Sunday, June 21, 2015

Priceline (Internet Travel Service)

Priceline (Internet Travel Service)


Can be written at:

Executive Services
Priceline.com LLC
800 Connecticut Ave.
Norwalk, CT 06854


Welll... I dedicated to myself that I would give the good the bad and the other. Let me tell you about Priceline. First of all, I have a general principal I have found to be overwhelmingly true. The more a company spends on advertising, the worse they customer service must be. If the only place I've heard of you is commercials... it's because my friends haven't used you and raved about you. This one is no exception. Sorry William Shatner, this company is a bust.

My mom comes into town. She is leaving tomorrow for Chicago, and she booked a hotel there through Priceline.

The price of the hotel is the same as it would have been if she booked it through the hotel directly ( she uses this hotel often). Plans changed, she decided to not stay in Chicago, but drive directly down to Pontiac, IL instead.

She called well over 24 hours in advance (usual industry standard) to cancel the hotel reservation. She was informed that the reservation was booked through a web provider so they couldn't cancel it, she'd have to call them. But they couldn't even see which web provider booked it.

She went through emails and found out it was Priceline. She called them to get told that they had a no cancellation policy, and they would be charging a $100 cancellation fee. Escalated twice, still same answer.

  • That will be disputed with the Credit Card Company. 
  • This entire family will never use Priceline to book anything.
  • I found the Yelp entry for Priceline (74 reviews with a ONE star rating... that's bad averages). 

Recommendation: 

DO NOT use Priceline. In fact, do not book anything through any of these services. Develop a relationship with a favorite (hotel, airline, etc) and build that relationship and points with them.


Darrell
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Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Reunion Tower - Dallas TX


Reunion Tower Entrance ?

New Flash - If your last ride is at 8:30, you close at 8:30. Not 9:00.

UPDATE: They responded to me by email, and agreed that they would change their hours issue.
 

Reunion Tower - Dallas Texas

 

300 Reunion Blvd. EastDallas, TX 75207


The entrance is actually inside the Hyatt Regency Hotel lobby. There is self parking, and a 2-5 minute walk around and up to the entrance (depending on your able bodied walking style).


My Yelp Review: HERE


 Wiki:
Reunion Tower is a 561 ft (171 m) observation tower and one of the most recognizable landmarks in DallasTexas. Located at 300 Reunion Blvd. in the Reunion district of downtown Dallas, the tower is part of the Hyatt Regency Hotel complex, and is the 15th tallest building in Dallas. A free-standing structure until the construction of an addition to the Hyatt Regency Dallas in 1998, the tower was designed by the architectural firm Welton Becket & Associates.


Overview


All the brochures and mobile look ups say that it closes at nine. We know from previous tower experiences that there's not much to see. You go up, look for a while and head down. 30 minutes is good enough.

We parked just before 8:30 pm in the self parking ($6). We walked up the entrance with a lady putting up the ropes. I said: "Excuse me? It says you close at 9:00 pm." She said, "We're closed." No smile. Walked off. No explanation. Nothing that we could see explained why we were standing there at 8:45 pm, staring at ropes and a sign that says they close at 9:00 pm. 
A few minutes later, as I'm still staring... looking for a written reason they are closed early... another couple walks up. Also very displeased. 

No one in the guest shop or concierge at Hyatt offered an explanation either. We did buy a few things from the souvenir shop. My Mom and Niece were in from California, and we bought some very Texasy things. 

Eventually a kind concierge (sorry I forgot his name) and Eva from parking let us out without having to pay for parking (due to the experience). 


Cost


Unknown. Couldn't understand the offerings, and no one to ask. 

Kids


I'm sure they would have enjoyed it?

Final Thoughts


I spent nine years in restaurants, including Marriott and Ruth's Chris. I have a thing for great experiences, and I don't mind paying for them. I also happen to believe in truth in advertising. If you are open until nine, that means you seat guests up until nine, and allow ordering up to 30-45 minutes after nine. 

When I got home I found an explanation on their website. The last elevator ride is 30 minutes before closing. Which means that they close at 8:30 pm NOT 9:00 pm. The sign is false, and I doubt I will bother to come back. I've lived in Fort Worth 5 years and it's taken me this long to bother. I guess if they offer me a free ride, in exchange for a new review... I might bother. But I won't take this one down. Just add a new review to add to it. 

What a simple mistake... 1990's customer service model. Bye. 


Tweets:


**

Darrell
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