Some things are just too good to be true. Like a British Airways flight to Mumbai for $40, offered briefly yesterday. Such a deal!
Orbitz
Picture this: You’re on your honeymoon in Morocco. When you check in for your flight back to the States, a gate agent insists there’s something wrong with your reservation — and forces you to buy a new set of tickets.
Travel companies routinely use collection agencies as tools to enrich themselves at their customers’ expense. That’s what seemed to be happening to Gabrielle Durana when her online travel agency tried to strong-arm her into paying $1,700 for an airline ticket it lost. But looks can be deceiving.
Two to three billing cycles. That’s the formula answer you’ll get from a travel company when you ask how long your refund will take. But the formula doesn’t always work.
If you’re under 25, you’re in for an unpleasant surprise when you check into the Oasis Cancun, a pyramid-like, all-inclusive resort on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula: a mandatory “under 25″ fee of $54. And they don’t take “no” for an answer. When Ryan Plaxsun, 24, recently checked into the hotel, he was told to pony up the cash — or leave.
Wendell Mrugala makes a hotel reservation through Orbitz. But when he contacts the online agency to confirm his room, he’s told there’s no reservation. Mrugala makes another reservation, but is surprised when he learns the first reservation has gone through. Is there any hope for a refund?
Unpleasant surprises are part of almost every check-out process. There are extras like resort fees, taxes and previously undisclosed surcharges that are invariably tacked on to your hotel bill. So when Bithi Chatterjee discovered her invoice was lower than she’d expected, she thought it was a fluke. She was right.
There’s bad news for anyone who is considering booking a trip online: the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index from the University of Michigan finds customer satisfaction has fallen to an all-time low. The online travel industry’s aggregate scored slipped from 76 to 75 last year, a drop of 1.3 percent. It’s the lowest reading since the ACSI began tracking online travel agencies in 2002.
Here’s an important footnote to the airline industry’s year from hell. A closer look at the Transportation Department’s 2007 report card shows some carriers were likelier to lose your luggage, deny you boarding, get you to your destination late and provoke a written complaint. And some airlines were above it all.
Of the three major online agencies, Orbitz has a well-established reputation for making the most of the latest technologies. But until recently, it hardly applied those innovations where they were most needed: in the customer service department.
Elliott is consumer advocate 
I'm on Facebook: Please "like" 
WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM? If you're having trouble with a travel business - any business - and you've reached a dead end, maybe I can help. Send me an