Road Hazards
Travel faux pas take you off the beaten path: Here are several to avoid.
Missing a flight. Ignoring local customs. Forgetting your
passport. Chances are you've made at least one of these
mistakes while traveling overseas.
Put an end to the mishaps. Several travel organizations recently
compiled a list of common slip-ups, along with ways to prevent them
from happening:
1. Not showing up far enough in advance for your flight. An
airline can deny you boarding access if you arrive less than 10
minutes before a domestic flight or less than half an hour before
an international flight is scheduled to depart. "Arrive at
least one hour before your domestic flight, and two hours before
for international, and plan for delays such as traffic jams,"
advises Bridget Kimmel of Philadelphia-based corporate travel
management company Rosenbluth International.
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2. Not learning local customs. Declining a cup of Turkish
coffee in the Middle East or missing a business meeting by a few
minutes in Central Europe can offend your host and ruin a po-
tential deal. "Travelers shouldn't tell jokes in business
situations," says Jennifer Demmert, a sales and marketing
representative for Kroll Information Services. "It might not
translate well, and the guest could end up offending [his or her
host]."
3. Not getting your papers in order. Leaving your passport
at home or failing to obtain the right visa or permit can stop a
trip cold. And going home might be difficult if your passport
expires while you're on a business trip. "It can cause
anything from a slight inconvenience to a major disaster,"
notes Vincent Vitti, president of VTS Travel, a New York City-based
business travel agency. Another common problem: recently married
women whose IDs still carry their maiden name.
Christopher Elliott is a writer in Annapolis, Maryland, and a
columnist for ABC News Online. Contact him at http://www.elliott.org
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