As to the comment that websites shouldn’t allow people to book reservations with names like Sue or Jim, I know many people that those ARE their real names, not shortened versions. Don’t expect Travelocity or US Air or Amtrak to know what all the possible diminuitives are and give special warnings based on that. Why are we expected to know that Beth and Betsy might be shortened versions of Elizabeth or Elisabeth, that Jim might be a shortened version of John or Jack (and Jack might also be a nickname for someone named John), that an Andy or Drew might actually be an Andrew, that a Bob or Rob might be Robert, etc? Why should the airlines be responsible because people don’t take the time to read the warnings that your full, legal name must be used? To me that should be enough and if you chose to ignore the warning, then you take responsibility if something gets messed up.

Although you may not have historically had a problem, your situation is about to change as the DHS is starting a major crackdown on ensuring identical matches between identification and ticket: http://www.tsa.gov/blog/2009/05/whats-in-name.html

1) People need to have ONE formal name (and ONE English transliteration if not natively so) and use it consistently. My daughter’s nickname is Cassie, and that’s what everyone calls her, but her full name is Catherine, and we use that without fail on travel tickets, school paperwork, etc; I would never think of doing otherwise. Same for the E Scott Johnson’s of the world — if your name is really Edvardo Scott Johnson, that’s what you need to use on all documents (and deal with people not knowing you prefer to be called “Scott” until you tell them), or get it formally changed.

2) Airlines and others need to ensure their systems can take a consistent style of names. Right now, I can’t change my United profile to put my full middle name in; it only has room for one letter. And they should be more flexible on “obvious” name changes after the fact.

3) I MUCH prefer online systems where I enter my own info and can confirm that it’s correct, vs trying to spell it to an agent on the phone. When my daughter was an infant and got special fares (not usually available anymore) that required phoning, I often got “Katherine” even after spelling it for them twice.

@Brit – sorry – the pic is most definitely Banff. Lake Louise is cream-colored.
@Passing Through – Be sure to join the Fairmont President’s Club. It’s free, gives you automatic room upgrade and goodies, dedicated check-in lines, special rates and offers, etc.

I know many people book through these third party web sites all the time. But, for the life of me, I can’t figure out why you would bother. You just add one more layer of complexity and chances for things to go wrong.

Although I work in a travel agency, I can’t help but “partly” agree with that comment.

If anything, people book through third party travel agencies because they tend to save up when getting a flight and hotel combination at the very least. Of course, the drawback to that is the vendors will insist the customer deal directly with the travel agency it was booked to begin with.

Maybe it was a so-called money grab, maybe the Alaska Airlines agent sincerely told the Kohlmans how Calgary border officials might treat that. I know some of you said the Kohlmans wouldn’t have been turned away because of that, but…what if that happened, knock on wood?

After all, no one wants to be told one thing. Only to find out the hard way it’s another, and might result in a costly mistake.

P.S the picture is of the Fairmont Lake Louise not the Fairmont Banff :)