Dealing with Holiday Nightmares – 3 Common Problems and What to do if the Worst Happens to you

Planning and booking a holiday is one of life’s joys. Giving you something exciting to look forward to and work towards, when everyday life becomes monotonous. Making plans, looking up excursions and even writing a packing lists – all these little things help build anticipation, as you count down to the day. Therefore, when the time finally comes around, there is a lot of pressure on the holiday you’ve carefully researched and chosen, to then live up to your expectations.

So, if the worst happens and your holiday not only isn’t as good as you hoped, but you also encounter problems that turn your dream trip into a living nightmare, its good to be prepared!

Now this is not to say, that I worry myself playing out all the worst scenarios of things that could go wrong in my head every time, before going away anywhere – I’m certainly more of a glass half full kind of person. However – if something does then happen, generally my first port of call in that moment is Google, so I felt its good to have an article within my travel section of my website that also cover issues we’ve encountered before and what in that moment has helped us and others.

1, What to do if your flight home gets cancelled at the end of your holiday

This is an obvious nightmare that unfortunately recently, has become a bigger concern for UK holiday makers with more frequent strikes and issues over the past few years. We have personally experienced this as a family and I can confirm at the time, it did feel like a complete nightmare. We were on our way back from France at the end of a lovely holiday and we got caught up in the air traffic control shut down that occurred on August bank holiday in 2023. Our first port of call was getting another flight booked and unfortunately the company we booked our original one through, were not very helpful at all. All they could offer us was an alternative that was five days later! So instead my tip would be, to look on the website Booking.com. This way, you are not wasting time checking each airline individually and the booking process is quick, which really matters when you will be racing against all the others who have had their flights cancelled too. Once your journey back is sorted, it’s also important to document everything.  Once safely home you then have the evidence you need, so you can look into getting compensation for your cancelled flights. There’s lots of advise and info on how you can go about doing this over on the AirHelp website.

2, Dealing with Lost Luggage on Arrival

Nothing starts a holiday off on the wrong foot quite like arriving at your destination, only to find that your luggage has gone missing. This is a common issue, particularly during peak travel times when airports are at their busiest. If this happens, don’t panic—airlines typically have procedures in place to locate and return lost luggage. My tip if this situation happens, is to immediately report your lost luggage to the airline’s customer service or baggage claim desk and always pack a few essentials (like a change of clothes, important documents, and basic toiletries) in your carry-on to help tide you all over.

3, What to do if you Get Sick While Away on Holiday

Getting sick while traveling is the last thing anyone wants to experience, but it does happen. From a mild upset stomach to more severe illnesses, it’s wise to be prepared for health issues, especially if you’re visiting a destination with different food, water quality, or climate. Before you go, make sure your travel insurance includes health coverage, and bring a small first-aid kit with essentials like painkillers, antihistamines, and any prescription medications. If you do need medical attention, speak to the hotel staff, who can usually recommend nearby clinics or doctors that cater to tourists. Additionally, if your symptoms are mild, resting and staying hydrated can help you recover more quickly.

When planning holidays the last thing  you want to be considering is what could go wrong, but by making a few adjustments and thinking ahead, at least if the worst  does happen, you will be a bit better prepared, to then deal with it.