| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 08/05/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 77 |
| Copyright: Other |
Couple feel the pinch as shellfish help mussel them out of the market
Who would have thought that Brussels would be brimming over with fishy fans just as my clients were hoping to land a nice weekend break
Just a shellfish wishA booking that should have taken only a few minutes took much longer as a result of the mussels in Brussels.
The couple who stood by my desk had set their hearts on a weekend in Brussels and had chosen a hotel from the Time-Off brochure. They wanted accommodation only as they had been fortunate (their choice of words, not mine) enough to purchase special-offer Eurostar tickets from a certain national newspaper.
Sugi at Time-Off reservations was refreshingly enthusiastic about the booking and asked me to hold on while she checked availability. She assured me that she didn’t see a problem with the weekend inquestion.
However, Sugi is no mystic and returned with the less promising news that the chosen hotel was full. I relayed this to my clients who began debating the merits or otherwise of the other hotels featured in the brochure. Their negotiations were every bit as complex as the wrangles over the future of BMW’s Longbridge plant but they eventually came up with a second choice hotel.
Sugi tried again and again before coming back to us with the devastating news that because of the Shellfish Festival that weekend, everything was full and there wasn’t a room to be had in the city. Sugi’s colleague, Toby, explained that the same thing had happened last year adding that Shellfish 2000 was going to be an even bigger event.
With Toby being a lover of shellfish and well versed in the way of the winkle and all things piscatorial, we had no reason to doubt him.
His ego was deflated a little, however, when Sugi suggested that edible mussels were the only type with which he was acquainted.
So it was back to the drawing board for my clients. Fearing that I’d be chained to my desk all night while they chose another city or another date and anxious they might leave without spending any money with us at all, I suggested Bruges.
There followed a few meaningful looks of the “It’s up to you, darling,” variety, while Sugi tried anything and everything in Bruges. The same story applied and we suspected an overspill of cockle connoisseurs had snatched all the rooms in the place!
In the end, through sheer grit and with the tenacity of fighting ferrets, Sugi and I finally booked the couple into a hotel in Lille. How’s that for the art of switchselling!
The riddle of the Sphinx
Bookings are certainly picking up in these parts and I hope it’s the same for you wherever you are.
I knew Tapestry Holidays must be busy because boss Andrew answered the phone himself and took my booking – good to know he hasn’t lost his touch. And hats off to Claire at Argo Holidays who usually works in agency sales but who switched to reservations to take an urgent booking. It’s clearly all hands on deck at the moment.
I’m old fashioned enough to appreciate a human voice at the end of the telephone and hope the day never comes when everything is automated. Sharon at Thomson and I proved this week that the system isn’t all powerful and certainly isn’t always right.
My client had come in announcing “Egypt is calling me” and adding that her stars had informed her that she’d “soon be eating somewhere exotic”. Who was I to stamp on her dreams and tell her that Russell Grant probably meant she’d be going for a curry at the weekend? Scouring the screen I’d found a cruise-and-stay holiday to Egypt for this single lady. She returned with the money to book it.
Whether it was a blip in the system I can’t say; all I know is that I’d found that holiday a couple of days earlier and when I came to find it again it seemed no longer to exist! Indeed I was unable to find anything remotely similar.
The client, who had just lost her job and decided to treat herself before moving away to find more work, looked crestfallen. I felt very sorry for her and, in a bid to stop her leaving and spending the money she’d come in with on impulse buys in other shops, I suggested I rang Thomson myself.
Thankfully, Sharon was able to save the day by finding the original holiday at her end and booking it manually. My client’s reaction? She exclaimed: “It’s my destiny!”
Becoming teed off
We all know that transfer charges on late deals are commissionable but I begin to wonder if this particular carrot is worth pursuing.
A couple of golfers with limited time came in looking for four nights on the Costa del Sol. They had already been offered scheduled flights and four-star accommodation but thought they’d try one more agent before committing themselves.
The dates proved quite tricky but I found something to suit with Thomson at £200 less than they’d been quoted.
I relayed the price shown on the screen and they seemed very happy with everything until we came to the transfer charge of £10 per person.
“That’s not on! If we don’t know where we’re going, how do we know the transfer would cost £10 and not £5?”
I explained it was a standard charge for all distances but this was not well received.
“That’s a con!” exclaimed one golfer to the other. “We can’t even hire a car if we don’t know where we’re driving to, can we?”
I realised I was fighting a losing battle, so I said I’d try someone else. Fortunately Avro had ideal flights at an incredibly low price and Richard at Longwood confirmed accommodation at El Paraiso in Estapona.
The clients were overwhelmed and thanked me profusely, saying they’d like to reward me with some small token.
Of course I told them this was unnecessary but they were insistent.
“What’s your tipple?” they asked.
“Champagne!” I replied enthusiastically.
There was a stunned silence.
“Do you like pot plants?”
Only as ammunition, I thought as I smiled an approving smile.