Murphy’s law

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If you know anything about the principle of Murphy’s Law, whatever  could go wrong, will, even before you leave.

In my case, this is very true.

Especially when I booked the “too good to be true” bargains offered by those “3^rd party” websites for my trip to Naples, I did experience a period of “buyer’s remorse,” but I was invested.

My investment at the beginning of my travel plans began after 24 hours, when I paid in full for my hotel stay in Naples after the hotel refused to let me pay when I arrived.

Then as well, my bargain airfare to Naples and return booked with Expedia was not refundable either.

I was facing a huge dollar loss if I couldn’t find a way to be proactive, and I leaped into action.

As it stands now, if you have read my last 3 blog posts, beginning with "2017 Travel Recipe" you know I have to wait until May 7 to see if can download a boarding pass just get to the security line, but I spent a few days exploring just how to do it.

I’m hopeful that I can do a happy dance at 6:30 p.m. May 7, when I try.

The “proactive” as I indicated in that last blog, included my return, when I booked a NYC hotel with Booking.com at “bargain” price, but after calling directly to the hotel, I used the prompts to the “reservations department."

Proactively, I asked for that person’s name, a perquisite to more “proactive," as I went through the process which I mentioned in my last blog.

Now with less than a week before I leave, I knew I had to recheck with that same person who told me to wait until May for the hotel to communicate with Booking.com., retrieve my reservation, then finalize with the hotel’s reservation system.

Sure enough, my “person” contact had no idea what I was talking about, but here’s another “proactive” tip: be chatty + express your need, as well as the “why” it’s so important.

The “proactive” as above was successful.
Janet  immediately remembered, plus she committed to search though the hotel’s data base maintained with Booking.com.

However, Murphy’s Law ruled once more, the “anything” that could go wrong “did.”

Booking.com had mangled my name.

Yet my previous “proactive” effort secured a committed reservation’s person, I gave her the booking number and the pin code (listed on all Booking.com reservations)—a few minutes later she gave me the hotel’s booking number and put “late arrival” on the reservation.

I know I have a room awaiting me when I return from Naples after some almost 24 hours of activity, but totally exhausted I can finally sleep, perhaps relive my Naples experience.   

 Wish me luck, I’ll need it.   

And if more “Murphy’s Law” comes to bite me, I’m hoping that it won’t happen until I’ve made that connecting flight from Rome’s Fiumicino airport and then arrive in Naples. 

*My next post will be after June 20, but exactly when depends on how quickly I can recover from what I know will be a real adventure.