I was scheduled to fly LYS-AMS yesterday and while on the train to Lyon I got a text saying that my flight had been canceled. So I called AF and they said there were some weather issues at AMS. They said they would look into options for me and call me back. Then AF called me to say my flight had been canceled (they were great at notification), and they said they could book me on a train from Part Dieu to CDG and a CDG-AMS flight that would get me in about 5 hours late.
So I went to the TGV Air desk at Part Dieu and they had a first class TGV ticket for me. All seemed OK. Then I got a call from KLM (it sounded like a call center in Delhi) saying my flight to AMS was canceled. They said that as a Platinum member, a hotel reservation would be make for me at CDG and they would put me on the first flight out in the morning.
Then when I got to CDG I could see that all was not going to be OK. It was pure chaos. I made my way to the 2F AF service desk and there was hundreds of people in line. There wasn't any AF personnel controlling the Business class line so it was full of economy passengers who didn't care. An announcement was made that all check in desks were closed until further notice. Pure chaos.
I decided to use my frequent flyer knowledge to use and with my LYS-AMS BP I persuaded security to let me into 2F. Then I went down to the lounge where there were also some people waiting for resolution of their cancellations, but fortunately it was only about 10 in line. But still those few were not happy. AF told one guy that there was no chance of his baggage making the flight the next morning, nor could he give up on the flight and get his bags that night. When my turn came, they said no hotel rooms. I was expecting this and while in line I used my iPhone to scan the TGV schedule for a train to Brussels. Then I sat down with my laptop to book a ticket on the train. But the SNCF website was down too!! So I called the Grand Voyageur line and after a while (they were clearly busy too) they got me a reservation on the train. I made a booking for the Sheraton Brussels and I was set. Almost. I still had to get the ticket out of the ticket machine and there were long lines there too. As I was getting close to the machine, some people gangstered their way to the front of the line, saying their train was leaving. My train was leaving in 10 minutes so I used my gangster skills to push my way right past them and got my ticket out. And made the train with less than a minute to spare.
Then I woke up this morning after a comfortable night at the Sheraton (much better than sleeping on the floor at CDG) and took an on-time train to AMS. So what are the odds that AF will actually reimburse me for the train tickets and hotel costs? Or will they refund my restricted economy ticket? I'm guessing I'll get nothing at all from AF for all the trouble. The weather was not AF's fault, but how could they be so unprepared at CDG? Like I said, they were great at notification. I got 3 texts, 3 emails and 3 phone calls, all telling me my flight was canceled. But after promising me a hotel at CDG, I found pure chaos at the airport. It was only my skill at negotiating AF and CDG that allowed me to find out some news within an hour. The rest of the people stranded had to wait hours to find out they didn't have a flight or hotel. I'll bet the people at the end of the line never made it to the desk before it closed.