5 Personal Travel Mistakes That I Have Now Learned

We all make mistakes, right? I know I have, and I wish sometimes I could go back to redo some things in life. Particularly, I wish I could go back in time and had done some more research on my travels to either save more money or just be a happier traveler.

I'm sharing with you all the top 5 travel mistakes I've made that I just learned within the last year:

Not Signing up for Free Reward/Miles Programs

My first mistake in traveling is one that I had not made use of until this year. When I first started traveling, my focus was booking with the cheapest airline - that airline almost always was the infamous carrier - Ryanair. ​

​Ryanair does not have a rewards program or miles program such as larger carriers. I suppose the airline wouldn't need to have such a program since they are such a low-budget airline. There were some flights here and there where I had flown on major carriers such as Air France, British Airways, KLM, and Norwegian. But since I knew I would mostly fly with Ryanair, I figured it wouldn't mean much to sign up with other airline carriers. 

Well, just this year, 2019, I realized I was doing it all wrong. 

My travel New Year's resolution was and still is not to fly Ryanair this whole year. And although I can fly with other budget airlines, it's more likely that I will fly with larger carriers (such as the airlines I had to mention) where you could rack up miles and use them in the future for flights or other airline necessities such as seats or upgrades.

After all, the sign-up is FREE. The worst that could happen is that the points expire, but if they don't, then it's only to your advantage to sign up for free rewards/miles.

Using Credit Card Rewards Incorrectly

This mistake here is tricky, so proceed with caution. I'm not here to advertise credit card sign-ups just for the bonus or travel rewards. From my personal experience, I was always afraid of having more than one credit card.  So, for two years I only used my USAA Signature Rewards Credit Card, which did nothing for me travel wise. Yes, I received 1 point per $1, and I got cash back, but I was not maximizing this free money with the right cards. 

Last year, I finally went into more research about credit cards and learned that as a [then] spouse of an Active-Duty Service Member, I was eligible to have annual credit card fees waived under the Service members Civil Relief Act (SCRA). So, once I verified that information with the bank, I immediately applied for the Chase Sapphire Reserve and had opened the gates to free travel rewards!

With just that one credit card alone, I've received over $2,000 in travel reward redemptions (flights, hotels, tours, etc.), discounts, and credits. It's hard to say no to free travel when I had planned to spend money on those groceries or eat at that restaurant anyway!

I use my credit card on items that I know I will need to purchase even if I didn't have a credit card, but now those purchases earn me free travel rewards. It's a win-win for me, but since I lost two years of using a credit card that didn't have travel rewards, I am now seeing how I can maximize my free points for traveling.

Skipping Travel Insurance

I used to say that I didn't "need" travel insurance because with the price of how cheap budget airline tickets are here in Europe, I would rather risk losing the price of the ticket than paying extra for insurance which I believed I wouldn't need.

Again, I was very wrong.

When Ryanair left my [now former] husband, myself, and about 30 other passengers at Frankfurt International Airport, I learned really quick that I DO need travel insurance when events such as this one occur.

While we were at the airport, we were told that the reason we "missed our flight" because of security. The manager who gave me her name, told me to go online to Ryanair's website and request a refund.

About 8 weeks later, Ryanair told me it was my fault and that I should show up earlier to the airport to avoid missing a flight. So now, although the prices of the tickets were not expensive, I drove 3 hours to the Frankfurt Airport; I paid for parking at the airport in advance (about $60), couldn't get a refund on any of the tours I paid nor the Airbnb. I lost approximately $500 and didn't even make it to my destination!

Next time, I'm getting travel insurance for these personal reasons.

Missing Out on Compensation Under EU 261/2004

According to Article 7, EU Regulation 261/2004, you could be compensated for flights in the EU within the last 3 years that have been delayed, cancelled, or flights that have been denied boarding.

I had learned about this from a travel group on Facebook and gave it a try. After months of waiting and following up with emails, I'd been successfully compensated 400 Euro per passenger (a total of 800 Euro for my [then] husband and myself).

Our flight was from Munich to Mykonos and was delayed 3 hours and 10 minutes - it was a rough start to our weekend in Greece. The airline Eurowings still tried its best to keep us content by giving us drink vouchers while we waited. I don't remember the reason for the delay, but I ended up having to miss out on a special dinner with live entertainment because of our delayed arrival.

This flight was 2 years ago, so I was unsure about this EU 261 claim because I didn't think it would compensate me for a flight that was delayed so long ago. I gave it a shot and went directly to the airline's website contact form to request compensation. I stated the flight number, departure and destination locations, scheduled departure time and actual departure time. I explained that after research, I could possibly be entitled to compensation under EU Regulation 261.

After 8 weeks, I hadn't heard back, so I followed up with the airline via email and a few weeks later received the answer I was looking for. 10 business days after I gave the airline my bank information, I received the funds directly to my account!

Although this was successful for me this time, I now learned that I could have done this on flights long ago, but since it's been over 3 years, I am no longer entitled to compensation.

​Do yourself a favor and look into EU regulation 261 if you've been delayed, denied boarding, or had a flight cancelled.

Not Being as Friendly as I Could Be

Most people who know me would say I'm a "friendly" [but assertive] kind of girl.

​When I travel, I'm not any less friendly than I normally am, but I typically am on a mission and focus on what or where I need to get to throughout my journey. I wouldn't say I go out of my way to talk to strangers, but when I have a moment where I could mentally prepare for further human interaction, I am a friendly person.

This last mistake is not to say that I should be fake but that I should be more open to interacting with other people and opening up more. I have a hard time trusting people, especially strangers right away, just as I'm sure most people do. But talking to strangers and sometimes being slightly vulnerable can help in situations where time has been wasted by figuring things out on your own. 

While I'm trying to figure out "where do I go to rent sleds" or "where is the location to ___", most people would just ask a stranger and receive a direct answer, saving time and energy. This is my most important lesson, and I'll now continue to work on this throughout my travels this year.

Lessons Learned

Whether it's saving money, minimizing stressful moments, or saving time by being more friendly to get information quicker, it has taken me years to learn why these points are important and make traveling more memorable.

What are some lessons you learned from your experience in traveling?

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