The car-rental counter at the Faro Airport at the midnight, the 38°C of the heatwave, the queue is the 45 minutes long, the baby is the crying, the toddler is the asleep on the suitcase, and the rental agent is the saying the words that the every traveller dreads: “We have no the car.” The holiday nightmare is the at some point the inevitable, and the difference between the ruined holiday and the story that is the told over the dinner for the years is the response: the calm, the plan, and the knowing what to do. Here is your guide.

What to Do If You Have a Holiday Nightmare

• The essential holiday nightmares and the solutions: The stolen passport: the essential nightmare: the call the embassy or the consulate immediately (the UK emergency passport, the 8-digit reference number for the report, the essential number: the FCDO 24-hour consular number is the +44(0)20 7008 5000 for the UK passport holders), the police report (the essential for the insurance and the replacement), the emergency-travel document (the £100, the 1–2 days in most European countries, and the essential for the return to the UK, the valid for the single journey), the passport photograph (the carry the spare, the essential in the travel document kit), and the alternative: the apply for the replacement passport at the embassy (the 7–10 days for the full replacement, the £100–150). The essential prevention: the 2 copies of the passport (the 1 in the suitcase, the 1 in the cloud, the Dropbox, the Google Drive), the separate from the original. The flight cancellation: Europe Regulation 261/2004 entitles the passenger to the compensation (the €250 for the flights under the 1,500 km, the €400 for the 1,500–3,500 km, the €600 for the over the 3,500 km) plus the refund or the re-routing and the meals, the hotel, the transport, the essential: the ask for the written statement of the cancellation reason and the claim the compensation directly from the airline’s website. The essential strategy: the app, the AirHelp, the ClaimCompass, takes the 25–35% commission but handles the process. The essential: the claim yourself, the airline’s online form, the 10 minutes, and the 100% for the you. More travel tips →
• The illness and the accommodation disaster: The illness in the destination: the EHIC or the GHIC (the Global Health Insurance Card, the free, the essential for Europe travel, the medically-necessary treatment at the same cost as the resident), and the essential: the GHIC is the replacement for the EHIC for the UK, the apply online at the nhs.uk, and the carry the card alongside the travel insurance (the complement, not the substitute). The essential travel insurance: the declare the pre-existing conditions (the insurance is the invalid if the non-disclosure), the keep the policy number and the 24-hour helpline number in the phone and the on the paper in the wallet, the Wi-Fi at the hospital might not work, and the £5-per-minute phone call on the roaming is the better than the no cover. The accommodation disaster, the not as described: the photograph, the video, and the contact the booking platform immediately (the Booking.com, the Airbnb, the first 24 hours are the essential: the platform is the most likely to help the if the problem is the reported immediately, and the rebooking or the refund is the most likely in the first night), the check the alternative accommodation on the phone while the platform processes the claim, and the pay for the alternative yourself (the £150–300 for the 1–2 nights the while the sorted, and the insurance or the platform the will the reimburse later. The essential: the keep every receipt).