From Crisis to Comeback: How PTM Louise McCarthy Salvaged a Client’s Antarctica Dream

Weeks, months or even years of planning can go into planning the holiday of a lifetime, but even the most careful preparation can’t always prevent those plans from going sideways in a matter of moments. If the worst does happen, your holiday heartbreak can become a triumph of teamwork with the right people in your corner.

When personal travel manager Louise McCarthy’s clients set off to South America on their much-anticipated Antarctica cruise holiday, she wasn’t expecting to hear from them until they returned bearing photos and stories from their great adventure. Unfortunately, their trip had barely begun when Louise received an urgent call for help. During a two-night stopover in Buenos Aires, one of the clients had her handbag stolen – her passport, phone, credit cards and glasses all gone in the blink of an eye.

Although their cruise ship was due to set sail from Ushuaia in a few days’ time, Louise’s clients remained hopeful that she might be able to pull off a miracle. The award-winning travel advisor immediately set to work, drawing on all the knowledge, experience and industry contacts she has acquired over three decades in travel.

An urgent Sunday-morning call to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra was first, to check the requirements for having a replacement passport issued and arrange an urgent appointment for her client at the Australian Embassy in Buenos Aires for Monday morning. As it was currently Saturday afternoon in Buenos Aires, and local businesses therefore would be closed the following day, Louise instructed her clients to jump in a taxi and race across the city to obtain new passport photos.

Louise also enlisted the support of Chimu Adventures, who ensured that her client’s accommodation arrangements in Buenos Aires could be extended while she waited on her replacement documents. Her three travelling companions departed for Ushuaia as scheduled on Monday morning, while she headed to her appointment at the embassy.

In the meantime, Louise was already taking care of countless other details. She liaised with the Chilean consulate to smooth the process of obtaining a replacement visa for the post-cruise portion of her client’s holiday plans, and booked new flights for the client to reconnect with her group in Ushuaia in time for their scheduled cruise departure. With her client’s travel insurance policy providing peace of mind that any additional costs would be taken care of, Louise briefed Covermore on the developing situation and provided them with her clients’ new contact details.

By Tuesday morning, Louise’s shiny new passport was ready for collection as promised, and early the next morning she flew to Ushuaia to embark on her cruise. However, Louise’s work was still not done. While her client was enjoying her Antarctic adventure, her PTM was again in touch with the Chilean consulate to provide them with the new passport details and a copy of the original passport and visa. A new visa was quickly issued so that the remainder of her clients’ holiday could proceed as planned.

Rather than accept credit for rescuing her clients’ holiday, Louise insists the operation was a team effort.

“Chimu were excellent and incredibly supportive in helping to amend my client’s travel arrangements, even arranging a hotel room in Ushuaia so she could rest for a few hours before boarding her cruise. The Australian Embassy and Chilean Consulate in Buenos Aires were great too.”

With Louise at the helm to ensure that everyone played their part, what could have been a massive disaster for her clients was transformed into a great success story.

Louise McCarthy is a personal travel manager based in Castle Hill, NSW.