louisenaka

Hello All

I booked a business trip in the sale and decided for the first time since I joined Etihad , cos it's my birthday, to take advantage of the Premium stopover. It's one night free for business. I sent off the form and received a reply that due to a trade event - IDEX - the hotel offer is stopped. I've emailed them and the lady says that in the fineprint - which I did view before booking - that there are blackout dates such as for the Formula 1, so people should check. I did check before booking - obviously not carefully enough - but the only things that were noted were cultural events, concerts and the like. None of which applied to me. Presumable, IDEX is not top of the list for tourists, so it was likely not listed on the site I checked.
Any idea what I can do from here. Is there any comeback ? I don't mind in the least if they could change my ticket , but the lady dealing with it seems quite unperturbed and basically couldn't give a fiddler's !
Any advice welcome. Thanks all.
Lou

chinatraderjmr

Sounds to me that as you are say, "you didn't check carefully enough". I think EY is covered here. If I were you & you would like a day or 2 in Abu Dhabi or Dubai, ask for the free stop over that almost all biz & first fares offer, then book & pay for a hotel yourself. Obviously it's you who decides if it's worth it or not but really, when you think about it 1 free night in a hotel is not an amazing free gift. It's nice, sure but I would prefer choosing my favorite hotel myself (Jumeirah @ Etihad Towers or St Regis Saadiyat Island). The cons are obviously I pay out of pocket but the pros are as an Top Elite w both hotels programs I am not stuck in a small standard room (which is what you will get for free). I was in Abu Dhabi last weekend and stayed at the St Regis. Very surprised that the rates were not higher, especially in Jan

irishguy28

Quite a strange post!

You say yourself that 1 free night in a hotel is not an amazing gift - and yet here you are, booking a trip including a stopover apparently mostly/solely for this purpose - somehow tied in with your birthday, although you now seem to wish to change the date of the trip in order to get the not-so-amazing gift.

If the fare conditions of your ticket allow so (and you booked business, so there should be some flexibility) then you can change your ticket. That you picked a date that is excluded from the free night stopover is not reason in itself to change the ticket.

You say that "blackout dates....none of which applied to me" and "presumably, IDEX is not top of the list for tourists". Blackout dates apply to anyone using the offer; IDEX - like all other trade fairs - is not intended for tourists, but for business people, and business people stay in hotels too.

http://www.etihad.com/Documents/Esse...povers-tnc.pdf

erik123

I would check with Etihad help to see what can be done. Worst case you pay for the hotel yourself.

chinatraderjmr

Exactly what I said

Often1

OP's problem is that there is no fine print. It is bolded language which clearly says, "Please check at the time of booking." He did not. That was a mistake.

Had OP checked, he would have been told what he now knows, could have selected a date more to his liking and all would be well.

This is not something where he should blame anybody but himself. All he can do is call, say he made an error and ask if he can get some help.

ft101

OT. I read the post and immediately thought it was by a female (louise). You obviously thought differently, presumably louis, or have previous knowledge of the poster. Strange how the mind works.