Conversations

Have any of you ever arrived somewhere thinking you had a lodging reservation, only to learn that that reservation didn't exist? I haven't, yet, but I've read plenty such stories in letters to travel magazines, so I know to double-check reservations. Please find below my correspondence with Travelocity:

> * Customer* 02/05/2009 05:24 AM
Hello, I made a reservation through Travelocity over 24 hours ago. However, the status on my account says "We are unable to confirm this booking with the hotel." Does that mean I cannot rely on this reservation? How do I go about getting it confirmed?
Thank you.
A.

* Subject* status unconfirmed * Email Correspondence* * Response 02/06/2009 10:42 AM
Dear A.,
Thank you for writing to Travelocity.
We understand your concern regarding your hotel reservation booked with "Hummingbird" under the Trip ID: 390341342301.

A., please be informed that it takes 24 hours for the reservation to get updated on the hotels system when you book with Travelocity. Be informed that your hotel reservation is confirmed with the hotel. We have also separately emailed you the confirmation of your reservation under Trip ID 390341342301.

Please feel free to write to us for any further information that you may require. We appreciate the opportunity to serve your travel needs.

Regards,

Paul T
Travelocity Customer Service

Dear Paul:
Thank you for responding. However, in the confirmation e-mail I just received, the status is still listed as unconfirmed, and it is the same on your website. Can I take your e-mail below as a guarantee that my reservation is, indeed, on the books of the hotel?
Thank you,
A.

Travelocity Member Services

Re: status unconfirmed [Incident: 090205-002412] Response (Kevin T) 02/06/2009 01:59 PM
Dear A.,

We regret the inconvenience caused to you for the error in our previous response.

Per your email we have reviewed the reservation for your stay at Hummingbird booked under Trip Id 390341342301 and as per our records we see that this reservation is not confirmed. As this reservation was not prepaid we would suggest you to cancel this booking and make a new reservation as you was not charged.

We regret any inconvenience this may have caused to you.

Regards,

Kevin T

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Well, I'm glad I checked. I am now attempting to communicate directly with the hotel I've reserved through a different travel service.

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One thing I will not miss about giving blood is having to go through the countries I visited over the last three years EVERY TIME. They keep records of other information; would it kill them to keep those records? Those countries haven't changed, and I'll gladly list any new ones for them. I'm not sure why this bothers me more than getting sick after giving blood, which lasts a bit longer and feels positively horrendous, but it's just such an inefficiency and it drives me up the wall.

Anyway, here is a conversation from my pre-bloodletting interview:

Nurse: In the past year, have you ever been in a prison?
A.: Yes.
Nurse: You've been in a prison?
A.: Yes.
Nurse: [Looks at me funny]
A.: I have visited a prison. I have not been imprisoned in one.
Nurse: Oh, okay, that's fine.

Well, she did ask whether I'd been in one. We cleared up the misunderstanding and went on to talk about my tattoos.