Which is exactly what happened to me yesterday.
Mechanical issues with the plane caused a delay in leaving Chicago, which in turn caused me to miss my flight from Newark to Barcelona. Which also caused my sweet mamma to have to go alone. I was just sick.
Along the way, nobody, and I do mean NOBODY at United Airlines was ONE BIT OF HELP. I got a lot of “too bad, so sad.” They booked me into a hotel last night in Newark, that ended up having NO ROOMS AVAILABLE. I was transferred to the Wyndham Gardens at the airport. In case you were ever thinking of staying there, PLEASE DON’T. What a PIT! The GROSSEST hotel I’ve ever stayed at. Mold in the shower and no hot water were just a couple of the lovely amenities.
The soonest that United said they could get me to Barcelona was Saturday morning. In other words, the flight I was supposed to take last night I’m taking tonight.
The gross hotel was gracious enough to give me a late check out (my flight isn’t until 7:30 tonight). And by “late check out” I mean 1:00 this afternoon. Thanks....awesome....great...
Starting last night I spent my time and energy trying to contact SOMEONE, ANYONE from United that would help. Each and every person emailed me a link to their customer service website and said “Send an email, someone will respond within 30 days”. Really? Not so friendly skies...
I eventually got the email address for the CEO and within an hour, I had a phone call. They profusely apologized for everything, arranged for me to spend the remainder of the day at the United Polaris Lounge and would upgrade a future trip. But FLAT OUT REFUSED to upgrade for this trip. Insanity.
I made my way back to Newark airport around 2:00 and have been pleasantly ensconced in the lounge ever since. It truly is nice to see how the other half lives....
I started with a rum and coke and opted for the burger. I hadn’t eaten since dinner last night. While United provided meal vouchers last night, there was no food available at the hotel. The burger was amazing
For dessert, I opted for the Apple Fritters with Vanilla Bean ice cream.
After dessert, I made my way over to the seating area. Low and behold, they also have a buffet!!!
All I can say is that the other half certainly knows how to do it right...
I’ll hang out here until the flight starts boarding at 6:30. United was gracious enough to refund the money I’d paid for my Economy Plus seat as well as a $75 voucher for a future flight. Just don’t really know how soon I’ll be wanting to book anything with United.
Now, before anyone goes saying I’m all “High Maintenance” let me tell you something...I totally am and fully admit in. But in this case, my whole issue is with how my mother was treated.
My mother asked United last night if she could wait for me rather than fly alone. They flat out refused. That’s my biggest issue.
She was able to find the person doing our hotel transfer without a problem. Bless his heart, he was SO kind to her. He dialed his phone right away and let her speak with me (granted, it was 3:30 in the morning my time). Poor sweet mamma was in tears. She felt SO bad for everything that had happened. All I cared about was that SHE was okay!
Sweet mamma made it to the hotel fine. Upon arrival (around 10:00 AM) they got her into her room right away...even upgraded her! And let her know that whenever I arrived they’d make sure I had access to the room. There are kind people in this world (not that any of them work for United).
Well, only two more hours of the high life before my flight to Barcelona. Here’s hoping for smooth skies and an on time departure!
Thanks for following along!
