Golden Rule Travel

05/05/2023

Fodor's Travel asked us how to handle corrupt or bully cops when traveling overseas in an unfamiliar culture and unfamiliar legal system. We gave a few tips and stories of things we found helpful.

Fodor's provides expert travel content worth exploring so you can dream up your next trip. The world is a weird and wonderful place—we want to show you around.

04/27/2023

On the Golden Rule Travel emergency line, we help folks who are suffering from flight delays all the time. A Washington Post reader had a question about how late you have to be for the airline to be allowed to give your seat away to a standby passenger and we helped answer the question:

This week’s By The Way Concierge looks into a writer’s missed connection.

04/14/2023

Are you traveling internationally within the next year? Check your passport expiration date now. Don't procrastinate. If you did procrastinate or you're just interested in the topic, this is an excellent article by Christopher Elliott of Elliott Advocacy on the topic.

Did you know there's a black market for passport agency appointments? I didn't. Interesting stuff.

Thousands of Americans are scrambling to get passports during a time of record delays.

04/04/2023

Would you call a US government agency 150 times with no answer? If you’re desperate for a passport for travel the next day, you might have to, like one of our clients a few weeks ago. Below, I share their story, along with some powerful tips and education.

US Passport renewals are somewhere between slow and a nightmare right now, depending on your situation and scenario.

(GRT was featured providing some advice in this Vox article on the topic: https://www.vox.com/even-better/23664785/apply-renew-passport-travel )

Make sure you keep at least a year’s validity on your passport; many countries require 6+ months validity, so the true expiration date is sooner than you think! Renew anytime you are near that mark when you know you have a 2-4 month window with no international trips likely.

Normal passport renewal by mail takes about 4 months right now. Expedited passport renewal by mail is taking 1-2 months.

In-person, same-day passport renewal for travel within two weeks can theoretically be done in the big US cities at the US Passport Agency locations, but appointments can be very hard to come by due to the dysfunctional national call center taking appointments. One of our clients called 150 times and could never even get into a hold queue, much less reach a live person! 😩 The guard at the door helpfully told them that sometimes, especially on Mondays, they need to call 300 times to get through. 😤

If you are in a bind, here are a few powerful tips:

1. If you’ve mailed in your renewal, it’s taking longer than expected, and you have imminent travel, reach out to your US Senator or US Representative. They have dedicated staffers to help cut through bureaucracy, pluck your application from the queue, and light a fire under the bureaucrats.

2. If you need to call for an in-person appointment, avoid Mondays or convenient times of day to minimize your competition for the limited phone lines.

3. If need a passport in under two months and you don’t live near a big city with a passport agency, we highly recommend PassportVisasExpress who can use their back channels to get an in-person, same-day appointment and renew it within 24 hours on your behalf. Check them out here: https://goldenruletravel.com/passport

Let us know below how your passport renewals have gone.

Get your documents in order.

06/09/2022

Thanks, Caden, for your kind words!:

"In a day and age where booking airline tickets is partially managed by robots and computers, it is so nice to know there are still kind and caring people out there such as Golden Rule Travel to help you "in person" over the phone or at their office with any travel inquires you may have. Several months ago, I was in a predicament at Wichita Airport due to a cancelled flight with United Airlines. I needed to get to my destination that day yet, and United Airlines was booked full for the rest of the day - no open flights. As I was standing in line at the United Airlines ticket counter trying to decide what to do, I suddenly thought of Golden Rule Travel. I quickly called them while I was still in the airport, and Eldo Miller - bless his heart, was able to get me on a Delta Airlines flight that day yet, and I arrived at my destination safe and sound! This type of customer service, folks, is why I love and keeping coming back to Golden Rule Travel. They are always there when you need them most and will always be open to help you! A big thanks to Eldo Miller and the rest of you folks at Golden Rule Travel for helping me out with my travels several months back! Keep up the great work over there!"

04/19/2022

The federal mask mandate is no longer in effect in the United States. TSA and major US airlines (including American, Delta, United, Southwest, JetBlue, and Alaska) have said they will no longer require masks on flights and in the airport, effective immediately.

02/15/2022

Qatar Airways is now operating to Lusaka, Zambia! The new service will be operated with the airline's state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliner and connects via Doha to Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and Washington D.C. To book your flight today, visit:
https://goldenruletravel.com/qatar-airways/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=qatar_promo

I took my first international trip when I was a freshman high school. Since then, I’ve traveled to five continents and over fifteen countries, with plenty more still on my wish list. However, my favorite part of traveling is coming home again—there is something about experiencing other places, l...

08/03/2021

In today's travel environment, automation is not the answer. You need to book through a live person that cares about you and will respond quickly. Case in point: Just had a call on our 24 hour emergency line from clients whose flight from Miami to Santa Domingo had been cancelled. American's computers rebooked them for tomorrow morning. They were in a long line in Miami and calling AA promised a call back "between 1 hour 17 minutes and 1 hour 34 minutes from now". I quickly grabbed the last two seats on a flight leaving in two hours at 9:08 pm. Had they booked online, the AA system would only have given them the option of tomorrow morning. We have access to American's reservation system in real time and can take last minute inventory. Airlines have laid off massive amounts of staff due to the pandemic and are having major issues rehiring and training new staff.

06/30/2021

Why should you book your groups with us? Because we're here for you when your travel plans are interrupted.

Last night at midnight the owner of Golden Rule was wrapping up a 2 1/2 hour conference call with American Airlines and the group leader of 31 students and chaperones whose 6:35 am flight from NYC to Costa Rica was canceled 4 hours earlier due to weather. Instead of going 2 days later as auto rebooked by American, we arranged for the group from Lancaster, PA to split up and leave from Philadelphia, Washington DC, and Pittsburgh, all arriving in Costa Rica within several hours of each other on the same day as originally planned. American changed the return flights back to Philly at our request.

This is what we do when you call our 24-hour emergency number. Canceled flights and changing schedules can be frustrating, but we're here to help you when complications arise.

01/18/2021

Effective January 26, 2021, air passengers arriving to the US from a foreign country must be tested no more than 3 days before their flight departs and provide proof of the negative result before boarding the flight.

11/13/2020

A satisfied Golden Rule Travel customer 😊💻✈️:
"I spent around 9 hours stretched out over a week trying to purchase airline tickets with major online sites before contacting Golden Rule Travel. They gave me a quote the next day, and found me a price for $300 lower than any I could find elsewhere ( with their fee included). Ty from their customer service department was very professional and made things extremely simple compared to the four others I had been in conversation with from other companies. All together, my time with Golden Rule was only about 30 minutes! Thank you for offering an outstanding service!" - Ben Stoltzfus

10/16/2020

Should you buy travel insurance for your trip? What does travel insurance cover? Does it cover anything related to COVID-19? 🤔

Travel insurance provides coverage for a number of situations, including trip cancellations for covered reasons, lost/damaged/stolen bags, emergency medical care, and emergency evacuation.

Contrary to what you may have heard, many policies also cover you if you contract COVID-19, or are quarantined because of it. Travel insurance does not, however, cover cancellation because of fear of travel, or because a flight was canceled or a country closed down due to COVID-19.

🧳🙋‍♂️ Ready to go? We are available to answer your questions about insurance and to provide you with a quote: https://goldenruletravel.com/contact-original/contact-form/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=post&utm_campaign=travel_insurance

10/02/2020

"Patrick, thank you! You went above and beyond on your work on my last trip to Beirut. I so appreciate your patience and support as we worked at getting all the COVID test results and flight details aligned. You are super!" -Martha Kimmel, Learning and Evaluation Systems Coordinator at Mennonite Central Committee

Thanks, Martha! Your note keeps us inspired to "make your mission our mission." ✈️❤️👨‍💻🧳 A quick shout out as well to our travel agent Patrick Miller! Great work!

09/30/2020

Ukraine has reopened to foreign travelers! 🇺🇦🎉The government has lifted the temporary restriction on international visitors, and most major carriers are once again flying into the country. We've had the opportunity to assist many adoptive families with travel to Ukraine, and our humanitarian contracts offer much-needed flexibility.

International travel is more complicated than it was a year ago! US Travelers to Ukraine do need to be aware of some new requirements. See https://www.visitukraine.today/ or contact us for more information.

Have you traveled to Ukraine in the last several months? We'd love to hear about your experience! Feel free to comment below, DM us, or send an email to [email protected].

09/21/2020

It's been a long summer, but countries are starting to reopen! We've seen an increase in travelers booking flights to destinations such as Haiti, Dominican Republic, Greece, Ukraine, Albania, Cameroon, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, and Cambodia. A lot has changed in the travel world, but our agents are here to help you navigate travel restrictions and find affordable flights so you can focus on the things that matter most. Ready to get started? Request a quote here: https://goldenruletravel.com/request-airfare-quote/

03/12/2020

Reason #473 to use us instead of braving the airways alone! We’re not magic, but we promise bedlam-free purchase experiences and flights home from Europe for less than $20k if you have a little flexibility!

03/12/2020

Please don't be alarmed by Trump's Europe Travel Ban! It was poorly announced. The headline fact is that it does not apply to US Citizens! So if you are a US Citizen, please do not be alarmed, it does not apply to you.

The ban does not take effect until Friday night.

The only reason you might want to reschedule your flight to fly non-stop from Africa to the US or routing via the Middle East instead of Europe are the following reasons:

1. There is a chance (despite no announced plans) you *may* be subject to quarantine or testing on arrival to the US if you're flying via Europe. This could disrupt your domestic US travel plans.

2. As the ban wears on, US and European airlines are likely to begin an orderly drawdown of transatlantic flight capacity after the initial rush of US Citizens going home subsides (much like they did in Asia). However, this is unlikely to occur for at least a week or half a week.

3. Things could change.

If you are transiting Europe 1-4 weeks from now (that's the danger zone where you might be disrupted by a canceled flight), please call us during regular business hours (800-950-3599) to see whether we can help with alternative arrangements that reduce your risk of cancellation.

If you need immediate assistance, as always you can call our 24/7 emergency line at 620-878-0110. I've been getting lots of calls all night with folks worried about the ban; most are worried needlessly, but I moved a few folks around when I could do so cheaply to get them home quicker if they had a strong preference to do so. I'm available if you need to get home ASAP.

Here is the statement from the US Department of Homeland Security that outlines the policy: https://www.dhs.gov/news/2020/03/11/homeland-security-acting-secretary-chad-f-wolf-s-statement-presidential-proclamation

Today President Donald J. Trump signed a Presidential Proclamation, which suspends the entry of most foreign nationals who have been in certain European countries at any point during the 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival to the United States. These countries, known as the Schengen Area, inclu...

01/11/2020

Do you know of missions, non profits, colleges, churches or international travelers that might be looking for the service we provide? Our customers are given a free of charge 24 hour cell phone number to call for emergencies. Just finished taking a call from a group of 12 from the University of Mary Washington, Fredericksburg, Virginia that were enroute from Kathmandu, Nepal to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It's 4am over there. There was bad weather and their flight was diverted to some regional airport out in the middle of nowhere and they are waiting there with no airport personnel anywhere around. The group leader simply calls our emergency number, I take the call immediately from Chicago OHare airport where I am waiting on my flight at 9 pm, we communicate and are now texting back and forth. I am checking all the options and will make sure the best option is held for them prior to them arriving in Dubai for their onward 14 hour flight to Washington Dulles. They avoid long lines when they land in Dubai, knowing they have the best possible option already booked to replace the flight they will have missed. Next: 15 minutes later, next call I am taking is a team at JFK going to Ghana Africa. One of the members that started in Kansas City is quite ill with a high fever and cannot travel on from JFK. We will cancel the unused portion and appeal to the airline for the largest possible refund and they will likely do us a special favor because of our large volume and relationship with them. (Some of our exclusive missionary contracts allow you to take three free checked bags per person.)
I will see about using my personal frequent flyer points to get her back to KC rather than her pay an outrageous short notice one way ticket. Am also looking for a JFK hotel. Not boasting, just advertising our services - this is what we do. We really do find fulfillment in helping those who so generously give of their time for missions and humanitarian aid, and it's our business as well, not to sound too altruistic....We'd like your business and will do our best to please you.

01/02/2020

Missionary Travel Agency

Tired of being at the mercy of airlines? We'll do hard work of finding best deal (wholesale contracts!) & provide 24/7 emergency service.

We make your mission, our mission

12/06/2019

One of our regular missionary customers called the emergency line tonight. The airline was denying them boarding in Miami for a flight to South America because the airline representative was not interpreting the rules very sensibly and was requiring them to a have an intra-South America flight to "complete" their trip home, just in case immigration would deny entry on that basis.

So we quickly booked them a refundable ticket exiting the country a few days from now so the stubborn airline reps would be happy and let them board. We will refund the ticket tomorrow once they're in the country. Of course they already had plans to bus between countries, but those sorts of tickets are never purchased ahead of time.

When you're traveling, you're at the mercy of sometimes-capricious airline reps. If you book through Golden Rule, you'll have 24/7 access to an emergency agent who has your back to help solve unexpected problems like this. If you are experiencing a travel emergency, you can call us at +1 (620) 878-0110 and if it's the middle of the night, I'll wake up and help you to the best of my ability.

I've traveled to 35+ countries and flown nearly a million miles, so good chance I've been in your shoes before or have helped someone who has been. We can't always immediately fix your problem as some things are beyond our control, but we can at least offer our help and experience without long hold times.

-Hans Mast, GRT emergency agent

08/04/2019

If you are inside a plane sitting on the tarmac in Newark, scheduled to Zurich and then on to Nairobi, Kenya and .....after being on the plane for several hours with mechanical delays and they finally cancel the flight, what can you expect? If you booked with Golden Rule, this is what actually happened just a bit ago. The mission in Kenya (4 am there) who was communicating with the passenger on the plane via instant messaging, called our 24 hour emergency number, the owner of Golden Rule answered from his home on a Saturday evening and grabbed a seat on tomorrow's flight in case the flight cancelled. Eventually the flight cancelled and at that point there was zero availabilty for tomorrow's flight but our passenger has a confirmed seat. After grabbing the seat, he also made sure there were no other options for tonight leaving from any of the three NY airports, in case they let the passengers deplane. In situations like these, passengers are often delayed by several days, since there simply is not nearly enough space to put hundreds of folks on next day/week flights that are already almost fully booked.

07/30/2019

For travelers flying with Ethiopian Airlines from Newark, JFK, Washington Dulles, or Chicago, and traveling for humanitarian or missionary purposes, we can offer 3 free checked bags for tickets purchased through Golden Rule Travel (compared to the standard 2 free checked bags if purchased elsewhere). Feel free to contact us for a free quote!

06/27/2018

Did you know you can send up to one pound via Delta Cargo same day service for only $88? Our after hours agent just finished arranging for a forgotten passport to be sent from Tulsa at 9:59am arriving Boston at 5:46pm. A frantic mother called early this morning with the news that her son was enroute on flights to Boston where he connects to an 11pm flight overseas (and he forgot his passport). Our agent did a conference call with Delta Cargo and made sure the mother got all the "how to" details. We made a reservation for the passport package and she is speeding to the Tulsa airport with the passport to check it in at the Delta ticket counter.
Our people really do genuinely care about helping travelers, even though in this case, they had not purchased their airline tickets through Golden Rule. Mom said son cried when he found out that the passport was going to arrive Boston in time for international flight and our agent is joyful to know he made a difference!

03/04/2018

Travel does not always go as planned. In addition to the special missionary contracted rates we offer, we also offer 24 hour emergency service. A typical example: This morning, our owner's cell phone which is always beside his bed woke him up and it was an evangelist from Toronto who missed his flight in South Africa. The airline counter was quoting him $1003 for the next flight - we booked him on a missonary ticket for $678.03. The next call came in 5 minutes later from 3 clients from Dayton, OH who were enroute to Delhi India on a missions trip. Their United flight from Newark to Delhi was diverted to London due to an emergency medical situation on the flight. They alertly called us while they were in long lines at London waiting to be rebooked on other airlines to Delhi. (for some reason the plane they were on was not allowed to fly on to Delhi for 24 hours) Our owner confirmed them on an Air India flight the same day from London to Delhi and held seats for them inside of their original booking, effectively putting them at the "front of the line". If they had waited, these flights would have been fully booked. When they get to the front of the line, they will have seats instead of being told everything is sold out and they have to wait till the next day. Smart heads up thinking by the travelers. http://goldenruletravel.com/humanitarian-travel/

08/12/2017

Golden Rule Travel

Our website is http://goldenruletravel.com/ Why use Golden Rule? One reason is the 24 hour service our owner provides. A typical call took place this morning at 4:08 am when our owner took a call from 2 passengers whose flight was leaving from Nairobi, Kenya to Thailand in 1 hour 5 minutes. The airline was not letting them board because of them not having proof of returning to Kenya. Going from bedroom to his home office, our owner booked and issued a new return ticket back to Kenya from Phnom Phen, Cambodia within 10 minutes, emailed the ticket confirmation to the cell email of passenger, they showed it at counter and were allowed to board the flight.

You'll quickly find that at Golden Rule, it's not about us - it's about you. Individuals, church groups, NGOs, humanitarian agencies and missionary agencies trust us to listen to their needs and focus on details. That's how they stay focused on their calling.

06/20/2017

Price drop !

Has an airline or online website ever contacted you with the news that the price on your ticket dropped? Don't hold your breath.

We have a live person that checks each ticket we issued the following day to make sure the fare has not dropped. Here is one from today:

June 16 we issued 4 tickets for $478 each.

That was on a Friday and on Monday morning June 19 we saw the price had dropped to $458 and so we voided it and made new tickets.
That same day, in the afternoon of June 19 it dropped to $401 so we repeated the process.

Today, June 20, it dropped to $379 and we again re-issued at the lower price.

We can't wait to see what tomorrow holds!!

06/10/2017

Passport Found! Our owner received a call this Saturday afternoon at 1pm from a gentleman who found a passport and other documents of a passenger we had ticketed. Our client left her documents in a small pocket in the back of the seat in front of her.. She got off the plane having forgotten her documents and this gentleman who took her seat for the next onward flight found it. Upon arriving into Miami, and not being able to track her down on Facebook, Twitter and other social media, he called American Airlines and got our phone number from American Airlines - thanks AA ! Our office was closed but he called our 24 hour emergency number on our anwering machine and spoke to our owner. The owner immediately looked up the contact number for the leader of the group of 20 she was part of and emailed him and his son. Within 10 minutes, the son returned the call to our owner who did a conference call with the hero who had found the passport who immediately called the owner of the passport. The passport holder is a student from the Netherlands who needs to return home in the next two weeks. She was terribly distraught by the loss, of course, but will be quite happy, we are sure about the great news! Most people would have shrugged it off as impossible to track the student since there was no address or phone number with the documents but not this hero! He could have given it to a flight attendant but the chances of that bearing fruit would have been slim. Thank you, Sir!

07/26/2016

Golden Rule Travel's cover photo

07/26/2016

Golden Rule Travel

06/05/2016

Profile Pictures