I read this in the Boston Globe yesterday and thought you’d find it helpful.
Family’s aborted vacation serves as a heads-up for travelers
Roslindale resident Michelle Novelle and her five sons ran afoul of a travel rule at Logan International Airport on Monday that anyone planning a summer trip should know about: A passport can become invalid before it has expired. Novelle and her sons were not allowed to board a British Airways flight for a weeklong trip to Finland because some of their passports expire in June and July. The denial wasn’t the result of an airline policy or even a US government regulation. Other countries’ governments set the standards for acceptable documentation from US citizens. In most of Europe, you can be denied entry into a country if your passport is set to expire within three months of a planned departure date. Many nations in Asia and South America are even more stringent, requiring that a passport be valid for six months beyond the travel date. Novelle criticized British Airways and the online travel booking site Orbitz — from which she brought the tickets — for not warning her the upcoming expirations could be a problem. “I was completely blindsided by the whole thing,’’ she said. “They should tell you in advance.’’ Novelle is trying to reschedule the trip for the summer. — ADAM VACCARO
Read more here.
