really stupid question

[smileyeagle1021]

Ok, this is a short one... a guy called in concerned about whether or not he would get a confirmation number if he made his reservation online instead of over the phone... that's right, he thought if he booked online he would not receive a confirmation number for his reservation.
Just how do you respond to a question like that anyway without sounding patronizing?

the second stupidest question I've gotten today was the person who booked online and got his confirmation email, called in to "just make sure it went through" when I asked if he had a confirmation number he said "yeah, I just got the email confirmation"... ok, that email just answered your question without having to waste my time

[rerant]

These people sound like me. I'm paranoid about doing anything online since I know websites can do down, errors can occur, information can be lost completely, etc. so I always double and triple check everything.
I know I'm wasting someone's time when I call to make sure even after I've received confirmation, but I want to know that on the human end of things everything is as it should be.
Sure there can be human error as well, but getting the extra confirmation makes me feel more secure that everything is in order.

[smileyeagle1021]

yes, but rerant, there is a oh so subtle difference between calling to make sure what you have in your email is the same as what we have in the system and calling to see if you have anything at all... that subtle difference makes all the difference between being careful and being a PITA

[friendofjimmyk]

When I booked my vacation earlier this year through Priceline - it was the first time I had done anything like that - not vacation - but a package through an online travel site. I had heard SO many bad reviews about places like Orbitz and Expedia, that I was quite concerned about using such a service...I used Priceline because I had never heard anything bad about them...

Anyway, this vacation was the first I had taken in quite some time. I think the last one was Hawaii in 2006. I REALLY needed this vacation.

So, I booked the deal. For two of us, the package - airfare, hotel, car rental - was $1100. GREAT DEAL!!!! After I booked it, I received a confirmation number for everything - airline, hotel, car rental. Regardless, I still called them. I guess to make sure it was real. I know, sounds weird, but as I said, I was concerned having never used an online travel site. I never thought that doing so would make me a PITA.

Everyone I spoke to was rather cool about it - except for the hotel. They seemed a bit put off. They did not have the reservation in their system though. They said that stuff from Priceline gets faxed to them and since I had only made the reservation within the last hour - they probably hadn't gotten the info off the machine yet.

Overall - I highly recommend Priceline!

[ebonyknight]

These people sound like me. I'm paranoid about doing anything online since I know websites can do down, errors can occur, information can be lost completely, etc. so I always double and triple check everything.
I know I'm wasting someone's time when I call to make sure even after I've received confirmation, but I want to know that on the human end of things everything is as it should be.
Sure there can be human error as well, but getting the extra confirmation makes me feel more secure that everything is in order.

That's the funny thing though. You are more likely to have a mistake from human error than you are from technology. Which is why we rely on technology as opposed to human only service.

You paranoia is quite ironic.

[RetailWorkhorse]

They said that stuff from Priceline gets faxed to them and since I had only made the reservation within the last hour - they probably hadn't gotten the info off the machine yet.

This is true. The faxing part, anyway. When EQ worked at a local Motel here where I'm at, she got her Priceline reservations over the fax.

[marasbaras]

You folks forget that tech is made by humans.

The guy was trying to be careful. Nothing wrong with that. Trying to make sure that when he got to the hotel that all was cool.

If something WAS wrong, you'd be posting "geez, this guy came and had some stupid number that wouldn't come up in the computer".

[smileyeagle1021]

I can understand the people from priceline etc wanting to make sure the priceline made the reservation properly... but if you book it on our own website i'm sure you are aware that the people in crs and at the hotel are using the exact same system you just used to get a confirmation email... really, that's the truth, the software I use at work all day is basically they exact same software as the website... the difference is the additional features of looking up rate codes and certain restrictions not readily available on the website.

[Evil Queen]

Unless the reservations are made over the phone (and I don't mean our 1-800 number!) all our resverations at my current hotel come in over Fax line. It does update our system within minutes of your online reservation (usually 2-3) but if that particular piece of software is down (once a month... )then it'll take btween 2-6 hours for the reservation to come in over the fax.