Travelers Behaving Badly (Industry Too)

Is Stress The Excuse For Rude Travel Behavior

Have you ever done something intentionally rude to another passenger? According to USA Today, increased stessors during travel are at the root of poor airplane etiquette. I say it’s a lack of home training, but that’s just me. On the real though, I think we all have had our cranky moments – fighting our way through long TSA lines and micro-wars over storage bins. But, a few of the examples quoted make me, even on my crankiest days, seem like Mother Theresa. 

Men Who Play With … Goats?

It sounds like an alcohol-infused frat boy prank or a really bad interpretation of George Clooney’s 2009 comedy, Men Who Stare At Goats. But either way, this story is pretty dang ridic. I just have one question. Where was hotel security when they dragged the thing kicking and screaming down the hall to room 111? Imagine the shocked look on the couple who checked into that room next – fodder for a Candid Camera episode! 

No Baggage Fee Refund?  Ha! I’ll Show You. How’s $5 Million Sound?

I don’t know who’s in the wrong here: The airline for subscribing to the ridiculous bag fee policies and their general inflexibility or the woman who thought a $5 Million  suit was an acceptable response.  Now, if she was like Robin Hood and planning to share some of her spoils with the rest of us, then I’d have to be on her side.  But, as a solo case, she’s got me wondering what kind of magic her lawyer plans on working.  Take a read and you tell us who you think is in the right (or wrong) here.    

Greek Guerrillas Go After The Economic Cash Cow (Tourism)

The Sect of Revolutionaries know how to hit the Greek establishment where it hurts the most.  Just when the Greek economy looks like it’s on the recovery path, the urban guerrillas are going after the Tourism industry. While this is part of an ongoing political power play within the Mediterranean country, foreign travelers should not ignore the sect’s threats to turn the streets of Greece into a revolutionary “war zone”  replete “with arson, sabotage, fierce demonstrations, bomb attacks, armed killings.” 

Sooo, I’ve Got This Bridge In Brooklyn … No? How About The London Ritz Hotel?

When Irving Berlin wrote “Puttin on the Ritz”, I don’t think he had penniless truck driver Anthony Lee in mind. After convincing potential buyers that he was the agent selling the London Ritz Hotel and nearly getting away with it, someone finally figured out the scam. Lee might not have been the smartest cookie in town (neither were his investors), but he was definitely ambitious.

The Travel Industry Is Just As Bad

British Airways:  This drama has been playing out for months and after 23 strike days and havoc in European airports, it’s not getting any better: 

• Striking workers vote to possibly do it again during the August travel rush in Europe
• BA takes away the strikers’ travel perks and they sue BA in return
• The latest negotiations fall to pieces again, and some are fearful that next week’s talks won’t halt the impending strikes

Comair:  Overselling Seats and Not Compensating Bumped Passengers  

Credit Cards & Curreny Exchanges:  With hidden credit card fees and greedy airport currency exchanges, we all need to be extra careful when planning for international trips.  

Delta Airlines:  Pet Chinchillas  Erroneously Denied Boarding    

Expedia:  Forgets Its Promise To Issue An $871 Refund (Until Elliot.Org Intervenes Of Course)     

United Airlines:   9 Year-Old Unaccompanied Minor Forgotten By United Agents For 8 Hours      

Spirit Airlines:  Now That Carry-On Charges Have Kicked In, More Fees May Be On The Way     

My Flight Attendant Is A Clepto!

Indulging in the rich foods and free wine in first class, you drift off to sleep.  Next thing you hear is that infamous ding telling you the plane has reached the jetway safely.  Rushing to deplane, you don’t realize for a couple hours that your camera is missing.  Recognizing you’ve lost last month’s vacation photos, you berate yourself for so absentmindedly leaving it somewhere between home and the arrivals terminal.  On the return home, you can’t find those leftover Euros. Then, it hits you, there’s something in common between those two incidents of micro-dementia — the Air France logo and the flight attendant who served your cabin.  Well, that (and the inexplicable extravagance with which she lived) was the clue that gave her dirty little secret — she was bankrolling beacoup bucks from her encounters with trusting elites in the upper cabins.  Recently, her luck ran out and after an airport arrest, she pled guilty to the charges.  So, what kind of time does a 47-year old French “bad girl” get such a display of greed? See for yourself.