Well, despite my best efforts to get off “the Rock” as this big island of Newfoundland is called, I am still stuck here. Not that I was desperate to leave, mind you. It has been a wonderful vacation, and I stand by my position that we Americans are indeed vacation-deprived. If it was a voluntary matter, I’d stay here for another few weeks, continue exploring the fascinating nooks and inlets of this brutally wonderful place. But I do have a real job to get back to, and today Continental Airlines decided that they were going to be as unhelpful as possible in helping me get home.
I arrived this morning to the airport at St. John’s only to discover over the PA system that our flight had been canceled. The weather, we were told by a woman’s stentorian voice (if such a thing is possible, which I assure you it is), was so bad in Newark that the flight would not be able to leave. Hmm.
“OK, so how else can you get me home?” I inquired of the cloyingly friendly woman behind the counter.
“I’m afraid you have to stay here until Monday,” she informed me.
“Monday?! Impossible. Is there a flight tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
“Why am I not on it?”
“Well, the computer determined which flights people were put on.”
“And I drew the short straw?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“So if I’m stuck here for two days. Are you paying for a rental car? Are you paying for a hotel?”
“I’m afraid that’s not our policy.” she said and smiled the most annoyingly apologetic rictus I’ve ever seen.
Well, after pitching a fit that I won’t recount here verbatim, I managed to get us on a flight tomorrow, but Continental was about as unhelpful as any company I’ve ever experienced in working to get us home and helping us figure out what to do in St. John’s for another night. Turns out hotels and B&Bs in town are completely booked and it took more than two hours to find a place to stay for another night. Continental did NOTHING to help us find a place, nor are they offering to pick up the cost of the room or the $25 cost of a cab. Is this the way all airlines who have cancellations treat their customers?
Maybe it’s just me and I’ve had a very fortunate time over the years traveling, but this has been one of the worst experiences with an airline I can remember having. Here I am stuck at my own expense to the tune of about $400 and all Continental offered was a lousy smile. Thanks, Continental.