My Adventures getting to NYC

[johnnyc]

I've had problems getting to NYC in time for a 7:30 performance several times, but I think my most recent trip takes the cake. Living back in the mountains of West Virginia, and not driving, is always an obstacle. But on July 1....

The commuter flight from Bridgeport. WV (nearest airport - only 50 miles from home) to Dulles airport left on schedule, at 9:45 am. (Dulles is the only airport the regional United carrier serves.) Two hours later, we arrived at Dulles. My United Express flight 6476 to LaGuardia was due to depart at 2:55. It's a 70 minute flight, so I should have plenty of time to check in to a hotel, eat dinner, and arrive at the Imperial. Right? Wrong!!

We sat and waited, and waited, and waited for the damned plane to NYC to be repaired. At 4:30pm, I went to Customer service and asked if I could get on the scheduled 5:00 pm flight to NY instead. The reply was (in effect) "Sorry sir. Due to our policy of stuffing every flight full in advance, there are no seats available on that, or any other United/Continental/US Airways flights leaving today!" (I checked Delta flights also. That's the only other carrier from Dulles to NYC. Nothing!) So I returned to the waiting area just in time for the announcement that my flight had been canceled! Seems they couldn't fix the damn plane, and the days of an airline having a spare plane available are long past. Now, everyone scheduled for the 2:55 flight made a mad rush for United Customer service.

I must say, in their credit, the people at the desk were very helpful, and made a real effort to accommodate everyone. First, they pulled all of us who were booked on flight 6476 aside. Then they found seats for all of us on US Airways flights leaving Reagan Airport in downtown D.C. And they had to give us vouchers for the 35 mile taxi trip. My luck began to change when I got a cab and we sped toward the city. The driver remarked that he had never seen such light traffic on a Friday evening. So I arrived at Reagan in record time. I saw that I was booked on an 8 pm flight, and went to the desk to see if there was an earlier flight I could take. In fact, they were able to put me on the 7 pm flight! It was already 6:30, so I ran, did not walk, to security. I got to the boarding gate just as passengers were getting on the plane. And as I looked around the cabin, I was amazed to see that the plane was only 75% full. (I later discovered that Regan airport has flights to NYC every 30 minutes throughout the day, from 6 am to 9 pm.) So, could I salvage anything from my ticket to the 7:30 BETM show that evening?

I knew the intermission would be at 9 pm, so might I make it for Act 2? Not likely, I thought. We were due to land at about 8:30. I don't check luggage anymore, so I hurried to the taxi area as soon as we landed. Another lucky stroke, our landing gate was close to the main terminal, so I was getting in a taxi at 8:42 pm. I asked the driver if I had any chance of making the trip from LaGuardia to The Imperial in 15 - 20 minutes? He shrugged and said, maybe. Now I know how difficult it is to get from that airport into the Times Square area under the best of circumstances in under 30 - 35 minutes. But guess what? The gods of theatre were looking out for me, because there were absolutely no traffic jams in the city, and I could not believe that I saw the Lion King signs in what seemed no time, as we sped through Times Square on 45th street, headed for The Imperial. We arrived at 9pm!!. Patrons were milling about as i went inside, having a feeling of dread, knowing that the box office was holding my ticket, and was closed by now. So I went to the ticket takers and asked if I could get in. The ticket guy asked me for my name, and then went through a handful of tickets he was holding, handing me mine! It took a minute or two to check my carry on luggage in the coat room, and I was down the aisle as the warning chimes were sounding for Act 2. Just one more little problem - someone had usurped my seat, ORCH E10. But the usher promptly dispatched that guy back to his own seat, and I finally sat down to enjoy what was left of the show.

Afterward, I went to the stage door and Thommie Retter saw me there, and came over to chat. Then I finally walked the three blocks to my hotel on 8th avenue and checked in. Suddenly I realized I hadn't had anything substantial to eat since lunch time, so I headed across the street to the 24 hour diner and had dinner. Needless to say, I slept well that night.

Just one more thing. I got tired of answering the United update messages on my cellphone telling me the flight was delayed yet again. The last one I answered said the flight was canceled and to see customer service, which I already knew. But there was on last message. Out of curiosity, I looked at it the next morning. It said.....

........"You have been rebooked on the 5:00 flight from Dulles."

[angelenroute]

Wow! Great story johnnyc! Sad but great haha. Definitely L'd O L at the end! Question though--does this count as a .5 for the Billy on that night because you only caught half his show? Or is it like a tree falling in the woods, that even though you weren't there to see it, it still happened?

Sean

[johnnyc]

While I can't prove it, I'm assuming there was a first half that night, so I'm giving Joseph the benefit of the doubt, and assuming he also did Act 1. So He gets a "1" added to my Billy Count for Broadway.

[Todd]

I don't check luggage anymore,

A wise move ! (see below)

I had a similar experience to you when I began my trip a couple of weeks ago, as my connecting flight out of Charlotte, NC was cancelled. US Airlines re-booked me on a flight to Lynchburg, VA, where I planned to rent a car and drive to Charlottesville, VA which was my destination that night. However, when I got to Lynchburg, my checked bag didn't arrive with me. I found out the next day that it had somehow been sent to Frankfort, Germany by mistake ! Fortunately it caught up with me the following day in Washington D.C.

[ERinVA]

I haven't checked luggage in a long time, especially if I have connecting flights. I don't even own a full-size suitcase, just the largest size carry-on and a smaller size one. Sometimes, when I go to London, I will check my larger bag on the return, but when I have to pick up my bag in Charlotte, I simply remove the baggage check tag for the rest of the trip and gate check it onto the next plane.
There is absolutely no way I would ever check a bag through a connection.

I have been very lucky with flights lately. On my recent Toronto trip, I connected through Charlotte, and I had left myself plenty of time for getting through Immigration there on my return because it is often quite crowded, and if your arriving plane is late, you can easily miss your connection, which has happened to me before. However, this time I didn't have to worry because, as I was delighted to discover, when you fly to the US from Toronto, you go through US Immigration right there in Toronto after you go through security. How convenient! So when I arrived in Charlotte, I saw that there was a possibility that I could get on the earlier flight to Newport News if I hurried. Even with having to change concourses, I made it to the gate as final boarding was being called for that flight and was able to get a seat on the plane.