Check your airline reservations!

[Casey2]

We will be on the Radiance of the Seas in September. We booked our flight on American Airlines in January. Our original flight out of Vancouver was sheduled and confirmed for 1:30. About a month later I checked our reservation on line only to find the flight had been cancelled and we had been put on a 7 AM flight. We were never notified of the change. I called to tell them that 7:00 is no good and we were given reservations for a 12:20 flight. I periodically checked the reservation and on Monday, I found the flight was cancelled and we were back on the 7AM flight. Again we were not notified of the change. When I called I was informed that all flights to NY were cancelled except for the 7 AM flight so we have to stay the night in Vancouver and leave the next day (we are already staying 3 nights pre-cruise). Now I have to get a reservation for another night. The airline never apologized for the lack of notification. I strongly urge everyone to periodically check their reservations.

 

Carnival Victory 7/06

Star Princess 11/04

Radiance of the Seas 9/17/05

[calee]

I strongly agree Casey......our Seattle return flight was cancelled and replaced by an earlier flight but US Airways notified us via email. American Airlines is dropping the ball by not notifying ticketed passengers of changes.

[Mike2131]

For our Alaska cruisetour in 2003, we found out the day before our flight to Fairbanks. We got it straightened away only to find out the next morning nothing was set. It took all morning to get to fixed (with new routing). We finally got to Fairbanks at about 1:00 AM. What a nightmare - but we made it!

 

In December, we flew in the night before. Except for the Constellation this upcoming November (a "local" departure for us), that will be our plan from now on.

[Time2sail]

On the Holland America Board, the posts have been that all the airlines are making equipment changes or seat changes or time changes. Hope everyone keeps a check on their flights.

 

All three changes have happened to us since January. If you do not call Delta and confirm your seats, they become "unassigned."

 

You have to wonder what is going to happen to those cruisers who don't use a computer or read these boards. Hope they have a TA checking for them.

[Nliedel]

For some reasons airlines always change their schedules in the spring and fall, usually about "daylight savings time" changes. Always check your reservations. The airlines are supposed to notify passengers, this does not always happen. This has been going on for thirty years, at least, that I know of. I used to have to make calls every spring and fall when I was a TA.

[JoanneF]

American did the same to us for 6/29/05. We are going a day ahead so we can spend the day in Vancouver. We got bumped to a different flight which wasted the day. I called and told them that we would miss the cruise. They rebooked us under RULE 240. This means that you have a connection to a cruise ship and they leave the reservation alone. I've been checking and then our return times got changed and our seats were separated. When the times changed, it only gave us 30 min to make a connection at another terminal, so they fixed it. I'm constantly checking now!

Joanne

[ripleysmom]

We're flying JetBlue out of NY into Seattle. There has only been one change so far and were notified of it promptly.

[wrp96]

American has a bad habit of not notifying people or transferring you to unworkable flights. I was flying to San Diego last year with 2 other members of my family (not to a cruise) when 6 hours before my flight they called to tell me my San Diego flight had been cancelled. The agent told me she could fly me on NW but it wouldn't get me in until 8 o'clock that night (14 hours after we were supposed to arrive with us still leaving Little Rock at the same time as our AA flight). It wouldn't work because we were going to a graduation that afternoon which I told her. She put me on hold supposedly to call other airlines but hung up on me. I called American back myself. In the meantime I had called family members who were calling Delta and had pulled up the internet. After 45 minutes on hold, American called again to tell me that my Little Rock DFW flight was cancelled also (the original agent only said my DFW-SAN flight) and gave me the same spiel about Northwest. I told the agent that Delta had seats through Atlanta available but she said they didn't (Delta was showing 3 1st class seats available to book on the internet). I called her on it because other family members were talking to Delta about the available seats. Suddenly our Little Rock DFW flight wasn't cancelled, only our DFW-SAN flight, and they could put us on a Delta flight out of DFW. When we got to the airport the next morning our LIT-DFW flight was oversold by 3 seats, which is why they tried to tell us it was cancelled. The funny part is that I was traveling on the voucher they had given me when I voluntarily allowed myself to be bumped coming back from San Diego the last time when they had cancelled a flight from San Diego to St. Louis.

 

I do have to give credit to AA, though, for getting me home from my last cruise when I missed my flight. RCCI was supposed to help me rebook but the agent told me he was too busy. A nice AA agent took pity on this young, single female traveling by herself and put me in business class.

 

My 2nd cruise Delta changed the itinerary 4 times (2 times each way) but we were always notified. On the back there was a last minute equipment change but it worked in our favor with us getting better seats. No matter the reason you are flying though you should always call and confirm your reservation more than once.

[cruisincarly]

I was notified of a change in my flight out to Alaska recently by telephone AND email (email was from orbitz).....fairly unnecessary, however, as the flight only changed by 10 minutes. Odd.

[KFH]

Our Alaska Airlines flights were changed. Small time change, but one of the flight numbers changed and the seats had to be reassigned. I didn't notice an email from them, I just was checking my trip online and it said that it changed.

[WASUP]

American changed us in March after we booked in February and we got the notice, when I went on the web site and saw the reservations times had changed, it changed going out by over 2 hours and we missed the next connection and on and on. So I told them that there was a rule that if they changed nmore then an hour and a half, I coule change the reservation to a time and airport of my choosing, so I did, changed the airport to a closer one to me and a flight that we made our connection..they were very nice and there was no charge, but I had to do the calling.

[katiel53]

Orbitz notifies their clients every time there is a change. I am really pleased that they do that. My dad was in Austin Tx, and his flight was delayed and they called his cell to notify him.(Even though he was already at the airport) When his flight was cancelled, they automatically booked him on another flight, so when he went to the ticket agent, she told him he was already booked. I'd rather get 100 notifications with only flight number changes or times of a few minutes than not get the one that really makes a big difference. Another thing Orbitz does is confirm all flights 3 days before the trip. I think that's great.

 

Katie

[Host Caroline]

Both Orbitz and Travlelocity are very good about notifying of changes.. didn't particularly like the first change they made to our return from Seattle, then airline "fixed it" (sort of).. I've gotten better customer service on these sites than directly through the airlines.. If flight times change to cut your time close to airport on return be sure and call airline or whomever you booked with right away. Also check directly with cruise line and see what their "earliest recommended departure" is from a particular port to airport.

[imacruizer]

Thanks so much for your suggestion. I checked our reservation on American and they had changed our flight allowing only 30 minutes between planes in Dallas. I was able to call and get on an earlier flight that gives us more time in Dallas. Thanks again!