What do you do when the weather does not cooperate with your travel plans? What is your back up plan?
Your plans may include the sun in the Caribbean, snow in the mountains, wind in your sails or rain in the forest. Weather is never a guarantee. I often tell the story of my first scuba diving experience. Bonaire, off the coast of Venezuela, is a desert island with no fresh water. Cactus and iguana are everywhere. During my dive holiday it rained for four days! It never rains in Bonaire but I dove anyway. So if the weather does not cooperate in Bonaire it may not cooperate any where, no matter what is expected!
Where have you been when the weather did not cooperate? And what did you do?
Let me hear your story. Sometimes what to do is obvious. If you are in a city, go find a museum or if you are on the slopes or the beach go get a massage. In any place, find a cozy place and read a book. Most of us never have enough quiet time to just read. In the cities, I like a nice café with lots of activity to escape and read or just watch the locals go by.
But what if you do not have a back up plan? What do you do? No need to complain. You just need to find another option. You probably have two resources right at your finger tips. The first is most likely your smart phone. Go to the local tourist board website to start, there will be lots of information. Since I do not carry a smart phone, I always suggest to go to your concierge. But what if you are in a nice three star hotel with limited services? That is easy. Just walk into the best hotel you can find and ask their concierge. Give a few dollars as a thank you! They may be able to help you get tickets for a play or concert, museum or special event. The better the hotel, the more knowledgeable the concierge is. Also the better the hotel, the better the restrooms are!
I never travel with rain gear, but it is certainly easy to purchase along the way. Many drugstores sell light-weight inexpensive plastic capes, great for a day or two and easy to discard or recycle when the sun comes out.
On the slopes or at the beach with no facilities, again go to the best hotel/resort and they often allow outside guests to use their facilities. On a rainy cold day a steam, massage, or a pedicure is a great prescription for the blues and can be suitable for men too!
There is always something else to do. Just go find it. In Barcelona this past August when it was so hot, my escape was an open air-shaded café. Just relax and look at all the different activities going on around; musician, dancers, beautifully dressed locals and the purpled haired young ones! What fun to just relax with a cool drink and observe!
AlwaysHarriet 