Sunday, September 14, 2008
The Mystery Tour.
Oh dear, the wind has blown and Hurricane Ike has wrecked the hotel we have paid to go to in Cuba on the 29th September. According to Colin Jackson who stayed at the Playa Costa Verde Hotel, in the Guardalavaca resort, "I'd never seen anything like it in my life.
"More trees were lying on the ground than left standing, windows had been put through and there were slates lying on the ground.
"There was barely anything left of the hotel reception – the roof had been taken off and chairs were strewn all over the place.
"The beach hut wasn't there any more. There was no running water, no electricity. We were given food and bottled drinks by the hotel staff.
The Foreign Office website states: Following Hurricane Ike, we advise against all but essential travel to Holguin and Pinar del Rio provinces and Isla de la Juventud in Cuba (Holguin Province includes the tourist resort of Guardalavaca and Pinar del Rio Province includes the town of Vinales). Hurricane Ike hit south east Cuba on the afternoon of 7 September, travelled along the south of the island on 9 September and left the country on the morning of 10 September. Many areas of the island suffered damage (floods, loss of power supply and communications and blocked roads) and the effects are likely to continue for some time. Petrol may be in short supply and travel around the country will be difficult. The Cuban authorities are working to bring the country back to normality.
...So we are in the hands of First Choice and it looks like we shall not be going to the Playa Costa Verde or any other hotel in the Guardalavaca resort. We do not know if we are going to be staying in any hotel in Cuba, we may be staying in another country anywhere in the Caribbean. We may not even hear from First Choice, we may only find out our destination when we arrive at Gatwick Airport. I assume our alternative accommodation will be allocated on arrival. Working in the travel industry myself I know only to well how these decisions are made at the last minute by all companies. Just-in-time-management is what this culture is called. As a customer I am not bothered, I have paid my money and I will have a good holiday whatever the hotel or location I eventually end up at. I look forward to my Mystery Tour, I wonder where I shall end up going?
Oh dear, the wind has blown and Hurricane Ike has wrecked the hotel we have paid to go to in Cuba on the 29th September. According to Colin Jackson who stayed at the Playa Costa Verde Hotel, in the Guardalavaca resort, "I'd never seen anything like it in my life.
"More trees were lying on the ground than left standing, windows had been put through and there were slates lying on the ground.
"There was barely anything left of the hotel reception – the roof had been taken off and chairs were strewn all over the place.
"The beach hut wasn't there any more. There was no running water, no electricity. We were given food and bottled drinks by the hotel staff.
The Foreign Office website states: Following Hurricane Ike, we advise against all but essential travel to Holguin and Pinar del Rio provinces and Isla de la Juventud in Cuba (Holguin Province includes the tourist resort of Guardalavaca and Pinar del Rio Province includes the town of Vinales). Hurricane Ike hit south east Cuba on the afternoon of 7 September, travelled along the south of the island on 9 September and left the country on the morning of 10 September. Many areas of the island suffered damage (floods, loss of power supply and communications and blocked roads) and the effects are likely to continue for some time. Petrol may be in short supply and travel around the country will be difficult. The Cuban authorities are working to bring the country back to normality.
...So we are in the hands of First Choice and it looks like we shall not be going to the Playa Costa Verde or any other hotel in the Guardalavaca resort. We do not know if we are going to be staying in any hotel in Cuba, we may be staying in another country anywhere in the Caribbean. We may not even hear from First Choice, we may only find out our destination when we arrive at Gatwick Airport. I assume our alternative accommodation will be allocated on arrival. Working in the travel industry myself I know only to well how these decisions are made at the last minute by all companies. Just-in-time-management is what this culture is called. As a customer I am not bothered, I have paid my money and I will have a good holiday whatever the hotel or location I eventually end up at. I look forward to my Mystery Tour, I wonder where I shall end up going?
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