What would I change about my round the world trip?
Too many options can be a bad thing
I got used to booking tickets at the last minute in London. It was such a great jumping off point with trains from central London to both Heathrow and Gatwick airports that I reveled in the possibilities. Where should I go today? Athens? Paris? Amsterdam? Istanbul?
The bevy of options meant that I often booked last minute and didn’t always get the best deals. I paid more than I should have for flights. Hostels were inexpensive and abundant already so I never worried about finding a place to put my head at night. Planning that far in advance might have killed the spontaneity of the adventure but my wallet would have had a few more euros in it.
There are all kinds of scams and semi-scams. By semi-scams I mean people are not outright robbing you, but they put you in situations where you normally would not spend money.
The Thai tuk-tuk drivers pulled that number so much that I created a video about it.
Flying from Bangkok to Hong Kong, I changed my scheduled a number of times. Since I didn’t know when I was going to leave Hong Kong, I didn’t bother print out a new itinerary.
When I got to my Thai Air flight check-in at the airport in Bangkok, I got the 4th degree in questioning…
Where are you going?
How long will you be in Hong Kong? – I’m in Bangkok still!
Then I learned you better have a departure ticket from anywhere you go in the world. I’m sure some countries are more lenient than others but Thai Air was not going to let me get on the flight to Hong Kong.
Illegal immigration is probably the prime reason. Too many people come with a one way ticket, overstay their visa and then they disappear into the populace. Bangkok is the air traffic hub for Southeast Asia, so many countries probably draw their line in the stand there before they land in their countries.
Related posts:
- Best Travel News and Deals – February 2, 2010 – 10 Most Asked Travel Questions, Cheaper RTW Tickets, Beat Jet Lag By Not Eating, Learn a New Language
- Best Travel Deals and News – September 21, 2010 – Your First Time on a Flight, Round the World Planning Mistakes, Stretching Your Money in South America
- RTW Travel – What Did I Just Eat? What Animal?!
- Best Travel News and Deals – March 16, 2010 – Sample RTW Tickets and Prices, Traveling with Kids, Shoe Shopping in Paris, Weird Travel Stories, Flight Attendant Combat Training, Dancing in Salvador, Bahia
- Best Travel Deals and News – May 18, 2010 – Bangkok, Athens, Crazy Vending Machines of the World, Travel Mistakes, Approaching Strangers
{ 22 comments… read them below or add one }
I have to agree with the first two points, but disagree with the last.
I spent 10 months wandering around South East Asia, into and out of Thailand a number of times, same thing with Macau, Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Singapore.
I was never asked for proof of onward travel.
In fact, in many cases, trying to do so would have been impossible, as I had planned to (and did) travel between many countries by land crossings. Those few countries I had to fly into (Myanmar, or a jump from HK to Bangkok to avoid buying additional Visas) were on oneway tickets and the Immigration officials at all ends didn't bat an eyelid at it.
I know some airlines have policies where they want you to have a return ticket, or an onward travel ticket before they will board you, but that is rarely (and in my case, never) enforced.
I am collecting all of the advice so we can make our family world worn travelers. Thanks for the tips! Be blessed.
@Lucanos
You said it yourself:
"I know some airlines have policies where they want you to have a return ticket"
I'm here verifying it. It may have been because you used land crossings or Hong Kong/China may have stricter policies, but it has happened to me and it has happened to others.
A quick Google search will show others have been through the same thing.
Does not matter if the odds are low. There is still a chance to be stopped.
@Adia
You are welcome!
@brian: I understand that it is a solid rule in some places, and has been applied in a more hit-and-miss fashion in others. I am simply saying it is not a certain, 100% guaranteed, stake your house on it rule that you cannot fly into places on a one-way ticket.
Maybe it is dependant on your nationality, or any one of a million other factors – I am just saying, for the sake of accuracy, that buying return or onwards tickets before setting foot out the door is not a necessity. And, in my experience, buying tickets as you go tends to allow you to 1) have a greater degree of flexibility, 2) pay alot less (tickets bought in Bangkok were half the price of the same ticket bought in Sydney and even cheaper than tickets bought direct from airlines online).
By all means, research whether the country (or countries) you are travelling to demand proof of onward travel, and check forms to see what the real story, on the ground, is. But saying that you must have all your tickets before you set out is incorrect, and, if anything, an even more common avoidable mistake people make when travelling.
@Lucanos
Yep I agree it's not a 100% hard and fast rule. The problem is that you have no idea where this issue might pop up.
I've looked since that time and I never saw any consistent policy, whether by airline or country leaving or entering where this might applied.
For me after nearly missing my flight, I would tell people the same thing, get the return ticket if you know your dates to avoid any hassles.
Travelers will have to take that chance if they don't get the departure ticket.
Brian, I appreciate your comment on Twitter about leaving comments on blog sites with regular posts. As a blogger I appreciate it. I just wanted stop by today and check things out. You sound like a thoughtful adventurer–a nice blend. Good luck to you on your site. I will try to stop by now and again to check things out. I am a traveler but on a much more limited scope. I am a teacher and a single mom. I make a trek somewhere each year, so your advice just might be helpful.
Have a great New Year filled with many adventures, Lisa 
I recently tried to buy a one way ticket to South America not knowing when or from where I would leave. I was told by American Airlines I would be forced to buy a return flight when I checked in to leave from my home airport if I couldn't provide evidence of a return flight from any airline.
I went ahead and bought a r/t flight leaving out of the same airport I flew into (Lima) for four months later. What the agent failed to mention, is that I would need a visa since it appeared as if I was staying in Peru for longer than the allotted 90 days. I knew I'd be leaving the country well within 90 days but I didn't have any tickets or purchased itineraries to prove it. End result – I had to change my return ticket to within 90 days before they'd check me in. But I'll change it again later!
This is great information – thank you!
I've had to show proof of onward travel in various places, but I'm definitely planning on doing my RTW with one-way tickets and partly-unscheduled itineraries so I'll have to pay attention to that.
@Lisa (aka LadyWanderlust)
Well thanks for stopping by Lisa. Here's to hoping you get out and see what you want to see in 2010!
@morganne
Yup, I've heard of this and of people being sent RIGHT back on the next flight out to the place of origin if they didn't have proof of a departure ticket.
Literally, they were put back on the same plane they just got off of and sent back at the airline's/country's expense. The passenger did not have to pay, but he could not stay!
@Adam
I'd be real curious to see how this goes over, especially with the bomber in Detriot coming over on a one-way ticket.
I feel a serious crackdown coming on…
I think mistakes are a good thing. Their a great way to learn and move forward.
1. Most of the time yes it's true booking in advance can save you tons of cash. I found most of tons of cash you'd be saving is on long distance flights. As soon as you book maybe 2 weeks in advance, you're going to get a great deal anyway on budget airlines. I'd rather pay a little more for a lot more freedom
3. I've travel all through Asia, SE Asia, Australia, and South America never getting questioned. Oz questioned me for 5 minute thing but I showed proof of my credit cards, cash, and statements that I have enough money to leave. It's not that they are scared you wont leave, it's that they want to make sure you have enough to even leave. Don't think this is required. Speak proper, dress well for customs, and be honest. No issues.
Good advice! We have a couple posts coming up on Bangkok scams as well – we fell for the suit store scam ourselves (but fortunately didn't buy a suit). Wish we would have read this first!
@Michael
I think it is more than being calm and dressed nicely. I wasn't even dealing with customs or airport security. I was dealing with the Thai Air ticket agent to get on the flight. Hong Kong/China reasoning may be different than Australia but the possibility is there.
As someone else commented here, she was forced to buy the round trip before she was even allowed to leave her home country.
@No Hurry Curry
Yeah the tuk-tuk drivers will get you every time. They have the whole thing down to a science.
We always chance it with a one way ticket ourselves. Sounds like you had some bad luck with yours, or maybe we have just always had good luck. We tend to keep moving forward instead of back tracking so return tickets are kind of impossible. But people are warned all of the time about buying one way.
Bummer you had the tuk tuk scam happen to you. I have heard about it many times, but we have managed to avoid it ourselves. We have fallen prey to other scams however in our travels and all I can say is "at least we are all living and learning from the mistakes eh?"
It's possible to use one way tickets to set up a RTW itinerary. As a company that sells RTW tickets I can say it allows us to have a business. At the same time, it's always advisable to have an onward ticket when you arrive in a country. If it isn't possible some harassment should be expected. Having said that, there are places that require the onward ticket and those need to be paid attention to.
Countries in SE Asia don't require that and the laid back attitude, especially at border crossings, makes leisurely country-hopping quite common. Perhaps that's why so many people love to wander around Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, etc.
I absolutely agree with the advice on buying tickets far in advance. Sure it gives you a freedom you wouldn't have otherwise, but I always prefer to have the extra saved by taking advantage of cheaper fares.
@Dave and Deb
The tuk tuk thing wasn't such a bad deal. Nice suits, but I didn't really need them.
@AirTreks Nico
Hong Kong is under Chinese control so that may be the reason why they had an issue.
If you know of any directories that show the requirements for entry for countries, one-way ticket or otherwise, please let us know. Being in the ticket broker biz you might have that info readily available.
I encountered a similar issue even with a round-trip ticket a few years ago when flying to New Zealand from the US (where I'm from). My sister had made separate arrangements for us to fly from NZ to Australia which was where my return ticket departed from, but I didn't have the flight information for leaving NZ with me at LAX. American Airlines wouldn't let me on the flight until I called home & had someone email it to the AA counter. Now I make sure I have the info. with me!
I'm planning extensive travel and point #3 is an issue where there is a great deal of disagreement.
I am, however, confused a bit by your experience in that the issue was resolved not by your buying a forwarding ticket but simply by your printing out an updated itinerary.
Even in the D.C. Myanmar Embassy, where the policy is that all visitors need a round-trip/forwarding ticket to receive a visa, a printed out itinerary (even for an independent traveler) was enough to get the visa.
I would prefer to travel by surface as much as possible and buy plane tickets as I go but the chatter on this issue still has me undecided.
@Kristi
That seems to be the case. If you don't have the information, you either have to get it verified by the ticket agent or buy a ticket before you get on a flight, as some people have been forced to do.
@David
There is a lot of disagreement because the countries/airlines are not consistent. Some people have no problem with Australia and some people have not been able to get on flights. I had a problem getting to Hong Kong and others have not. I already had the ticket I just didn't print it out.
I wish I had a better answer for you. For every bad story there is someone who floated thru with no problem whatsoever and no one has any idea what the criteria for scrutiny is.
I think you MAY have less trouble if you are traveling by ground. In the air is a different story. No guarantee on that.
I still believe with the Crotchbomber coming on a one-way ticket to Detroit, many more nations will crack down on one way tickets. When the US makes a change in policy, many countries reciprocate. The one-way tickets I think won't be an exception.
I managed to get into Oz without a visa (full story here: http://www.moshtour.me.uk/2006/08/so-i-do-need-a-visa/) pretty much by accident when I flew in for the first time from Singapore.
I actually *had* an onward ticket – one of the very few I purchased during 3+ years of travelling. I wasn't asked for it. In fact, while they were sorting out the visa thing I offered it and the chap dealing with me actually thought about it a while before saying "oh, go on – I'll take a copy as you have it".
This from a country that's – apparently – very concerned and has issues with illegal immigration.
A similar major issue I've had and heard people talk about is not having accommodation pre-booked on arrival. I got the third degree on another visit to Oz because I was staying with friends and didn't have the address on me – they were collecting me from the airport.
In Bangladesh it was a similar problem. Someone else was collecting us and had organised our hotel. We didn't know the details.
Another friend was held at a US airport for 4 hours as we didn't fill in an address on his immigration card – he was going to book a hostel from the kiosk when he landed. If he'd lied and put any old thing down then he'd have strolled right through immigration. Go figure.
@Mosher
I like to have at least the accommodations set when I arrive in a country. Not interested in sleeping on park benches or airport terminals or being forced into am expensive and/or crappy place because all the decent places are booked.
Only time I remember being asked about where I am staying was arriving in London.
The same thing happened to us the last time we flew to Panama. We knew we’d have to leave within 90 days (visa restrictions) and but we hadn’t made the flight reservations yet. Fortunately we’d already purchased tickets for a cruise four months out and had an email confirmation. The ticket agent made us forward the confirmation email to him before he’d issue the boarding passes.
After he gave us the passes he mentioned that we could have given him a printout of any itinerary. So next time we’ll make sure to create a trip on Kayak and print it out.
Either that, or we’ll book and pay for tickets that will give us a full refund later.
Thanks Linda. People still don’t believe that it does not happen but I’m glad there are other people chiming in. If it hasn’t happened to you, you’ve been lucky. As terrorism and immigration become bigger and bigger issues, they will have to addressed. Making sure you can/will leave the country is the only way govts and airlines can do it.