Nikki and I took our mini-vacation to Monterey this past weekend. We have taken a big vacation the past three years and we decided to just do a short one this year. Quite a lot happened so this may end up being multiple blog entries.
We started out the trip last Thursday with huge storms over Dallas. The weather kept saying the storms would end any minute so we headed to the airport anyway, sure that our flight would be delayed. Little did we know...
AA delayed our flight for half a hour, then they changed its gate. Then they canceled it. No planes had left DFW for LA since the night before so I'm guessing that's why they canceled it. The plane we were supposed to take was probably at DFW with a load a passengers it was supposed to take the night before or something like that. Luckily, I had signed up for txt message updates for the flight status and knew the flight was canceled before the gate agents did. Unfortunately, this gate agent had no idea how to deal with a canceled flight.
Thanks to the txt message I was at the front of the line. The gate agent told the people in front of me that they should just "go to gate D29" that LA flight has plenty of room. She told me the same thing, but I asked to be booked on it. She proceeded to do that but then claimed she couldn't print any boarding passes and that we should go get them at D29. I was dubious of this prospect but with 30+ people behind me I figured that was our best option. When we get to D29, the flight says it is for Miami not LA. The gate right next to it does have an LA flight though so we stand in line there. Right as we reach the front of the line and I explain to the lady that I should be on the flight going out of D29 but its not there, they make an announcement that the LA flight is going out of D29 now.
So again we are told to go to D29 and get boarding passes. So we make our way over there and wait in line again. (Third Time) When I reach the front of the line this time, I am told that the LA flight at D29 has been double-booked by the computer and that there are no seats. The gate agent tells me to just "wait there" till the flight leaves and he will try and figure something out then. Meanwhile, there are at least 6 flight preparing to take off for LA, which if I wait I won't get on any of them. Nikki goes back and stands in line at the next gate over, where we had already stood in line and I go in search of ANY AA gate agent that can hopefully help us. I am halfway around the terminal when Nikki calls me, saying they are booking anyone going to LA on the flight she is in line for and to run back so we can get on it. So I RUN all the way back around the terminal and get there just in time for her to hand us the boarding passes.
Two Travel Trips here if your flight gets canceled.
1. If the gate agent says they booked you on another flight, get a boarding pass, otherwise you are not on it.
2. If your flight gets canceled, find the nearest gate that is going to the same place and stand in line, and ask (nicely) if you can get on it.
With EVERY SINGLE plane from the night before now trying to take off the runways are a little busy. We end up getting into LA 3 hours late, and of course, missing our connection to Monterey. Luckily there is another flight, in 4 hours.... Of course, we are not booked on that flight. So I wait in line again (fifth time) to see if we can get on it. The gate agent in LA tells me that there is only one seat available, but he immediately picks up the phone, calls someone, and says to me "I can work something out." His conversation went something like this.
"I've got two people who need to get to Monterey but there is only one avaialble seat. Can you help?"
Listens..
"Well with all these storms there's got to be someone flying in from the East coast who's not going to make it."
"Okay Thanks."
Hands me two boarding passes.
So he basically kicked someone off that flight, who wouldn't have made it anyway, and put us on.
Okay that's probably enough for one day. I'll pick up there tomorrow.
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