Plot

A Chicago advertising man must struggle to travel home from New York for Thanksgiving, with a lovable oaf of a shower-curtain-ring salesman as his only companion.

All that Neal Page wants to do is to get home for Thanksgiving. When bad weather cancels his flight, he decides on other means of transportation. As well as bad luck, Neal is blessed with the presence of Del Griffith, shower-curtain-ring salesman and all-around blabbermouth who is never short of advice, conversation, bad jokes, or company. And when he decides that he is going the same direction as Neal..—Murray Chapman <muzzle@cs.uq.oz.au>

In New York, marketing executive Neal Page wants to travel home to Chicago for Thanksgiving. He has difficulties getting a taxi and his flight is canceled. He meets in the airport clumsy, talkative shower-curtain-ring salesman Del Griffith, who has taken his cab and they travel side-by-side to Chicago. However, the bad weather shuts down O'Hare Airport and they land at Wichita, Kansas. They both want to go to Chicago and they decide to travel together. Along their journey Neal changes his viewpoint about Del Griffith and his own behavior.—Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Neal Page is an advertising executive on a business trip in New York City, eager to return to his family in Chicago two days before Thanksgiving. Neal Page (Steve Martin) is in New York trying to finalize a marketing image for a cosmetics client. After several hours of not even getting the design finalized, the client in charge Mr. Bryant (William Windom) says that they'll continue after the holidays. Neal heads off to the airport as he is already late to catch his 6 pm flight to Chicago. Though as it's the beginning of the Thanksgiving rush and everyone is leaving work, Neal is unable to find a cab after he races another man (Kevin Bacon) to a vacant taxi and loses out when he trips over some luggage at the sidewalk. Just when he thinks he's found one (he pays a man $75 to take his taxi), someone else seems to 'steal' it out from under him, as the taxi driver was getting impatient, and this man loads his luggage into the cab and drives away.

Finally making his way to the airport on public bus (only to find that the flight is delayed), Neal runs into the same guy waiting for the same flight as him. The man jovially introduces himself as Del Griffith (John Candy), a seller of shower curtain rings. Already in a bad mood, Neal is hardly up for any of Del's good-nature ribbing or jokes. Del realizes his mistake and apologizes to Neal for stealing his cab. Things don't get any better when Neal's flight is delayed, and he's bumped from 1st Class to Coach. And just as before, his path crosses with Del, who ends up sitting next to him on the plane.

Unfortunately, due to heavy snow in Chicago, the flight is diverted to Wichita, KS. The flight is canceled soon after, and Neal is forced to face facts that there are no more hotel rooms available in the city. Neal tells his wife, Susan (Laila Robins), all about what happened. Neal had promised Susan that he would be home by 9 PM, but now he would only be home by the following day.

Being polite Del agrees to help him find a room where he's staying if Neal will pay for the cab fare. Del says that the minute he got off the plane, he called the hotel to book a room as he knew that the flight would be canceled. The cab driver is an oddball named Dooby (Larry Hankin)

Upon reaching their hotel, only one room with a Queen-size bed is available. During check-in, however, Del mistakenly takes Neal's credit card and Vice Versa. The hotel is owned by Gus Mooney (Charles Tyner). Neal quickly grows annoyed with Del's habits and hygiene (he snores loudly, makes loud sinus clearing noises all night), and soon after lashes out at him and him dull and boring. Del is hurt by this, but calmly holds his ground that while he may seem annoying, he still is a nice guy. Neal concedes, and the two eventually fall asleep. While they sleep, a burglar (Gary Riley) steals their cash.

The next day, air travel still prohibitively delayed. While eating at the hotel's diner, they find that their money has been stolen, most likely by someone who stole into their room in the middle of the night. Del suggests that they just use charge cards to get home. He also suggests using the train to get to Chicago, only to learn that Wichita does not use passenger trains. After hitching a ride to Stubbville, they manage to get on a train. However, as the train passes through Missouri, the main engine breaks down, and the passengers are forced to find other transportation.

Del and Neal then take a bus, which gets them as far as St Louis. Neal takes pity on Del struggling with his trunk, and they reunite, traveling on a crowded bus to St. Louis, where Del raises cash by selling curtain rings to passers-by as earrings. Still uncomfortable with Del, Neal suggests they part ways. Neal heads to the St Louis airport to rent a car, only to find that the car he rented is not there! Angrily, he throws away the rental agreement. After a long and perilous walk back to the terminal, he vents his anger in a profane tirade at the rental agent to no avail (since he had thrown away the rental agreement, he had no proof of the booking). He attempts to book a taxi to Chicago but impatiently insults the dispatcher, who then punches him in the face.

On his way out of the airport, he again runs into Del, who has obtained a rental car. Late in the night, Del ends up getting mixed up, and almost kills himself and Neal by going the wrong way on the highway. Shortly afterward, a cigarette that Del had not put out ignites in the car, setting the passenger compartment aflame along with Neal's wallet which was stuck in the glove compartment. Neal initially gloats, thinking that Del is liable for the damage, until Del reveals he had found Neal's credit card in his wallet and used it to rent the car, much to his ire.

After getting the fire out, the two make their way to a hotel. With his credit cards destroyed in the fire, Neal barters his expensive watch for a motel room, but Del is not so lucky. They share Del's collection of miniature liquors and laugh about the events of the past two days. The next day, the pair resumes their trip in the burnt car, but the Illinois State Police (Michael McKean) impounds it for being Unroadworthy. Del persuades a trucker to take them to Chicago, and they ride in the truck's refrigerated trailer with driver Owen Mooney (Dylan Baker).

Finally arriving in Chicago on Thanksgiving Day, Neal and Del part ways, with Neal grateful for Del's help. On the elevated train system, Neal thinks about Del, carting around his large trunk, and remembers him saying he hadn't been home in years. Returning to the station, Neal finds Del sitting by himself. Del admits that his wife Marie has been dead for 8 years, and he has nowhere to go. Neal then brings Del home with him for Thanksgiving Dinner, and Del is overjoyed to meet Neal's family.

Mr. Bryant is still in the office alongside a half-eaten Thanksgiving dinner, still trying to decide on a poster.