Travel can be fun, exciting and filled with life changing experiences and unforgettable moments

Sometimes, the road isn’t as smooth as you would like it to be. Your itinerary can experience mishaps and failed plans along the way to paradise. There’s plenty that can go wrong when you travel, so we’ve identified a series of travel tips, dos, don’ts, and epic fails to avoid, that will hopefully make your next journey hassle-free.

Here are 10 epic fails involving travel you must avoid.

epic fails

Missing your flight home

You will probably miss a flight at some point in your travel career, but please, delay that point for as long as possible. You mightn’t want to come home just yet, but you also don’t want to mope around some foreign airport for 14 hours while you wait for the money transfer to come through so you can book another flight. Unlike most other stuff that goes wrong when you’re travelling, missing a flight doesn’t even make for a particularly interesting story. Besides, your family misses you. Probably.

Your passport goes missing

Your passport is one of the most valuable items you’ll ever own and losing it overseas is a major inconvenience. If your passport has been lost or stolen, you must contact the nearest Embassy.

Getting lost

Some people have fantastic spatial awareness, others not so much, but most people have got lost at least once in their life. It can be a horrible feeling — your heart beating faster as the panic starts to rise. You can get lost anywhere: a supermarket, airport, town center or in the wilderness.

With modern technology this is one of the easier travel fails to avoid. In the past you’d need a map for each country. Nowadays almost everyone has a smartphone. Before you leave, download Google Maps and then download the offline map for whichever cities you’ll be visiting.

Food poisoning

Food poisoning is one of the epic fails that can strike at any moment. Symptoms can include nausea, stomach cramps, vomiting or diarrhea. If it’s bad then it can hit you within hours of eating or drinking the contaminated thing. Anti-diarrhea tablets can be a lifesaver… literally. Before traveling anywhere always pack toilet paper. We consider it almost as important as your passport.

Sunburn

Even if it’s cloudy, wear protector! Check the weather conditions before you travel and especially the UV levels. A cloudy sky can still produce dangerous levels of UV, and that’s what does the real damage. Apply 30 minutes before going out and then every two hours afterwards. If you’re swimming or sweating then go crazy and do it every hour.

The saying “less is more” does NOT apply to sun cream! The effects of sunburn can be horrendous. Prevention is much less painful than treatment. Sunburn is one of the epic fails with lasting effects so try and avoid it at all costs.

Insect bites

While some bites can just be itchy or a slight annoyance, others can be quite dangerous. If you’re going to a place where mosquitoes or other bugs are known to bite, wrap up. Better than any repellant is a layer of clothing. If you do get bitten try not to scratch. Easier said than done, but this can lead to worse problems.

Running out of money

This can be a major problem and an epic fails which you’ll definitely want to avoid. Unexpected things do happen though. Things break, unexpected charges come up, plans change and emergencies happen. It’s impossible to account for every eventuality. Before you travel research the country you’re visiting. You want to have an idea of the general cost of living so you can budget properly.

Save as much money as possible, and always try and have an emergency fund which you don’t touch. This can be a credit card or savings account. It should have enough money in for a return flight — that’s the last resort should an emergency happen and you need to return home.

Baggage not arriving

This is one of those infuriating surprise travel epic fails. You check your bags in, get the boarding pass, enjoy the flight and then your bags don’t arrive with you. Take a change of clothes in your carry-on luggage. It’s a huge inconvenience, but you can survive. If your bags don’t arrive be sure to speak with the airline staff and find out the procedure.

Breaking up with a partner

A common travel problem is the breakdown of relationships. Travel takes you out of your comfort zone. This can lead to stress and frustration. If you’re traveling with a partner this can be magnified. It doesn’t matter if it’s a girlfriend, boyfriend, best friend or family member, disagreements happen.

Shortcomings in services

Beautiful images of sandy beaches, lofty mountains and dazzling cities serenade you from travel brochures displayed at travel agencies. During the actual trip, things could all be very well, or you could miss out on a number of promised activities. It may be a sub-standard hotel, lesser or improper meals than agreed upon, or a host of other issues.