{"id":42,"date":"2011-03-20T09:59:18","date_gmt":"2011-03-20T13:59:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/?p=42"},"modified":"2011-03-20T10:00:17","modified_gmt":"2011-03-20T14:00:17","slug":"conde-nast-travel-tips-the-magic-words","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/2011\/03\/conde-nast-travel-tips-the-magic-words\/","title":{"rendered":"Conde Nast Travel Tips: The Magic Words"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Magic Words:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Nabbing a Better Seat
\n“Do you have any of those day-of-travel standby upgrades available?”<\/em>
\nAccording to Tom Parsons, CEO of Bestfares.com, a number of airlines fill empty first- or business-class seats on North American routes by selling last-minute upgrades for, say, $25 to $75. Some airlines base the price on the number of flight segments, while others vary the charge according to the number of miles flown. Not long ago, Parsons upgraded his family on an Aerom\u00c3\u00a9xico flight from Dallas to Canc\u00c3\u00ban for $50 per person.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to invoke Rule 240.”<\/em>
\nIf your domestic flight is delayed or canceled and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the airline\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fault (e.g., the problem is mechanical rather than weather related), cite Rule 240\u00e2\u20ac\u201dit\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the section of the airline\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s contract of carriage that details what the carrier must do for you if a flight doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take off as scheduled. Each airline\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Rule 240 is slightly different, but most require that you be put on the next available flight, even if it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s on another airline, and, depending on the length of the delay, that you be provided free hotel accommodations and meal vouchers. Before heading to the airport, print out a copy of the carrier\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Rule 240 (find it at www.mytravelrights.com<\/a>, in the “Travel Law” section) and carry it with you. Since many agents are unaware of the rules or won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t automatically offer to put you on a different airline, you may have to ask them to do it.<\/p>\n

And it helps to use insider lingo. Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what Peter Greenberg, author of The Travel Detective: Flight Crew Confidential<\/em> (Random House, $16), suggests you do if your flight is delayed or canceled. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t wait with everyone else who needs rerouting, he says. “While you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re standing in the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s longest line, all your flight options are taking off without you.” Instead, call your airline\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reservations number and ask which carrier has the next flight to your destination. “Say it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Delta flight 906. Go to a supervisor at a different counter and say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcCan you please 240 me over to Delta flight 906?\u00e2\u20ac\u2122”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Getting a Free Ticket
\n“Do you need volunteers to be bumped?”<\/em>
\nBooked on an oversold flight and have time to kill? If you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mind leaving later in exchange for a free ticket, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t wait until the gate agent calls for volunteers to give up their seats. Offer yourself the minute you arrive at the gate, so your name is first on the agent\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s list. If they do ultimately need volunteers, be sure to ask, “Will you provide a confirmed seat on the next flight?” so as not to end up a stranded standby.<\/p>\n

If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re stuck in coach, remember that just because you were assigned a seat doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean you have to live with it. If your flight isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t full, ask the check-in or gate agent if there is space in an emergency-exit row, which typically has extra legroom. Because those seats are rarely assigned in advance, they are frequently available an hour or two before the flight. “Do you have a seat next to an empty seat?” is the way to get more elbowroom; it helps to add that you need to get a lot of work done during the flight.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Getting the Right Room
\n“Can you fax me a floor plan or a property map?”<\/em>
\nWhen you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re headed to a beach resort, a European palace hotel, or any historic or one-of-a-kind property where the accommodations can differ considerably, even within the same category, a schematic may reveal each room\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s pros and cons (which is most secluded, which is most convenient, which has a larger balcony). Definitely request a particular room or particular attributes; make no requests and you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get whatever is left over after everyone else\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s have been filled. Ask “Exactly what will fill my line of sight?” and “What is the square footage?” to discover view obstructions and room size. You don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need magic words if you can befriend the magic person\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwhich in this case is the on-site reservations manager. “Which rooms are the most popular and why?” can start an enlightening conversation leading to “Which is your personal favorite and why?” By now the reservations manager is your buddy, increasing the chances that you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get the room you request and perhaps even an upgrade.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Getting an Upgrade
\n“Are you running any incentives at the desk today?”<\/em>
\nLet\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s say you reserved a standard room but decide at check-in that you would prefer an oceanfront suite if you can get a deal. At off-peak times, says Cottrill, “hotel managers create incentives to drive revenue,” enabling front-desk staff to give out upgrades for a nominal fee that may be negotiable. “Hotels do not like rooms to go unsold\u00e2\u20ac\u201despecially those with premium views,” he explains. “Hoteliers want you to be happy, because happy guests spend more money. So you can say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m willing to pay a small additional amount. What could you offer me that would be of value?\u00e2\u20ac\u2122”<\/p>\n

“We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re on our honeymoon.”<\/em>
\nIf you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re celebrating a special occasion, let the manager know about it. Well-run hotels want to make anniversaries and the like memorable so you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll tell all your friends and return for future occasions. Not celebrating anything? In modern city hotels, the best rooms are often on the highest floor. So consider “I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like a room on one of the top floors” as one of your requests. Should some superior high-floor rooms become available\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthus allowing the front desk to hand out complimentary upgrades\u00e2\u20ac\u201dyou\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be among the first in line.<\/p>\n

Complaining When You Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t Get What You Asked For
\n“That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s unacceptable.”<\/em>
\nThis is your route out of just about any hotel screwup, as long as you say it politely and with a solution in mind, and as long as the hotel is in the business of keeping customers happy. “It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a three-step tango,” says Morri Berman, a senior partner with the international communications firm Fleishman-Hillard, who logs 150,000 miles a year. “You say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcThis ain\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t gonna work.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 They say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcSorry\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthat\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all I can do.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 You ask to speak with the manager and say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcWhat you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re offering me is just not acceptable.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122” At hotel front desks, as a general rule never accept a no from someone who isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t empowered to give you a yes in the first place.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Magic Words: Nabbing a Better Seat “Do you have any of those day-of-travel standby upgrades available?” According to Tom Parsons, CEO of Bestfares.com, a number of airlines fill empty first- or business-class seats on North American routes by selling last-minute upgrades for, say, $25 to $75. Some airlines base the price on the number … Continue reading Conde Nast Travel Tips: The Magic Words<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gentryville.net\/nola\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}