ladyofastolat (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ladyofastolat) wrote2007-03-31 09:21 am
ladyofastolat) wrote2007-03-31 09:21 am
Booking holidays
Sorry. I've been quite ranty this week, and also quite talkative. But here goes...
Why do so many hotels (and pubs and eating places) still not bother to have a website? Do they want people to use them?
Why is it so hard to find a hotel's own website (when it has one), rather than its entry in a million and one different hotel booking services?
Why does every one of those million and one website booking services give contradictory information regarding price and availability?
Why do the websites lie to you, claiming that they have vacancies, then ten minutes later denying it utterly? Then, if you sternly interrogate it a third time, it will cave in and admit that, actually, yes, they can fit you in after all. Do these websites have a split personality? Are they just mischievous trouble-makers? Is it all a test, so they make sure they only get persistent guests who really, really want to be there? Do they laugh to see us tear out our hair? Is it all a plot by the travel agents, to make us all give up booking our own holidays online, and rush tearfully back to them, saying, "you were right. We do need your professional expertise, after all?"
Why do so many websites not even allow you to make an enquiry by email, but insist on phone calls?
Why do so many online forms go out of their way to torment you - e.g. by resetting everything to "January" if you lower your guard for just one second, or by automatically filling in "22nd July" for your check-out date, just because you've put "21st June" for your check-in, so you half glance at it, see the "22nd Ju.." think "that's right," and then get sternly told that you can't stay for more than a month so please go away. Um... I think lost a question mark somewhere in the mire of verbosity, so here it is. "?"
After four man hours of work last night we managed to book 5 out of the 9 nights, a flight, and a car. We then retreated, battered and bruised. The battle will be rejoined today.
I should also note that this was the first Friday night in aeons that we didn't have anything to drink. I feel quite proud of myself, though I'm aware that this fact makes me seen very bad.
Today we need to tidy the house and make it fit for polite company next weekend. Not that we're getting any... ;-)
Why do so many hotels (and pubs and eating places) still not bother to have a website? Do they want people to use them?
Why is it so hard to find a hotel's own website (when it has one), rather than its entry in a million and one different hotel booking services?
Why does every one of those million and one website booking services give contradictory information regarding price and availability?
Why do the websites lie to you, claiming that they have vacancies, then ten minutes later denying it utterly? Then, if you sternly interrogate it a third time, it will cave in and admit that, actually, yes, they can fit you in after all. Do these websites have a split personality? Are they just mischievous trouble-makers? Is it all a test, so they make sure they only get persistent guests who really, really want to be there? Do they laugh to see us tear out our hair? Is it all a plot by the travel agents, to make us all give up booking our own holidays online, and rush tearfully back to them, saying, "you were right. We do need your professional expertise, after all?"
Why do so many websites not even allow you to make an enquiry by email, but insist on phone calls?
Why do so many online forms go out of their way to torment you - e.g. by resetting everything to "January" if you lower your guard for just one second, or by automatically filling in "22nd July" for your check-out date, just because you've put "21st June" for your check-in, so you half glance at it, see the "22nd Ju.." think "that's right," and then get sternly told that you can't stay for more than a month so please go away. Um... I think lost a question mark somewhere in the mire of verbosity, so here it is. "?"
After four man hours of work last night we managed to book 5 out of the 9 nights, a flight, and a car. We then retreated, battered and bruised. The battle will be rejoined today.
I should also note that this was the first Friday night in aeons that we didn't have anything to drink. I feel quite proud of myself, though I'm aware that this fact makes me seen very bad.
Today we need to tidy the house and make it fit for polite company next weekend. Not that we're getting any... ;-)
no subject
no subject
*off a-tidying*