The normal vacation horror Tears at the gate, ready meals for 500 euros and rats in the rustico

Vacations can not only be beautiful and relaxing, but also really frustrating. Seven blue News employees talk about their unpleasant travel experiences.

The vacation is just around the corner and the anticipation is building. With suitcases packed and passports in hand, holidaymakers set off for relaxing days away from everyday life.

In most cases, the trip goes as planned, from check-in to arrival at the destination. But there are exceptions. Seven blue News employees report on frustrating vacation experiences:

A week before our Vietnam vacation, we met friends for fondue. They had booked a vacation in Vietnam at the same time. Over dinner, we talked about the visa.

They had just received their passports with the visa back from the embassy. We decided to do it at the airport in Vietnam. A friend said she had done it the same way back then and it had gone really well.

One week later: The suitcases are through, we are at check-in. The lady at the counter tells us she still needs to see our visas. We reply that we will do this on the spot. The lady then tells us that we can't fly without a visa.

We had to go to the Vietnamese embassy in Bern to get our visas there. However, she could still rebook us for a flight the next day.

No sooner said than done: we called the embassy directly. They told us that the only available appointment was in the late afternoon of the next day. They would then need around two more days to process the visas.

Using Google, we finally found a provider in Vietnam that issues visas within the opening hours of the Vietnamese authorities. Cost: 100 dollars per person.

We phoned them several times during the night because the credit card payment didn't work. It was all a bit dodgy somehow. But we took the risk.

The next morning at 6 a.m. we received a slant-copied paper by email with several names on it and by 10 a.m. we were back at the airport.

The two visas were accepted and we were allowed to go to the gate. Since it was a stand-by flight, we had no guarantee that we would be seated. We waited until the very last second until we were finally able to board.

The vacation afterwards was great, but since then we've always had a slight panic when we fly somewhere that requires a visa.

Jule Aderholz, Product Experience

I was on a cruise. We had ultra-heavy fog and therefore couldn't go back ashore on the day of the return journey. Instead of checking out at 8 a.m. and taking the bus back, we waited on the ship until very late in the afternoon.

When we were finally able to enter the port, they had a huge mess with the suitcases. And of course our suitcases got lost.

But the bus company didn't want to leave without our suitcases. In the end - and much later - we left and arrived in Zurich at some point during the night.

Then the next problem: there was no more public transport. We then ordered an Uber, which got lost and made us wait another 40 minutes.

We finally arrived home very tired. After two or three hours' sleep, we were allowed to go back to work.

Yannik Tschan, Head of Social Media

In 2016, I booked a "New Year's Eve Gala Evening" with my wife for 350 euros at the Piaristenkeller in Vienna.

The 4-course menu consisted of frozen food and ready-made products from the supermarket, the meat was tough and everything was arranged like in a military canteen. A glass of wine, a glass of sparkling wine and two bottles of water cost an additional 90 euros.

The evening was "sweetened" by a talentless musical duo, next to whom "Die Amigos" seem like the best singers in the world.

An hour before midnight, we decided not to spend the New Year's Eve countdown in this dive. I wanted to do without the sparkling wine, which wasn't possible, "as the bottle has unfortunately already been tipped in and therefore can no longer be canceled".

So I had to take the closed bottle home with me, where it ended up in the garbage can. This veritable New Year's Eve disaster cost us almost 500 euros on balance.

Roman Müller, Co-stv. head of video editing

In 2007, I traveled to Cairns in Australia. I really wanted to go snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef.

On the second day in the hostel, I woke up at around three o'clock. I had itching all over my body. The next morning I was exhausted. I felt like a zombie with a horror rash. I could barely recognize my own wrist.

There were already rumors at the hostel, and the nice pharmacist confirmed it: I had bedbugs.

I had to wash all my luggage and clothes with a special detergent. And I had to coat myself with a product with a poison symbol on it. You wouldn't wish that on your worst enemy.

Carlotta Henggeler, Editor Entertainment

We just want to get some water at Walmart and it's already happened: When we get back to the rental car, the lock is on the roof - and all our luggage is gone.

The police happen to drive past at that very moment, grin out of the window and ask: "¿Qué pasa?". But they can't really help and the biggest problem with the Fiscalia is that they've just run out of coffee. Well, it just went badly, say the officials.

But I am accompanied by constant fear for the rest of the journey. As it turns out, the criminals usually work with trackers that they place on the car, and I spend the rest of my days in Mexico worrying that they will ambush us again, even though there's nothing left to get.

Vanessa Büchel, Editor News and Entertainment

We were delighted when we saw the idyllic location of our rented rustic right on the edge of the forest. We even got high-fived. Everything was really great during our week's fall break in the back of the Centovalli.

It was only on the second-last morning that there was a noticeable rustling and rustling in the larder. Lo and behold, Ratatouille and his girlfriend live there all year round. We took the extra action in good humor, but the search for a suitable rat poison was a bit of a gauntlet.

Stefan Ryser, Co-Editor-in-Chief

It wasn't easy to visit family during the pandemic. Especially not if they live abroad. And that's how it was for us too. At Christmas 2021, we decided to fly to Norway anyway.

To be able to enter Switzerland again, we needed a negative coronavirus test. Whether vaccinated or unvaccinated. But my grandma lives quite far away, and from Oslo it's another eight-hour bus ride or a second flight. As a result, there was no open test center nearby. But you could get tested at the airport in Oslo.

The chaos began at 6 a.m. at the first airport: my luggage was too heavy. I had to pay extra. Then the woman wanted to see my negative test. I explained to her that I would do it in Oslo, and the woman told me in an annoyed tone that if I couldn't show a negative test yet, I would have to pick up my suitcase in Oslo and check in again. Because if the test result was positive, I would have to go into quarantine there. Oh well.

Then the shock in Oslo: the queue to get tested was huge. Waiting time: about three hours. But my flight was already leaving in 45 minutes.

I called my parents in a panic. What else is a 21-year-old supposed to do? At some point, I decided to push my way to the front and explain my situation to a member of staff. At this point, the first tears started to flow. I don't deal well with stress when flying. However, the employee took pity on me and gave me a fast pass. He explained to me that I had priority at the test center.

When I arrived at the test center, the next shock: another huge queue, again I pushed my way to the front. But this time I was shouted at and insulted. I apologized in tears and explained that otherwise I would miss my flight. Everyone was understanding.

Still 35 minutes until take-off. Test done. I ran past the queue again. This time they didn't shout at me. This time they applauded and shouted motivational slogans after me.

For the first time in my life, I was grateful that there was a self-bag drop in Oslo, because the queue at check-in was once again extremely long. But when I put my suitcase on the scales, I was told that it was too heavy. I had completely forgotten about this, so nothing worked at the self-bag drop. I was in tears again. An employee at the airport explained to me that I had to stand in the queue. But that was out of the question for me.

There were still 15 minutes until departure.

I opened my bulging suitcase, threw out jackets, pants and sweaters and put the suitcase back on the scales.

Still too heavy.

I repeated the process twice until the employee waved me through. An elderly lady held out three plastic bags to me without comment. I stuffed the clothes from my suitcase into them, ran through security and was at my gate. I had made it.

But the gate was pretty empty. At some point I received a call saying that they would miss me on the flight and asking where I was.

I had made a mistake at the gate.

So I ran across the airport again to the right gate. When I went to show my boarding card, the plastic bag with my clothes inside ripped. They were scattered everywhere in front of the gate.

Finally, I was on the plane. At this point, I still hadn't received my coronavirus test result. To this day, nobody wanted to see it either.

Lea Oetiker, Editor News

Have you also had a frustrating vacation experience? Then tell us about it here!