Stuck in Vegas, got to get home to Boston during a Blizzard? No Problem!

Earlier this week I was in Vegas attending the Conde Nast Travel Exchange – Travel Specialist Summit, where I was able to meet with some of the best travel specialists in the world, more on that in a later post.

This Vegas trip was just the first trip in a very busy January, which includes me going to the Dolomites to scout out a new tour and then over to visit one of our Costa Rica adventure tours. So, when I heard that there was a Blizzard coming to Boston on Wednesday and I knew I needed to get back to Boston to visit the office and get my gear for the Dolomites, to fly out Thursday, I knew had to get a plan together to get back despite the 18 inches of snow on the way.

While making my way back to Boston, successfully and on time I might add, I thought I would put together this list to help out our guests and readers.  So here are the steps to Successfully Fly Home in a Blizzard.

Step 1 – head in the direction of home, looking for the closest city that is not being hit by the storm.  In my case I was in Vegas and I could see that Detroit, which is a big hub for flights was not going to be hit by a storm, so that was a good target.  Quick note, don’t be afraid to go either north or south of your target, the goal is to get close whether that is in a straight shot or sneaking around the sides of your destination, the key is to get to an airport that will definitely be open.

Step 2 – play meteorologist, weather is all about what is happening on the radar and less about what the weatherman is saying at any (sometimes weather reports are just re-runs and can be several hours old).  You can checkout the Governments Doppler Radar online and get a sense of where the storm is moving.  This is key, because you can only land after the storm ends and you want to be on the first flights that will head in that direction.  In my case I could see that the storm would be moving off the coast and that it was looking like somewhere around mid-afternoon that would take place, meaning that I might be lucky and get an early evening flight.

Step 3 – fly an airline that has lots of planes and does lots of business through your target city.  Remember just like you the airline’s have got to do business, so they will work to get people and planes back in the air in their heavily trafficked cities.  Also, get on the phone with the airline, most will be happy to help you find a way home quickly.  Finally, don’t be afraid to buy two tickets.  I did this and one of the flights I had was canceled so I didn’t have to pay for the other ticket. Even if both flights takeoff, as a regular flier you can use the credit some other time and any fees are small in comparison to not being able to get back to business quickly.

So, net result, I was in Vegas, I easily got to Detroit, was booked on Delta Airlines and my 5:30pm flight to Boston took off on time and landed on time, allowing me to arrive home, get a good night sleep, despite the fact that on this same day Boston was besieged by 18 inches of snow and blizzard like wind conditions.

Now as a last ditch effort, if you can’t quite get all the way to your home base, you can always strap on some cross-country skis and start gliding, after all there’s a blizzard outside.  Just kidding, as an experienced traveler I think you will find that these tips will serve you well in getting home safe and sound.

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