to Tucson.
3 weeks later the fare had dropped over $250 !!

I rang their 800 number and the guy said that he could give me a credit, but he would have to cancel my reservation and re-ticket it. He explained that there was a good chance that I would lose my 1st class upgrades.
I said I would think about it for a day or two.

The following day I went into the Alaska Airlines office in downtown Anchorage and explained the situation to the girl there. She said "No problem, I can give you the credit and you get to keep your 1st class seats".
She didn't have to cancel the original booking.

My advice, keep trying. And Good Luck!

Thanks for the input, guys! I've called Hawaiian twice and got shot down both times. This will be my fifth trip on Hawaiian and I am a little disappointed with their attitude. The ticket agents basically said "gee that's too bad but there's just no way to predict what ticket prices will be at any given time and there's nothing at all we can do about that." Live and learn.

I understand your frustration. However, in most cases when you do get credit back it is offset with a $100.00 exchange fee and in your case that only leaves 25.00 per ticket. So, don't be too upset because if they would do the exchange it would not be a big gain in your case.

I got a $40 voucher from American Airlines just by calling them, no problem. I asked if they refund my credit card, no chance! (never hurts to ask, right?)

Now, to use this voucher I have to call for reservation. For now it's a $5 charge, so the voucher goes down to $35. Besides, it should be used within a year from the day it's issued. So most likely I will lose it. Oh, well, life's going on!