On Departure Day- Travel is part of the adventure! Let's make sure you get there safely.
Passports and Visas
If traveling internationally, please make absolutely certain that your traveler has a passport (and visa if traveling to a country that requires it). If a participant arrives at the airport without a passport he/she will be unable to board the flight. We may be unable to stay with him/her and only able to arrange a hotel room, possibly alone, so please make sure the passport is with your child, readily available (not in checked luggage), and double-check to make sure you didn’t inadvertently grab a family member’s passport by mistake.
Every year a family forgets to bring their child’s passport. Don’t let this be you!
*** If your child is traveling domestically, they do not need to bring a passport.
Travel Day T-shirts
All TFT travelers should wear the Travel For Teens t-shirt on the day of travel if they ordered one. The airport day t-shirts are optional and only are shipped to the family provided that they followed the ordering instructions that we sent. You can view the instructions here ICYMI. Wearing the shirts helps to ensure safety, as it makes our group instantly recognizable while we navigate airports. But again, it is fully optional.
There are many different ways to arrive!
If you are being dropped off at destination to meet us at the start of the trip
Prior to departure, please email your Trip Director to confirm the time and place that you need to be met by TFT staff. It is crucial that we arrange a specific time and place to meet you. Please make sure we have your phone number that will work in the country where you are meeting us and also that you arrive at the appointed time.
If you are arriving independently by plane on a domestic flight to a US trip
Prior to departure, please email your Trip Director to confirm the time and place that you need to be met by TFT staff. You should have your trip director’s phone number (listed in the email), and the TFT toll-free number (+1-888-457-4534, option 3) saved in your phone. You should also have WhatsApp downloaded on your phone and have joined the group chat for your trip. Contact your Trip Director as soon as you land, via text message or WhatsApp chat (if you have wifi only).
You should proceed from the plane to collect your luggage and then exit the secure area. Ask airport staff for assistance if you are unsure what to do or where to go. As soon as you exit baggage claim, look for our staff wearing an orange TFT Staff t-shirt. Please do not leave the immediate area until you have met up with a TFT staff member. If you do not see any TFT staff, please call your trip director or the toll-free number (+1-888-457-4534, option 3).
If you are traveling on the group flight and flying into the domestic departure airport beforehand
As soon as your flight arrives, turn on your cell phone and contact your airport coordinator to let them know you have arrived.
If you are traveling on the same airline as the group flight, arriving in the same (or a connected) terminal and have already checked in for the group flight, you can either exit security to meet our staff, or remain inside security until the staff brings the rest of the group through. There may already be a staff member inside security at a designated meeting point (usually the departure gate).
It is very important you communicate with our staff about where to meet once they arrive. You must make sure that your baggage is checked all the way through to your final destination and that you have a boarding pass for the group flight. If either of those things is not true, you will need to reclaim and recheck your baggage, and check back in with the airline to get your boarding pass. You may need to exit security in order to do so.
If you are arriving on a different airline than the group flight or need to change terminals, after deplaning, follow the signs to baggage claim and collect your luggage. Once you have your luggage, head to the check-in counter (Ticketing) for your group flight airline, which is listed in the email. When you arrive at the departure airport, please do not stop or go anywhere else besides the meeting point. We have a list of travelers with their flights and times of arrival, so we are expecting you to meet us as soon as you can and will be waiting for you to check you in for the next flight. Go directly to the Ticketing counter for your departing airline (listed in the email) and find your flight coordinator and your group. TFT staff will be wearing their orange Travel For Teens Staff t-shirts. Please make sure you have the TFT staff contact phone numbers (listed in the email) programmed into your cell
NOTE!!! If you get to the airport and are having a difficult time making your way to the meeting point, we ask that you send a text via WhatsApp to the airport coordinator to let them know you need help. Our airport coordinators will be able to assist you and help find you at a different meeting point.
Parents – we ask that travelers all have downloaded and be familiar with WhatsApp ahead of departure to facilitate communication easily. Please note, we cannot pre-arrange for every traveler to be met.
If you are traveling on the group flight and getting dropped off at the departure airport
Please meet at the ticketing area for the departure airline, listed in the email. TFT staff members will be wearing their orange TFT staff t-shirts, which are hard to miss! Please be there no later than 3 hours prior to departure and no earlier than 4 hours prior to departure.
Unfortunately, the group will not be able to wait for any late check-ins. We head for security and the departure gates 3 hours ahead of time.
Parents, if you are dropping your child off, please remember that this is a time for kids to get to know one another without parents being involved, so it is best for the participants and group dynamics if you do not linger too long after your child is checked in.
Travelers, once you check in, please do not leave without your flight coordinator knowing exactly where you are going and who else is leaving with you (for example, if you need to use the bathroom or grab food).
If you are arriving independently by plane into a foreign country
Prior to departure, please email your Trip Director to confirm the time and place that you need to be met by TFT staff in the arrival destination. Please make sure that you have the trip director’s phone number (listed in the email), the TFT toll-free number (+1-888-457-4534), and that you know how to make a call in a foreign country. You must have a cell phone that works in the country where we are meeting you if you want to meet us abroad. Please email your Trip Director as well as help@travelforteens.com to be sure that we have this number.
You should proceed from the plane through passport control, collect your luggage and then exit the secure area. Ask airport staff for assistance if you are unsure what to do or where to go. As soon as you exit baggage claim, look for a TFT staff member wearing an orange TFT Staff t-shirt. Remember that in a foreign country, baggage claim is inside the secure area and we cannot meet you there. You must exit and we will meet you outside the arrivals gate.
Please do not leave the immediate area until you have met up with a TFT staff member. If you do not see the staff member, please call your trip director or the toll-free number (+1-888-457-4534).
Travel hiccups- Travel doesn't always go as planned. Here's what to do when things go wrong!
Lost Luggage
When an airline loses your luggage it can be very stressful! Here are the steps parents, staff, and the TFT office will take to ensure lost luggage is handled correctly.
Whoever is at the airport will make sure the traveler has filed the lost bag report from the airline.The counselors on the trip will send parents the airline’s lost luggage claim form via email or whatsapp. Please follow the airline’s instructions to help find the bag and let us know where it is and when the staff/your teen can expect to get it.
TFT staff on the ground will document the claim and help the traveler get any clothing or toiletries they need for at least the first 24 hours of the trip. If the bag is delayed longer than 24 hours, staff will provide opportunities to buy more clothes and anything else they need.
Once parents confirm with the airline that the bag has been located, the parents and counselors on the ground will work together to determine where/when it will be delivered.
Once the airline has located the bag and you learn the status from the airline, relay this update to our office via help@travelforteens.com and email your teen’s trip director. You can also share with us the bag courier info (meaning the contact details of the driver from the airline who will deliver the bag) and we can relay this to the counselors on the ground so they can help facilitate the delivery. Note – our counselors cannot expedite the delivery process or make the courier services deliver it faster.
The TFT Office is there to support parents if they need to know the hotel details and itinerary movements in case the bag does not arrive before the group moves to the next location.
We know locating a lost bag can be frustrating. We are there to support you and your traveler but please kindly remember our staff need to devote their energy at the very beginning of the trip to the group, their safety and group dynamics. The staff leading the trip do not have enough time to do their job on the ground and have sufficient time to call the airline/the airport which is why we enlist the parents cooperation for this detail.
If you purchased a trip insurance policy through TFT, you have reimbursable coverage. Once the trip is over, we can provide you instructions for how to initiate the claim.
To sum it all up- TFT Staff on the ground will take care of your teen and help them get what they need. It is the parent’s responsibility to follow up with the airline to help locate the bag and relay this information to the office/staff on the trip. The TFT office will help give you the information and logistical support so that the bag can be delivered once it has been located by you/the airline.
Flight Cancellation- if you booked through TFT
Step number one- don’t panic! Flight cancellations are a stressful but fixable problem.
Contact your airport coordinator (sent by email before departure) as soon as your flight is cancelled so they are looped in. DO NOT call our emergency line unless you are unable to reach anyone.
If you are at the airport the best way to handle a flight cancellation is ALWAYS to go directly to the ticketing counter of the operating airline to speak with someone about finding a solution for the best way to get your child to his or her destination. Even if you booked through us, it is much faster and easier to solve a flight cancellation on the ground than it is to do it by calling the airline.
If you are not at the airport, but your child is capable of speaking with the ticketing agent that is the next best option.
Make sure you share your new flight path with your airport coordinator and trip director!
If you are not at the airport and your child is not able to speak with a ticketing agent, Travel For Teens will be able to manage your ticket and contact our agent to get you set up with a new flight path. Please keep in mind this could take a bit and we ask for your patience while we work on this. We will let you know as soon as we have the solution.
We will make sure your Trip Director is aware of the new flight path and that a new meetup plan is communicated with your child to join the group.
Flight Cancellation- if you booked the flight independently
Step number one- don’t panic! Flight cancellations are a stressful but fixable problem.
Contact your airport coordinator (sent by email before departure) as soon as your flight is cancelled so they are looped in. DO NOT call our emergency line unless you are unable to reach anyone.
If you are at the airport the best way to handle a flight cancellation is ALWAYS to go directly to the ticketing counter of the operating airline to speak with someone about finding a solution for the best way to get your child to his or her destination. It is much faster and easier to solve a flight cancellation on the ground than it is to do it by calling the airline. DO NOT leave the airport until you have a new flight plan!
If you are not at the airport, but your child is capable of speaking with the ticketing agent that is the next best option.
If you are not at the airport and your child is not able to speak with a ticketing agent, you will need to call the airline if you booked directly through them, or ticketing agent if you booked through an agency.
Make sure you share your new flight path with your airport coordinator and trip director! Your trip director will communicate with you and your child to come up with a new meetup plan to join the group.
What to do if you miss your connecting flight
Step number one- as with all travel issues, don’t panic!
If your child misses a connecting flight they should go to the ticketing counter for the airline you were supposed to travel with and speak with them to come up with a solution to get to the final destination.
Similarly to a flight cancellation, it is easier to solve this directly at the airport than it is to call the airline. If your child is unable to speak to a ticketing agent you can call the airline directly but it may take a little longer. If you booked your ticket through Travel For Teens we can contact our ticketing agent for you.
As with any new flight plan, please communicate directly with your airport coordinator so they can assist and make sure your child’s trip director is aware of the change in plans.
Who do I call when things go wrong?
Your airport coordinator, whose contact will be sent to you by email prior to departure, is almost always your go to for any travel related issues.
For lost luggage, contacting your child’s trip director is your best resource.
DO NOT call our emergency line for travel related issues. We need to keep the emergency line open and available for true emergencies.
In the event of a true emergency you can reach our emergency line by calling our toll free number (888-457-4534) and selecting #3.
On your return- its sad to say goodbye, but all good things must come to an end!
FOR PARENTS:
On the return, if you are picking your child up, simply come to the International or Domestic Arrivals area and wait for your child to exit baggage claim.
If your child is taking a domestic flight home from a U.S.-based trip, they will have assistance from our staff with checking in with the airline, checking luggage, and getting boarding passes and gate details. Due to TSA regulations, we may not always be able to escort them through security to the secure area of the airport. However, TFT staff will remain in or around the airport and in communication with your child until their flight takes off. In the event of any emergencies, TFT staff will be there to assist your child with rescheduling their flight and booking any necessary accommodations or transportation.
If your child is taking an international connecting flight on their way home, he or she will exit the flight, proceed through passport control, baggage claim, and then customs. He/she will recheck their luggage immediately after customs, will NOT exit the secure area, and will then go on to their departure gate. We usually cannot go with them to the gates (TSA rules). Our staff will remain available by phone and will stay in or around the airport until all TFT traveler’s flights have departed.
FOR TRAVELERS:
If you are returning home from a U.S.-based trip
On your return flight, once you land back at your home airport:
- Get off the plane (don’t forget your headphones!)
- Follow signs for Baggage Claim
- Collect your bag from baggage claim. If your bag does not show up, you will exit the secure area and go to your airline representatives to report the lost luggage with your bag tag (which you were given when you checked your bag in at your departure airport where you got your boarding pass.)
- Meet your parents outside!
If you are returning to the USA from another country
Please review these instructions before you fly back to the USA so you know what to expect on your way home.
On your return flight, once you land in the USA:
- Get off the plane and follow signs for passport control
- Go through passport control – this is where you get your passport stamped by an immigration officer
- Collect your bag from baggage claim. If your bag does not show up, you will exit this secure area and go to the airline representatives beyond customs to report your lost luggage with your bag tag (which you were given when you checked your bag in at your departure airport where you got your boarding pass.)
- Exit Customs (you will complete and turn in a US Customs form) then either:
- Recheck your bag if you have a connecting flight and proceed to your departure gate for your connecting flight
- Meet your parents outside of customs
Extra tips and information for smooth travels
- If the flight is chaperoned, the flight chaperone is required by TFT protocol to be the last person to a.) go through passport control and b.) leave baggage/customs to be sure no one is left behind. Your child may emerge from baggage claim without a staff member.
- If your child is making a connecting flight with a tight connection, they will be sent ahead of the flight chaperone to get to their gate as soon as possible.
- If your child has any issues making their connection, they will be able to ask the flight chaperone for assistance.
- If a child returning on a group flight to the USA has their connecting flight cancelled and they are stuck at the airport, contact us right away so that we can help get them accommodation and assist in rebooking new flights for your child.