Orbitz

Hello,

Regarding the following reservation:

Passenger(s): VARGAS/MIRANDA

Orbitz.com Itinerary Number: 720558****5750

Lufthansa Confirmation Code: 2FW5YJ

Orbitz.com Confirmation Code: BOFUS6

I originally made this booking (for Seattle to Geneva and back, from 12/26-1/3) on June 8 for a total of $710.50.

On 10/7, I received an alert from you that Lufthansa had cancelled the first leg of the trip, from Seattle to Frankfurt leaving on 12/26, arriving on 12/27. They rebooked me on a Seattle to Munich flight leaving 12/27 arriving 12/28.

The main issue is my connecting flight from Frankfurt to Geneva is still booked leaving on 12/27. Obviously, with this combination of flights, I would not make it to my destination of Geneva at all, let alone on 12/27, as originally planned.

I first called Orbitz on 10/9 to amend the situation. I was told by the agent that there were no seats available on Lufthansa flights in the class level I purchased leaving on 12/26, only on 12/27. He said I could get a business class seat, however.

At the time, I declined. I told him I am unable to leave on 12/27 because I already have other travels planned in Geneva starting on 12/28. I additionally told him about my friend I'm traveling with (though she is on a different booking). She had called on 10/8 and was able to get her whole departing flights rebooked to the following:

Lufthansa 7507 operated by United, departs 12/26 SEA at 7 AM, arrives ORD 1:07 pm

Lufthansa 9153 operated by United, departs ORD 3:15 pm, arrives FRA 6:35 AM on 12/27

Lufthansa 5674 operated by Air Dolomiti, departs FRA 9:10 am, arrives GVA 10:15 am

I gave this information to the agent in hopes I could align with my friend's plans.

He told me those flights appeared to be sold out. At this point, he told me he would need to send an email to other airlines to see if they could offer me other seats. He told me the offline team would get back to me by email in the next 3 business days. Just to confirm I heard him correctly, I repeated this back to him and he said yes.

The call also dropped toward the end of the call, but he called me back.

On 10/11, I received an Orbitz email (though signed by the Expedia Customer Team) stating you could process a refund for me on my open status ticket. I was surprised to see this because this request was not what the agent told me he made.

As you can imagine, booking a flight in June for December is much different than booking one in October. Where I paid around $700 in June, if I got a refund and rebooked my entire flight, I would be paying double. That is not something I care to do, nor can do.

This would mean I need to cancel my trip altogether.

I called you all a second time on 10/13 to find out more about the situation and see if it could be resolved with me getting a flight on 12/26. The first agent I spoke to was incredibly rude, condescending, and unwilling to help me. He told me, as before, that all flights on 12/26 are sold out, and there was nothing he could do, that you are a "travel agency" and can't do a lot of things. At this point, I asked to speak to the manager in charge, and he passed me to Mike.

Mike did not ask me any questions other than to confirm my flights, put me on hold for nearly an hour, and then when he returned to give me information, the call dropped again, but this time I did not get a call back.

At this point, I had been on the phone for nearly 2 hours, so decided to try again later.

At this point, I am still booked on the flights Lufthansa gave me leaving Seattle to Munich on 12/27, arriving 12/28 and "connecting" in Frankfurt to Geneva leaving on 12/27. I have been told two times there are no flights I can get on on 12/26. Though, I don't know what Mike was going to tell me.

I am asking for your help in resolving this matter. As stated to the other agents, I am unable to leave on 12/27, as I already have other travel plans booked on 12/28.

Either way, I paid for a flight leaving 12/26, so that is what I should be rebooked on. I understand you are a third party booking agent, a "travel agency," so to speak, and do not have all the controls and access to information as the direct airline might have. That said, you do have connections with other airlines and I can't imagine this type of situation has never come up before.

I also do not want a refund which would force me to rebook flights at a much higher cost, and potentially cancel my trip. I don't believe this is an adequate solution, as I would also not rebook on Orbitz and you all would lose that revenue, as well.

A relationship with a person and travel agency means the agency takes their cut to arrange someone's travel and makes sure they get what they paid for.

In this case, I am not getting that. Please, please, please, can you help me get a flight leaving Seattle on 12/26? There must be other options - requesting Lufthansa put me on a business class seat, finding seats on other airlines (my friend, for example, got moved to a United booking), or offering me different seats at the same rate I paid in June.

Again, I know you all are not able to make all these decisions on your own but I hope you will utilize the relationships you have with airlines to make some magic happen for me. You would not only ensure my trip can actually happen, but you would repair the awful experience I have had thus far with your agency.

Thank you very much for your help.

I have been trying to make a change to an outgoing flight to Europe which is approximately two months from now. I recently noted that my layover is only 45 minutes, which seems way too short to change planes, possibly go through customs, and ensure my luggage makes the new flight.

On the first day, I spent approximately 3 hours on an online chat attempting to make the change. I was disconnected and had to start over twice. The final person assured me that if we got disconnected, they would call me back. Instead, they sent an email (attached) essentially indicating that it was too challenging. There was no callback.

On the second day, I called in and spoke with an agent who discovered that the flights I had tried to secure the previous day were now full or much pricier. I asked to talk to a supervisor and was on the phone with him for approximately 1.5 hours. He (Joaquin) revealed that the new flight would now cost $699, but they would refund me the difference for the flight I was offered at $357. Ultimately, I had a work meeting to attend, and he assured me he would resolve it and call me back. Guess what? He didn't call back and instead sent me a disappointing email (second attachment). I should mention that I did respond to both emails and heard nothing back.

Currently, on the third day, I called the call center and asked to speak with a supervisor. She repeated my flight details about three times (I am VERY aware of the current details) and then informed me that pricing is dynamic and the deal I was promised two days ago is no longer available. I requested that she review the notes and try to offer the deal I was promised yesterday. After about an hour of waiting on the phone, she responded that it would be a full $699 and that the offer I was given the day before was impossible. I asked for her supervisor and she stated that there was none (I very much believe this was a lie as a former call center employee myself).

I knew I would have to pay a change fee, but spending so many hours online and on the phone with a total of 7 different agents, I feel they should have given me a discount on the change or SOMETHING.

All I received for my trouble was a 'sorry'. She also assured me that 45 minutes would be enough time for the layover since the airline sold me the flight. Ha! How I wish it worked like that.