The dumbest travel-related mistake you ever made?
Aug 27, 2010, 8:43 am
#481
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Cockeysville, MD
Programs: Marriott Rewards Lifetime Titanium, Amex Plat, Hertz Gold 5*, National Exec, AA Plat
Posts: 9,467
Grabbing wrong luggage
Flying LAS-BWI landing late on a Sunday night. Have my luggage and waiting for my wife's. Her's is blue samsonite. Not very common. I grab it and notice it has one of those "over weight" tags. I remarked to her that i didnt remember the agent in LAS putting that on. Oh, well. Off we go.
Arrive home to have the frantic luggage owner's message on our answering machine. SWA figured out what happened and dialed our home and let the other passenger leave a message. No problem except i felt like and idiot. i returned the next morning to the airport and swapped luggage.
Flying LAS-BWI landing late on a Sunday night. Have my luggage and waiting for my wife's. Her's is blue samsonite. Not very common. I grab it and notice it has one of those "over weight" tags. I remarked to her that i didnt remember the agent in LAS putting that on. Oh, well. Off we go.
Arrive home to have the frantic luggage owner's message on our answering machine. SWA figured out what happened and dialed our home and let the other passenger leave a message. No problem except i felt like and idiot. i returned the next morning to the airport and swapped luggage.
Aug 27, 2010, 10:35 pm
#483
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Dallas
Programs: AA PLT/5MM; AS MVP GLD 75K; DL DM; EK SLV; HHonors DIAM; Marriott GLD
Posts: 4,092
Showed up at STL for a flight to DFW on AA and couldn't find the flight listed on the monitor... became angry and somewhat impatient when agent at ticket counter couldn't find my reservation. I then proceeded to triumphantly whip out my confirmation, at which point the agent politely informed me that the reservation was for a flight in the opposite direction (DFW to STL) and asked if I would like to purchase a ticket to DFW. 
Aug 28, 2010, 12:55 am
#484
Join Date: Aug 2005
Programs: AA, UA, DL,
Posts: 588
Hello FTers,
About four years ago, I was able to get four business class seats on AA and Qantas using AA miles. ^ The itinerary was SJC-LAX-SYD-AKL-LAX-SJC.
All the flights looked good, they all said SJC-LAX-SYD-AKL-LAX-SJC.
Fine... we show up at for SYD-AKL leg.... and it turns out two of my friends should have flown the PREVIOUS day!!! My life flashed before my eyes....
Oh, no, now the rest of the reservation is now canceled... oh, no, walk-up airfares would be astronomical on an international flight.... oh, no.... oh, no...oh, no. You get the drift.
Turns out that coach fare was only $300 US for walk-up rates.. whew! And the rest of my reservation was NOT canceled! whew!
I guess I forgot to check the dates.... I'm sure I told AA that we wanted to fly on the same day.
What's ironic is one of my friends did nothing but complain about business class on Qantas and said, "I'd rather fly coach!" hrrrmph! Well, she got her wish...... and....I sorta pointed it out to her that she got her wish....(I had to: I'm passive-aggressive!
) She didn't speak to me for days!
Anyway.... that's my story.
David
About four years ago, I was able to get four business class seats on AA and Qantas using AA miles. ^ The itinerary was SJC-LAX-SYD-AKL-LAX-SJC.
All the flights looked good, they all said SJC-LAX-SYD-AKL-LAX-SJC.
Fine... we show up at for SYD-AKL leg.... and it turns out two of my friends should have flown the PREVIOUS day!!!
My life flashed before my eyes....Oh, no, now the rest of the reservation is now canceled... oh, no, walk-up airfares would be astronomical on an international flight.... oh, no.... oh, no...oh, no. You get the drift.
Turns out that coach fare was only $300 US for walk-up rates.. whew! And the rest of my reservation was NOT canceled! whew!
I guess I forgot to check the dates.... I'm sure I told AA that we wanted to fly on the same day.
What's ironic is one of my friends did nothing but complain about business class on Qantas and said, "I'd rather fly coach!" hrrrmph! Well, she got her wish...... and....I sorta pointed it out to her that she got her wish....(I had to: I'm passive-aggressive!
) She didn't speak to me for days! Anyway.... that's my story.
David
Aug 28, 2010, 6:35 am
#485
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,950
Grabbing wrong luggage
Flying LAS-BWI landing late on a Sunday night. Have my luggage and waiting for my wife's. Her's is blue samsonite. Not very common. I grab it and notice it has one of those "over weight" tags. I remarked to her that i didnt remember the agent in LAS putting that on. Oh, well. Off we go.
Arrive home to have the frantic luggage owner's message on our answering machine. SWA figured out what happened and dialed our home and let the other passenger leave a message. No problem except i felt like and idiot. i returned the next morning to the airport and swapped luggage.
Flying LAS-BWI landing late on a Sunday night. Have my luggage and waiting for my wife's. Her's is blue samsonite. Not very common. I grab it and notice it has one of those "over weight" tags. I remarked to her that i didnt remember the agent in LAS putting that on. Oh, well. Off we go.
Arrive home to have the frantic luggage owner's message on our answering machine. SWA figured out what happened and dialed our home and let the other passenger leave a message. No problem except i felt like and idiot. i returned the next morning to the airport and swapped luggage.
In some places, picking up the wrong luggage and walking away is pretty much automatically theft.
Perhaps I feel strongly about this after being the victim of someone who also did the same thing as you did, but I caught them before they left the baggage claim area. Unlike you, they were more stubborn about their claiming the "correct" baggage until an official forced us to proffer luggage receipts, which sorted everything out.
Aug 28, 2010, 9:25 am
#486
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 7
I once was having so much fun in Madrid and did not look at my ticket. i went back to my hotel too pack and realized that i had missed my flight home that day. Luckily when i called US air I got someone in london and they really took care of me and got me on the flight on the next day in Business.
Aug 28, 2010, 10:09 am
#487
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Cockeysville, MD
Programs: Marriott Rewards Lifetime Titanium, Amex Plat, Hertz Gold 5*, National Exec, AA Plat
Posts: 9,467
I'd say you are lucky.
In some places, picking up the wrong luggage and walking away is pretty much automatically theft.
Perhaps I feel strongly about this after being the victim of someone who also did the same thing as you did, but I caught them before they left the baggage claim area. Unlike you, they were more stubborn about their claiming the "correct" baggage until an official forced us to proffer luggage receipts, which sorted everything out.
In some places, picking up the wrong luggage and walking away is pretty much automatically theft.
Perhaps I feel strongly about this after being the victim of someone who also did the same thing as you did, but I caught them before they left the baggage claim area. Unlike you, they were more stubborn about their claiming the "correct" baggage until an official forced us to proffer luggage receipts, which sorted everything out.
Sep 4, 2010, 11:04 am
#488
Suspended
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 3,098
I once arrived at the airport from home at 430 to catch a 6am flight, blearly eyed and still half asleep. I needed to check luggage so I had to line up.
I lined up, and they couldn't find my reservation. I pitched a fit, spent 10 minutes there with the very helpful Airtran crew...except I realized I was not flying Airtran that day and had gotten into the wrong line. I was flying Frontier, that was next to the Airtran desks. Whoops Sorry! No wonder they couldn't find my reservation!
I lined up, and they couldn't find my reservation. I pitched a fit, spent 10 minutes there with the very helpful Airtran crew...except I realized I was not flying Airtran that day and had gotten into the wrong line. I was flying Frontier, that was next to the Airtran desks. Whoops Sorry! No wonder they couldn't find my reservation!
Sep 5, 2010, 8:15 pm
#489
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: PDX (wish I was in HNL)
Programs: Platinum
Posts: 1,687
Dumb and clueless. In the 80's (in college) I decided to visited my brother in New Jersey. Not knowing New Jersey from New York, I had the travel agent book a ticket from SEA to JFK instead of EWR. I remember riding the TWA red-eye in the smoking section. That was awful. He was not very happy, but I did cross the Verrazano (great view!) and I saw the land fills of Staten Island.
On the return trip, I find out at JFK the flight was cancelled months ago, but the ticket agent was able to book me on a flight out of LGA. She gave me the exact cash for the cab ride over. That was exciting.
I know some of the online ticketing sites (united.com, for example) may have their moments, but I look back on that experience and think of the progress we have made. To be able to book seats from the comfort of your home, use e-tickets, and tap the resources of the internet like FlyerTalk is amazing. (And I don't miss the smoking section on airplanes!)
On the return trip, I find out at JFK the flight was cancelled months ago, but the ticket agent was able to book me on a flight out of LGA. She gave me the exact cash for the cab ride over. That was exciting.
I know some of the online ticketing sites (united.com, for example) may have their moments, but I look back on that experience and think of the progress we have made. To be able to book seats from the comfort of your home, use e-tickets, and tap the resources of the internet like FlyerTalk is amazing. (And I don't miss the smoking section on airplanes!)
Sep 5, 2010, 8:24 pm
#490
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Tropical Paradise
Posts: 26
Newbie here.
We were sitting at the gate waiting and about 30 minutes before the flight, I mentioned that it was strange that our flight wasn't beginning to board. After about 5 minutes, we asked the agent who then told us that the gate number had changed on our flight. We had to catch a tram to get to the correct gate, we were the last to board!
The weird thing is that the original gate still had our flight number posted at it.
We were sitting at the gate waiting and about 30 minutes before the flight, I mentioned that it was strange that our flight wasn't beginning to board. After about 5 minutes, we asked the agent who then told us that the gate number had changed on our flight. We had to catch a tram to get to the correct gate, we were the last to board!
The weird thing is that the original gate still had our flight number posted at it.
Sep 6, 2010, 9:47 am
#491
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Portland, OR
Programs: United 1k (finally!), Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 655
I have two in recent memory, both last year when I started being a frequent traveler and another I can't remember when, but probably in the same time frame.
1. Booked ROC-TXL, and recently renewed my passport. Took a day trip by car to Niagara. Left passport in pants, and washed them. Passport came back in a very interesting shape. There wasn't enough time to get a replacement, but most of it seemed to survive well, so after talking with my boss, we decided to chance it, and I boarded at TXL. Amazingly, the passport scanned and the EDID chip still worked, although I got questioned on its condition by customs in both directions. I quickly sent it out for replacement shortly after I returned from TXL.
2. Miscalculated how long errands would take, and ran very late for a flight. Got to the airport 15 minutes before departure. I *love* ROC, I made the flight with 5 minutes to spare counting check-in and security (and an agent manually forcing the check-in, good thing I had no luggage to check).
3. Can't remember if it was my passport or wallet but pretty sure it was my passport, but one of them slipped out of my pocket while on my usual ALT-ROC flight on Delta. Didn't notice it was gone until I got a FedEx package in the mail from Delta with it. Since then, I now carry my passport with my wallet at all times, and constantly check for it and haven't lost either since :-).
1. Booked ROC-TXL, and recently renewed my passport. Took a day trip by car to Niagara. Left passport in pants, and washed them. Passport came back in a very interesting shape. There wasn't enough time to get a replacement, but most of it seemed to survive well, so after talking with my boss, we decided to chance it, and I boarded at TXL. Amazingly, the passport scanned and the EDID chip still worked, although I got questioned on its condition by customs in both directions. I quickly sent it out for replacement shortly after I returned from TXL.
2. Miscalculated how long errands would take, and ran very late for a flight. Got to the airport 15 minutes before departure. I *love* ROC, I made the flight with 5 minutes to spare counting check-in and security (and an agent manually forcing the check-in, good thing I had no luggage to check).
3. Can't remember if it was my passport or wallet but pretty sure it was my passport, but one of them slipped out of my pocket while on my usual ALT-ROC flight on Delta. Didn't notice it was gone until I got a FedEx package in the mail from Delta with it. Since then, I now carry my passport with my wallet at all times, and constantly check for it and haven't lost either since :-).
Last edited by NCommander; Sep 6, 2010 at 9:54 am
Sep 6, 2010, 12:53 pm
#492
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: HH Diamond, Marriott Gold, IHG Gold, Hyatt something
Posts: 33,539
3. Can't remember if it was my passport or wallet but pretty sure it was my passport, but one of them slipped out of my pocket while on my usual ALT-ROC flight on Delta. Didn't notice it was gone until I got a FedEx package in the mail from Delta with it. Since then, I now carry my passport with my wallet at all times, and constantly check for it and haven't lost either since :-).
Sep 7, 2010, 1:46 pm
#493
Suspended
Join Date: Sep 2009
Programs: Gold, plat, diamond and more
Posts: 3,360
A bit jetlagged at an airport hotel LAX, used the conditioner as body lotion. The whole bottle for face and body
Didnt notice before 10 min later when I noticed the lotion unopened!
Have to add arriving early at the gate in CPH for SVO. Major hangover so decided to rest (read: sleep) at the bench by the gate. My father, sister and brother in-law boarded seeing me sleep. They figured I was standby, and when I woke up, the plane was taxing.....
Didnt notice before 10 min later when I noticed the lotion unopened!
Have to add arriving early at the gate in CPH for SVO. Major hangover so decided to rest (read: sleep) at the bench by the gate. My father, sister and brother in-law boarded seeing me sleep. They figured I was standby, and when I woke up, the plane was taxing.....
Last edited by travelkid; Sep 7, 2010 at 1:51 pm Reason: adding mistake
Sep 7, 2010, 7:41 pm
#494
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: LAX
Posts: 6,769