Nearly two in three (63 percent) American adults have traveled or plan to travel for leisure this year and about one in four (23 percent) have taken or will take a business trip, according to a recent Bankratesurvey.
However, out of those who have already gone somewhere (either for themselves or work), 77 percent have run into a travel-related problem. When the figure is that big, it would be naive to think that this won’t happen to us the next time we pack our suitcase. So let’s try and see if we can prevent at least something.
This post may includeaffiliate links.
Arrived in Mozambique with only South African Rand. I thought I’d be able to withdraw some cash from an ATM or pay for the visa on arrival with card, but for some reason my card wasn’t working. I couldn’t get into the country because I didn’t have the correct currency to pay for the visa, and my cards weren’t working to withdraw any cash. Luckily a kind person behind me offered to pay for my visa and I was able to get into contact with a family member to help check on my cards and activate them. It was one of the most touching moments of kindness I’d experienced, and also a lesson to always always always carry enough cash on you while traveling.
Ran to the train station in Amsterdam. Got on the train to Frankfurt, put my suitcases on their spot and stepped off to have a smoke. Immediately the doors closed behind me and my possessions (minus passport, wallet and phone which were in my pocket) went to Frankfurt without me. A couple of trains and a flight later, I was in Frankfurt waiting for my suitcases but they weren’t on the train. A few long days spent calling around and finally found them in Utrecht (Netherlands conductors took them off before entering Germany). Rented a car and drove the 12 hours round trip from Frankfurt to Utrecht and back to Frankfurt and all was well when I started work on Monday morning. I don’t tell this story often
Took a shortcut against the advice of my hostel receptionist and got mugged. 500 euro taken. Had to go home early.
Partied the whole night at LKF, Hong Kong and went back to my hostel at 6 am. I had a 9:30 am flight home but figured I’d take a ^tiny nap since my backpack was all packed and I’m already checked in anyway.I woke up at at 9:45 am.
Got pickpocketed hours before my flight out of the Philippines to Australia. Couldn’t board my flight because I had to pay the fee for overstaying my visa. Had to spend whatever little change I had at an Internet cafe to email my brother asking for a western union transfer. And shame-eat some Jollibee spaghetti. While waiting for my bro’s response (due to the completely different time zones) I didn’t know what to do so I slept in a park that night. Seemed alright. Some people walking through the park later that evening were like wtf are you doing, one offered that I could sleep at his place for the night, I accepted. We arrive at his home, which was more like a collection of shacks with all the extended family there. I ask where I’m sleeping, as it looks like there’s no extra space, and he says I can have his bed. Of course once I’m in bed he also climbs in bed. Turns out his wife left him because he’s (can you guess?) - gay. He’s trying to get me to fool around with him, wants to give me a blowjob as he’s better than girls anyway. I could just close my eyes and pretend it’s a girl lol. I give him the ultimatum to stop trying or I’m leaving, which was a bluff bc I have no f*****g clue where I am, he gets all huffy and turns over to the other side of the bed and well, that was that. I didn’t really sleep, but didn’t feel any pokey pokings either. We eat cereal in the morning and his cousin who drives a tuk tuk takes me to the western union and the money is there! I rebook my flight and get out of there. The end.Don’t get pickpocketed with all your cards and cash in one place!
I went to see the pyramids and just kinda forgot about the god damn sphinx. Not really sure how that happened lol
Using points, I booked a one way flight to get me to Nepal: AMS - FRA - DEL (Delhi) - CCU (Kolkata) - KTM. Lots of stops, but basically a free flight (points!). Great!I had done tons of solo travel all over at this point, and never thought anything further about my flight until I arrived at AMS airport. “Do you have an India visa?”. “No, I’m just transiting on my way to Nepal and I can get that on arrival.” I guess they didn’t think anything further of it either.So I arrive in Frankfurt airport, get to my gate, and the Air India agent asks to see my India visa. “No, I’m just transiting on my way to Nepal.” He lets me on the flight. Clearly he didn’t think anything further of it.On my flight to Delhi, I start to think more about this. I’m transiting, yes, but I’m also taking an intra-India flight to do so. I hadn’t thought about this when booking or so confidently explaining my situation to the gate agents. I looked through the information in the booklet on the flight and it explained that some flights were transiting internationally (with XYZ flight numbers), but some were considered domestic (with other ABC numbers). My ongoing flight was ABC. Uh oh.I arrive to Delhi and sure enough, someone does think further or my situation. There is a man directing people to either immigration or sterile transit (no customs needed for a transfer). He looks at my flight number on my next flight and points to customs. “So you see, that’s not going to be possible…".So instead, I ended up in a room full of people who also made visa f**k ups and were awaiting deportation. In the end, Air India eventually came through for me and got me on a direct flight to KTM. Huge props to them.
When I solo traveled in India and was ready to fly out of the country, I didn’t include my middle name when booking the flight ticket. Since the name on my ticket didn’t fully match the name on my passport without the middle name, I wasn’t allowed to board the flight until I called the airline company and had them change it. It was like 4 AM and the company phone lines weren’t open until a later time, but luckily I had like 4-5 hours before my flight departed and was able to have it changed in time.
Left my passport in the hotel safe when flying out of Prague. Didn’t realize this until I was at the airport, 90 minutes away from my hotel and no way to do the round trip in time to keep my flight. Contacted the hotel, made arrangements for another cab to bring me my passport. Got my passsport and tried to check in for the flight, but they wouldn’t let me because it was now less than an hour to departure and an international flight. I could have just checked in on my phone while waiting, but didn’t realize it would be an issue. Ended up spending another night in Prague.
Booked a train ticket from Rome to Venice, drank way too much the night before, rolled into the train station with about 10 minutes to spare, only to find out that it was daylight savings and I was actually 50 minutes late
First ever trip on my own to Nepal and Thailand. Got instructions of whst to do on my 16 hour layover in Hong Kong. Was so nervous and anxious being alone for the first time that I followed everyone to the transit and when I realized, I was told I couldn’t get out. Spent the next 16 hours exploring every single nook and cranny of that airport. It’s pretty sweet, but not 16 hours sweet lol
Thinking that a 12 hour overnight layover in Abu Dhabi airport was doable without an airport hotel room. Good lord I was wrong. Worst 12 hours of any travel experience I’ve had thus far. I never skip the travel hotel now lol
I drove to Canada from Kentucky and forgot my passport. Not as big a deal as you but still a similar sinking in the pit of the stomach.
Not researching destinations enough. I like travel photography and I try to map out potential shots before I get there. In 2008 I went to Japan and spent three days in Hakone, a rural respite from the mega-cities. I planned to take photos at Lake Ashi, hoping to catch a shot of Mount Fuji with a long lens. But it was too humid for Mount Fuji so I walked the trails and roads around the lake. Just south of Hakone-En I walked along the lake but it didn’t look like much so I went back. If I had carried on for another five hundred meters I would have bumped into the [Torri of Peace], the most photographed site at the lake and one of the most beloved icons in Japan. It wasn’t till I got home that I realized it. I’ve missed a lot of stuff because of this. So research your destinations, people! Don’t be like me.
Booked a tour in Nicaragua that was supposed to cost $52 USD. The guy who was working the credit card machine had no idea how to enter the converted rate amount. Ended up with a $5200 charge on my card. Luckily my CC company easily reversed the charge.Besides that…. eating strange street food that pretty much knocked my stomach and everything attached for the next day.
Not my mistake, but I’ve heard from a friend who was the victim of the Belarusian Ladder Scam. There are regional version, but it allegedly originated in Belarus.The gist of it is that my friend saw a man in peril hanging onto the side of a building that he was painting. The man was holding onto the scaffolding, clearly in distress. My friend, a good Samaritan, runs to the ladder and climbs up to help the guy. Unbeknownst to him, another man comes out from around a street corner and begins vigorously shaking the ladder, demanding money. They lost 200 euros this way.
See Also on Bored Panda
Was in Paris. Took a train to CDG to catch a flight that cost me round $450. Got to CDG, didn’t realize there was a shuttle between terminals. Took a bus to get to Terminal 2b. Bus took me back to the city center and I had to get another flight for the next morning.$600 mistake.EDIT: really it’s a $1050 mistake
Once I was flying from San Cristobal de las Casas to Cancun and I had booked the flight for the right day just the following month. Exact same flight. I didn’t realize until I basically got to the airport (2 hrs from the town) … tried to switch it but there was nothing they could do. Mind you, I had a broken foot so that whole thing was not fun to deal with with a boot in a wheelchair/crutches. I’d never done anything like that. I now always triple check the dates and times.
I mistakenly assumed “Departure time” was “Boarding Time”. Luckily there was bad weather at the airport so the flight was delayed and I was able to board.
I’m a bit scatterbrained but haven’t had any major mishaps when travelling.I lost my phone when I was on a night out in Budapest but luckily I was with a friend so I could still get in contact with people.At Monterey airport, I realised at check-in that I didn’t have my phone - all my flight and hotel details were on it so I was starting to panic a bit. I knew it would either be in the taxi (ran outside and the driver was still there - we searched the taxi but no sign) or I’d left it at the guesthouse I’d been staying in. The lovely man at check-in phoned the guesthouse and the manager found my phone on a bench outside. Hopped back in a taxi to collect it, then back to the airport. Managed to make the flight and kept a very close eye on my phone for the rest of the trip.
Showed up to the Uffizi musuem with reservations for the wrong day… turns out it was the next day which i had already booked a wine tour.I called the wine tour and they moved me to the same day, luckily! Barely made it . Think it was meant to be, met some people from the Uk that I talk to regularly now and plan on visiting next year.
Booked bus tickets online for a Prague-Berlin trip. Bus at 3:30. Show up at the bus station and…no bus. Went to info desk and they gently reminded me they use 24 time in Europe. My bus left 12 hours earlier! Cost me another $20 to buy another ticket. Cheap lesson learned there.Once in Krakow I let two sleazy girls lure me to a clip joint, where they tried to charge me about $110 for 3 drinks. I was able to bully and bluster my way out of it.Used hotels.com to book a room online. No refunds, unlike booking.com Lost about $200 when I changed my plans.
Got annual travel insurance for Europe, got a chest infection in Israel = no insurance… That was a super crappy holiday. Lesson learned
My first time flying out of the country I was 16 and traveling alone. It was my first time on a plane. I got up to use the restroom and the woman beside me told me to take my passport (not sure why she couldn’t have watched it for me). I somehow promptly dropped my passport into the toilet where it slipped through the toilet crack and into the… well…A flight attendant tried to retrieve it (god bless her) but with no luck.
First international trip I was so excited, I walked right out of the airport without getting a sim card. The tram was fairly new, so they had lovely employees helping the tourists get on their way, so it still didn’t hit me. I was staring out the tram window with child-like wonderment the entire trip, just a happy little moron. Then I pulled my phone out for the walking instructions to the hotel and that’s when I realized my mistake.I had looked up the instructions the night before, but it was quickly obvious that I did a p**s poor job remembering them. I hadn’t slept on the flight, because of the excitement and I found out Edinburgh has some San Francisco-esque steep streets, which is a blast with luggage. Thankfully a wonderful local was kind enough to point me in the right direction after about 30 minutes of trying on my own. All I could do was laugh at myself, good lesson to learn early on, always have paper back ups of important info. You know, common sense. I will always love Edinburgh for the stupidity it inspired in me and the kindness of the people who helped me.I have to say, you’ve got a great attitude about this. While I’m sorry it happened, I think your attitude will likely help in still making the most of this trip. I hope it’s better than you expect, and I hope that some day you hit a jackpot of good luck on your travels. And this may be naive of me, but could you call in and check, maybe someone has cancelled or got sick and you can squeeze in? Fingers crossed a miracle is in your near future!
I was in Vietnam with a friend for a few days. We were splitting, she to go home and I was going to another city… One I thought was like an hour away called Hoi An…. Not to realise that when I’d booked my hostel, it was is Hanoi.This distinction is a little clearer in Vietnamese but just typing in quickly in Booking.com… I didn’t realise. When we were checking out and the receptionist was asking about our plans and she was like “well that’s a long journey how are you getting to the airport?” Needless to say I was very confused and stressed.But I decided to just go to Hanoi since the booking was non-refundable. A quick Skyscanner search, £45 and an overpriced taxi and I was in Hanoi. Felt so stupid though because my friend asked about my side of the trip 3 times before we left.
Bought $400 worth of festival and gig tickets for the wrong month and they were all non refundable. I thought it meant 7/6 meant 7th of June but apparently on these European tickets it means 6th of July. Deeply frustrating - these events were the whole purpose of the trip! Didn’t realise til I turned up
On my first solo trip my departing flight was from Budapest early in the morning. I had a lot of physical forints left over that I wanted to spend… I went to bar with a friend and spent the lot. When we stood up to leave, I realised I’d had a bit too much, considering the fact that I had to go back to my hostel, pack my bag silently, find the bus and navigate the airport. I managed to do ALL of this completely zonked. But as soon as I sat down, I nodded off to sleep. All my hard work, down the drain. When I woke up, I was sober and promptly realised I’d missed my flight. I’m a bit more seasoned now, and if this happened again, I would take it as a sign to stay in the city a little bit longer and take the next cheap flight. But I was 18 at the time and scared s**tless, so I booked a flight for the same day. A couple of hundred euros I’ll never get back :( I also went to Auschwitz recently with my boyfriend. We are both living in the Benelux region and are used to efficient and regular public transport. We didn’t even think to check the train schedule back to Krakow. We almost got stranded there because they stop at around 7pm.
I arrived in Rome on Easter weekend and didn’t prebook tickets to see the Coliseum for some reason. Maybe I had checked and noticed usually tickets were available same day. Anyways, went to see the Coliseum, but it closed early that day because of Easter weekend celebrations. That was my last day in Rome so yay.
I went to the wrong airport and had to get a taxi that cost more than 100 euros. worst day of my trip so far.
Modal closeAdd Your Answer!Not your original work?Add sourcePublish
Modal close
Add Your Answer!Not your original work?Add sourcePublish
Not your original work?Add sourcePublish
Not your original work?Add source
Modal closeModal closeOoops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.UploadUploadError occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermarkInstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermarkFacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermarkChangeSourceTitleUpdateAdd Image
Modal closeOoops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.UploadUploadError occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermarkInstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermarkFacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermarkChangeSourceTitleUpdateAdd Image
Ooops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.
Upload
UploadError occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermarkInstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermarkFacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermark
Error occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.
TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermark
InstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermark
FacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermark
ChangeSourceTitle
Travel
