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So, last week I took a little trip to Vancouver. And it started with an adventure.
I booked the plane ticket based on the most convenient time of day. I saw that after a short flight I'd have about a one-hour layover, and I thought that would be great because it might even give me a chance to grab lunch before I made my connection. Silly me.
I'm not used to international travel. I forget how these things work. And I didn't notice that the layover was in Toronto. (The other flights I was looking at were mostly routed through US cities like Chicago or Seattle.)
First of all, our flight was delayed in taking off. I suddenly realized that timing might be tight getting across the airport. I mentioned it to the flight attendant, but she said she couldn't do anything from the air. She told me to check with an agent when we landed.
Once we landed, however, she told me that she'd called for a wheelchair for me and I should just hang out on the plane until the people came to fetch me. That gave me what turned out to be a very good opportunity to use the lavatory. But it still took a while for them to get a wheelchair team over. Even with the pit stop and the time it took to get my bags together and the fact that I'd waited for the other passengers to clear, I still ended up walking down the stairs, across the tarmac, and down the hall before they got there. By then, I was getting more nervous about the time, and that was before I had any idea what was in store.
They whisked me down the hall. And further down the hall. And down another hall. And down an elevator. And across the whole baggage claim area. I have no idea how long it would have taken me to walk all that, especially with all my carry-on. My bag was waiting by the carousel, and the woman behind the desk overlooking the carousel asked for me by name when the agent grabbed my bag, just to make sure.
I'd forgotten that flying into Toronto would mean that I'd have to reclaim my bag, take it through customs, and recheck it on the other side. The connection was looking tighter.
They called a porter over. He took my bags. The woman who had been handling my carry-on disappeared.
We made it through customs in a blur. Rechecked my bag. Stopped by the Air Canada check-in desk. Turns out United had screwed up my seat assignment (even though I'd specifically called Air Canada to get a seat assignment after I booked the United ticket). The Air Canada agent got my seat assignment fixed, radioed ahead to the gate to let them know I was coming, and came around the desk to grab the wheelchair. The man who had pushed me halfway across the airport had vanished before I could even try to tip him.
She sped me down the VIP lane of the security line, then asked the people ahead of me if we could cut in because I had a tight connection. They were really nice about it. I tried to tip her while we were waiting, but she flatly refused. Said she was just doing her job. She helped talk me through security, handed off the wheelchair, and returned to her desk.
Someone else grabbed the chair on the other side of the metal detectors (after they'd thoroughly checked it over). He sped me down yet more halls and over to the gate. Again, refusing to be tipped. Again, took me around the line of people already waiting to board, down the VIP lane, and all the way down the jetway to the plane door.
Then the plane crew took my bags, stowed them for me in the overhead bins, got out the stuff in the front pocket for me, and helped me to my seat. I sat down with everything I needed... and just under 10 minutes to spare before take-off.
Whew. Any less help and I'd have never made it. What a whirlwind.
I can't believe United booked things that way, but the Canadians went out of their way to make up for it.
I booked the plane ticket based on the most convenient time of day. I saw that after a short flight I'd have about a one-hour layover, and I thought that would be great because it might even give me a chance to grab lunch before I made my connection. Silly me.
I'm not used to international travel. I forget how these things work. And I didn't notice that the layover was in Toronto. (The other flights I was looking at were mostly routed through US cities like Chicago or Seattle.)
First of all, our flight was delayed in taking off. I suddenly realized that timing might be tight getting across the airport. I mentioned it to the flight attendant, but she said she couldn't do anything from the air. She told me to check with an agent when we landed.
Once we landed, however, she told me that she'd called for a wheelchair for me and I should just hang out on the plane until the people came to fetch me. That gave me what turned out to be a very good opportunity to use the lavatory. But it still took a while for them to get a wheelchair team over. Even with the pit stop and the time it took to get my bags together and the fact that I'd waited for the other passengers to clear, I still ended up walking down the stairs, across the tarmac, and down the hall before they got there. By then, I was getting more nervous about the time, and that was before I had any idea what was in store.
They whisked me down the hall. And further down the hall. And down another hall. And down an elevator. And across the whole baggage claim area. I have no idea how long it would have taken me to walk all that, especially with all my carry-on. My bag was waiting by the carousel, and the woman behind the desk overlooking the carousel asked for me by name when the agent grabbed my bag, just to make sure.
I'd forgotten that flying into Toronto would mean that I'd have to reclaim my bag, take it through customs, and recheck it on the other side. The connection was looking tighter.
They called a porter over. He took my bags. The woman who had been handling my carry-on disappeared.
We made it through customs in a blur. Rechecked my bag. Stopped by the Air Canada check-in desk. Turns out United had screwed up my seat assignment (even though I'd specifically called Air Canada to get a seat assignment after I booked the United ticket). The Air Canada agent got my seat assignment fixed, radioed ahead to the gate to let them know I was coming, and came around the desk to grab the wheelchair. The man who had pushed me halfway across the airport had vanished before I could even try to tip him.
She sped me down the VIP lane of the security line, then asked the people ahead of me if we could cut in because I had a tight connection. They were really nice about it. I tried to tip her while we were waiting, but she flatly refused. Said she was just doing her job. She helped talk me through security, handed off the wheelchair, and returned to her desk.
Someone else grabbed the chair on the other side of the metal detectors (after they'd thoroughly checked it over). He sped me down yet more halls and over to the gate. Again, refusing to be tipped. Again, took me around the line of people already waiting to board, down the VIP lane, and all the way down the jetway to the plane door.
Then the plane crew took my bags, stowed them for me in the overhead bins, got out the stuff in the front pocket for me, and helped me to my seat. I sat down with everything I needed... and just under 10 minutes to spare before take-off.
Whew. Any less help and I'd have never made it. What a whirlwind.
I can't believe United booked things that way, but the Canadians went out of their way to make up for it.