Northeast: Travel tips, websites to help you weather the snowstorm
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The Misery Map. It’s an apt name for FlightAware’s map that shows travelers where flights are delayed or canceled throughout the country because of the major snowstorm this week that blasted New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
More than 3,300 flights were canceled Tuesday and 1,750 flights were canceled Wednesday, according to FlightAware, the flight-tracking website.
What do you do if your flight has been canceled or might be canceled? First and foremost, contact your airline immediately (if it hasn’t already contacted you). Here’s a list of phone numbers and websites for selected airlines that serve major U.S. cities.
Brian Kelly, also known as the Points Guy, will tell you to leverage social media -- especially Twitter -- to contact your airline quickly if you can’t get through by phone or e-mail. The Points Guy website also has posted a useful list of airline advisories and change/refund policies that have been updated for the current snowstorm.
Amtrak already has announced reduced service Thursday for trains running between Boston and Washington, D.C. It too is offering refunds and rebooking on tickets. Megabus and Greyhound (on its Facebook site) report canceled bus service too.
FareCompare offers these dos and don’ts if you find yourself stuck. Even if you’re outside the storm, the website says, delays and cancellations have a ripple effect that affect planes flying in and out of Los Angeles, for example.
“Be sure to pack a lunch, as well as something to amuse yourself with (plus chargers for electronic devices),” the website advises. “You could be in for a wait.”
And stay on top of the news. Many museums in Philadelphia, for example, closed or closed early Tuesday because of the weather.
For a visual of how the storm is affecting flights nationwide -- whether or not you’re flying east from California -- go to FlightAware’s Live Tracker web page and the Misery Map. Weather.com has a state-by-state breakdown on snow conditions from New York to West Virginia.
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