A fellow traveler shared his travel nightmare upon arriving in Barcelona. He had checked with the hotel beforehand and determined that a private car wasn’t necessary given the options of cabs/subway/buses/trains. Except said hotel concierge neglected to alert him when the cabs went on strike.
He’s traveling with a couple of suitcases and a backpack. The train might seem the way to go until you realize how antiquated the stations can be: things like escalators, porters (save for some questionable locals trying to earn a few euros), and adequate signs are frequently missing.
To add insult to injury, he used an ATM to get much-needed local currency, only to find that his wallet was missing afterward. Not theft but more likely fumbling around with all that luggage produced an “ooopsie.” (The hotel was later extremely helpful with the challenges faced with the missing wallet).
So what’s the takeaway? Check in with the hotel the day prior to your arrival just to make sure everything’s “good.” Email the concierge or manager or local reservations desk for any last-minute updates. They should be doing this on your behalf, but just in case they don’t …
