How to prep for travel delays

My top five tips to make delays easier

Delays are never easy, but with a little preparation, you can avoid some of the most inconvenient parts.

The travel rush that crams airports from June through August may be over, but now is the time to start planning for travel on Thanksgiving and the holidays.

1. Always have a change of clothes and essentials in your carry on.

It can be so tempting to check your carry on, especially when the airline offers to check it for free at the last minute. However, if you get stuck anywhere, you’ll want a change of clothes (or at least clean socks) and the essentials for a night or two somewhere. For me, essentials are at least one week of meds and the charge cord for my phone.

2. Call the airline immediately.

I was almost caught in a United Airlines meltdown on a flight from Seattle to Chicago, with a connecting flight to Istanbul. While on hold with United, I hurried over to the Delta counter and told them to book me on the next flight to Chicago, confident that United would pick up the bill. I arrived with two hours before the Istanbul flight.

It’s not always that easy. During the July 19 Crowdstrike outage that stranded thousands of travelers all around the world, moving from one airline to another didn’t help. In the US alone, over 1,800 flights were cancelled and more than 9,900 delayed. If you were trying to travel that weekend, there wasn’t much recourse as the airlines impacted scrambled to get back online. Still, getting the call in asap at least would put you at the top of the wait list.

3. Pay with a credit card that has travel benefits.

The key here is to read the fine print on what exactly those travel benefits are. This information is usually difficult to find on your credit card company’s website, so be sure to save the pages of fine print that come in the envelope with your credit card. Make sure you know if the card reimburses hotel and food during a delay, or if it only will reimburse for lost luggage. If you checked your bags, but then didn’t make the flight, they probably won’t reimburse you expenses because the bags aren’t lost, just inaccessible.

4. Save receipts and screenshots.

This may seem obvious, but you have to save receipts for any expenses you incur due to a flight delay or cancellation. Even if you’re not sure if you’re entitled to compensation, save your receipts just in case. When you get confirmation of benefits, especially if it’s the airlines’ or credit card’s chat function, take screenshots in case you need to prove later that you were told about reimbursements or rebooked flights.

5. Know your rights.

The US Department of Transportation has a lot of protection for travelers, which you can check here. If you’re flying to or from Europe, especially an EU country, you should read this article on EU flyer benefits. Benefits in Europe depend on how long the flight is and how long it’s delayed. Individual airlines may also have a list of customer rights, so check their website also.

Bonus tip 

Like saving receipts, having travel insurance may seem obvious, but I’m always surprised at how many people don’t bother. I use SafetyWing, and if you use my link to buy SafetyWing travel insurance, I may get a small commission at no extra cost to you. SafetyWing covers travel delays and medical emergencies, plus other add-on coverage options.

Article

This week Atlas Obscura’s new book Wild Life went on sale! It’s about animals and all sorts of other lifeforms around the world, with chapters on Forests & Rainforests, Grasslands & Tundras, Mountains, Deserts, Shallows & Deeps, Cities, & Islands. It covers everything from African penguins and Azteca ants to singing snails to smiling spiders. I got to write an entry in the Mountains chapter for the vicuña, which I’ve seen in Peru and Argentina. Order the book directly from Atlas Obscura!

Podcast

Another fun event this week was my podcast with Kim of Prose & Passports. She interviewed me for her series Roaming Realities: Traveler Tales Unpacked. You can listen on Apple podcasts or listen on Kim’s website! We talked about how I got started traveling, why I joined Peace Corps and how I manage mental health when traveling.