If you’re flying Southwest Airlines, you can change your flight for free or generally book last minute.

I am in Jacksonville, and that’s what I do.

I don’t have the flexibility to stay open end though so I decide in advance how long I’m willing to stay and book hotel and flights in accordance with that, and then change the booking. I’ve traveled at off-peak times of year though (October, April, May) so it’s not hard for me to extend hotel or change flights. I stay in Jacksonville Beach, which is a 15 minute drive from Mayo and there are many hotels and much less expensive than at Mayo.

One thing I notice is that many of the tips here are regarding people’s experiences at Rochester and having been seen at both locations I can say with absolute certainty based on my experience that Jacksonville is not nearly as responsive or organized as far as scheduling out appointments. I have had to be very proactive about getting answers and appointments even when they’re supposed to be coordinated. I always directly ask the department I’m dealing with now how to handle scheduling and if they realistically believe they can for me in. For example, for one department, she specifically told me that if I needed an outpatient procedure, she would fit me in the week I’m here. Others are unwilling or unable to do that.

In Jacksonville, their scheduling templates are only open a few months ahead of time for most providers, such as from now until the end of August. Busy departments may already have every slot booked, and this has resulted in me missing out on appointments each time I’ve been here because they don’t seem to coordinate appointments like when I was in Rochester. I have to self-schedule.

i.e. I am leaving tomorrow and have been on a wait list for an appointment since Tuesday with zero movement, so I probably won’t get the appointment and the provider isn’t available until July.

If I were in your shoes (which I have been) I would get in touch with the office coordinating your care and directly ask them if they have a recommendation for the minimum time you would stay and if it’s likely you’ll have to return. They may not be able to answer but I would think they could at least help with the minimum time frame and/or you can give them your travel dates so they can advance schedule what they think you might need. However I have found that Rochester is much more willing to do this than Jacksonville.