Things to Know About Travel

On preparing for your trip
1. Print your entire itinerary and flight tickets/confirmations. Store these with your passports. You can't always rely on Internet access or electricity to pull this info off your phone or laptop.
2. Keep a copy of your passport and never have all of your forms of identification or access to cash (ATM/credit cards) in the same bag. If that one gets lost or stolen, you are SOL.
3. Check in with friends and family from time to time, especially when traveling alone. It's a good idea for someone to always know where your next movements are, just in case.
On talking to airline agents
4. Always be patient and polite. This person could be the difference between you getting the flight that night or having to spend it on the airport floor.
Bad: "Can you get me on the next flight out -- I can't miss my connection to Europe!"
Good: "Excuse me, Barbara. I totally understand you guys are slammed right now, but if you have one minute, I'd really appreciate if you could try to get me on that next flight out, otherwise I'll miss my international connection. I really appreciate it. Thank you so much."
5. Call the airline if you're getting stonewalled, and find an agent that is willing to help you. Keep calling until you get the answer you want. Many times agents are trained differently and some are better than others.