I certainly wasn't complaining about the extra $7 they were charging (I'm all for businesses making a profit and a petty $7 fee seems far more than reasonable). I do find it distasteful that they continually show that un-bookable airfare -- though I now have a much better understanding of why. But when they spit out that huge rate increase (much more than the airlines are asking), well, it
really ticked me off!
And here we have yet another day, and, those $1557 rates are
still showing on ORBITZ. Still not able to book that rate there ... and still eventually get an updated airfare of $2046.99 (actually that has gone up 10-cents???). I think that I'll do myself a favor and will just give up on ORBITZ.
It seems to me that ORBITZ (and KAYAK, etc.) must like these mock "lower rates" showing up on their sites ... after all, they must be aware of the problem and yet they just leave them there for all to see. It would certainly be rather easy for their tech department to set up their systems to remove bogus rates once they are found be be invalid ... but they don't...
I would LOVE to try
their technique in a retail establishment (or a retail website) ...
"Gee, I'm soooo sorry. This shirt that you want (clearly marked at $40) is no longer available due to customer demand. But if you really want that shirt, I can sell it to you for only $70 (even though you could walk next door and purchase the same shirt for only $45)." I'm guessing that my retail establishment would not be around for very long. Nor am I sure about the legality either ...
Oh, well ... live and learn. I'm new to all these "airfare tips & secrets", and thanks to this forum, I'm learning!
