I agree that its best to plan in advance. If one plans too late in the game they are stuck with nowhere to go and are more disappointed than the people who booked 5 months in advance.

You hear about these sad stories all the time where a couple found this awesome fare thinking they would go to San Jose Del Cabo the ticket was booked to San Jose CA because they were in a rush and they see San Jose CA thinking its Mexico lol.

Or the time a person thought he booked a good hotel only to find out they oversold the room and they forgot to let Expedia know.

Or the time when the couple thought they had their seats confirmed only to be told the flight has been oversold for a month and we can't get you out of here until tomorrow.

Its quite stressful to book a flight for a destination and holiday you know about well in advance. Now sometimes its fun to pick a destination just for the heck of it at the last minute. That is a whole different ball park.

No wonder people complain about their seat assignments sitting in the middle. Some people don't know the difference between an Airbus 340 and a 747-400. It would only take a couple of clicks to see the seatmap and go onto Seatguru. I always try to book as far in advance as possible to get better seats. Armed with SeatGuru and the airline seat map open I call over to the airline to see if I can get better seats. If not I call as the day of travel gets closer and possibly a few times a week before travel until that sought after seat is available.

People have missed out on a lot by not booking soon enough . Like you wanted the Airbus 380 flight only to find out you booked on Lufthansa Stock but are flying on a old UA 747. Again people just let the 4 digit number slide. I always look at least once or twice to see who is operating my flight. If it said Lufthansa 7666 operated by United then I won't book it but if it said United 8899 operated by LH 455 then heck yea I'm booking it if I saved $200+ dollars and its on the A380.

I don't trust a travel agent to put in the correct names on a ticket and match it up to the passport. I would rather deal with my bookings alone unless its a package. If something goes wrong at least I take the brunt and fix it right away. I remember this one incompetent agent who forgot to change the date of my flight after paying the extension fee. I like calling the airline myself and seeing the change made via e-mail as opposed to the round robin approach where the agent tells me about delays or passport requirements. I look up the requirements before booking the ticket.

Furthermore its those uneducated travelers who irk me the most at the airport. They think they can jump the line. They don't know that you need to check in Domestically for an International Flight portion starting in Dulles. Let alone the family who brings more than the allotment and argues with the agent "but it wasn't stated to me when I booked the trip" and tries to get out of the $100+overweight fee. I go online and learn about it before. You see if these travelers with a PHD or Masters can research for their topic then why can't they spend 90 minutes researching the Contract of Carriage/ Rule 240/Excess Baggage Fees/ Location of checkin counters etc?

I have a OCD like ritual before every flight I check to see where the checkin counters are located, how to get from the counters to the Gate Area, what dining options are available before and after security, average security wait times, the airline lounge that I can use and where to go if I'm delayed. You see it pays to know before you go for stress free travel.

I have downloaded the SFO Airport App to my IPOD Touch and will use it on my next trip as it lists dining options/ flight status etc.

To conclude its all about the preparation that makes or breaks a trip. Flyertalk is a great place to learn how to be better prepared. When things go wrong I speak up and stand my ground. If they are trying to cheat me out of the compensation I demand to speak to higher authority. If I feel its not worth $10 then I let it go but if its broken luggage/ missed flights etc. then I stand my ground. Being silent does little to fix the fact that you are going to miss the wedding.

Good luck with your future travels.

P.S. I have been dubbed the Travel Agent of my family and friends as I love researching flights, viewing photos of the interior of the cabins, meals to reading reviews of the airlines/hotels etc./ Back in 1996 when I was 10 I shadowed a travel agent the agent was so amazed at how I knew to read the Sabre System and could request special meals/ hold reservations etc. I was using EasySabre back then having fun with it.