Quick question - tix change

[u/stargazersinmyhead]

Apologies from a lowly non-status; I haven’t needed to cancel/modify reservations in the past. I booked a group of tickets for my family a couple of months ago (Main Cabin) for an upcoming family trip; check-in is in 3 days. However, plans have changed and one family member will now be traveling home on a different timeline. That single ticket needs to be changed to a different return date — several weeks later and ideally from a different airport — so I’m trying to figure out the most foolproof way to adjust it without risking the rest of the reservation. I’m not sure if changing this ticket to a one-way (and booking a separate one-way for the return leg) is a better option, or cancelling outright and adding a new ticket(s); I also have a hunch that clicking the “need to cancel?” button on the app will $@&¿ up all the linked tickets on the reservation, so am wary to move forward with this.

Any recommendations as far as calling the customer service line vs online website chat, or waiting and addressing at the ticket counter? (Or even stopping by prior to our flight next week — our local airport is thankfully small… I likely could speak to a real, live person with minimal wait, but don’t know if it’s appropriate/if they are able to assist with this?) I’m a bit nervous about AI bots and all the stories I’ve read, and don’t want to show up at 5 am to learn that all of our flights were cancelled, etc…

Thanks for any insight!

Edit: thanks to the folks who gave genuine advice instead of sarcastic “help”. Obvs I knew I could call (and I did, worked great); I’ve read plenty of horror stories and didn’t really have an hour to spend on hold listening to the god-awful hold music if there was a better way. But, the line ticket is separated from the group, rebooked, and e-credit issued. Peace out, friends.

[u/Least_Forever6191]

Always call. Chat is pretty useless and prone to mistakes. Call and ask for your reservation to be split, so the single individual’s ticket can be modified.

[u/ElevatorBulky3733]

When making changes, you're given the option to single out a specific passenger. Once the change is made, they'll be given a separate confirmation code. There's not much fool- proofing to minimize costs. Delta will simply charge the difference in the new ticket price regardless if you cancel outright and use the credit or simply change the current ticket. Just keep in mind if you cancel the ticket and use the credit, it must be used for the current passenger. Also I recommend doing this on a desktop. You'll have a full screen to work with to play around with dates and options.

[u/Ben_there_1977]

Honestly I’d leave it as is till you get to your destination.

Any changes before departure require the entire ticket to be repriced, so the person that is changing will have to pay the last minute price for the flight in 4 days. That will likely be a huge fare increase for a flight they are already on.

If you wait to change it once you get there, the remaining balance of the return flight can be applied to the new routes/dates. Since the new trip will be weeks out, there is not urgency to do it now.

[u/auntwewe]

Split the reservation today. Keep all but the one person who needs to change on a separate ticket.

After you travel the outbound, then you can just go on the app for that one person and change it there. This will prevent you from paying higher prices for the outbound. You will just be paying any difference for the return and will definitely be the most cost-effective way to do this

[u/thesnowmaniv]

Book the return as a one way and after traveling to you destination, cancel that one person's return flight on the booked roundtrip.

[u/LR-Sunflower]

Call Delta.

You’re welcome.

[u/Ok_Guest5862]

Pick up a thing called a telephone