Blacklane

[les37b]

4 hours ago, canderson said:

Ah, I see.  So that doesn't show up in the 'activity' section.  What I'm seeing must be the airport to hotel transfer on the 22nd.  This will be our first SS cruise, so we're getting adjusted to a few new procedures.  I assume Blacklane won't know to be expecting our call until after SS Air has finally delivered the air itineraries so we know when we'd likely need to be at the airport and picked up to be brought home?

 

My return to home transfer is also shown with the Seattle departure date, not the arrival home date the following day. Its not a problem I was told and the voucher will simply allowed to be applied with your specific dates once you contact Blacklane.Still not got my email so will chase this morning.

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

13 hours ago, canderson said:

I'm trying to figure out how Blacklane works with airline flights.  I suspect a mistake has been made.

For this (below) to work out, I'd need to be at about Warp 2.5 to make it to Lisbon the same day that the car will be picking us up at the house.  It's an overnight flight from Denver, and we do plan to check into our Lisbon hotel on the 22nd.

cruiseej is correct.  The email I received from Silversea last week contained a link to Blacklane's website which you must click on and follow to book your two complimentary rides, one for picking up from home when you depart and the other for picking up from the airport upon return.  You select the specific dates and times when you make the reservation and its not tied to the dates reflected in my.silversea.

Edited March 27, 2023 by CruzinFeraBruzin

[les37b]

4 hours ago, CruzinFeraBruzin said:

cruiseej is correct.  The email I received from Silversea last week contained a link to Blacklane's website which you must click on and follow to book your two complimentary rides, one for picking up from home when you depart and the other for picking up from the airport upon return.  You select the specific dates and times when you make the reservation and its not tied to the dates reflected in my.silversea.

 

I was going to chase the email this afternoon, but its literally just arrived.

 

I think I mentioned my journey from Home to T5 Heathrow is 50.1 miles. The link confirms we have 52 miles complimentary. Low and behold, as per my pre voucher attempt, Blacklane claim I am 56 miles away and want to charge an additional £34.63 each way! I have already had this discussion with Blacklane and they have agreed its wrong. Clearly they haven't corrected it. The issue is that they use a generic "Heathrow" not terminals - though ironically none of the terminals are 56 miles, though I think it just reach 54 for one of them so not sure if they must take the scenic route. Its motorway for 98% of the journey so it must be a terrific view! lol

 

Dont fancy paying £70 for a free ride!

 

Is it usual for Blacklane to fiddle its mileages?

 

BTW is it the airport arrival time they expect or home departure? I'm expecting it'll be departure. Withy that in mind and the 15 minute wait allowance - how does that work for the time to give coming home?

 

 

 

Edited March 27, 2023 by les37b

[cruiseej]

11 hours ago, canderson said:

Ah, I see.  So that doesn't show up in the 'activity' section.  What I'm seeing must be the airport to hotel transfer on the 22nd.  This will be our first SS cruise, so we're getting adjusted to a few new procedures.  I assume Blacklane won't know to be expecting our call until after SS Air has finally delivered the air itineraries so we know when we'd likely need to be at the airport and picked up to be brought home?

 

The Blacklane transfer does show up in My Silversea. But the date may be off from the actual date you are flying — and it doesn't matter. I think the Blacklane offer can be used within 30 days of sailing on either end, allowing for people traveling before or after their cruise. You won't call Blacklane; you'll get an email from Blacklane (not Silversea) telling you to create an account on their website. Be sure to use the same email address you get your booking confirmations from Silversea. Our email came exactly 30 days before our sailing, and I think that's the norm (but of course, anything can and does change!) After creating your account on the Blacklane site, you can create your two bookings (one going, one returning) on their website for the date and time you prefer. Based on your email, it will have your credit from Silversea in the system, and it will show the price is $0.00. (Also, the Blacklane transfer is not tied to whether you use Silversea to book your air or not.) You have a choice of a sedan or a larger SUV or minivan. Pay attention to the luggage limits for the sedan; we were concerned our luggage might not fit, so we opted for the minivan option. Both are free. 

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

1 hour ago, les37b said:

BTW is it the airport arrival time they expect or home departure? I'm expecting it'll be departure. Withy that in mind and the 15 minute wait allowance - how does that work for the time to give coming home?

In both cases, they want you to provide your flight information so they can monitor the flights and know when you need to be at the airport and when they need to pick you up upon return.  You designate the pick up times based on how long you think it will take for you to get to the airport in time to check in, go thru security etc.  Usually 2 hours for international departures plus the time it takes for you to be transported to the airport.  Blacklane monitors your return flight so they know whether the flight is late and aren't left waiting at the airport for you.  For us, we always clear customs at another airport, then take a connecting flight to San Antonio so we don't have to factor in how long we think it will take for us to clear customs when telling Blacklane when to pick us up.  Hopefully someone who has had a Blacklane pickup from the airport in which they've had to clear customs can share their experience with you, especially an experience from your specific airport.

 

I will say I was pleasantly surprised at the level of communication our Blacklane driver provided.  Emails and texts letting us know his name and mobile number.  At no point were we concerned about a 15 minute wait allowance.  Unfortunately, it seems everyone's experience is a little different.  

[cruiseej]

23 hours ago, CruzinFeraBruzin said:

Our SS Rep told us the Air Team will be moving towards presenting only one flight option to guests with a "take it or leave it" with no back and forth allowed.  If you don't like their option, you can request an air credit and book the flight on your own.  Not sure when or if this will go into effect, or if they will allow you to book your preferred flights thru them with a deviation/upcharge.  Hopefully you were satisfied with the option they presented to you.

 

And it can get worse. Regent today announced the implementation of a $75 fee to talk with their air department! The $75 fee is folded into the $175 deviation fee if you accept the one flight option they proposed; if you don't like the flights they come up with, you're charged the $75. Want them to try to find something different? It's another $75 for a follow-up call. 😱

 

I understand the problems all the luxury cruises face, with a higher volume of calls to their air department due to ongoing airline industry turmoil (more frequent changes, reduced capacity). But some of the "solutions" the companies have applied are awful. Silversea makes it easy; you can't call the air department! Regent allows calls, but wants to cut down on long hold times, and has decided to reduce call volume by charging a hefty fee to call them. I have never heard of a company — a luxury travel company, at that — charging a significant fee just for the privilege of calling them and speaking to a representative. Yikes! I hope this isn't the start of a new trend in customer service. 

[HappyCamper777]

4 minutes ago, cruiseej said:

I hope this isn't the start of a new trend in customer service. 

Considering how Silversea has seemingly followed whatever Regent does ever since Regent's former CEO (Mark Conroy) joined Silversea, don't be surprised if Silversea starts charging for telephone calls too.  

[Tothesunset]

1 hour ago, cruiseej said:

 

And it can get worse. Regent today announced the implementation of a $75 fee to talk with their air department! The $75 fee is folded into the $175 deviation fee if you accept the one flight option they proposed; if you don't like the flights they come up with, you're charged the $75. Want them to try to find something different? It's another $75 for a follow-up call. 😱

 

That is absolutely disgraceful. 

 

I had to read that twice to make sure I hadn't misunderstood. I'm really shocked. 

[les37b]

1 hour ago, Tothesunset said:

That is absolutely disgraceful. 

 

I had to read that twice to make sure I hadn't misunderstood. I'm really shocked. 

It sounds like one of those scam call centres found in Mumbai! 

 

There is zero chance I would book with a company that believes that practice is acceptable. My upcoming Japan Alaska cruise would have cost an absolute fortune. It’s not a luxury to get reasonable flights, it’s essential.

 

In the meantime, I’ve heard back from Blacklane regarding the fake mileage charges and they’ve said go ahead and book and they will refund once it’s done. And it didn’t cost me anything to send them an email to sort the booking. Amazing! lol

Edited March 27, 2023 by les37b

[les37b]

All booked and refund requested for the outbound overcharge amount. Strangely, we fly from T5 and return to T3 which is probably 2 miles extra. No excess chargeable for the return journey which is odd given the charge for T5. I'd say the distance they quote for T3 is actually spot on, so its strange they added 8Km to the journey for the outbound only.

 

Overall an easy process and happy we are all set to go.

 

 

Edited March 28, 2023 by les37b

[Daveywavey70]

11 hours ago, les37b said:

All booked and refund requested for the outbound overcharge amount. Strangely, we fly from T5 and return to T3 which is probably 2 miles extra. No excess chargeable for the return journey which is odd given the charge for T5. I'd say the distance they quote for T3 is actually spot on, so its strange they added 8Km to the journey for the outbound only.

 

Overall an easy process and happy we are all set to go.

 

 

Glad you got it sorted les. It may be something simple such as a diversion in place at the time they checked. It depends on how they check the mileage and what’s going on at the time. Most firms use a radius or an “as the crow flies” measurement which would change a lot less often! Then again it might not be. 

[machotspur]

5 hours ago, Daveywavey70 said:

Glad you got it sorted les. It may be something simple such as a diversion in place at the time they checked.  

 

You may be spot on here 👍

 

Having read this thread this morning I was playing around with Google maps, looking at distances to each terminal. The first time I checked T5 the return route given was the usual one, hopping onto the M25 at Jct.14.   30 minutes later the route was heading east towards Hatton Cross, then round the perimeter road to Bath Road then along to the M25 at Jct 15. The latter Journey was 4-5 miles longer and it was caused by a blocked road near Jct. 14.

 

When checking distances & routes on Google maps I always set the date to 7 or 14 days in the future, to avoid real time road works, accidents etc.

[les37b]

9 hours ago, Daveywavey70 said:

Glad you got it sorted les. It may be something simple such as a diversion in place at the time they checked. It depends on how they check the mileage and what’s going on at the time. Most firms use a radius or an “as the crow flies” measurement which would change a lot less often! Then again it might not be. 

 

3 hours ago, machotspur said:

 

You may be spot on here 👍

 

Having read this thread this morning I was playing around with Google maps, looking at distances to each terminal. The first time I checked T5 the return route given was the usual one, hopping onto the M25 at Jct.14.   30 minutes later the route was heading east towards Hatton Cross, then round the perimeter road to Bath Road then along to the M25 at Jct 15. The latter Journey was 4-5 miles longer and it was caused by a blocked road near Jct. 14.

 

When checking distances & routes on Google maps I always set the date to 7 or 14 days in the future, to avoid real time road works, accidents etc.

 

Nah. my journey is 99.5% motorway from my house to the airport. The return is the same, yet under 52 miles. True, its different lanes in a different direction, but Blacklane have admitted there is an error.

 

Google maps will real time update for blockages etc - but this is in a months time. Sure, planned road works happen and google are probably good to show them in its routing, but its not the case. It gives the same faulty mileage whatever day or time I put in.

[commodoredave]

Got off the Silver Moon in Lisbon on Tuesday. Several couples discovered to their surprise that the pick-up time from Blacklane had been pushed back 5 hours to correspond with the local time zone. This would have happened to me, but I noticed that my booking confirmation had automatically pushed back the time so I rebooked it 5 hours earlier than I wanted. Please be sure to check the pickup time on your Blacklane confirmation if taking them from a foreign location with a different time zone.