I Flew 2,800 Miles to Attend No Kings 3 – Was it Worth It?

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On October 18, 2025, I watched the news coverage of the second No Kings protest from the Canary Islands. Seeing thousands of Americans marching for what they believe in and against the corrupt policies of the Trump administration made me proud. It also gave me a serious case of FOMO (fear of missing out). I wanted to be in the thick of things, not watching from a screen.

I talked about it with my daughters and made a promise: if there’s a third protest, I’ll be there.

Note: In this post, I use the words event, rally, march, and protest interchangeably when talking about No Kings events.

Keeping My Promise

Steve and I had spent two months in the U.S., from mid-November 2025 through mid-January 2026, and I had been hoping a No Kings march would fall somewhere in that window. It didn’t.

No Kings 3 was announced after we’d arrived in Lima, Peru. It was scheduled for March 28th, while we’d still be in Lima and about a week before we headed to Europe. Traveling from Lima to Florida wasn’t ideal, but it was a whole lot better than flying in from Europe, or gasp Asia.

I did vacillate a bit. Yes. Was it worth the time and the cost for a long weekend? Would I regret it if I didn’t go?

Both my daughters live in Florida, and they agreed to go to an Orlando event if I came back.

When I mentioned to Steve that I wanted to fly to Orlando for the march, I half expected him to think it was frivolous. But he knows I’ve opposed Trump from day one, and he was supportive.

I decided to go for it. I knew my FOMO would outweigh any inconvenience or expense.

Heading to Orlando

For more than a month before my trip, TSA agents had been going without pay due to a delay in Homeland Security funding. According to the news, airport travel was growing more chaotic as some agents quit and others simply stopped showing up. I don’t blame them one bit.

Just a few days before I left, Trump stationed ICE agents in select U.S. airports to “help” with airport logistics.

I had a direct flight from Lima to Orlando. I wasn’t sure what I would face at customs when I arrived, so I turned off Face ID on my phone and kept the reason for my trip off social media until I was safely on U.S. soil.

Customs was a breeze. A machine snapped a quick photo of my face and I was waved through. No passport check, no questions, no phone surveillance.

The Protest

My daughters and I chose the rally at Orlando City Hall. We headed over about 45 minutes before the noon start time to secure a parking spot and arrived with twenty minutes to spare. Plenty of people were already there.

The crowd grew quickly. Protesters divided their time between lining the curbs as motorists honked and gave thumbs up, admiring and photographing each other’s signs, and cooling off in the shade.

Here are some of my favorite signs:

There wasn’t quite the fired-up energy I had expected. The speeches were infrequent and the chants didn’t have much staying power, but the atmosphere was completely positive. I never felt unsafe. A dozen or so police officers kept watch from across the street, present enough to matter but hands-off enough to let us do our thing.

The only discordant note was five Trump supporters with a sign claiming Trump loves us. Besides them, we were all on the same page.

Returning to Lima

My flight back to Lima from Orlando routed me through Miami. Having heard warnings about long security waits at U.S. airports, I arrived four hours before my departure. It took all of 45 minutes to get through security, and there wasn’t an ICE agent in sight, despite the conflicting information I found online.

I planned to make use of my Capital One Priority Pass lounge access, but that wasn’t happening. The airport and the lounges were teeming with travelers thanks to expected delays and spring break. I settled for an overpriced beer while I passed the time.

Will I Attend Future Protests?

It would be wonderful if these protests were no longer necessary. But if the need is still there, I will do what I can to show up, even if that means attending in another country.

Steve and I headed to Europe in April and will go to Asia later in the year. A trip back to the U.S. from either place would be far more expensive and time-consuming than my hop from Lima, so I will look for events closer to wherever we are.

No Kings rallies have already taken place in European cities including Paris, Rome, and London. In countries that actually have a king, the name was fittingly changed to No Tyrants.

Thoughts on No Kings 3

The Orlando rallies were all stationary, and honestly, I would have preferred a march. I’ll keep that in mind when looking for future events.

As we walked to City Hall, one of my daughters said she was worried that people on the street might take issue with our signs. It was a fair concern, but there was none of that.

I was disappointed by the lack of diversity at the rally, though I completely understand why people of color might be hesitant to attend given the current climate.

The estimated turnout of 8 million fell short of the 11 to 12 million that would represent 3.5% of the U.S. population (see FAQ), but it was still the largest No Kings protest yet.

No Kings rallies are designed to be peaceful, upbeat protests, and I’m happy to say that the millions who turned out on March 28th held to that principle. I especially love the lightheartedness of the costumes some people wore.

Was it Worth the Trip?

Absolutely!

I got to participate in a critical political event with the bonus of spending the weekend with my daughters.

I cannot just sit back and complain about the current regime, although I do plenty of that too. I have to do what I can to fight it, and Indivisible and their No Kings events make that easy.

Each one of us could have stayed home. Each one of us could have said one person doesn’t matter. Each one of us could have said protests don’t make a difference. Instead, we showed up!

FAQ

Until Next Time

I hope you found this post informative and inspiring. I would love to know how you are fighting back at this critical time in U.S. politics. Just drop a comment below.

Happy traveling,
Linda

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