Airlines/Hotels that Care, and Airlines/Hotels that don't - Postponement Thread

[poppedtart]

So far I have seen Air New Zealand and Quantas Help people out. We have a link for Air New Zealand at

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0603/S00166.htm

Quantas is yet to have a link that I know of.

In North America, I see that Virgin has put the kaibosch on any waiving of fees.

As of 5 mintues ago, from the head supervisor at Westjet, a "Customer service" oriented Canadian airline, they also refused syaing that because unless I booked a full fare ticket, that I was out of luck. They offer only $30 change fees which is nothing i know, but x2 that $60 and $1400 in credit for who know when. It's just principle now I think.

Who else has had any help/non-help with airline tickets/hotels thus far.

Poppedtart

 

[kinghenry]

FYI - New Zealand Air is only offering no cancellation/re-validation fees to people travelling within NZ. bummer for those traveling from another country. it's almost $200 in fees.

 

[Carek1230]

Well we have no problem with hotel, Best Western Honolulu asked for a one night advance deposit, with a 48 hour cancellation.

Continental Airlines however won't budge. $100 change fee PER TICKET, plus of course "any difference in fare".

 

[ruffian]

Qantas is not helping anyone with tickets from the U.S...I used frequent flyer miles so it was ok, but other friends who planned to go to the show have to pay a change fee to use the ticket later AND can't get a web fare--they have to pay the full-price fare when they rebook. Sounds totally unreasonable and inconsiderate compared to how well Air NZ is handling things.

Continental sucks for my Hawaii refund, as Carek said

 

[SoCalMusicLover]

Welcome to Corporate America. Enjoy your stay.

I wonder whether it's the NZ/Aussie end that's opposing the flexibility or the U.S. corporate. Disappointing yes....surprising, No. Guess Bono has as much pull with the airlines as he does with King george.

I completely understand the airlines treating their customers like what they are. An opportunity to make money. The world has become such a "nice" place.

 

[mei]

Anyone flying BA?

I have yet to contact my agent, because i wanted to make sure the new dates are confirmed first.

However, i highly doubt anything good will come in my way, because i was only permitted one change and have already paid that $150 to bring forward my date of departure.

 

[kinghenry]

Welcome to Corporate America. Enjoy your stay.

I wonder whether it's the NZ/Aussie end that's opposing the flexibility or the U.S. corporate. Disappointing yes....surprising, No. Guess Bono has as much pull with the airlines as he does with King george.

I completely understand the airlines treating their customers like what they are. An opportunity to make money. The world has become such a "nice" place.

Let's get off america. NZ air is only helping people flying within the country. So far, no foriegn airline has extended "free" changes either.

 

[epoh]

This is from Michael Coppel's site re: Qantas, Air New Zealand and Virgin Blue:

http://www.copp el.com.au/html/c_tr_fs.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:10th March 2006

AIRLINES COME TO THE AID OF U2 TICKET HOLDERS

There have been concerns raised by ticket buyers holding flight arrangements for the U2 Vertigo tour dates in Australia and New Zealand, which have now been postponed due to a family illness.

Michael Coppel Presents has been liaising with Air New Zealand, Qantas, and Virgin Blue to assist U2 ticket holders holding airline bookings affected by the postponement.

All three airlines have willingly and graciously agreed to offer passengers holding U2 tickets a reprieve from the usual cancellation and change fees, as outlined below, and we thank them for their consideration in doing so.

Further information regarding the postponed concerts will be made available as soon as it comes to hand.

AIR NEW ZEALAND:

Passengers should contact Air New Zealand prior to the date of their flight in order to change their booking. Holders of non-refundable fares have the opportunity to transfer their fare to one of the same class once rescheduled concert dates are announced. Change-of-flight fees will be waived. Passengers may have to pay the additional costs if the same fare is not available.

QANTAS:

Passengers should contact Qantas by Monday March 13 to access waived fare conditions. Holders of non-refundable fares have two options – changes can be made free of charge with ticket value used towards any other QF flight on the domestic network or, the fare value can be stored in credit for use within 12 months of the date of the original ticket issue.

VIRGIN BLUE:

Passengers should contact Virgin Blue by Monday March 13 to access waived cancellation and change-of-flight fees on fares only booked within relevant dates for the U2 concerts. Passengers may have to pay the additional costs if the same fare is not available. Passengers are advised to discuss fare options and terms and conditions with their airline or travel agent as soon as possible.

Anyone who has or knows anyone who has booked at The Lakes Resort [Adelaide]...we had a room booked there...rang to cancel today and they are giving people the option of either doing that now, or putting their deposit etc on *hold*...once details are known as to what is happening, The Lakes will then contact people to offer them the opportunity to keep the booking for a new date or still cancel.

S.

 

[RobboAus]

Good on the airlines for coming to the party & being understanding. We also booked the Hilton hotel, will let you know how that goes.

 

[ramblin rose]

I haven't even contacted Continental about my Hawaii ticket but wasn't expecting anything different than their standard policy.

I used AA for New Zealand and all they will do is let you use it within 12 months from date of purchase with the change fee (which is $150) + difference in fare. Although I'm kind of glad I booked through AA (who was using Qantas anyway to NZ) since I have much more travel options with AA than I would have had with Qantas directly if for any reason I can't make the new NZ dates should they be eventually confirmed.

 

[Arcadion]

So say I had a Qantas flight booked from Sydney to Perth for the 1st of June. I can get that changed or put on hold for free, just because I hold a concert ticket?

 

[Pop Artist]

So say I had a Qantas flight booked from Sydney to Perth for the 1st of June. I can get that changed or put on hold for free, just because I hold a concert ticket?

I very much doubt it, even if it isn't spelled out in the press release. When airlines make those kind of exceptions it's only for a date range relevant to the affected event.

 

[ruffian]

I haven't even contacted Continental about my Hawaii ticket but wasn't expecting anything different than their standard policy.

I used AA for New Zealand and all they will do is let you use it within 12 months from date of purchase with the change fee (which is $150) + difference in fare. Although I'm kind of glad I booked through AA (who was using Qantas anyway to NZ) since I have much more travel options with AA than I would have had with Qantas directly if for any reason I can't make the new NZ dates should they be eventually confirmed.

they *should* waive the change fee for you, based on what others have posted in this thread.

 

[timothius]

Let's get off america. NZ air is only helping people flying within the country. So far, no foriegn airline has extended "free" changes either.

Not entirely true. AirNZ gave me the same treatment on my Sydney <-> Auckland fare.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

most major hotel chains have either 24 or 48 hour cancelation policies where you wouldn't lose any money... i know it's 24 hours at any marriott chain hotel.

as for plane tickets, don't expect it... there's a reason why they're called non-refundable... it sucks but they'll just state that the customer takes on the assumed risk when they buy non-refundable tickets.

it's good to hear that air new zealand is making this offer, but it's not really surprising... the concerts will be a major tourism draw for the country, so they would still want to bring the people in. i wouldn't be surprised if an australian based airline did the same thing. but i wouldn't count on any sympathy from any of the major international cariers like virgin, united, delta, etc.

 

[poppedtart]

I'm not entirely without understanding.. I realize that the airlines don't HAVE to do anything.. But in my case, Canadian Westjet, they claim to be all about customer service. So I'm writing their corporate office a letter. I told them it would be in their best public relations interest to service the small crowd of U2 flyers. I am sending it today, with the quotes from this thread about ANZ, Quan, and Virgin... Maybe if they change their policy, others like united and continental will change theirs.

I urge anyone in N.A to write the head offices of these companies. I mean, $100 change fees. It's not like we can get our money back. We MUST use them with the airlines. Contrary to the customer service supervisor which told me to the effect of "if we did this for every cancelled event, we would be out of business". Hows that for customer service.

Poppedtart

 

[digsy]

£155 to cancel/change flights!

thats almost $300 which is obsene... its a delta flight but booked through an airline website so its their Ts&Cs i'm dealing with not Deltas

 

[poppedtart]

Yikes that is rediculous.. What a world.. People have to be able to give us some breaks.. Not because they have to, but because they should.

Poppedtart

 

[UKTan]

£155 to cancel/change flights!

thats almost $300 which is obsene... its a delta flight but booked through an airline website so its their Ts&Cs i'm dealing with not Deltas

digsy,

Did u book thro airline-networks? I was looking at their T & C's and we stand to lose 50% of what we paid...approx £300 per ticket

Cancelled the accommodation tho and only got hit for £15 for that. Not that they actually had my reservation long enough to process it

 

[digsy]

i spoke to airline network and they said £155...! so i'm gonna go by that
as it stands now though i may not cancel... how can a holiday in Hawaii be a bad thing?

and if they do reschedule the tour i doubt it'll be till November/Dec anyway in which case i may still be able to go again so might as well take a holiday now

i dunno

 

[lisacohen89]

Expedia

Expedia is telling me that they can't refund my $1,000 hotel reservation. This is absolutely ridiculous when we all know that any hotel would let you cancel within 48 hours (and this is a month ahead of time).

 

[Lila64]

Call them back. The hotel cancellation should only be $25.00, as was mine. Then again, I'm not sure if you booked for Hawaii or Australia/NZ/Japan... Check your paperwork too - the fees were clearly printed on mine. I gave them the story of why we cancelled, but that's not really an issue. To them, it's a cancellation, so I understand. I just didn't want to take the $70 per person insurance charge when I booked. For me, that would have been another $210, and I was trying to save money. Who knew

I cancelled our trip (there's 3 of us). So it was $100 per plane ticket, $25 for car, $25 for hotel. They will credit back my creditcard for the balance, hopefully during this billing cycle. Then I can repay the small loan I took out for the trip...

 

[digsy]

Re: Expedia

Expedia is telling me that they can't refund my $1,000 hotel reservation. This is absolutely ridiculous when we all know that any hotel would let you cancel within 48 hours (and this is a month ahead of time).

weird, i also booked through expedia and when i went to check about cancelling i only got a £14 charge (about $25 i think) for cancelling

 

[kramwest1]

I didn't even bother checking with AirNZ, but if the $200 change fee is accurate, that's a hefty penalty on $800 tickets.
We're flying from the US to NZ, and although we were specifically coming for the U2 shows, we're continuing on with the trip. NZ is a beautiful country to visit and no concerts basically means more time at vineyards.
I hope we can make it back if they actually reschedule the shows, but like many people, I really doubt it will happen. I'd guess they'll kick off the next tour down under instead. Just please don't let it take 4 years.

Mark

 

[Nightsong]

Hawaiian Airlines wants a $125 *minimum* charge each way so $250 charge on a $350 RT ticket

 

[Lila64]

can't you just get a credit for a future flight at a lesser fee? That's a lot of money!

 

[Nightsong]

I called again and was told the same thing. I can use my ticket for another flight but's gonna be $250 minimum charge. I told her other airlines were making concessions and she said they are getting a lot of calls but they were just telling people to contact the promoter.

 

[kinghenry]

This is from Michael Coppel's site re: Qantas, Air New Zealand and Virgin Blue:

http://www.copp el.com.au/html/c_tr_fs.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:10th March 2006

AIRLINES COME TO THE AID OF U2 TICKET HOLDERS

There have been concerns raised by ticket buyers holding flight arrangements for the U2 Vertigo tour dates in Australia and New Zealand, which have now been postponed due to a family illness.

Michael Coppel Presents has been liaising with Air New Zealand, Qantas, and Virgin Blue to assist U2 ticket holders holding airline bookings affected by the postponement.

All three airlines have willingly and graciously agreed to offer passengers holding U2 tickets a reprieve from the usual cancellation and change fees, as outlined below, and we thank them for their consideration in doing so.

Further information regarding the postponed concerts will be made available as soon as it comes to hand.

AIR NEW ZEALAND:

Passengers should contact Air New Zealand prior to the date of their flight in order to change their booking. Holders of non-refundable fares have the opportunity to transfer their fare to one of the same class once rescheduled concert dates are announced. Change-of-flight fees will be waived. Passengers may have to pay the additional costs if the same fare is not available.

QANTAS:

Passengers should contact Qantas by Monday March 13 to access waived fare conditions. Holders of non-refundable fares have two options – changes can be made free of charge with ticket value used towards any other QF flight on the domestic network or, the fare value can be stored in credit for use within 12 months of the date of the original ticket issue.

VIRGIN BLUE:

Passengers should contact Virgin Blue by Monday March 13 to access waived cancellation and change-of-flight fees on fares only booked within relevant dates for the U2 concerts. Passengers may have to pay the additional costs if the same fare is not available. Passengers are advised to discuss fare options and terms and conditions with their airline or travel agent as soon as possible.

Anyone who has or knows anyone who has booked at The Lakes Resort [Adelaide]...we had a room booked there...rang to cancel today and they are giving people the option of either doing that now, or putting their deposit etc on *hold*...once details are known as to what is happening, The Lakes will then contact people to offer them the opportunity to keep the booking for a new date or still cancel.

S.

This just proves Coppel doesn't know what he's talking about. The Air NZ statemnet is false, or only applies to inner NZ and OZ flights. They promised new concert dates in 24 hours and that hasn't happened. I'm starting to think it's PR campaign, and i worry the shows will be cancellled.

 

[Lally1011]

Avoiding additional costs.

For those not having any luck with avoiding fees and paying fare changes, you should contact the airline's Public Relations group.

You'd be surprise at what they can do in a situation like this. Mention what ANZ and others have already done.

The folks in customer service really are just puppets.

 

[Carek1230]

I called again and was told the same thing. I can use my ticket for another flight but's gonna be $250 minimum charge. I told her other airlines were making concessions and she said they are getting a lot of calls but they were just telling people to contact the promoter.

What good is it going to do to contact the promoter? We are but peons in a conglomerate of big corporate businesses whose only botomw line is: PROFIT, and this includes the promoter. I am however disappointed in many of the travel companies and direct airlines such as Hawaiian Air and Continental. I work in the Customer Service indistry and to have just a wee bit of compassion could make the world of difference to the company's profits in waiving fees here and there and actually GAINING future business. My heart still sinks for the U2 families, but I know they would be concerned and upset for the thousands upon thousands of fans who are losing money, but then U2 and the tour promoters are also losing money. There's really no way to satisfy everyone.