A family who was headed to Tokyo to visit Disney and celebrate their son's 21st birthday is 'devastated' and out $7,000 after Southwest cancelled their flight

A family from Arizona was devastated after a last-minute Southwest flight cancellation left them out of thousands of dollars.

Jade Rodriguez told Insider that she, her husband, and their two children planned a "surreal" trip to Tokyo, Japan, because her 20-year-old son wanted to celebrate his birthday there. They were going to visit Tokyo Disney and the Pokemon Cafe, as well as taking a train to Kyoto and going to historic temples.

They were going to catch their flight from Tucson to Los Angeles on Christmas day. They were unaware of the disruptions Southwest was experiencing when they were told their flight was slightly delayed but had no idea it was in danger of not taking off.

They were met with confusion and miscommunication when they got to the airport in Tucson.

Southwest employees told passengers to check in their luggage even though they were still assembling a crew. There was a lot ofmiscommunication. Rodriguez said that one attendant told them to check in their bags while another told them they weren't going to the airport. It was confusing.

The American Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo was canceled about seven hours before it was supposed to leave. It took seven and a half hours to drive from Tucson to LA.

Rodriguez said they would've driven and made it if they'd been notified earlier.

It would take them 20 hours of travel and they would have to pay the difference in flight cost. It would only leave them for about five days in Japan.

We were distraught. Rodriguez said that they had yet to unpack all of their luggage because they were still trying to comprehend the situation.

They are trying to get as much of the trip back as they can, including from Southwest, American Airlines, the hotel in Japan, and Tokyo Disney.

Rodriguez said they received conflicting information from Southwest, with one email saying they would be getting a full refund and another saying they would only be getting flight credits to use in the future.

They purchased travel insurance for the American Airlines flight to Japan and are hoping that will cover the entire cost. Tokyo Disney does not issue refunds.

Rodriguez said they are out over $6,000.

They are unsure of when they will be able to make a trip work for the whole family, but they are still hoping to rearrange the trip.

Rodriguez is a teacher, so she had this time off work, but would have to try to get work off in the spring because her break does not align with her son's If the vacation is canceled, her husband, a retired member of the military who still teaches at the base, will have to take off work again.

Rodriguez said her older son is a college student who is dedicated to ROTC, a program that trains university students for military service, so he has limited time in which he can go. When they offered to take him somewhere else at the last minute, he said no because he was a big fan of Disney and Pokemon.

Rodriguez said that in the future she might consider getting travel insurance for the whole trip, even though they already have travel medical insurance through the military. Some people may have had more challenging experiences with the chaotic flight cancelations.

She said she was thankful that they lived close to family. It was very sad.

Thousands of Americans had their flights canceled this week after Southwest had an operational meltdown. Half of all canceled flights on Monday were by the airline. Rental car shortages and higher flight prices were caused by the disruptions.

Southwest apologized to all of their customers who were affected by the disruptions. If your flight was canceled, you are eligible for a refund and should submit requests for reasonable reimbursement. There will be a case-by-case process for those.

Passengers impacted by travel disruptions can get assistance through a travel-disruptions portal on their site.

Tokyo Disney could not be reached for comment. The Walt Disney Company did not respond to Insider's request for comment.

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