Ask Peter: Cancelled Trips, Teen Travel and Avoiding Single Supplement Fees

Locations in this article:  Athens, Greece Portland, OR St. Louis, MO

MailboxGot a question for travel guru Peter Greenberg? Write us at peter@petergreenberg.com.

I booked a round-trip flight to Portland, Oregon through Travelocity on Frontier Airlines for $325.

If I can’t go on the trip anymore and I don’t see myself taking the trip later, what options do I have for canceling the flight and getting my money back? -Ryan, St. Louis, MO
If you didn’t buy any trip cancellation or interruption insurance, your chance of getting the entire amount back is slim. The problem is that every airline has the draconian cancellation fee, which starts at about $100 and works its way up. At this point, you may get some money back, or you may get a credit that will work for a future flight within a year.

Since you did it as a third-party booking on Travelocity, go back onto their Web site and find its travel cancellation calculator. This will basically tell you how much money you’re not going to get back.

To find the calculator, click on My Stuff and log into your account. Click on My Trips, then Upcoming Trips, then the “change or cancel your reservations” button on the right side. Click the Cancel option to pull up the calculator, which will let you know how much credit you’ll get back. Be sure to do this before your travel date because if don’t, you may not get anything at all.

The lesson learned is that for any trip over $300, it usually makes sense to buy travel insurance. Check out our Travel Insurance section for more advice.

I spent most of my summers as a teen as an exchange student in Germany. Now, I have a couple of teen sons of my own and would like to take them to introduce them to Europe for a week or two this summer. Any advice or ideas you may have to get them hooked up with other teens as a group in European traveling? -Marvin, Athens, GA

Checkpoint Charlie hatSince you are just going for a week or two, there are a number of organizations that offer short-term tours. Travel for Teens (www.travelforteens.com) has a motto that we love, which is “Teaching teens to be travelers, not tourists.” Trips are tailored toward involve cultural immersion, language learning, photography and cooking, or community service—so, for example,  they can choose between getting an overview of all the highlights of Europe, or getting really up-close-and-personal with a lower-income Sicilian community.

All About Visiting Earth (www.aave.com) focuses more on outdoor adventures around the world. So if your kids are into hiking, kayaking or biking, AAVE offers teen camps and programs throughout Europe.

Also check out Pueblo Ingles (www.puebloingles.com), which is essentially a group of villages in Europe where teens can stay for free in exchange for teaching conversational English to locals. That’s right, it’s free.

The good news is that airfare deals right now are the cheapest. If you book them between now and the end of February, you’ll find some great deals for the summer.

I’m a single individual and I’m frustrated about always paying the extra supplement whenever I want to travel anywhere. What should individuals who would rather travel alone do to alleviate these costs? -Ed, St. Joseph, MI

The good news is that a number of organizations have finally come to the realization that you guys vote with your wallets just as much as everyone else, especially during these tough economic times.

Single in WinterThere is great outdoor adventure company called Backroads (www.backroads.com). If you make the request ahead of time, they can usually pair you with a roommate of the same gender. If no roommate is available, they’ll waive the single supplement fee as long as you sign up more than 60 days in advance of the trip departure. However, keep in mind that on the off-chance that they can’t match you and no twin room is available, you will have to pay that additional fee for your single room.

There is also an escorted tour company called Mayflower Tours (www.mayflowertours.com) which has a “guaranteed share” program. That means if they can’t find you a roommate before a certain date, you get your own room at a twin-share price.

Although it may sound daunting sharing a room with someone you don’t know, just remember that you won’t be spending too much time in your room besides sleeping and showering.

Also, keep your eyes open for deals, especially now that tour companies are trying every trick in the book to get your business. Overseas Adventure Travel, which is targeted to travelers ages 50 and older, waived its single-supplement fee as part of a promotion a couple of months ago. Bottom line: You have to ask before you can get.

Another option is to be open to alternate types of accommodations such as hostels. Most people think of a youth hostel as dorm room that sleeps 12, but things have changed. They’ve really upgraded themselves and a lot of hostels will give you great deals with single, clean, private rooms.

Check out more Q&As in our Ask Peter section.

Looking to save money on your travels? Check out our Ultimate Budget Travel Guide.