I know quite a few of you have heard this, but I'd like to post it so it's on the Internet and perhaps someone searching will be able to avoid a similar fate. This is the story of how Delta stole a day of our honeymoon and other tales of general airport ineptitude. Please forgive me for my ranting, but the story must be told.
We got out tickets through Expedia and all was well. The tickets arrived in the mail and the Wednesday after Christmas, we dutifully got to BWI 3 hours before our flight, excited to finally be on our way to Malta. Our first flight was with American Airlines and went well, other than arriving an hour late (We had 5 different airlines for 6 legs of our total trip).
When we landed, we found out that the next flight was not Alitalia like our ticket said, but was actually being run by Delta. So we went clear across the airport to get to the Delta terminal at JFK. Since it was a different airline, we had to check in again and get a boarding pass for the next leg. Due to the last flight arriving late, we only had an hour and a half to cross the airport, check in, get through security and get on the plane. However, the line to get into the Delta terminal came out the door and down the exit ramp. We stood in that line until they called our flight. We tried to get through the crowd. Someone flung open a car door without looking, knocking Chris over, cutting his leg and ripping his pants. But on we pressed through the mob. We stood in one line, to be sent to another line, to be sent to another one. We were told that our flight had been delayed 45 minutes so we could all get on. We were then told that the flight had already left, without the 30 people from our flight that we were standing in line with. Then we waited 2 1/2 hours in another line to get new tickets. They told us that because it was an Alitalia flight, run by Delta, but purchased by Expedia through US Airways. In order to put us on another flight, this meant the same flight but 24 hours later. And it was a full flight, so they couldn't even give us a ticket, just put us on standby. We told them it was our honeymoon and they didn't even care. We asked when to get to the airport in the morning and were told 6 hours early. So without any comped room or meals, we found an overpriced hotel in the area to wait and I began crossing of things that we would no longer have time to see during our trip.
The next day, we get to JFK 6 hours early to find out that the check in isn't open that early. We ask 3 workers and get 3 different answers as to when it does open. Eventually, I found a nice pilot who talked to a desk person, who let us check in at the first class desk, which was open. So we did. And that person said that Chris had enough miles to upgrade both of us to first class for the flight and get us into the special lounge to wait for our flight. It finally looked like things were looking up. So we went to the lounge. It turns out that Delta had lied to us again. The person at the lounge check-in told us we couldn't upgrade the day of the flight and we couldn't wait in their lounge. Denied. So we went back out to wait in little plastic seats for 6 hours. And 2 hours before the flight we got in line with the other people left behind by the flight the day before and waited for someone to man the desk and perhaps give us a real ticket instead of a standby ticket. Finally, we do get a ticket, get on a plane, and leave for Rome, 25 hours later than originally scheduled.
So the first day of the honeymoon was spent in the airport. The next day, we got to Rome and then got to Malta, that flight was also an hour late but at least we made it. The rest of the honeymoon was fantastic and we greatly enjoyed our trip. Then of course, we had a bit of an exciting journey home.
Malta is on top of things. The flight from Malta left a few minutes early. When we got to London, they had a representative there to speed us to our next flight. This was good because they had already given away our seats. Apparently if you're less than an hour early for an international flight, they figure you aren't coming. Even though they have your earlier flight information. I don't know why Expedia allows flights to be assigned that you can't make even if everything goes as expected. So we sprint further and faster than I have in a very long time to get across the airport to check in before they close the flight and won't let us board the plane. We made it with very literally seconds to spare. We then had to negotiate with other passengers in order to get seats together since they stuck us in the only spots left open on the flight. The flight was long and boring and was the only flight I've ever seen that charges $5 for headphones and $5 per drink while going overseas. When we arrived at our destination, 45 minutes late, we had a problem of an entirely different matter ahead of us.
Philadelphia airport was mobbed with a number of flights all coming in at once. They made us wait in an hours-long line to go through customs, then pick up our luggage, go through emmigration, then recheck luggage for the next connection. Many, many people missed their next flight. Once we got through customs, we had to beg the lady at the other side to bypass luggage pick up since we only had carry-ons. Reluctantly, she finally showed us a secret side exit and we were on our way to our connection. Fortunately, we made it in time to catch the last leg of our trip back to DC. I wouldn't have thought with a planned 3 hour layover that it we would have been in danger of missing a domestic flight and yet due to all the insane, and arguably useless, security measures we were one of the few very lucky ones to have made it.
And that is the story of our crazy air travel. Chris lately had another upsetting experience trying to fly to and from Brazil. It makes you wonder if it's worth traveling anymore. The destinations are wonderful but transit is pure agony.
