Wednesday, December 2, 2009

United Airlines messes with my Rolex itinerary!

A few weeks ago I purchased my 2010 Rolex 3 day airline tickets through Orbitz.com. I loved my flight arrangements -- good pricing, good connecting flights, short overall travel time. It was the perfect itinerary. Emphasis on was.

Since **show jumping ends at 3pm Sunday**, I had plenty of time to make the 22 minute drive to the airport to make my 6pm flight that evening.

Except...
Over the Thanksgiving weekend United Airlines emailed me an alert that they changed my Sunday flight out from 6pm to 12:50pm.

12:50PM Sunday.
12:50PM Sunday?
12:50PM Sunday! Nooooooo!

That pretty much means I'd miss day 3 of the 3 day event! To add insult to injury, the connecting flight was unchanged, giving me a 5 hour layover.

My call(s) to Orbitz...
Orbitz basically told me that United had cancelled my Sunday flight. I could only choose another United flight, AND I might need to pay more. Gee, thanks.

My options:
  1. Miss part of the show jumping, take a 5:10 flight with TWO connecting flights. If the planets are aligned and all goes as planned, I'm home by midnight :-(
  2. Wait to see if another flight opens up -- to do this I'll need to keep checking for new flights. And any new flight might also be cancelled, just like the first one.
  3. Cancel the flight, get $490 back, and rent a car. Drive down to Lexington and back, get home Sunday around midnight :-(.
The final blow is that if I choose ANY other flight (option 1 or 2) I lose my ability to a) get a refund and b) change the flight if the new flight is cancelled.

To be honest, I've SO HAD IT with flying and the fees for baggage and the restrictions on carry-ons and the late/cancelled flights, I'm leaning toward #3. What do you think?

16 comments:

  1. JeanDecember 2, 2009 at 5:45 PM

    Darn, at this point, I'd be inclined to drive down too. Just because you booked through Orbitz doesn't mean they can shuffle you around like that, does it? Missing the important part of the competition is a NO GO!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. LeahDecember 2, 2009 at 6:46 PM

    Vote with your wallet - #3!

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  3. wilsoncDecember 2, 2009 at 6:57 PM

    I say sue the bastards...but I don't think that was an option. I would probably drive. I hate the airlines crap.

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  4. DressagerDecember 2, 2009 at 8:05 PM

    Rent a SmartCar. You'd get great gas mileage (mine gets 50 the gallon on average)! And you get to see more than if you were just flying! You get to do things on your own time, no baggage fees, etc. We always drive when we go vacationing, it's so much more interesting.

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  5. AnonymousDecember 2, 2009 at 8:33 PM

    I'd drive, but that might be partly because I flew so much when I was a military spouse I think I've used up my good flying mojo!

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  6. MichelleDecember 3, 2009 at 7:59 AM

    Do the drive! You didn't say how far it was, but it's probably worth it. You can have more flexibility and be in control of when you come/go. But do you need to worry about driving conditions and weather? That might be a factor, if you have to travel through the mountains to get there.

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  7. eventer79December 3, 2009 at 8:45 AM

    Cancel the flight. After many Rolexes, I can tell you, don't miss Sunday! (although it will probably be raining, it always rains on Sunday) The drive will be worth it.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Emily M.December 3, 2009 at 9:10 AM

    If you drive, you can fit a lot more shopping items in the car for the ride home. And I hear the deals to be had on Sunday are great.

    ReplyDelete
  9. xeyedmaryDecember 3, 2009 at 9:31 AM

    Definitely #3, especially if you go shopping- you won't face more extra baggage fees

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  10. MargDecember 3, 2009 at 2:11 PM

    I think #3 certainly is the answer. Much more convenient and you can leave whenever you want to leave. Hope you have a great time.

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  11. The Equus InkDecember 3, 2009 at 3:30 PM

    I say three too. Imagine all the bags you could stuff into the car verses the limitations on the plane. Plus miss even part of day three??! No way!

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  12. Stacey Kimmel-SmithDecember 3, 2009 at 3:34 PM

    My reservations are CANCELLED! My Orbitz experience was not too impressive -- on hold for about 30 minutes (not all at once), transferred to Cheaptickets.com by accident, horrible connection with a rep who was frustrated that I could not hear her (SHE was frustrated).

    21 BUSINESS days to get my $500 back. 21 days!

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  13. AnonymousDecember 4, 2009 at 12:07 AM

    I would always rather drive than fly. I hate the whole airport, airplane thing!
    Jane

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  14. A Bay HorseDecember 4, 2009 at 10:17 AM

    Wow that totally stinks. Ya I would have chosen to drive too at that point. Plus you'll be able to stop places and shop, eat, potty, whatever on your own.

    What a bad review for Orbitz too. I'll avoid them based on this!

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  15. Once Upon an EquineDecember 4, 2009 at 11:21 AM

    How fun! I have a pair of 30 year old breeches too. Haven't tried them on, but I doubt they go past my knees...sigh.

    ReplyDelete
  16. UnknownDecember 5, 2009 at 12:30 AM

    This is why I fly Southwest.

    ReplyDelete

Hi Guys, Your comments are valued and appreciated -- until recently I never rejected a post. Please note that I reserve the right to reject an anonymous post.