<p>D1, a high school junior, will be flying on New Year’s Eve from O’Hare back home to California. She’s a sensible and responsible kid, and has travelled by herself before. This time, however, will be the first time she’ll be flying by herself at a time when there is a real chance that her flight could be cancelled due to weather. She’ll have a cell phone and a Visa gift card loaded with $100-200. She won’t have a driver’s license or a credit card. We’ve cautioned her that she may be sleeping in the airport, that she’ll need to keep her valuables close at hand, and that if there’s a problem we’ll be working from home to get her booked on another flight. She is flying on credit card miles, which might make it a bit trickier to rebook. </p>
<p>Does anyone have any other advice to pass on, either to us or to her? And for the jokesters, “don’t fly out of O’Hare in the winter” doesn’t qualify. ;)</p>
<p>I’d have her carry some cash as well and check out the closest hotels near the airport, although I imagine they won’t let unattended minors stay. Might be worth checking. If a flight is cancelled, usually you get a very discounted rate at the local hotels. Also, have her pack clean underwear in her carry-on or purse and a toothbrush. That way if her luggage gets on the plane but she doesn’t, she’ll have the two things that make being stuck somewhere overnight a less unpleasant experience.</p>
<p>O’Hare, and other midwestern airports, do a fantastic job in adverse weather conditions. Unless there is a substantial snowstorm or ice situation, the planes will fly. She may have a wait if there is bad weather anywhere in the country, since that can affect flights coming in and turnaround times.</p>
<p>If a bad storm is imminent, the airlines sometimes allow ticket changes without any penalties. Keep an eye on their website. A FF mile ticket is one of the easiest type to change, if it’s with a major airline.</p>
<p>What does she use for identification to through the security checkpoint? I thought the required some kind of photo ID.</p>
<p>We’ve been in this situation also (DD goes to college in CA and we live in new england). We keep in close contact with her…and we DO have credit cards and if necessary could book her a hotel room or another flight. The airlines are very helpful if your daughter is polite and attentive to what is going on. Our kid has had flights delayed and canceled and she has always gotten on another flight ASAP. She has the number of the airline in her cell phone and she gets right in the line at the first SIGN of any disruptions in the air travel system.</p>
<p>She also knows that the WORSE thing that might happen is that she’ll end up sleeping in an airport. She packs extra underwear AND her toothbrush/toothpaste with her. </p>
<p>DS carries his contact case and solutions with him. He also has gotten himself rebooked when flights have been canceled. Again…polite but attentive is the key.</p>
<p>midwesterner, she is flying on credit card miles from a non-airline-affiliated credit card. The flight is on Alaska, but is “operated” by American. I’m going to call the travel agent affiliated with the credit card to find out how D1 would need to handle rebooking a flight.</p>
<p>mimk, clean undies etc etc in her carryon is a given. She will have some cash. </p>
<p>thumper1, security checkpoints will accept a school ID for high school and younger. They ask how old the traveller is, which yes, seems like a giant gaping hole in TSA’s protocols, but that’s the way it works. She’s never had a problem. Bringing a smaller size of contact solution in her carryon just got added to the to-do list.</p>
<p>In this situation–when S was 16 but in college–I called the closest hotel and told them I was sending my son by taxi, that I was responsible, and could they please take care of my son. It went fine.</p>
<p>I suggest she adds the phone numbers for Alaska and American into her phone. American should be the one ultimately responsible, as it is the one operating the flight, but she is flying on an Alaska flight number and an Alaska ticket if the e-ticket number begins with 027. Since it is a non-airline credit card reward, she may still be eligible to earn miles for her flight. Best of luck and here’s hoping there are no delays/cancellations.</p>
<p>Chicago’s security is very strict; much more strident than the airport where I originated from. That said, chicago’s security team scanned my luggage as expected, then dug through my suitcase , found my favorite cream, (originally in a 16 oz container, but most was gone) and made me toss it. The first airport didn’t dig through, and probably would have fine about my empty-ish jar of expensive cream.</p>
<p>i thought chicago weather was looking pretty good for this thursday–my son is flying out of midway thursday, so i guess i’ll go check my weather bug…</p>
<p>never hurts to have a small stash of snacks–buy some water when you can if you feel that the delay may be long!</p>
<p>add: both ends of my son’s trip look pretty good for new years eve! just hope no major changes happen between now and then!!</p>
<p>If it were me, I’d buy a backup ticket on a Southwest flight out of Midway and make sure DD had enough cash for a inter-airport cab ride (or two). If the SWA ticket goes unused, you’ll have a credit good for up to a year.</p>
<p>Agreed… I remember my nephew, who was in high school at a boarding school having a similar issue when he tried to fly in for my father’s funeral, and it required connecting flights that he couldn’t make in one day, so there was a need for a hotel one night. The taxi company and the hotel were very accomodating when his parents called and explained the situation… I think he was 15 or 16 years old at that time. This was within a few months of 9/11, when all security was very heightened.</p>
<p>I was a hotel employee for years and the rule has always been that you can’t book a room if you’re under 21. However, hotels will usually make exceptions when the weather is bad or there is some other type of emergency. There was a time or two when we had an underage kid have to stay overnight and we treated the situation it like we did when the cardholder was not the one staying at the hotel. In those cases, we needed a faxed copy of the credit card, but I would sometimes let that slide if the person called us directly to make the reservation and the name of the cardholder and the guest matched. And this may or may not apply, but if you have to book a room, specify when you call if you are also authorizing incidentals (movie rentals, room service, etc). I appreciated having confirmation from the cardholder for those situations. </p>
<p>And this will sound obvious, but if she does have to take a cab to a hotel, make sure she has the full name of the hotel and the address. I can’t tell you how many calls I received from guests who were accidentally taken to the wrong location because they had no information other than “Holiday Inn - South” and ended up being dropped off at the wrong place. </p>
<p>As far as flights go, I’ve been fortunate to never had a flight canceled, but I have had flights severely delayed due to weather. I once spent a good 10-12 hours at O’Hare first due to mechanical problems and then due to a storm system on the east coast. I suggest bringing a book to pass the time.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the great advice. She’s off, and really has turned into a decent packer. Hilarious afternoon where I proffered various bits of winter clothing while a friend visiting from a cold weather state burst out laughing at what I was offering (“snowboarding gloves? turtleneck? balaclava?”).</p>
<p>By the way … there is a Hilton hotel right on the grounds of O’Hare that you can walk to from baggage claim. </p>
<p>Plus approximately a bajillion hotels with shuttle service and/or a $5-10 cab ride. IMO there’s no particular advantage to the (closest) Mannheim Road hotels … go all the way to River Road to the convention center area. My favorite is the Marriott Suites.</p>
<p>Thursday is looking pretty good for flying, weather-wise. S1 is leaving from O’Hare tomorrow; I’ll ask him Tuesday how the enhanced security procedures were working.</p>
<p>It’s too late for this trip but I highly recommend a youth Visa card that you can load money on from home. It’s much better than a prepaid gift card because if something goes wrong you can do an immediate load of money that she can use for a hotel, food or whatever. I used one for my S for years and even paid him his allowance on it. I use the Wachovia Card (I’m not a Wachovia customer other than this card) but some other Banks have them too. As a parent I had it set up to email me whenever a purchase or change was make. </p>
<p>Wanted to point out that splash’s post regarding not renting to under 21 was probably a rule at the hotel he/she worked at. I was a hotel manager for years and we rented to under 21 at the manager’s discretion. My son went cross country to college at age 17. He had a credit card and definitely has stayed in hotels alone since then with no issues. You do have to check with the individual hotel as some chains or hotels in areas popular for kids/partying may have the no under 21 rule.</p>
<p>Here is some simple advice - it might cost a little -but worth it. Pay the one day price for the “Admiral’s Club” for american airlines - almost each airline has one at the major airports. I think AA’s is $50. For one - the lines are MUCH shorter if you have to rebook, the and the attendants are much more helpful. She will also have a nice warm place to stay, there are free snacks and drinks, clean bathrooms etc. IF she had to crash - it’s the place. The attendants are usually always reminding you on flights, etc.</p>