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1 in 4 International Flights are Delayed

My sister's family just returned from their first vacation to a resort in Dominican Republic. It was departed over 24 hours later than scheduled and was late 36 hours returning.

They couldn't deal with the uncertainties flying home after they heard it was delayed and decided to buy a flight home with another airline.

This is the reality of flying in the Americas.

I currently fly from Canada to Asia and back twice a year. Since I started doing this I have had delays and cancellations on every single itinerary.

As I travel non-stop it's not a big deal for me. I'm not on holiday.

But as I was giving my sister advice I realized I have some experience that may be valuable to you.

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​10 TIPS YOU NEED TO KNOW

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1) Are you on a bad route? You can check the status of current flights to see if they are chronically delayed at FlightAware.

It's not a guarantee but I now try not to connect through Toronto because the routes are often late.
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2) Book the first flight out that morning. Flying is tiring anyway so it doesn't matter when you go.

But if your flight is cancelled it's much more likely you'll be able to catch a later one.
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3) Book direct or avoid tight connections. That used to be anything less than 2 hours but now I wouldn't book anything tighter than 4 hours.

I've been delayed because of missed connected 75% of the time over the last few years.
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4) Read through insurance documents BEFORE you fly. What does your credit card insurance cover? Do you need to buy additional insurance?

Make sure you know what is covered before so when you're exhausted at the airport you know your backup plan.
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5) Assume your checked in bag will be delayed. Do you have everything in a carry-on for multiple days of travel.

You can't buy it in Cuba and shopping on a resort is $$$. Pack what you need for 48 hours.
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6) Do you have snacks? My sister told me that being delayed in the DR was ok because the airport was great. But apparently in Cuba there was no food for delayed passengers.
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What a nightmare.

My last flight departing Toronto we were on the tarmac for over an hour and thankfully I had a bag of trail mix and water bottle. Don't get hangry!​
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7) Mentally prepare yourself for being delayed. I now expect it and plan accordingly.

I have snacks, fresh clothes and treats. And NEVER fly home at night and expect to go to work the next day.

I have seen so many people melt down when they realize they won't be able to make it to work.

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​TIPS FOR WHEN THINGS GO WRONG

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1) Know your rights. If you are Canadian join the Passenger's Rights Canada Facebook group, and it's a good idea to read through the group before you leave and your flight is inevitably cancelled or delayed.

It's run by Gabor Lukacs who helps people understand their rights and arms them with the regulations to counterpoint airlines when they say they owe you nothing.
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2) Document everything. Keep all of your boarding passes. If you're delayed keep screenshots of every text and notification.

If you're on the phone with the airline record the call with an app (in Canada you can legally record calls without telling the other party, but check in your area).

On my last flight I also recorded video of flight attendant delay announcements on plane when they told us what the problem was.

Why you are delayed matters, and airlines aren't always forthcoming.

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3) Get paid for your inconvenience. If you're delayed more than 4 hours and it's not due to weather or safety you are owed money.

Some people have time to battle the airlines but the airlines count on you being too tired to sue them.

If you are overwhelmed or just don't have time companies like AirHelp (refer a friend link) will pursue it for you.
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You pay them nothing until they win, and they take a 35% cut.
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ALSO: AirHelp just launched an interesting new program called AirHelp+ that is shockingly affordable and helps you while you're having the issue with money, lounge access and compensation.
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I think could be great for me so I'm going to look into the fine print for flying from Canada to Asia.

They gave me this promo code: AHPLS5 for a 5% discount and it's good for all of 2025
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SO LET'S PLAN FOR THE WORST AND
BE DELIGHTED BY THE BEST

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My Mother commented at how sad it was for my nephews' first big trip to be such chaos but I think it's a good thing.

The days of easy travel is over and they'll know what to expect moving forward.

Next email I'm going to share how I find the cheapest flights, and it's not putting my browser on incognito mode!

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Keep life delicious,

Ayngelina

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