Qmy Customer seeks refund after spouse unable to fly

Tribune Content Agency

Italy bubbles with emotion, corruption, traffic jams, strikes, religious holidays and crowds. Irate ranters shake their fists at each other one minute and walk arm in arm the next. It’s bella chaos, and if you’re up-to-date on your sightseeing and transit info, you’ll love it. Here’s the latest, gleaned from research done for the 2018 edition of my Italy guidebook, to help you enjoy Europe’s richest, craziest culture.

Rome has been improving its tourist infrastructure and offerings. Two new sound-and-light shows in the Trajan’s Forum area are an increasingly popular evening activity: the Caesar’s Forum Stroll and the Forum of Augustus Show. Both help you imagine the world of the Caesars, as colorful images are projected on ancient walls, columns and porticos while English narration brings the story to life. And Ara Com’era (“The Ara as it was”) is a new 45-minute “virtual reality” show at Museo dell’Ara Pacis, which allows visitors to see what the Altar of Peace looked like in its day. The Pantheon, one of the city’s best-preserved ancient monuments, which is currently free to enter, will start charging an entry fee (about $2) in May.

I still strongly recommend getting the Roma

A: Something adventurous would be cool. I’ve once climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, so I’m definitely in for something like that. But a good trip would also include my family and friends and just hanging out together.

A: Since I’m from Amsterdam, I will give you some tips there. My favorite restaurants in Amsterdam Pass, which is now a plastic card that covers sightseeing and transportation. Rome’s main train station, Termini, has good new dining options: the modern Mercato Centrale market hall and the spacious Terrazza Termini food court.

It’s now even more worthwhile to travel south, just beyond Naples, to Pompeii. The site’s bestpreserved home, the House of the Vettii, with its many surviving mosaics and frescoes, reopened after a long closure.

As the birthplace of the Renaissance, Florence is a priority on any Italian itinerary. However, sightseers must deal with constant changes to ticketing and entry schemes. Travelers

A: My first show outside of the Netherlands was on Ibiza. It was in a small club with 15 people on the dance floor, but it was such an amazing experience!

A: I have to say that when traveling the world, you see so many beautiful places. I had an amazing holiday at the Maldives last year, where I will go again this year. It’s such a relaxing and beautiful place. Relax, swim, eat and enjoy the sun and your surroundings!

A: Korea. The fans are crazy. I would love to go back! who want to view the Uffizi Gallery’s amazing collection of Italian paintings will pay a significant price increase starting in 2018. Peak-season ticket prices (March through October) are up more than 50 percent to about $25; tickets drop to $15 in the winter. Seasonal pricing is also being introduced at the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens. And for the first time, sightseers can buy a combination ticket covering all these sights. This three-day ticket gives travelers one-time priority entry to all three sights, and will cost about $45 in peak season (half that in winter).

For the past couple of years, reservations have

A: One of my current favorite artists is Post Malone. I saw him at Paradiso Amsterdam. It’s a very iconic venue in Amsterdam, and I also had the honor to do a show there. One of my favorite festivals is still Coachella, where I performed (in 2017). I love the vibe there and that everyone who visits is really open-minded about music.

A: I figured that when I’m visiting a place, it’s important to know where I am. I always try to see as much as I can. I love exploring different countries and cultures. I always try to do fun activities between traveling and shows.

A: Ibiza! This past summer I had two residencies there, at Ushuaia and Hi. I rented a house for the summer and all my friends and family came over. It’s my second home during the summer. For more from the reporter, visit been required to climb the Florence Duomo’s famous dome, and time slots book up. If climbing the dome is a must for you, book online many days in advance of your arrival at

(if you wait until you arrive in town, it may be too late).

Visiting nearby Pisa is easier than ever with the opening of the new “Pisa Mover” train, which connects Pisa’s airport and its train station in five minutes. Pisa’s main tourist information office has moved to a convenient spot at the Field of Miracles, next to the Duomo’s ticket office.

Visitors to San Gimignano, Italy’s most overrated hill town, may be

A: I’m so sorry to hear about your husband’s condition, and I hope he makes a quick recovery. Actually, that should have been American’s answer to you — plus a timely refund of the $445.

Why should the airline refund a nonrefundable ticket? Because it’s the right thing to do. Oh sure, people will say that “rules are rules” (and indeed, they are). They’ll say you should have bought travel insurance, which might have covered you.

Then again, maybe not. I’m betting a claim like his would have been met with a form rejection, noting that his cancer was a “preexisting” condition.

Part of the problem with your claim was your level of technical expertise. You seemed a little uncomfortable using email and, instead, interested in a new option: gelato-making classes, offered by Sergio of Gelateria Dondoli in his kitchen down the street from his shop. Charismatic Sergio was a member of the Italian team that won the official Gelato World Cup — and his gelato really is a cut above.

Urban improvements are underway in bustling northern Italy. Arriving by train in Milan is more convenient now that highspeed Italo trains stop at Milano Centrale (instead of at the less-central Porta Garibaldi station). In Venice, a new shopping hot spot has opened amid all the elegant decay. Located near the Rialto Bridge, the Fondaco dei

I recently booked a flight from Boston to Washington, D.C., for

husband and me to visit my son for his birthday. My husband has lung cancer. Before our flight, he fell down a flight of stairs and was unable to fly. I’m so disappointed we had to cancel our tickets, and I hope we won’t lose the cost of the flight on top of everything else.

I called American Airlines to cancel the tickets, and sent a fax and letter explaining the reason from his oncologist. I don’t want a voucher for the tickets. I’m not sure if we’ll be able to use it, since my husband’s health is so precarious. Can you help me get back the $445 we spent for our tickets? — Susan Kaufman, Westwood, Mass. preferred to make your inquiries by phone and fax. That used to work for airlines, but not so much anymore. I think you might have made more progress by sending a brief, polite email to the right people at American with all of the necessary documentation. I list the names, numbers and email addresses of American’s executives on my customer-service site:

writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. Email him at

and follow his blog on Facebook. Instead, you called and sent a paper letter.

That’s not an excuse for American and the other airlines that have outsourced their call centers and stopped reading their mail. But it’s just the reality of the situation. Next time, send an email if you can.

I contacted American on your behalf. It quickly and compassionately refunded the $445 you spent on your tickets. Christopher Elliott is the ombudsman for National Geographic Traveler magazine and the author of “How to Be the World’s Smartest Traveler.” You can read more travel tips on his blog, elliott.org, or email him at