When to Trust Your Instincts and Cancel a Trip

Meggan: [00:00:00] Hey everyone, and welcome back to Travel Tip Tuesday. I'm Meggan joined as always by Jenn. Jenn, how are you? I know the snow has been a lot lately. Um, we're all over winter at this point. How are you dealing?

Jenn: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Hopefully by the time this comes out, the snow is melting and it's getting warmer. But current, Jenn, as of recording, just got an, uh, foot plus of snow yesterday. So yeah, I'm ready to, uh, move on from that.

Meggan: Well, again, I, we gotta move away from the weather 'cause I do wanna touch on something that has actually come up quite a bit lately in the news. Maybe not when people are listening to this, but I'm sure there'll be new happenings. And it was also kind of inspired by a friend's recent trip to Columbia.

So there have been issues lately in this time in 2026, in and around Puerto Vallarta as well as Cuba that have made the news and have been big stories. And of course many other things are happening in the world all [00:01:00] the time, ongoing wars and conflicts. But those two things have been really in the news as of late.

My friend in Columbia, she is safe and having a good time, but in messaging with her, she actually mentioned that their hiking plans couldn't happen due to a national park being closed as tourists were being robbed by locals with guns. So, having said that, I also follow a lot of travel agents on Facebook, and I am sure lately, they have been crazy busy and doing their best to keep everyone up to date with the most recent information.

That seems to be changing a lot depending on conditions. So all of this got me thinking regardless of assurances that let's say. Other parts of Mexico are safe, or before Cuba, flights were officially canceled, people were being told it's still okay to travel there. Some resorts are open, it's gonna be fine.

Like I started thinking to myself, when do you draw the line and make a decision for yourself? Even as [00:02:00] Canadians, we hear stories from a small group of people who have crossed into the US and not had good experiences. And of course that is a small subset of folks, but it is still happening at times. And these are the stories that you hear.

So when do you listen to your gut? When do you say, even though most people aren't having issues, there's still something happening and what should I do personally? Well, I think there's a number of things you can do and should do before making your own decision and truly trusting how you feel. Once you have the full picture.

So a couple of suggestions that I have is, first and foremost, and we've talked about this before in the podcast, is look at your government's travel advisories. This should be something that you always should start with before deciding on any travel really. Secondly, look at regions, so not a country as a whole.

So if there's a polar bear attack in Churchill, Manitoba. That should not deter you from visiting Nova Scotia. That is literally just an example. Although if there hasn't, there has [00:03:00] not been an attack. Please don't spread any rumors. It's just an example of looking at regions versus what's happening on one side of a country.

Compare multiple sources, not just headlines. As we always say. Do your research and don't rely on Facebook or TikTok. Use multiple reliable sources, including of course, the hardworking travel advisors. I think you should take some time and ask yourself, what kind of traveler am I? Are you okay with some risk?

Like my friend in Columbia. They had to pivot. They're off doing something else now and they're really having a good time. So obviously some risk is okay for her, but what kind of traveler are you? Are you going to be comfortable taking this trip under these circumstances? You know you best. So really introspection I think is gonna be key.

Next, what is the purpose of your trip? This can help guide you on where to stay, what activities to plan and research, if those are safe and reliable options [00:04:00] and areas for you. Like why are you going and what do you want this trip to accomplish? And if you don't feel you can do that safely, why go there?

And then six, finally listen to your instincts. Let's say you've done all of the above. You feel in the pit of your stomach that you're still concerned. You really need to take this into deep consideration. But on the other hand, if you've done your research and it has eased your worries. Maybe you go for it. Instinct and intuition can be really valuable tools. Don't decide things on emotion. You should educate yourself and then consider if it feels right or not. Travel can be complicated and stuff is happening all over the world, good and bad. And in the end you need to decide what is best for you. So Jenn, what are your thoughts around this topic? 'Cause it is quite relevant right now.

Jenn: Yeah, it definitely is, and it's definitely complicated and I would say that I'm like a pretty risk averse person, like in general, [00:05:00] honestly. And I would probably err on the side of like canceling or rescheduling if, if. If I felt truly that I, I was going to be unsafe. Um, also a reminder that you can register with the government, at least here in Canada, I'm sure other countries as well, when you leave the country.

And this helps them know that you are A: there, and B: allows them to contact you in case in of emergency, um, a natural disaster or civil unrest like. If you're going somewhere that maybe there's going to be an issue, having the government at least know that you're there and hopefully be able to get you out of there, I, I think, is, uh, a good thing. so yeah, it, it's complicated.

Meggan: it is. And it really is a person to person and you really have to know, like you said, who you are, but are you okay with some risk, completely risk averse? A little bit maybe, but I don't know. I think, I think it's something that people need to start thinking, but [00:06:00] especially with all the things going on lately and people saying, no, you should still go.

It's fine here. But does that still make you feel good? Like just because, uh, maybe a travel agent or someone else is staying yes, that's over there, but over here is fine. Is that good enough for you?

Jenn: Hmm. Yeah.

Meggan: are the big questions, you know.

Jenn: Mm-hmm.

Meggan: Well, that is it for this week's travel tip Tuesday. Hopefully gave you some food for thought.

And thank you as always, uh, for tuning in. We hope you like what we're doing here and there's lots of ways to support us, including following us, and interacting on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. You can buy us a coffee to help keep, uh, this operation up and running. Uh, the link for that is in the show notes.

Um, and until next time, travel safe and bye.