Some Steelers fans reconsidering travel to Paris amid riots: "Roll of the dice"

While many people are moving forward with trips to Paris to see the Steelers play the Saints, there are some fans reconsidering amid civil unrest. 

Chris Slagle travels from Canonsburg for every Steelers game as a season ticket holder, and when the Paris ones were released, he quickly bought them for him and his girlfriend.

"The Steeler game for us was certainly a big bonus, but it wasn't the only thing we wanted to do," Slagle said.

He said they were looking forward to exploring the city and all it has to offer.

"Neither of us have been to Europe before, anywhere in Europe, so it's something that at this point in our lives we want to start doing more of," Slagle said.

They were planning to fly out Thursday, but then they started thinking hard about changing their plans as they followed the news and saw protests turning violent across France.

"For the amount of money that we're going to spend to go over there and stay, it's kind of a roll of the dice in my opinion," Slagle said. 

Slagle said it wasn't a gamble worth taking, so they decided to contact their travel agent and switch their trip to Madrid and Barcelona, still wanting to enjoy their time off.

They're not the only ones. Ian Petrulli with Holiday Travel International said a few have canceled their trips through his office, but he's encouraging others to hold off, as demonstrations largely have been a distance from the arena.

"Just be aware of your surroundings and check the State Department's website," Petrulli said. "Things like this do happen in Europe quite often, so at least you know once or twice a year it's happening somewhere in Europe, so it's not all that of a surprise for something like this to be going on."

For those who want to adjust their plans, you may have options. Airline-only tickets are easy to change, but accommodations have their own terms, with many non-refundable. Travelers' insurance also may not help.

"Fear of the unknown usually isn't an excuse for travel insurance," Petrulli said.

If you want to go somewhere else, that could be possible, depending on your airline.

As for Slagle, it's been a challenge to sell his tickets, but he knows pivoting was the right decision for him and he's wishing the best for all in Paris.

"I honest to god hope I'm wrong, and that everything goes off without a hitch, and everybody going over there has a blast," Slagle said.