Sep 20th, 2010 at 9:30AM: You've boarded a flight and you're feeling pretty relaxed sitting in that big comfy first class seat. Sucka, you think to yourself as a couple of passengers check you out on their way to coach. Glancing at your watch, you wonder where the heck the flight attendant is because you're dying of thirst and shouldn't she be offering drinks right about now!
Predepartures. That's what flight attendants ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
customerservice posts
Galley Gossip: 5 reasons flight attendants don't serve first class predeparture beverages
Sep 20th, 2010 at 9:30AM: You've boarded a flight and you're feeling pretty relaxed sitting in that big comfy first class seat. Sucka, you think to yourself as a couple of passengers check you out on their way to coach. Glancing at your watch, you wonder where the heck the flight attendant is because you're dying of thirst and shouldn't she be offering drinks right about now!
Predepartures. That's what flight attendants ...Why don't airlines call us customers?
Sep 17th, 2010 at 2:00PM: Language shapes reality – there's no way around it. It is evident in the general absence of profanity in children (at least in front of their parents), forgoing certain expressions except among friends (or, for some people, completely) and the selection of particular phrases for impact. Words have meaning, and thus they have power. So, it makes sense for a major company or industry to ...Airlines: Take the poor off the plane
Sep 10th, 2010 at 8:00AM: My recent post on passenger rudeness and airline employee customer service generated a considerable amount of discussion. What really struck me was the number of readers who cited the overlapping factors of deregulation, lower fares and increasingly crowded flights. Basically, because flights are cheaper, more people can afford them, and service levels can't be sustained in light of both increased ...Call at night for the most personalized service - Hotel tip
Aug 8th, 2010 at 11:07AM: If you're a night owl, and have a lot of questions about your upcoming hotel stay, the best time to call the hotel for details is around midnight. Because the hotel is likely to be less busy during these times, you will likely receive more focused service.
This may also a great time to ask questions about the surrounding city.
[Photo: Flickr | StephenMitchell] ...Big Island Hawaii: Four Seasons Hualalai hotel review
Jan 12th, 2010 at 11:00AM:
As a budget traveler, I've always been averse to spending much more than $150 per night on a hotel room. I've always figured, "it's just a room" and that aside from a comfortable bed in a quiet, clean building, I didn't really need more much. I never thought I would consider spending $500 for a single night in a hotel. But all that changed when I stayed at the Four Seasons Hualalai on ...United plans for new image overhaul
Nov 25th, 2009 at 12:00PM: After coming in last among large airlines in customer satisfaction surveys for two out of the last three years, United Airlines has been overhauling its operations in an effort to increase on-time performance and win back customers. Now the airline is working on the physical appearance of its planes and crew.
Every single one of the airplanes in United's fleet will be getting a make-over. The ...Greyhound customer service delivers after bus heads wrong way for more than 70 miles
Nov 20th, 2009 at 2:30PM: When the five people who ranged from an R& B singer moving to NYC to seek her fortune-- to a young man trying to get to Hartford, Connecticut and his sick grandmother as quickly as possible, sidled up to the Greyhound ticket counter in Port Authority bus terminal in Manhattan, they weren't itching for a fight. What they wanted was some compensation for their Greyhound induced travel woes. ...Travel professionals: stop going the extra mile
Nov 6th, 2009 at 9:00AM: It sounds counterintuitive, right? Normally, customers expect that extra effort, and we complain constantly that we don't get it enough. What we sometimes don't understand, though, is that the extra effort is at the root of many of the customer service problems we encounter. Going the extra mile at the wrong time can be a disaster.
I remember a case presented at a conference I attended back in ...Five ways to spot awful customer service
Oct 14th, 2009 at 8:00AM:
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When I think I might have problems with patience, my wife is always happy to confirm it for me. Since I hate to wait in line, expect employees to know what they are doing and always be having a good day (at least as far as I can see), my standards are ...British Airways computer glitch posts super low cost flights to India
Oct 5th, 2009 at 4:00PM:
Late Friday night, an alert went out on Twitter. Fares to Mumbai, India, from locations all over the US were being offered at rock bottom prices on British Airways. Flights from Chicago to Mumbai were just $550 per person.
I quickly logged on to Orbitz, selected my dates, and clicked purchase. I received an email from Orbitz confirming my purchase and then got to work planning the trip. My ...Air France knows how to treat customers right: Tips for other airlines
Sep 18th, 2009 at 12:00PM: There's plenty to kvetch about when it comes to flying. Every time I book a flight, I continue to look at the arrival and departure times as merely suggestions--a rough idea. I plan to be late. I plan for problems. In generally, I am pleasantly surprised and achieve a warm glowing feeling when flights land on time. In all the times I've flown, I've never lost baggage. Baggage has never been my ...Need help? If you're flying Delta, look for the red coats.
Jul 29th, 2009 at 3:30PM: As much as I'm displeased about Delta's new policy to charge $5 more for bags checked at the airport , I do have to say I was pleased with how friendly the gate people were on each leg of our flights to New Mexico and back this month.
I think the people I came across are naturally pleasant, but Delta is making extra efforts to ensure passengers feel as if they can get great service from a real ...US Airways customer service director: À la carte fees are the only way forward
May 8th, 2009 at 11:00AM: John Romantic is the director of customer relations and central baggage resolution at US Airways. But he'd prefer that you simply think of him as your advocate at the airline. For the last nine months, he's had the unenviable job of improving the carrier's checkered reputation for customer service. I asked him how he's doing it. Q: I've been hearing a lot of buzz about some of the changes within ...Heathrow annoying, Americans rude according to some social network
Feb 22nd, 2009 at 5:00PM: The members of social network Where Are you Now? have spoken! Heathrow is the worst airport in the world, according to voters, thanks to passport control lines and baggage problems. The Brits don't get all the glory, though. JFK in New York and Los Angeles picked up spots #2 and #3, respectively. The good news, for Heathrow and JFK, at least, is that both were at the top of the list for security. ...Lawsuit leaves airline feeling blue
Jan 18th, 2009 at 1:00PM: Bill Baker was mad. This crotchety blogger was so pissed at JetBlue that he took the airline to small claims court. On January 16, 2009, victory was sweet, to the tune of $494. The money, he says, will be donated to charity. Clearly, one lone nut blogger can make a difference. JetBlue delayed Baker's red-eye flight from Portland, OR to New York for five hours, before announcing the cancellation ...An open letter to US Airways
Jan 8th, 2009 at 10:30AM: I just got back from spending a week visiting a friend in Puerto Rico. Considering I am tan, well-rested and had perfect weather, I guess it was a successful trip. But it was almost derailed from the very beginning when US Airways lost my luggage.
You see, I was forced to check my luggage because the overhead compartments were full. When I asked the US Airways representative why people in our ...How to 'executive bomb' US Airways
Jan 21st, 2008 at 11:00AM: So normally it's not wise to utter the word "bomb" in the same breath when you're talking about flying. But what to do if you've had a horrible experience with an airline, and customer service just won't help you out? Last week I posted about the five worst airlines in the US, which got a lot of comments. One of the readers wrote in about getting screwed on US Airways when he did them a favor and ...The five worst US airlines
Jan 17th, 2008 at 2:00PM: These rankings are straight from the US government (courtesy of the Department of Transportation), so at least they're not entirely biased. Based off the number of complaints, the five worst US airlines are Northwest, Delta, United, American, and US Airways (being the worst). None of this is especially surprising, other than maybe that complaints are surging--as usual. But what is surprising is ...
