Something will go wrong eventually. A missed connection, a stolen bag, a hotel that doesn’t have your booking, a passport that’s gone. The difference between a ruined trip and an annoying afternoon is almost entirely about knowing the first three moves.
Here they are, by scenario.
Your passport is gone
1. Report it to the local police and get a written report. You’ll need it for the embassy and for insurance.
2. Contact your embassy or consulate. Most can issue an emergency travel document within one to three working days — a single-use document that gets you home, not a replacement passport.
3. Bring what you have: the police report, photos of the lost passport, another form of ID, passport photos (they’ll usually tell you where to get them), and payment for the fee.
Cancel your passport through your government’s online service as soon as it’s reported, so it can’t be used.
The thing that saves you days here is having a photo of the passport already. Do that before you leave.
Your flight is cancelled or badly delayed
Get in two queues at once. Stand in the physical rebooking line while simultaneously calling the airline and opening their app. Whichever gets through first wins, and the phone line is usually faster.
Know your rights before you negotiate. In the EU and UK, EU261/UK261 entitles you to meals, accommodation and often €250 to €600 in cash compensation for cancellations and long delays within the airline’s control. That’s separate from a refund and separate from insurance.
Airlines routinely offer vouchers instead. You are usually entitled to cash. Ask specifically.
In the US, there’s no equivalent compensation law, but airlines must refund a cancelled flight in cash if you don’t travel, and DOT rules on delay refunds have tightened recently. Check the carrier’s current commitments.
Keep every receipt for meals, taxis and the hotel. That’s what gets reimbursed.
Your bag didn’t arrive
Do not leave the airport without filing a Property Irregularity Report at the baggage desk. Claims made later are far harder.
Get the reference number, photograph the report, and ask what daily allowance they’ll cover for essentials — most airlines pay something, and most don’t volunteer it.
Under the Montreal Convention, airline liability for lost or delayed baggage runs to roughly 1,288 SDR, about £1,300 to £1,400, and a bag is generally declared lost after 21 days.
Buy the necessities and keep receipts. Claim from the airline first, then your insurer for the remainder.
Your cards stop working
Usually a fraud freeze rather than an emptied account. Call the number on the back of the card — or, since the card may be the thing that’s gone, the number you saved somewhere else beforehand.
This is why you split cards across two bags. One frozen card with no backup in a country where you don’t speak the language is a genuinely bad day.
Revolut, Wise and similar apps are useful here because you can freeze and unfreeze instantly and order a replacement without a phone call.
Worst case: most services can wire you emergency cash for pickup at an agent, and consulates can sometimes help arrange a transfer from family, though they won’t lend you money.
You get ill or injured
Call your insurer’s emergency line first where you can. Most policies require pre-authorisation for anything non-urgent, and paying up front then claiming can be refused.
In a genuine emergency, get treated first and call after. No insurer expects you to phone before an ambulance.
In the EU, a GHIC or EHIC gets you state treatment on the same terms as locals. It is not insurance and won’t fly you home.
Pharmacies in most of Europe and Latin America can treat minor things and dispense far more without a prescription than you might expect. That’s the right first stop for a stomach bug, not a hospital.
▶ Watch This Before You Go
Your accommodation falls through
Booking not in the system, property nothing like the photos, or a host cancelling on the day.
Document immediately — photos, screenshots of the listing, the confirmation email.
Report it through the platform’s app, not by phone, so there’s a written record. Booking.com and Airbnb both have rebooking assistance, but only if you raise it while you’re standing there, not after you’ve found your own alternative.
If you do book your own replacement, keep it reasonable and keep receipts. You’re much likelier to be reimbursed for a comparable room than for an upgrade.
The five-minute prep that prevents most of this
- Photograph your passport, cards and insurance policy, and email them to yourself — reachable from any borrowed device without an app or a code sent to a phone you no longer have.
- Save your bank’s international number, your insurer’s emergency line and your embassy’s address offline.
- Split cards and cash between two bags.
- Register with your government’s traveller service if it has one.
- Download offline maps for where you’re going.
A note on staying calm
Almost nothing on this list is unrecoverable. Passports get reissued, flights get rebooked, bags turn up about 97% of the time within a few days.
The genuinely damaging move is making a fast expensive decision while panicking — buying a full-fare replacement flight in the first ten minutes, or paying a stranger who offers to help. Sit down, have a coffee, work through the three steps for your scenario, then act.
FAQ
Will my embassy pay to get me home? No. They issue documents, contact family, and provide lists of local lawyers and doctors. They don’t fund travel.
How long for an emergency passport? Typically one to three working days, faster if you can show imminent travel.
Can I fly without a passport? Not internationally. You need at least an emergency travel document.
Should I claim from the airline or the insurer? Airline first for flight and baggage issues — it’s usually more generous and doesn’t carry an excess. Insurer for what’s left.
What if I have no phone and no money? Go to your embassy or a police station. Both can help you make contact with someone who can.
Is travel insurance worth it for a short trip? Yes. Medical repatriation is the risk, and it doesn’t care how long your trip was.
