August 27 MSY-ATL DL734

Flight is scheduled to leave at 3:45 PM, but the plane did not get in until 3:15 PM. Checked in at the CRC and had a drink, uneventful overall. Much to the credit of the gate agents, loading was quick and efficient and we were airborne around 4:00 PM, meaning that we had made up all of the delay by the time we got to Atlanta. Pixie and I have the aisle and middle seat in row 23 of the 757 (I took the middle). Very uncomfortable with the man of great stature who sat in the window seat, but only an hour flight ... Got a cup of soda and I declined the Jungle Mix.

ATL-BOS DL404

We arrive at ATL and I look at the screens and the next two Boston flights are showing 6:50 and 7:15, which immediately alerts me that something is wrong since the flights are every hour at :40. We go straight to the CRC in T concourse (nice thing about those Boston flights, they all leave out of T). The agent says she can waitlist me on the 7:15 flight (which is really the 5:40 flight) and we grab some sandwiches at the Miami Sub before going to the gate, where our boarding passes were already waiting. Turned out that the L-1011 was not that full, they even bumped two non-revs to first right before departure. Pixie and I had four seats to ourselves basically (we were in the middle and a gentelman had one aisle seat and I took the middle and Pixie took the other seat).

What was really nice about this flight was that it was late, even though for us it was actually early, so they showed us a free movie (Entrapment) and gave us free alcohol. The snack was pretty good I thought (pita), though as always, not enough food.

We arrived into Boston around 10:15 PM, about 15 minutes earlier than our originally scheduled flight was supposed to land, so the "delays" turned out pretty good all around.

Hertz

I had reserved a convertible at Hertz using my AAA rate of $35.99/day. I joined AAA a few months ago, and just this week I got a magazine with a Hertz advertisement, basically I can get any car up to a full-size for $24.99/day (not bad for a full-size), but the real gem is I can get a Premium, Luxury, SUV, or convertible for $35.99/day! We get to the lot, hop in the car and head towards the Sumner Tunnel. We hit some traffic before the Sumner Tunnel and a light the instrument panel catches my attention ... "Low Fuel" ... I look at the gas gauge, the car is completely empty. ...?!?!?! I get off and try to turn around, getting lost for a bit, but finally getting directions and managing to find our way back to the Hertz lot. I'm pretty pissed at this point. They fill up the car and give me a $20 voucher (which I lost ), but they refused to give me another car and made me wait while they filled it up (Hertz got an e-mail from me about that this morning already).

Westin Waltham

Check-in quick and efficient. Carpet in the hallways could use replacement, but the room was very nice. Why is the SPG floor the second floor and not a higher floor though? Very nice hotel overall, didn't get to try any of the dining though, but it looked good.

August 29 BOS-ATL DL1097

BTW, whoever warned me about the traffic and roads in Boston, I must confess I thought you were exaggerating ... I'm sorry I didn't believe you. Talk about a mess, I have never seen anything like that ... most third world countries probably have better roads than Boston ...

We dropped off the car at Hertz without incident and go to the terminal. The check in counters are a zoo ... the Medallion/FC line doesn't look too bad, but we opt for the CRC. Wait at security in line for a bit then get to the CRC and get checked in. Boy, it sure was crowded for a Sunday evening ... I'd hate to see it on a weekday! They did have Sam Adams on draft though

The call for Medallion level flyers and the lady in front of me starts explaining to the gate agent that she's Medallion but her family's not and can they all board and so on, and the agent says no. Of course Pixie is not Medallion, and we always board together, and I've never had a problem, nor do we have a problem when we board right after their attempt. My theory in a case like this is don't ask if you might not like the answer, try first ...

We end up having three seats on the 757 to ourselves, so the flight wasn't too bad. Sky Deli flight, I'm just glad they put mayonnaise in the Sky Delis now instead of just Dijonnaise. They showed the usual news segments on the TV followed by an old episode of Seinfeld.

We land and get in a little ahead of time and head to the A17 CRC ...

ATL-MSY DL897

After trying to use one of the computers in the CRC (DL's internet access wasn't working worth a crap for whatever reason ...) we head to the gate. We board the 737-800 and were again on the aisle and middle, and someone shows up to claim the window seat (I think the flight was pretty much full). They serve drinks, no inflight entertainment, but they did show the Map and the Plane (SkyMap or whatever its called) on the TV screens.

Landed a few minutes late, and went the car.

Overall DL was good (especially the ATL-BOS leg on the "late" flight that was really early for us), the Westin Waltham was very nice, and Hertz sucked.

Great trip report! But did you get to meet Baobab and the Gardener?

If I had met them, do you think I could have left it out!

Actually, we were up there to celebrate with some of my college classmates that one of them had just graduated law school ... though it turns out we ended up having time on Sunday, but we just walked around Boston before heading out to the airport.

Yeah, I didn't think you would leave that out if it had happened. But they are kind of a secretive pair, don't you know. Thought maybe they requested you to sign a non-disclosure document or something. What, with Baobab working for the CIA and the Gardener being a hit man for the NSA and all. Hey! Come to think of it, maybe you did meet with them!

Four Paws up report Beckles, and thanks for the heads up on another place to get Sam Adams! **** that's good beer!

I really like these Crown Rooms, esp for the free alcohol, but is the staff careful enough to monitor to make sure flyers don't get too tipsy?

Well Catman, let's just say I've managed to get pretty darn loaded courtesy of DL in the CRC's ...

Several times in New Orleans on margaritas while I surf the web or play cards at http://www.zone.com ... a time or two in DC during delays ... and on the way to San Antonio when I missed my connection, and they never hesitated serving me more, though I wasn't that drunk I suppose ...

great report, Beckles...

BOS traffic getting to and from the airport is the absolute worst, it makes EWR, LGA & JFK look tame...

Good report -- thanks.

I have to say I think Boston Logan is one of the worth Hertz stations I've ever run afoul of... the shuttle buses run extra-erratically, the Rapid Return service is frequently down, I've had dirty (though never zero-fueled) cars, and everyone just generally looks like they'd rather be doing something else for a living. Yeesh.

"worth"? I meant WORST. Yeesh again.

My experience, too, with Hertz in Boston. I once waited half an hour for a shuttle bus there. At that point, my #1 gold reservation went off the computer, so I got to wait in line, too.

Although to be fair, Hertz was flawless on last week's trip to BOS.

BearX220: Welcome, good to have you here! BTW, there is an icon you can click on to edit your post (next to "INFO" and E-mail).

[This message has been edited by dgolds (edited 08-30-1999).]

I've had similar problems with the service at Hertz in LaGuardia -- enough so that I complained (just a bit on their standard Gold Form). I was surprised to get a reply -- a standard we'll tell the manager (with cc; to the manager's name so maybe they did). To their credit the two times afterwards I had no problems (of course I know there's no relation but hey..)

That convertible rate is something to envy. I'm going to LAX in a few weeks and decided to get a convertible from Hertz myself for a day, figure it's a good place to drive with the top down. I believe I get a contract rate of a little under $50. Not terrible, but obviously not great.

THanks for the informative trip report.

You tried to turn around in Boston? As they say in that area, "yoo poo-ah bastid!" As a general rule, you have one shot at getting to where you are going. If you make a mistake, it is generally half an hour before making another approach.

Growing up learning how to drive in Boston, I was amazed the first time I ventured into the wilderness (outside the 128 belt), and discovered how sane people drive (and lay out streets).

Boston's terrible traffic situation stems from a decision in 1962 that they would eschew the typical "beltways". Two other beltways were planned between the Southeast Distressway and the 128/I-95 belt. However local activism killed the project partway through.

It has only been made worse by the Big Dig. $10 billion for 10 miles, with no additional capacity. What a farce. At least the unions are happy.

What's a killer is that those of us in this end of the state hear the proverbial sucking sound as the state siphons off money for road repair out here. We have some potholes which are visible from space, but no $ until AT BEST, next fiscal year.

For more information on how taxpayers are taking it on the chin, check out http://www.bigdig.com

By the way, I get to see what you have to put up with. In MSY 9/13-9/16.

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"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own."


[This message has been edited by Jon Toner (edited 08-30-1999).]

Jon ~ You don't sound like a "Big Fan" of the "Big Dig". To be fair, I did check out the site, and it does look like there will be some added capacity (4 lanes instead of 3 lanes on the main highway through there, the Ted Williams Tunnel, the new bridges across the Charles River, and probably just as importantly they eliminated some of the exits).

Of course, they happily admit that 1/3 of the budget is for "mitigation", which seems like a fancy word for "bribes" to various community groups to get them to buy off on the project.

Let's face it, the situation certainly can't get much worse (like some flyers I saw posted around the Big Dig claimed it would)!

I hate government waste. The Big Dig ranks just ahead of Interstate 99 (the Interstate that never leaves PA - but serves the bustling Altoona metropolis) for waste.

The thing is, this is a smoke and mirrors deal. 4 lanes for a short stretch. So what? You lose some congestion, then 10 miles later, you get it right back.

Closing exits only transfers the problem to local streets. Now you have to drive even FURTHER to get on or off the interstate. The local streets of Boston are already a nightmare, this only makes them worse.

How does this help commuters? It doesn't. It benefits some construction companies and the unions. The taxpayers, commuters and residents be ****ned.


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"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own."