Stranded in Lima – Viva Colombia Stuffs Up Our Booking.
Elena’s frustrated as we’ve hand breakfast and now checking our travel plans. It seems we have a problem with our international flight from Lima to Bogota in Colombia. We’ve booked all the internal domestic flights in Colombia, yet now with the same card Viva Colombia Airlines are rejecting our card.
Elena digs a little deeper to find that we are not the only ones who have had this problem. There’s a webpage full of frustrated travellers who have had issues with Vivia Colombia. It looks like we’ve made a booking, the airline gives us a booking number, yet rejects the payment. In travel speak that means we have seats on the plane but as we haven’t paid they are unconfirmed.
I’m really disappointed as we make the agonising decision to go to the airport early and try to see if there is anyone who can help us. It means that we miss out on seeing any sights in Lima. Although we decide to drop by the Peru Hop Office to thank them for such a wonderful experience through Peru.
Mary our most caring and wonderful host. Walks with us to the bus stop and ensures that we’re on the right bus to the airport and asks the driver to let us know with stop we need to get off. This lady is a gem, how many large hotels would do that for you.
Walking through the airport we discover that Viva Colombia has no office in Lima, in fact we can’t even find a travel agent that supports them. Our only hope is one girl on the information deck, who happens to speak a little English.
She finds a local number (something that not listed on their site) and calls Vivia Colombia. She hand the phone over to Elena once she manages to find an English speaking member of Viva Colombia staff. We try the process of booking through the phone with several of our credit cards and once again we have the same problem.
The help desk advises us to wait until check in and go to the counters there and they will be able to help us. The check in opens in 2 hours time. All we can do now is wait out the two hours and watch the screens that announce the opening of the gate.
We notice that there a few people milling around where we’ve been told will be the check in counters for Viva Colombia, we don’t want to miss out on seats so as the screens flick up the logo for Viva Colombia we make a move toward the counter, however there’s a small problem. The girl handing out luggage tags asks to see our tickets (which we don’t have due to our problem) she doesn’t speak English and now we watch others lining up at the counters and we are made to wait.
Finally we’re allowed to approach the counter. We explain our situation and ask if there is any way we can pay for the flights, we hand over the credit cards again in the vain hop that Viva Colombia can book internally through their reservation system. Sadly they too have no luck and offer us a phone number to call and signal to where the pay phones are. We’ve just been brushed off. Now I’m starting to loose it….. We go to the phones, we get someone in Spanish and they just hag up when we ask for anyone who can speak English. Now I’m pissed off. Unhooking the barriers I make a bee line for the counter, it now that I don’t give a flying f&$k about protocol or security. I just want to be helped and in sick and tired of the luck of compassion that’s being dished out.
I yell at the staff behind the counter “which of you speak English , sort this shit out before I really loose my temper” Elena tries to calm me down but it’s no good I’m ready to rip someone’s head off as I’ve lost valuable time on my holiday due to Vivia Colombians reservation system. Eric the check in guy steps up to the challenge and tries to help. He calls to the office of Viva Colombia and also tries to conduct a credit card transaction using several of our credit cards. It doesn’t work. Now I’m screaming “it’s a problem that with the reservation system not our cards” but Eric insist it’s our cards. I ask can we pay with cash, I’ll go and with draw the money for the card. Eric then insist that the check in counter cannot accept payments for the bookings!
I now ask a simple question, ” How can I get on this flight tonight?” Erick then information us that check in is now closed for this flight, he can try for tomorrow.
Are these guys f&$king nuts? They can’t accept payment at the counter, so even if I got cash and flew tomorrow it’s not possible.
It’s now late in the evening, we’ve waisted a whole day and we’re still no closer to being in Colombia. We go to Starbucks for coffee and free WiFi as Lima airport only provides 10 minutes of free WifI and given that we now have to search another airline we need time to figure out our plans.
Within an hour Elena’s secured us a flight with another airline using the SAME CREDIT CARD that Viva Colombia couldn’t get to work. Because of Vivia Colombia’s massive f$&k up its now cost us $1000 more in flights and lost accommodation in Bogota. Our new flight is 4am the following morning. We now have a whole day in Lima before we fly with Air Vianca.
A quick call to Mary and we’re booked back into our hotel for the next two nights.
Our advice. DON’T BOOK YOUR FLIGHTS WITH VIVA COLOMBIA.
While they may be the cheapest, they offer absolutely no support. Owned by Ryan air you would think that they would have instilled better customer service values, but no…. It’s a budget airline….. What do you expect.
