There are a couple different kinds of travel revelations. The first are travel secrets. Oh, I love them. When a friend shares news about a new destination or a hot fare, I'm all over it. Then there are travel surprises. Sometimes they're fun, too. But mostly, travel surprises make me cranky. You know what I'm talking about: a canceled flight, a broken-down rental car or a lost reservation.
My friend, über-traveler Chris Guillebeau (chrisguillebeau.com) has been to 193 countries. He said that one of the most important lessons he learned as a traveler was how to wait. Minutes. Hours. Sometimes days. To be sure, it's a valuable skill— one that I have not yet mastered. But when you're confronted with a particularly nasty travel surprise involving weather, crew rest or aircraft maintenance, waiting is the best thing you can do.
There are other surprises, though, that may be conquered with a more proactive approach. Let's review:
1. Your passport: If you're planning to travel to Canada, Mexico or another international destination, you need a passport. Even if you have one, you could get in trouble if your passport is expiring soon. If you're within a year of expiration (passports now last 10 years), it's time to plan to renew your passport. That's because many countries will not admit you if there are less than six months remaining.
2. A visa: For many countries, you need a visa in addition to a passport to enter the country. Visa regulations vary. If you're visiting Europe, you typically do not need a visa. But if you're going to Brazil, you need to plan ahead and pay $125 for one. Visas also are required for travel to India, China and Russia. It's a good idea to get your visa issued before you purchase your airline travel, since delays are common. Airlines usually will check your documents in advance, but sometimes they don't check. It's possible you could arrive at your destination without the proper paperwork, only to be put on the next return flight back home. Color me cranky!
3. Fares: Sometimes the good fare is not available and the airline doesn't know anything about it. I answer a lot of questions about that, particularly after I share a bunch of great airfares. Fares change all the time and there's often a different fare available for every single flight. For example, checking a one-way ticket on Alaska Air to Seattle on Saturday, Oct. 22, there is one flight (Alaska #102) available for $111. Three other flights are available for $140 one way. Two flights are available for $184 one way. Five flights are available for $266 one way and one of the red-eyes (Alaska #108) costs $300.
The way I search for the best airfare is to plug in the city pairs and a one-month range to Google's ITA software matrix (matrix.itasoftware.com). I click the "see calendar of lowest fares" box and plug in a range of days I'd like to stay: four to eight days, for example. Using this tool gives me a good perspective on the best available fares. Since I can't buy tickets from the ITA site, I take the information and plug it in to the airline's website or send it to my travel agent.
Often, the "good fare" is not available because travelers want to fly over Christmas or spring break. Here's a tip: Tickets cost more during these times because that's when the schoolkids, their parents and their teachers want to travel. The planes usually are full — and they charge accordingly.
4. My PreCheck did not appear on my boarding pass: The days when you could count on your airline of choice to provide a PreCheck pass are numbered. Oh, the magic may still work most of the time, but frequent fliers are better off paying for the five-year pass. The Transportation Security Administration offers a PreCheck pass for $85 (tsa.gov/precheck), or you can opt for a Global Entry pass for $100, which includes PreCheck and kiosk access for re-entry to the U.S. I got the Global Entry pass. As long as my Global Entry number is loaded into my reservation, I can get the PreCheck on my boarding pass for access to the fast lane at security. But airlines don't add it automatically. It's built in to my Alaska Airlines profile, but if I'm flying Delta, I have to call ahead and give them the number. You can't just show your card at the TSA checkpoint. It doesn't work.
5. My debit card doesn't work at the ATM: Often, if you land in a foreign country and try and use your debit or credit card, it won't work unless you've called your bank in advance. For some credit cards, you can put in a "travel advisory" online. Sometimes, it's best to call, though. In fact, it's best to have one or two different debit or credit cards available in case one doesn't work. Recently, when I traveled to the Cook Islands, my debit card didn't work, despite the fact that I had filed a travel advisory with my bank. I ended up getting a cash advance on my credit card. It was more expensive, but I needed some currency.
Speaking of currency, it's a good idea to have a small amount of the local currency in advance, just in case the ATM doesn't work (it happens).
6. Power and connectivity: If you want to charge your electronics while traveling abroad, you need to have different plugs. Recently, more hotels have adapters, but it's a bad idea to count on them. You're better off grabbing one of the "universal" adapters for Europe, China, India and Australia. You can get one at REI.
If you're traveling to a foreign country and want to use your phone, you can buy an expensive foreign plan from AT&T for between $40 and $120 per month. Or, if you have an unlocked phone, you can swap out your SIM card for much less (it varies by country). You can rent a Wi-Fi hotspot from XCom Global for as little as $7.77 per day. Or, get a National Geographic Travel Phone from Cellular Abroad for as little as $79.99. There are extra charges on each of the plans, depending on how much you plan to use the phones.
7. Fees: There is so much anger and despair regarding fees. The short story is this: Fees are here to stay and there will be more of them in the future. It's just too lucrative for the airlines. Here are a few of the worst:
– Baggage fees: There aren't many airlines that don't charge for bags. If you're a Club 49 member on Alaska Airlines, you get two free checked bags when you're flying to or from Alaska. If you're flying on Delta, they'll give you two free bags, but only if you use your SkyMiles number in the reservation. That means you can't get 50 percent credit to your Alaska Air mileage plan.
– Changes and cancellation: If you're an elite-level flier on Alaska Airlines, you can get out of the change fee of $125. But even if you get out of that fee, you have to pay the new fare for your new flight. The take-home message is this: It's going to cost you extra money to change or cancel your flight.
There are all sorts of fees for all sorts of services, including pets in the cabin, unaccompanied minors, a fee for returning items left on board and partner-airline award booking fees. And that's just on Alaska Airlines.
Other airlines are more aggressive when it comes to reserving seats. On American Airlines, for example, you'll pay extra to reserve an aisle or a window seat on many flights. Middle seats? Um… no additional charge.
Please don't let the "surprises" override your quest to travel, particularly when there are some great airfares available for travel well into 2017. Here are a few of my favorites:
1. Anchorage to Chicago, nonstop on Alaska Airlines: as low as $377 round trip.
2. Anchorage to Minneapolis on Delta or Alaska: as low as $372 round trip.
3. Anchorage to Portland on Delta: as low as $196 round trip through Dec. 15, 2016.
4. Anchorage to Los Angeles on Delta: as low as $238 round trip.
5. Anchorage to Seattle on Delta or Alaska: as low as $199 round trip.
6. Anchorage to Boston on Alaska, Delta or United: as low as $370 round trip.
7. Anchorage to Orlando on Delta or United: as little as $438 round trip.
8. Anchorage to Denver, nonstop on United: as low as $303 round trip.
9. Anchorage to Salt Lake City on Delta: as low as $334 round trip, through Dec. 16, 2016.
Scott McMurren is an Anchorage-based marketing consultant, serving clients in the transportation, hospitality, media and specialty destination sectors, among others. Contact him by email at zoom907@me.com. You can follow him on Twitter (@alaskatravelGRM) and alaskatravelgram.com. For more information, visit alaskatravelgram.com/about.