I travel half the year. Here are the 5 things I always pack for flight delays

Flight delays rarely come with a warning. Weather, staffing shortages, and even cyberattacks can ground travelers for hours or overnight. Air travel delays are often unpredictable. Sometimes travelers don’t get any advance notice about extended delays, and that can cause chaos if they’re unprepared.

As a travel journalist, sometimes I travel for close to half the year, and one thing I’ve learned is that you have to expect the unexpected during travel. You never know what might happen, and carefully made plans can easily take a turn, leaving you with no choice but to completely reimagine a trip. Here are five things you can do to be prepared for possible delays.

Download more entertainment than you think you’ll need

With so much entertainment already prepared for you on most airlines, it’s easy to rely on whatever is available for you to watch on a flight. However, if you are stuck in an airport for many hours longer than anticipated, you may wish you had downloaded some episodes of your favorite show or a new film you want to see.

If you’re in an international airport, you might not be able to download new shows because cell service might be limited or too expensive. So, act as though you won’t have access to anything you don’t already have downloaded. Over-stuff your phone, laptop, or tablet with shows and movies.

Don’t forget to encourage other travel companions to also download plenty of entertainment. Pack headphones and encourage your travel buddies to do so, too, so you can listen to your shows and films without interrupting others.

Alternately, if you’re like me and love to read during flights and at the airport, be sure to also download extra e-books, too. If you have kids, be sure to pack extra travel games and entertainment for them. Delays will be a lot more frustrating if you have to try to entertain kids without games and other things they love to do.

Pack a full overnight kit in your carry-on, even if you check a bag

I’m a big advocate for checking a suitcase if you have status that allows you to do so for free. I love the convenience of not having to drag around luggage on my layovers, but I learned the hard way that you need to keep the essentials you’d need in one day within a carry-on bag of some sort. For me, I prefer to just take along a backpack with my laptop and what I’d need for a day.

To be prepared for delays that may last overnight, pack the following in your carry-on suitcase of backpack:

• a few days’ worth of medications

Think carefully about your own personal situation and make a list to ensure you always bring what you’d need.

Bring a pillow you can actually sleep on in the terminal

A travel pillow can help you get comfortable on short or long flights, but it’s not comfortable for everyone. Even if you don’t love travel pillows, you should take along some sort of pillow during your travels. That way, in case you are delayed at an airport and don’t have time or the resources to get a hotel for the duration of an extended delay, you can at least take a nap if you have a pillow.

Build a travel emergency fund before you book

It’s no fun to have to deal with spending a night in an airport. Sometimes, even if an airline will cover the costs of staying at a hotel during an overnight delay, some airlines expect you to pay for the hotel upfront then get reimbursed later. That can put you in a terrible spot if you don’t have money in the bank to spend until you’re reimbursed. Also, it can keep you from enjoying the covered hotel.

Before you go on your next trip, try to establish a travel emergency fund to at least cover the upfront costs of a hotel in case you need it. You should also save enough for meals and transportation if things don’t go according to your planned itinerary.

Keep a small notebook to document every delay (it can get you compensated)

When you travel, bring along a small blank notebook that fits easily in your purse or pocket. That way, you can easily keep track of the facts surrounding any delays that happen. As a writer who loves keeping a diary, I always have one for many purposes, but a notebook can be a valuable tool during days of flight delays.

If your travel is delayed, write down the details of what happened. Write down the exact time you were first notified of the delay. Record the times when your flight was supposed to take off. Write down the names of any airline employees you speak to about the delay and be sure to record anything they offer as compensation for the delays.

Write down all the facts of your flight delay situation as you go. That can ensure that you are able to speak to airline employees about the situation in detail. You can recount what you’ve been promised more easily, too.

The bottom line: plan for the delay you hope never happens

We all leave for vacations and business travel with high hopes of things going according to plan. The hard truth is that is might not. That doesn’t mean you have to let it derail the fun you could have during your adventure, though. Think about what you would need to stay comfortable if your flight was delayed by hours or even by more than a day, then add to this list for yourself. Be sure to check it every time you prepare for a trip.

Thank you for reading. For more travel tips, I invite you to follow me on Yahoo.