Yesterday was the travel day from Hell, literally.

It started with a 4am wake up call (East Coast Time) for a 7am flight. The roads were SUPER icy so my shuttle driver went slower than usual. I finally got to the airport, and got situated. They let su know the airport was closed, no inbound or outbound flights. So the plan coming in from LAX was not able to land. They were rerouted to Indianapolis. Ok fine, do I want to go to Detroit and then on to San Diego? No, that’s the wrong direction! So I wanted for our delayed flight (which ended up taking off about 10:30 which meant I missed my connection flight). Landed in LA at 12:45 (Pacific Coast Time) and go to collect my luggage (which was I was told would be available to pick up in LAX).

Ok, 30 minutes no luggage. So I go to the lady to ask, “it’ll be out in 30 minutes”…….ok fine I’ll wait. Mind you, I’m tired, hungry, and my dear friend Jessica has been hanging out at LAX for an hour now, after driving 2 hours to get me.

…..2 hours, no baggage. I fill out the form and tearfully go find Jessica. We have a nice drive (3 hours in the pouring rain, which never happens in SoCal!) and grab in-n-out on the way home. Finally, around 7pm we get home. I have now been awake for 18 hours. I am tired. I am crabby and emotional. I hug my Godmother and pass out.

I am telling you this, because normally this would have been an excuse to spend money on comfort items. Throughout the day I could have caved and bought coffee, a muffin, snacks, lunch on the plane, and many other things.

What did I spend money on? In-n-Out on the drive home. It’s my favorite comfort food, that I rarely get. We don’t have In-n-Out in Portland, so I only get it when I visit family in San Diego. It cost me $6.20 for a burger, fries, and soda. And it was worth every penny! I also intend to pay back my friend for the gas, but I feel good about that, as she rescued me!

Travel is definitely a difficult thing for anyone’s budget. If you don’t plan accordingly, it can really mess up a budget! This is just for day-of things, I am not even talking about the travel itself. I try my best to pack my favorite snacks so that I am not tempted to buy food, and drink the free crappy coffee on the airplane (enough cream and sugar mask anything!) I don’t spring for the upgrade, I don’t do any of the bells and whistles, and yet I always make it to my destination just fine! I did check a bag, which they lost, so I got miles for that. Still not what I paid for the bag, but it helps!

My point is, it’s possible to travel without blowing your budget. I’ll do a post on the traveling itself sometime, but today was all about the bells and whistles! I am still pretty tired from the circus yesterday so that’s why I just can’t tackle that yet!

What are your travel tips and tricks for saving money?