- john gMay 25, 2015 at 7:20 PMHello, have you had the opportunity to use this ticket yet? Many negative posts making me most concerned about my ticket.
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Sorry for the delay in getting back to you John, but Blogger does not notify me when I have new comments.
There are no problems with the tickets. You get what you pay for, but my concerns were strictly with the website interface and lack of options available. In this case, we saved a couple hundred dollars by using Justfly.com, so it was worth the inconvenience of having to visit two airline websites (Brussels Airlines to and Lufthansa from Europe) to enter frequent flyer information, choose seats, and otherwise manage the reservations. I recommend comparing the lowest fares on JustFly to those found on Kayak.com and other consolidator websites (where you can store your frequent flyer numbers and preferences) before making a decision.
I would not be concerned about your ticket.
Thanks for the great question! - Title: CombatCritic Q&A: Should I be concerned about the ticket I purchased on JustFly.com?
- Key Words: question and answer, question, answer, CombatCritic, TravelValue, JustFly.com, JustFly, airline, ticket, reservation, consolidator, website, online, review
In "TravelValue: Airlines" CombatCritic reviews restaurants, hotels, and attractions around KC! World traveler ... 41 countries and counting; Amateur chef ... studied for 3 years in Pozzuoli, Italy; Published author ... editorials, articles, popular blogs, and an upcoming book! On the Front Lines in the Battle Against Overpriced Travel, Food, and Accommodation ... Follow Me To TravelValue!
Tuesday, June 9, 2015
CombatCritic Q&A: Should I be concerned about the ticket I purchased on JustFly.com?
Monday, March 30, 2015
JustFly.com Offers A Better Price Than Lufthansa.com, But Little Else
I was taken to JustFly.com's website after searching Kayak, United, Delta, and Lufthansa extensively for fares on an upcoming overseas trip. I was hesitant at first being a unfamiliar website, but I decided to give them a try with the following reservations, pun intended ...
First, people need more information before paying for a reservation, like applicable baggage fees (not just a disclaimer saying "the airline MAY require baggage fees"), to make an informed decision. JustFly does not provide actual fees, only the disclaimer. Fortunately, having flown Lufthansa many times in the past, the carrier for the trip, I knew that the first bag (up to 50 pounds) was free, making the decision a bit easier.
Second, JustFly does not provide a way to enter frequent flyer account information either before or after purchase. I assumed that once registered with their site, I would be able to update my profile with the data, but that was not the case. The only information available for editing on their website are name and email address, no seat or meal preferences, home airport, passport information, or anything else for that matter. The ability to enter frequent flyer and other pertinent personal information once would save customers a lot of time later and help ensure they return to make future purchases.
The only plus was that their price and itinerary were better than I could find even on Lufthansa.com, therefore ...
CombatCritic Gives JustFly.com 4 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!
Read More Reviews By CombatCritic On Yelp And TripAdvisor ... And Don't Forget To Subscribe To TravelValue TV on YouTube
Title: JustFly.com Offers A Better Price Than Lufthansa.com, But Little Else
Key Words: JustFly, Lufthansa, just, fly, airfare, airline, travel, fare, reservation, trip, website, frequent, flyer, miles, value, TravelValue, CombatCritic, critic
Thursday, March 12, 2015
United Airlines: We Don't Care (Sometimes), We Don't Have To (But, Maybe We Want To) ... I'm So Confused!
United Airlines, Inc.
77 W Wacker Dr
Chicago, IL 60601
b/t Lower Wacker Dr & Michigan Ave in The Loop
I do not usually write reviews so many weeks or months after the fact, but being in India for four months where Yelp did not yet exist, I felt compelled to add my two cents.
My first two of three United flights to Delhi were both two hours late and I had to rush through Frankfurt Airport to catch my final flight after already spending close to 20 hours traveling (with 7+ yet to go). I somehow made it!
However, when I recently checked my mileage balance on United.com, my final leg still had not been added to my balance, requiring me to submit a request that still has not been answered.
Airlines in general, and United in particular, just do not care about customer service because they do not have to. They know that most of us will probably purchase the cheapest fare, so it will only be a matter of time before we return even if their service is pitiful, which it usually is ... rude check-in and gate agents, aggressive flight attendants, and poor on-time departure/arrival record ... they should change their motto to: "United Airlines,We Don't Care, We Don't Have To"
As my India trip neared its end, I have to say that United came through with flying colors.
When one of my wife's return flights in mid-January was rescheduled, leaving her a 30 minute layover to clear immigration/customs, re-check her bag, and get to the next gate (IMPOSSIBLE), we contacted United and were quickly dismissed ... "sorry"! But when we got our travel insurance company involved, they were able to change her flights and get her home in time to attend a meeting at work the following morning.
The saga continued ...
I received a call in early February, three weeks prior to my scheduled departure, informing me that my 84-year old mother had been hospitalized and was not doing well. I contacted my travel insurance company (Allianz Global Assistance/AGA Service Company /Jefferson Insurance Company) thinking that they would be as professional as my wife's, but after 12+ hours of being ignored (on their 24/7 Hotline), I contacted United reservations in New Delhi. They were not extremely helpful, but when I was finally transferred to an American employee, she was outstanding. She quickly found me a flight two days later (i had to get from Southern India to Delhi the next day) and WAIVED THE $300 CHANGE FEE ... without even asking. I was able to get home to see my mother and spend a couple days of quality time before she passed away on 2/12/2015. At that point I was much happier with United.
and continued ...
Then, just three weeks after my mother passed, my wife received word that her father had suddenly died in Naples, Italy where he and her mom live. I logged-in to my United account to search for "bereavement fares", but even though a link appeared in the search results, there was no such information on their website. It turned out that United discontinued their bereavement fares at some point in the recent past. When I called United Customer Care, a deceiving term, I was connected with their offshore "care" center in Manilla, Phillippines where I was quoted $4000 for a single ticket ... $1600 more than the cheapest fare available on Kayak.com and $2350 more than we eventually paid Delta airlines. Thanks for your compassion United!
I had been prepared to give United 6, 7, even 8, Bombs (3 to 4 stars) because of the recent positive experiences detailed above, but finding out post de facto that 15,000 of the 20,000 miles from the US to India and back I paid dearly for were not eligible for frequent flyer credits (K Class) and the $4000 quote for a last-minute bereavement fare changed my mind. So, I will now have to downgrade my previous ratings ...
CombatCritic Gives United Airlines 3 Out Of 10 Bombs With Room To Grow Or Recede Further ... More Bombs Are Better!
My first two of three United flights to Delhi were both two hours late and I had to rush through Frankfurt Airport to catch my final flight after already spending close to 20 hours traveling (with 7+ yet to go). I somehow made it!
However, when I recently checked my mileage balance on United.com, my final leg still had not been added to my balance, requiring me to submit a request that still has not been answered.
Airlines in general, and United in particular, just do not care about customer service because they do not have to. They know that most of us will probably purchase the cheapest fare, so it will only be a matter of time before we return even if their service is pitiful, which it usually is ... rude check-in and gate agents, aggressive flight attendants, and poor on-time departure/arrival record ... they should change their motto to: "United Airlines,We Don't Care, We Don't Have To"
As my India trip neared its end, I have to say that United came through with flying colors.
When one of my wife's return flights in mid-January was rescheduled, leaving her a 30 minute layover to clear immigration/customs, re-check her bag, and get to the next gate (IMPOSSIBLE), we contacted United and were quickly dismissed ... "sorry"! But when we got our travel insurance company involved, they were able to change her flights and get her home in time to attend a meeting at work the following morning.
The saga continued ...
I received a call in early February, three weeks prior to my scheduled departure, informing me that my 84-year old mother had been hospitalized and was not doing well. I contacted my travel insurance company (Allianz Global Assistance/AGA Service Company /Jefferson Insurance Company) thinking that they would be as professional as my wife's, but after 12+ hours of being ignored (on their 24/7 Hotline), I contacted United reservations in New Delhi. They were not extremely helpful, but when I was finally transferred to an American employee, she was outstanding. She quickly found me a flight two days later (i had to get from Southern India to Delhi the next day) and WAIVED THE $300 CHANGE FEE ... without even asking. I was able to get home to see my mother and spend a couple days of quality time before she passed away on 2/12/2015. At that point I was much happier with United.
and continued ...
Then, just three weeks after my mother passed, my wife received word that her father had suddenly died in Naples, Italy where he and her mom live. I logged-in to my United account to search for "bereavement fares", but even though a link appeared in the search results, there was no such information on their website. It turned out that United discontinued their bereavement fares at some point in the recent past. When I called United Customer Care, a deceiving term, I was connected with their offshore "care" center in Manilla, Phillippines where I was quoted $4000 for a single ticket ... $1600 more than the cheapest fare available on Kayak.com and $2350 more than we eventually paid Delta airlines. Thanks for your compassion United!
I had been prepared to give United 6, 7, even 8, Bombs (3 to 4 stars) because of the recent positive experiences detailed above, but finding out post de facto that 15,000 of the 20,000 miles from the US to India and back I paid dearly for were not eligible for frequent flyer credits (K Class) and the $4000 quote for a last-minute bereavement fare changed my mind. So, I will now have to downgrade my previous ratings ...
CombatCritic Gives United Airlines 3 Out Of 10 Bombs With Room To Grow Or Recede Further ... More Bombs Are Better!
Read More Reviews By CombatCritic, Including United Airlines, On Yelp And TripAdvisor Along With Many Other Reviews And More!
Title: United Airlines: We Don't Care (Sometimes), We Don't Have To (But, Maybe We Want To) ... I'm Confused!
Key Words: United Airlines, United, Airlines, air, plane, airplane, travel, airport, flight, reservation, agent, customer, service, CombatCritic, TravelValue, Yelp, value
Delta Airlines ... Is "We Don't Care, We Don't Have To" A Thing Of The Past?
Am I just lucky or is Delta Airlines more user friendly than they used to be? Our recent experience has been nothing but pleasant AND SURPRISING after many years of intercontinental travel and an “I could care less about you because you have no other choice” attitude by the vast majority of airlines. If you have flown in the last 25 years, you know exactly what I am talking about.
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| Happy Campers |
It all started when we found a decent airfare for a Christmas trip to Puerto Rico. At $600, more or less, for economy round-trip tickets, we decided that we could afford a few weeks away from the freezing cold and a holiday in the balmy breezes of our tropical Caribbean cousin.
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| View From 1st Class ... Don't Get Used To It! |
When it came time to choose our seats, I was shocked that the first class cabin was an option, so I jumped on seats 1A and 1B! Woo-hoo … could this be a glitch in Delta’s system or were we really getting “premier” seats for the cost of an economy ticket?
The day before departure, I went online to check-in. A relatively simple process, I had done my homework in advance and resigned myself to the fact that we would be paying $25 per bag for luggage. I heard on National Public Radio just the day before that one airline alone had made BILLION$ this year in baggage and other travel related fees. I never realized how lucrative the airlines add-ons actually were prior to that, so it’s no wonder why they changed the rules just a few short years ago. So when check-in was complete and there was NO $25 FEE for our luggage, I thought I had won the lotto … YIPEEEEEE!
The next surprise came when we arrived at the Kansas City International Airport (they can call it “international” because the apparently have one flight to Canada per day) early on Christmas Eve morning. Arriving and hour-and-a-half prior to takeoff, there was no line at the Delta counter and we were greeted by a smiling and friendly agent … was I dreaming?
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| Atlanta, Georgia from 10,00 Feet |
Being retired Air Force and having lived overseas for 9 of my 20-year career, I traveled quite extensively by plane and rarely, if ever, encountered a compassionate agent. The best I could normally hope for would be non-committal or neutral attitude and, at worst, an openly hostile and aggressive personality and “we don’t care, we don’t have to” interaction.
The Delta agent was actually quite friendly and helpful, and we breezed right through check-in in less than five minutes. As we approached the security, the TSA Agent told me “you are pre-screened Mr. Sorrentino, please proceed to the gate (without the usual security hassles – shoes/belt off, computer out of the bag, etc.). I never applied for a TSA clearance, so they must have comped me for having had a Top-Secret Clearance and being a retired lieutenant colonel.
All first-class got us on the flight from Kansas City to Atlanta was early boarding, a couple free bloody Marys, and a piece of pound cake. Gone are the days of Mimosas and filet mignons on domestic flights, but hey, who’s to complain!
After much consideration, I think it was just a fluke, one of those times when the planets simply align and everything goes more smoothly than it is supposed to. Deep down inside I hope that the airlines are finally treating us like humans AND WITH JUST A LITTLE DIGNITY AND RESPECT because, after all, WE PAY THEIR DAMN SALARIES … THANKS FOR THE NICE EXPERIENCE DELTA!
CombatCritic Gives Delta Airlines 8 Out of 10 Bombs (On This Trip – 3 Out of 10 Bombs Overall) … Bombs Are Good!
Title: Delta Airlines ... Is "We Don't Care, We Don't Have To" A Thing Of The Past?
Key Words: Delta, airlines, Delta Airlines, plane, airplane, trip, flight, vacation, customer, first-class, travel, value, TravelValue, CombatCritic, combat, critic
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