Don't Let These Travel Disasters Ruin Your Next Trip -

Whether you are heading off abroad on business or leisure, the chances are that you are excited to be getting away. It doesn’t matter what you are traveling for; you know that while you are there, you will get a chance to swim, sunbathe and sip cocktails, so you couldn’t be happier to be jetting off to somewhere sunny.

While most trips go without a hitch, there’s always that risk that while you are away something will go wrong. It might be hard to imagine disaster striking you – after all, travel horror stories happen to other people, not you – but the fact is that anything can happen at any time. That’s why, wherever you are traveling to, it’s always best to be prepared. The question is, what are the travel disasters that you should be prepared for?

Missing your flight (or transfer): There really is no worse feeling than the sinking sensation you get in your stomach when you arrive at the gate after rushing through check-in and security only to see that your plane is already in the process of taking off. Your plane is still on the ground, but you aren’t able to get on it – it’s an awful feeling. Obviously, the best way to prevent missing a flight or transfer is to always arrive at least two hours early at the airport, just in case you end up getting held up anywhere. If you’re late for a transfer because your first plane was delayed, this is out of your control. However, you can make the flight crew aware of what’s happened, and they should be able to help find you an alternative flight.

Your luggage going missing: It’s always nerve-wracking waiting by the carousel for your luggage to come around. What if it doesn’t turn up – what will you do? Usually, your nerves are put to rest when your luggage comes around the corner, but what happens when your suitcase doesn’t turn up? The best thing to do is speak to a member of staff as soon as possible so that they can determine what has happened to your suitcase as quickly as possible. To prevent someone else accidentally taking your case instead of theirs, the best thing to do is ensure that your case has a unique look to it.

Falling ill or getting injured: There’s nothing more terrifying than falling ill or getting injured while abroad. While you can’t usually prevent illness or injury, what you can do is prepare for it, so that should you end up in the hospital you are able to get the care that you require. To ensure that you can get medical care while abroad, should you become unwell or get hurt, is to take out travel insurance before you go. That way, your hospital stay, medical treatment, and the use of medical transport, for instance, will be covered. You can’t prevent accident or illness, but you can be prepared to deal with whatever comes your way.

Your passport being stolen: You hear about passport thefts a lot, which shows just how common they are. Having your passport stolen while on holiday is terrifying as you have no idea how you will get home as you can’t travel without a passport. You can make passport theft less likely by storing it securely while you are away, but you can’t prevent it altogether. What you can do, however, is travel with other identification documents to make it easier to get a replacement passport should you need one.

Travel disasters do happen, but they don’t necessarily have to ruin your trip.