Ramon Ymalay, his spouse and his daughter had formidable plans over the vacations final December. They redeemed 487,750 frequent flyer miles for flights on a number of airways, together with Air France, for a round-the-world journey. They aimed to go to all 12 Disney parks throughout the globe in simply two weeks.
For the primary two legs of the worldwide a part of their journey, they cashed in 261,500 Flying Blue miles for business-class seats on Air France. They’d fly from Miami Worldwide Airport (MIA) to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG). After visiting Disneyland and Walt Disney Studios in Paris, they’d fly to Shanghai Pudong Worldwide Airport (PVG) in China to go to Shanghai Disneyland.
That is what would have occurred … if Air France hadn’t denied boarding to the household in Miami.
Air France shortly put the brakes on the household’s Disney mission
The Ymalays solely bought so far as the airport check-in counter earlier than their whole mission confronted failure. There, Air France brokers insisted that to enter China, they wanted visas.
Ymalay says he pleaded with airline brokers and supervisors to permit his household on the flight. He identified that U.S. residents can go to China for as much as 240 hours and not using a visa. However the Air France brokers remained unconvinced.
After two hours of unproductive dialogue and begging for reconsideration, time ran out. The flight closed and left for France, leaving the upset household behind.
The excellent news is that after last-minute scrambling, the Ymalays confirmed different flight preparations. That was no simple job, given it was simply days earlier than Christmas.
However in the long run, the household accomplished their mission with out the Chinese language visas the airline claimed they wanted.
Once they returned from the journey, Ymalay introduced his grievance to TPG.
Each day Publication
Reward your inbox with the TPG Each day e-newsletter
Be part of over 700,000 readers for breaking information, in-depth guides and unique offers from TPG’s consultants
Assured in his journey planning abilities, he hoped we might assist persuade Air France that it had made a mistake by denying his household boarding. He additionally wished compensation for the surprising bills the airline’s error had prompted him to incur.
Nevertheless, Air France didn’t waver in its stance that the household’s itinerary did not qualify for China’s 240-hour visa-free customer program.
So, who was proper? That is what TPG aimed to search out out.
Rigorously planning a round-the-world journey utilizing factors
Final summer season, Ymalay, who runs The Small World Household weblog along with his spouse, advised his followers concerning the household’s plans for his or her daughter’s Christmas break. He was spending an immense period of time learning potential routes, factors packages and redemption choices, after which running a blog about it.
After a lot effort, Ymalay was glad with the itinerary, and the whole lot was lastly booked. He was exhausted however exhilarated.
“The whole for all our airfare, which included lie-flat business-class seats when obtainable, was 487,750 miles and $7,000,” Ymalay advised me. “That included 9 business-class flights and two regional jets with no enterprise class for 3 passengers.”
The journey started on the 4 Disney parks in Orlando. In what can solely be described as a whirlwind journey, the household Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah’d by way of all of the parks in simply someday.
Subsequent, the Ymalays made their method to Miami, the place the worldwide portion of the journey would start.
And that is the place Air France threw a wrench in all of Ymalay’s rigorously laid plans.
Air France: The place is your visa for China?
Once they walked as much as the Air France check-in counter at MIA, the Ymalays had no inkling of what was about to occur.
Ymalay had totally researched the 240-hour visa-free entry guidelines for U.S. guests to China.
He had cross-referenced info on the Chinese language Embassy’s web site, the U.S. Division of State’s web site and the details about the visa-free customer coverage obtainable on TPG. He was certain his household’s brief 40-hour jaunt by way of China to go to Shanghai Disneyland did not require a visa.
So when he handed over his household’s passports and the Air France agent requested the place their Chinese language visas had been, it shocked him.
“I advised the Air France agent that we had been simply passing by way of China on our method to Hong Kong,” Ymalay defined. “[The Air France agent] appeared to not know concerning the 240-hour visa-free vacationer program.”
Ymalay did not panic. In any case, he thought, certainly an Air France supervisor can be conversant in the necessities for entry to China. So he requested to talk to the agent’s supervisor.
To his shock, the senior Air France consultant who got here to assist additionally appeared unfamiliar with the visa-free guidelines.
“I confirmed the Air France crew our flight reservations, proving we supposed to depart China after only a few days. Our solely vacation spot in China was Shanghai Disneyland. Then, we had been flying on Cathay Pacific to Hong Kong. However they saved insisting we wanted visas to enter China.”
Making last-minute alterations to this world journey
After the Air France flight left for Paris, and with little time left to get their journey again on observe, Ymalay sat down along with his pc and shortly started working. He wanted to make new flight preparations and rearrange their resort reservations for numerous cities around the globe.
“We ended up utilizing 270k miles to get us from MIA to [London’s Heathrow Airport] LHR on Virgin Higher Class on December 23 after which paid money to get to CDG on Vueling. I then used 309k Flying Blue miles to get us to [Hong Kong International Airport] HKG on December 28 through Air France enterprise. I used to be in a position to reverse our Cathay Pacific flight to fly to Shanghai (as an alternative of out). We’d lastly arrive in China on December thirtieth, 6 days after initially deliberate. And we didn’t want a Chinese language visa.”
The last-minute bookings prompted the household to spend greater than double the miles they’d initially deliberate to make use of. They had been additionally compelled to pay cancellation and rebooking penalties, however they had been relieved that their journey was now again on observe.
The household made their method to a neighborhood airport resort to spend the evening, and within the morning, they had been on their method to London.
For the following 10 days, the household had a journey that may certainly make anybody drained. Nevertheless, they achieved their purpose and touched down in each Disney park worldwide, ending on the Disneyland parks in Anaheim, California, in only one adventurous journey.
With that mission full, Ymalay turned to his subsequent mission: to get Air France to confess its mistake. The airline had prompted a major hiccup of their plans, costing them some huge cash.
Air France denied boarding to the household — this is why
China’s 240-hour visa-free customer coverage permits residents of particular international locations, together with the US, to enter China and not using a visa for as much as 10 days, supplied they meet the circumstances detailed on the Chinese language Embassy’s web site.
1. The traveler should enter by way of considered one of China’s 60 authorised entry factors.
2. Guests should agree to remain inside authorised areas. This coverage does not enable vacationers to roam free in China.
3. The applicant should maintain “an interline passenger ticket or different doc with a particular date and seat task” displaying proof of intention to depart China inside 240 hours.
The quote above is from the Chinese language Embassy web site, and that little blurb is what prompted Air France to disclaim the Ymalays boarding.
Ymalay bought his household’s tickets to China as a one-way journey on Air France. Individually, he had redeemed 84,000 Cathay Pacific Asia Miles for a flight on Cathay Pacific from Shanghai to Hong Kong Worldwide Airport. That was his proof that the household certified for visa-free entry.
Nevertheless, as a result of Cathay Pacific and Air France flights aren’t interlined (partnered in any manner), the Miami brokers couldn’t mechanically affirm the household’s ongoing flights by way of their techniques.
So far as Air France was involved, the household had a one-way journey to China, which China doesn’t enable.
Airways face important fines, typically as a lot as $10,000 per traveler, for bringing passengers into international locations with out the required documentation for entry. Consequently, carriers are typically cautious every time there’s any doubt relating to a passenger’s eligibility to fly.
Asking The Factors Man for assist
Once I obtained Ymalay’s request for help, he had already bombarded Air France with proof of its mistake for months. To say he was decided is an understatement. Within the correspondence he shared with me, Air France rejected his declare a minimum of 4 instances.
Then Air France closed his case in its personal favor.
On this case, Air France can’t be faulted for rejecting the Ymalays primarily based on the household’s itinerary by itself.
Nevertheless, Ymalay advised me he had pleaded with the Air France brokers to name Cathay Pacific to substantiate their ongoing flight.
He additionally confirmed a digital copy of their flight reservation, which confirmed they had been leaving for Hong Kong after only a few days. Beneath China’s 240-hour visa-free coverage, Hong Kong is taken into account a third-party area.
Had the Air France agent or supervisor accomplished a little bit extra checking, they might have moderately allowed the household to board.
I bought in contact with our government contact at Air France to search out out what their crew considered this household’s expertise.
On the similar time, Ymalay continued his decided pursuit of proving Air France had prevented his household from boarding that flight by mistake. He shared with me a number of rejections from Air France.
However then all of the sudden, Air France had a change of coronary heart.
Instantly, excellent news from Air France: We made a mistake
After 5 rejections from numerous Air France buyer care brokers and an announcement that Ymalay’s case was completely closed, a brand new set of eyes appeared on the scene from the airline. That Air France “Buyer Care” supervisor agreed that the airline made a mistake.
Ymalay lastly obtained the vindication through e-mail that he was in search of, and compensation as nicely:
It’s disappointing that the assist obtained fell in need of our traditional excessive requirements. Please be assured that we aren’t complacent, and your expertise and feedback have been fed again to the related administration groups.
I’m happy to tell you that you’re entitled to compensation underneath the EC Regulation 261/2004.
You could select from a money cost of EUR600 every or vouchers for bookings with Air France, KLM, Delta, and Virgin Atlantic within the worth of EUR800 every.”
Ymalay says he could not be happier: “I had spent an excessive amount of time researching and planning this journey. This was actually about honor and proving I did my due diligence earlier than we took off on this journey. I recognize your assist. I hope different vacationers can be taught from our expertise.”
In the end, the household selected the 800-euro vouchers (presently price about $894 every). Not surprisingly, this touring household is presently planning their subsequent journey and can quickly put these vouchers to good use.
Find out how to decrease your possibilities of getting denied boarding a flight to China
Getting denied boarding a flight is traumatic to vacationers, whether or not it’s a results of their very own mistake or the airline’s. Ymalay was lucky that he was in a position to whip up a substitute plan underneath strain on brief discover. Most passengers confronted with related circumstances aren’t as fortunate.
Visiting China has by no means been simpler, however there are some issues vacationers ought to consider earlier than reserving their journey there.
Guide your flight as a round-trip or interlined ticket
The best manner to ensure your journey to China goes easily is by reserving a round-trip flight (with one file locator) into and out of one of many authorised entry factors. Make sure that your flight out of China complies with the 240-hour rule.
If it’s not potential to e book your journey with the identical airline, your next-best possibility is to buy tickets on an interlined provider. That may enable every airline to have the ability to entry your full itinerary.
Keep in mind, you want proof that you simply intend to depart China inside 240 hours, so in case your outgoing flight is on an unaffiliated airline, make sure you have printed your reservation, which exhibits your 13-digit ticket quantity.
Present up early on the airport
That is very true in case your itinerary is difficult (as an illustration, one which spans a number of airways and international locations). You may need to give your self a large buffer to handle any confusion about your journey to China.
Keep calm and ask to talk to a supervisor
Most often, however after all not all, the supervisor on responsibility will seemingly be capable of forestall a denied boarding mistake by the airline. When you’re being denied boarding your flight, keep calm and ask to talk to the agent’s supervisor.
Backside line
Airways do not routinely deny boarding to passengers. In truth, it’s fairly uncommon. However if in case you have been denied boarding and you believe you studied it was the results of an airline’s mistake, ship your particulars to ombudsman@thepointsguy.com. I will be completely happy to research and show you how to, too, if I can. Glad travels!
