Transportation

When you book your flights. Make sure that you are dealing with a reliable agent. How do you know if they are reliable? I suggest doing your homework.

• Do a product review for comments
• If you have already purchased, monitor to ensure that your reservation is genuine.

Case study – https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/edreams

When making reservations for your travels, avoid having back-to-back connecting train ride or flights.

Changing Gates requires time. Note that you are not the only passenger onboard the flight who is dying to disembark. Changing of Gates means queuing again just for bag scan to the board the connecting flight.

Charles de Gaulle 2019 – Flight from Zagreb to Lisbon by catching a connecting flight at Charles de Gaulle Airport. We had check-in luggage at Zagreb. Airline crew kept convincing us that Gate 12 and Gate 9 is just 3 Gates away. Yea sure… We had 1.5 hours to disembark the plane, queue for bag scan (Yes, bag scan for arriving passengers to join boarding passengers😓) and rush to the Boarding Gate for the next flight. Caught the flight after the mad rush and got to our destination. Only issue was that our luggage did not make it 😓 I should have tried “Scotty, beam me up!” unfortunately, Scotty is on holiday, he can’t beam you up!😓

Different platforms can be a nightmare. Lack of clear direction signages. Locals shun away from being asked directions.

Madrid-Atocha 2017 – Segovia to Barcelona via Madrid-Atocha. Train from Segovia arrived at one of the terminus platforms of Madrid-Atocha Cercanias. There was no signage to direct us from this platform to Planta Primera for the high-speed AVE trains to Barcelona. Locals shun us that we had no choice but take our chances in dragging our luggage until we figured out how to get out of the station to Planta Primera. Baggage scan took up 20-30mins more and by the time we got onto the platform, the train left. It cost me €300 for 3 first-class tickets to Barcelona as all 2nd class are full 😭.

Different airports or terminal can be quite costly and embarrassing.

Melbourne 1999 – Perth to Los Angeles Airport transit in Melbourne and connecting in Christchurch. Arrived to Melbourne Domestic Airport terminal and needed to get to the International Terminal. Taxi driver helped load the luggage in the back of the taxi. Boarded the taxi and asked the driver to take me to the International Terminal. Driver pulled up the brakes and pointed at a sliding door up ahead saying that’s the door to the International Terminal🤣🙈

Sapporo 2023 – Domestic flight Sapporo to Hachinohe. In making reservation for accommodation, I kept checking up on accommodation on the train lines to Chitose. Mum to the rescue! Pointing out that Sapporo also has Okadama Airport. it would have been a tragic mistake as Okadama is north-east of Sapporo and Chitose is south-east of Sapporo.