Missed a Lufthansa connection - peeved with KLM
 

S**t happens - its how you deal with it.

Over the years I've spent many nights in hotels paid for by KLM, Air France, Alitalia and now Lufthansa. Tonight I'm in Frankfurt instead of my own home due to a missed connection thanks to a late Lufthansa flight - but it's KLM I'm unhappy with.

Reason - I now have a Star Alliance experience to compare to a KLM experience of how they handle things when it all goes wrong.

My last time with KLM was in January, inbound flight late, connection to Warsaw missed. Ticket was cheapish economy, but I am Platinum have been for years and still requalify each year even though I don't need to.

In Amsterdam, first stop KLM connection center - queue. Automatically rebooked on next KLM flight - at first they refused the much earlier LOT flight only accepted after much arguing. Then sent to a second counter and queue hidden in the baggage hall to claim hotel/food voucher and offered - the Ibis!!! With a bus ride from the airport to the hotel. In the end booked and paid myself into the Hilton (both Hilton and Sheraton had space and cheapish rates).

Tonight with Lufthansa, inbound flight late, connection home to Paris missed. Very cheap economy. Wasn't sure which counter to go to in vast Frankfurt, first counter I saw was baggage drop, so I went just to ask where to go - instead of sending me to the correct counter, they dealt with it all there straight away!!! Already booked on the first flight the next day, but asked if I would prefer a later flight to get more sleep... Hotel voucher immediately offered - for the Sheraton attached to the airport!!! I am not a Lufthansa Frequent Flyer (although I am Star Gold).

The difference in service and the effort that Lufthansa employed to minimise my discomfort was quite amazing compared to KLM, my supposedly preferred airline!

Lufthansa - partner FF programme - Sheraton - choice of flights - one counter.
KLM - Platinum in their programme - Ibis - no choice of flights - two very different counters/queues

In hindsight, quite incredible.

I'm not sure if you can blame them for offering Ibis instead of Hilton. Sure the Hilton is nicer but honestly, on a cheap economy ticket, do you expect them to pay X times your fare to get you into an expensive hotel? The Ibis does just fine for a short night till the next flight.

The fact that you did get a more expensive hotel from LH is nice, but that could be for any number of reasons. Perhaps they had so many missed connections that the cheaper hotels were simply booked full. Or maybe they already had xx rooms pre-booked that went unused. Who knows :)

In the end one chooses the airline and alliance that one finds works best for him/her. Perhaps LH is better suited for you if you get consistently better service there. Keep in mind that any single experience does not define the norm...you could have gotten lucky this time with LH..perhaps the same happens next time with KL (And there are plenty reviews here from people who were put in fancy hotels by KL as well) :)

In the past , when KLM have had to overnight me due to missed connections, I have had no problem in getting a better hotel than the ibis.. The hotel choice does depend on availability and they do seem to have there 'favourites ' .. (not the Sheraton or the Hilton.. ) but in the past I have been in the Sofitel, SAS Radisson and the Holiday Inn ... yes they may at first suggest the Ibis, but then remind them that as a Platinum elite member you are a 'high yield customer..' You then end up with a better hotel.

In principle, PEs should get better hotels than the riff-raff, subject to availability.

On the (fortunately few) occasions I've been stuck in AMS my experiences have been mixed. Worst by far was the Van Der Valk A4 freeway motel, the best was the Golden Tulip crew hotel on the Hobbemakade. The latter was a pain to get to, though.

Johan

I thought there were clear guidelines to what kind of hotels various kinds of pax would be send to?
Like 5* for Plat, 4* Gold etc.

Was posted quite some while ago, looking if I can find it.

I remember this thread but can't find it now... Though I think it was an AF policy that might not be shared by KL.
I have always had Hilton or Sheraton as a Plat when suffering an IRROP at CDG on AF, but I must have been lucky :D

Yes, because suffering IRROPs definitely marks one out as being lucky(!).

:D

Johan

A couple of years ago when KLM still used the 747 on their KUL/CGK flights it occurred twice within 6 months that I had to stay the night in Amsterdam due to technical problems with the aircraft. Both times me and my girlfriend were booked on very cheap Economy student fares (I really miss those student years: cheap flexible fares, 100% miles!), we were both Platinum and got offered the Sheraton the first time. The second time it happened they wanted to send us to Ibis, but when we told the agent we were both Platinum she was like "Oh, in that case we'll get you a room in the Sheraton." So yeah, not unhappy at all with the way KLM handled this situation...

Do what I do and fly British Airways :D