No one wants something to go wrong on a trip. If you travel enough, however, you’ll end up with a collection of stories for your next dinner party. Part of traveling confidently is knowing how to recover when something does not go according to plan. Here are my best tips for recovery in a variety of scenarios.
It happens to all of us. Flights get delayed, cars have flat tires, and trains get canceled. Delays and cancellations are unfortunately a part of traveling! If you find out your trip has been delayed or canceled, the first thing to do is to NOT panic. Assess your options. If you’re flying on a major airline from a hub, chances are they’ll rebook you for the next available flight without you having to do anything. Simply update your app or head to a kiosk to print out a new boarding pass.
If you’re flying on a smaller airline or from a smaller airport, you will likely have to speak with someone. Jump in the customer service line, but also get online and enter the chat queue. Every major airline has a chat feature on their website these days, and you can often get a hold of a human faster that way than on the phone. When it’s your turn, politely ask for what you need; share alternative options that you may be willing to take. For example, if your original flight was supposed to take you to Regan National Airport in Washington, DC, would you be willing to fly into Dulles or even Baltimore instead? If the delay is not weather-related, and you’re flying one of the big airlines, you can ask if they’d be willing to switch you to another airline. The mainstream airlines (Delta, United, American) have agreements with each other to be able to do this in a pinch.
If an airline cancels your flight, you are allowed to ask for a refund. Depending on where you’re going, you may be able to purchase a new last-minute ticket on another airline and salvage your trip. If you’re delayed a significant amount of time, you can also ask the airline for food vouchers and/or a hotel voucher as needed.
If it’s a cruise that is being canceled, ask the cruise line what options you have. Sometimes, they’ll switch you to another itinerary at no extra cost (even if it is a more expensive trip). Other times, you may be able to get a refund or a future cruise credit worth even more than what you originally paid for your trip.
You can minimize your chances of trip delays by choosing morning flights and making sure to leave plenty of time to get through the airport. And when you work with a travel agent, we can typically help with the rebooking process or make changes to your schedule so you can just relax.
It doesn’t happen often, but from time to time a hotel may be overbooked or lose your reservation. There are a couple of things you can do prior to your trip to help minimize the chances of this happening. First, book only through a reputable site or use a travel agent. Travel agents have relationships with multiple different hotel chains and resellers and have recourse if something happens during your trip. If you’re booking on your own, reserving directly with the hotel or the chain will reduce the chances of your room being the one that’s given away. Make a note of your booking confirmations and double-check dates carefully prior to travel.
If you show up and find out your room has been given away, ask the property what options you have. With a confirmed reservation, most hotel chains will accommodate you at a similar or better property at no additional cost. If this is not possible for some reason, or it is an independent hotel, you can ask the hotelier what nearby properties they recommend. Many hotels have relationships with some nearby properties and can call in a favor for you – or at least make phone calls on your behalf. This can be especially useful if you’re in a place where you don’t speak the language. Be sure to confirm in writing what you are owed as a refund, and keep all receipts for your new lodging. You may be able to make a claim on your travel insurance in this situation.
In a situation where the hotel is full and it’s late/you have cranky kids/etc the most important thing to do is get yourself settled for the evening and then assess your options. It is worth finding a place just for one night – even if it’s out of your price range, doesn’t have the right amenities, etc – to allow yourself time and space to breathe and problem-solve (or make a phone call to your travel agent).
As a travel agent, I will do everything I can to help minimize problems for my clients. However, I have not yet learned how to control the weather. Even a place known for sunshine and blue skies can have a rainy spell; a mid-January heat wave might signal disaster for a ski trip.
One of the ways to minimize the impact of the weather on your trip is to carefully consider both your destination and your routing to get there. Traveling to the Caribbean during hurricane season, for example, means that although it isn’t likely a hurricane will strike, it is something you will need to keep an eye on. Traveling to the Caribbean in the winter means better weather at your destination, but making a flight connection in Chicago or New York could spell trouble if a blizzard hits.
But what if you plan a week on the beach, and it rains nonstop the whole time? Or your dreams of uninterrupted sea views in Maine get socked in by consistent fog? Chances are, a big part of the reason why you are on vacation is to spend some time with your travel companions; use the time to really dig into spending time together! Find a board game, seek out a movie theatre, or head to an (indoor) sporting event that maybe you would say “no” to at home. If you rented a vacation home, now’s your chance to perfect your pie crust or bake & decorate cookies. Most towns, big or small, have some out-of-the way museums or historical sights that are off the tourist trail. Make a game of it – check out the museum gift shop before you enter, and see who can spot the item on the postcard first.
Of course, if everything is really terrible, you always have the option to bail out and go home. Keep your receipts, because you may be able to claim a “trip inconvenience” if you have trip insurance.
Confession: I was never much of a fan of trip insurance in the pre-covid world. Watching the world shut down in March of 2020, however, I have completely changed my mind! In addition to the benefits trip insurance can provide for things like delays, cancellations and lost items, trip insurance can help if you have medical expenses overseas – or if you get stuck in quarantine!
What should you do if you get injured or hurt on vacation? First things first; if it is an emergency, summon help. Use your hotelier, flag down a local, or call 911 (if you’re in the USA) or the local equivalent abroad. For more minor illnesses and ailments, your hotel’s concierge can be a great source of information; most large cities have 24-hour pharmacies, and many places even have doctors that can make house calls. If you’re traveling with technology, don’t forget that you may have access to telehealth appointments even if you are abroad. Medication and treatment of minor ailments can be surprisingly good value outside the United States.
Getting sick on vacation is no fun, but it’s often better to lay low for a couple of days, rest and wait for symptoms to fade (even with non-covid illnesses) than it is to try and push through. Cancelling plans is a bummer, but cancelling one or two days worth of plans is a lot better than ending up in the hospital because you overdid it!
Losing stuff is never a fun time; losing stuff on vacation can be downright disruptive. The best way to keep things from getting lost or stolen is to be careful about where you place them to begin with. Passports, wallets, and other irreplaceable items should be kept on your person or locked up in a hotel safe at all times. I know many of us choose to travel with electronics, but try to minimize the number of valuable items that you bring with you on vacation.
If you do lose something critical, like a passport or your wallet, take a deep breath and then start reaching out for help. If you bought travel insurance, there may be a phone number you can call in emergency situations to assist you with replacing your passport or accessing emergency funds. Without trip insurance, your travel agent can be a good first person to contact. Replacing your passport will likely involve a trip to an embassy or consulate. This should be your very first order of business after you discover you need a replacement.
A lost wallet is a bit easier; with tap-to-pay so prevalent these days, you may still be able to access some funds via your phone even if you don’t have your physical cards. Call your card issuer and explain the situation; I’ve been able to continue using tap-to-pay the same day, even when an old card had to be canceled! Your card issuer may be able to mail you a new card within a day or so. In a pinch, you may be able to have someone at home wire you some cash. I like to stuff a couple of $20 bills in the bottom of my suitcase before I leave home; I figure $20 will at least buy me a sandwich and a phone call while I collect my wits if needed! Embassies can also help with funds or contacting a bank in a real emergency; the State Department has a program for travelers who find themselves “temporarily destitute” while abroad. Keep in mind that these are LOANS, and do have to be repaid.
Sometimes, weird stuff just happens. A transit strike might cancel your train; a flood in a museum may leave it unexpectedly closed. Your flight might get diverted to a random city; a huge sporting event might choke the city with fans. In these instances, you have two choices: you can let it ruin your trip, or you can shrug it off and say “what can I do to make the best of this situation?” It’s ok to sit in your disappointment for a little while, but chances are high that the place you’ve come to visit still has lots to see and do. Regroup, assess your options, and realize that you’ve now got a travel story for the ages.
Travel, whether down the block or around the world, teaches us to be flexible and adaptable. Learning how to deal with inconvenience and problems as they arise are one of the best things that you can do to be a confident traveler – and a confident human being.
Do you have any fun travel mishaps you want to share? Let me know in the comments!