VACATION FIASCOS - Page 10 of 14

Alaska Airlines aircraft, airplane in the sky

Alaska Airlines denied boarding to me by mistake! Who will pay for this?

March 10, 2024April 22, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Stepping up to the check-in counter of Alaska Airlines, new mom Jisu Lee wasn’t expecting any problems. She was well-prepared for the grueling 20-hour journey ahead, flying alone with her infant from Seattle to Auckland via Vancouver. In New Zealand, her parents were excitedly waiting to meet their granddaughter for the first time.

Lee had anticipated almost everything – except the possibility of being mistakenly denied boarding by a confused agent of Alaska Airlines. That error caused the trip to morph into an expensive four-day travel nightmare for the frazzled mother and baby.

Now Lee is hoping Consumer Rescue can help. She’s asking Alaska Airlines to admit it made an error refusing to allow her to board the flight. She also wants the airline to repay her for all of the additional expenses she incurred as a result of that mistake.

But what is the real reason that Alaska Airlines denied boarding to Lee and her child? That’s the question of the day.

NCL denied boarding Norwegian Spirit, cruise ship on the ocean, Norwegian Spirit

I flew to New Zealand and got denied boarding my $8,154 NCL cruise!

July 14, 2024April 14, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

What if you flew 7,500 miles to take an NCL cruise only to be denied boarding at the pier? It happened to one stunned couple. Here’s their story.

As Erin Beztilny’s flight from Vancouver touched down in Auckland last month, she could hardly contain her excitement. She and her husband were about to embark on a much-anticipated dream cruise aboard NCL’s Norwegian Spirit from New Zealand to Australia.

At least that was the plan. But that isn’t what happened.

Why is this Airbnb host asking me to sneak into the property?

August 8, 2024April 11, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

What if you traveled halfway around the world only to find the vacation rental you booked on Airbnb is likely illegal? That’s the situation that confronted Alex Tarce when he tried to check into his Tokyo rental, and the host asked him to sneak in behind the doorman’s back.

What’s going on here?

A U.S. passport on top of a white and brown world map

Need a new passport fast? This is how to do it

February 23, 2025April 7, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Imagine your entire family is excitedly packing for your first international adventure since the beginning of the pandemic. You’ll soon be on your way to the Caribbean to relax and enjoy some sun and tropical drinks.

Or will you?

The traveler in this tale neglected to look at his passport’s expiration date until a few nights before his family’s trip. That’s when he was shocked to discover the document had expired – two years ago!

But no worries, he thought. Consumer Rescue could surely help him.

Why was this guy so confident about that, you might ask.

Well, that’s the embarrassing part of this story.

This is a stovetop, boiling water in a pot

Why was I charged $500 for stealing a stove from my hotel room?

November 30, 2024March 31, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Laura Fernandez just got charged $500 for stealing a stove from her Home2 Suites hotel room. However, this accusation has two big problems. First, she says there was no such appliance in the suite and second, she’s not a thief.

But the management of the franchised property didn’t let those little details get in the way. Two hours after Fernandez checked out of her hotel room, they swiped her debit card for an extra $500.

And she called the police to file a robbery charge against the hotel.

Now she’s hoping that Consumer Rescue can get her $500 returned and clear her name.

What’s going on here?

My American Airlines flight was on time. How did I arrive on the wrong day?!

June 23, 2024March 21, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Evan H. made an embarrassing self-ticketing mistake on American Airlines that caused him to miss a business meeting. His time zone confusion led him to take a flight to Hong Kong that landed as scheduled but one day too late.

So why is he contacting a consumer advocacy organization about this blunder?

He says American Airlines did not inform him of the significant time zone changes (and date changes) involved in flying from Dallas to Hong Kong. As a result, he wants compensation of an undetermined value from the airline.

Norwegian Cruise Line's newest ship: Prima, a cruise ship on the ocean, Prima, NCL, cruising, sailing.

Did Norwegian Cruise Line really cancel this family’s cruise over a $112 transfer?

January 3, 2025March 17, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Norwegian Cruise Line recently gave Evangelia Koumanidis some awful news about her family’s much-anticipated sailing aboard its brand-new ship Prima. In a baffling email, NCL canceled their fully paid $4,657 cruise – citing nonpayment.

Confident that this cancellation was a simple clerical mistake that Norwegian could quickly correct, Koumanidis called the cruise line.

That’s when an NCL agent informed a stunned Koumanidis that there was no mistake. The cruise line had canceled the family’s trip 21 days before departure over an unpaid balance.

But there was worse news on the horizon. That same NCL agent coldly explained that when a passenger’s cruise is canceled over an unpaid balance, no refund is owed.

Now an incredulous Koumanidis is hoping Consumer Rescue can convince the cruise line to reconsider its decision. She’s certain that her cruise was paid in full and that NCL made a $5,000 mistake.

But what is really going on here? (March 24, 2023 Update)

Aer Lingus aircraft, green and white airplane.

What would you do if you were given this terrible airline seat?

May 26, 2023March 14, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Have you ever wondered what the worst airline seat in the history of modern-day air travel looks like? Well, wonder no more! Aer Lingus passenger Matt Madrigal sat in it on a flight to Dublin.

Madrigal endured the dirty “seat” with no cushion and exposed metal for his entire transatlantic flight to Ireland from the United States.

Ouch!

His mom is furious with the airline’s treatment of her son. And she wants to know if our advocacy team can help.

This case underscores the importance of learning how to self-advocate in real-time. If you’re presented with a wholly unacceptable situation, it’s critical to voice those concerns at the time. If you don’t, you may endure unnecessary, unpleasant conditions that should have — and could have — been corrected immediately.

Editor’s Note: I first reported on this awful excuse for an airline seat in 2018. This article was last updated on March 14, 2023, as it moves to its permanent archive home here at Consumer Rescue.

Holland America kicked a couple off this ship. HAL, Cruise ship on the ocean.

Here’s how to get kicked off a cruise with no refund included

February 17, 2024March 7, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Could you be accused of a crime, convicted and kicked off your cruise without any supporting evidence?

Halfway around the world, Elaine Chan discovered the answer to that question is yes. She and her husband were summarily ejected from their Holland America cruise in Helsinki. The captain accused Chan’s 65-year-old husband of assaulting a crew member. He then ordered the shocked couple to gather their belongings and get off his ship.

Chan wants to clear her husband’s name and get a refund from Holland America.

I promise this story will make you angry. It’s yet another troubling case of a company leveling a wild accusation at a customer and refusing to provide even a shred of evidence to support it. And it’s the consumer who pays the price — financially and emotionally.

Editor’s note: I first reported this couple’s cruise fiasco in July 2018, and it was subsequently covered by many media outlets. This article has been updated to include five things that will get you kicked off your cruise in 2023 as it moves to its new archive home here at Consumer Rescue.

This is a dirty rental car being driven through a muddy bog. There are yellow reeds on the sides of the waterway. The car is becoming engulfed in sludge.

You should never return a rental car dirty. Here’s why

May 12, 2023March 3, 2023 by Michelle Couch-Friedman

Messy people, beware! Car rental companies will charge you up to $450 if you return a dirty vehicle.

Avis customer Bart M. recently found this out the hard way. Shortly after returning his last rental car, Avis notified him that the vehicle was excessively dirty. As a result, the company intended to bill him hundreds of dollars to clean the car.

Bart admits he left behind “some” garbage in the rental car when he returned it.

However, he says there is no way it cost Avis much of anything to remove that trash. He suspects the fee to clean the messy rental car is just an illegal cash grab.

Now Bart is hoping Consumer Rescue can convince the car rental company to drop its pursuit of the cleaning fee.

But just how dirty was this rental car?

Let’s have a look…