But while much of the reporting has focused on the lack of funds that Spanair had, I think it’s worth asking why they got into that situation in the first place.

Over the past four years when I have flown with them, I freely admit it was because I wanted to get from A to B and they were usually the cheapest, and sometimes the most convenient option.  I was even impressed by the fact, that in-flight refreshments were still included in the price of the flight between Frankfurt and Madrid.

But on the other hand, almost every time there was a problem of some sort when I flew with them.  Booking on-line with a credit card was complicated if the whole family was flying on holiday.  Flights were often delayed, which sometimes meant rushing through Madrid’s terminals to catch a connecting flight.

On the one occasion that I was delayed by over an hour, they refused the compensation that I believe I was due.

Then finally, last year, they stopped flying daily to Lanzarote and re-booked our flight.  At least, they re-booked the flight from Arrecife, and only changed the connecting flight to Frankfurt when I rang them to make sure it had been done.

And yet they sold price increases for the in-flight refreshments as an “improvement”.

I can’t help feeling that they should have worked more on “improving” their customer service and punctuality, rather than on marketing gimmicks like Christmas presents for their passengers, and that at some point they entered a download spiral of less people flying with them because, at the end of the day, they were offering less flights.

One simple example of a lack of investment were the cue cards that the cabin crew used for making announcements.  It became obvious, even over the space of only four years, that the Spanish card was updated more often than the English one, and far more often than the German one.

Before departure, the Spanish card reminded passengers that electronic devices must not be used during take-off and landing, but non-wireless devices may be used otherwise during the flight.  The English card had the same initial reminder, but said that passengers should ask once airborne before turning electronic devices on, to see if their device is permitted.  The German card simply said that electronic devices may not be used for the duration of the flight!  (Imagine at this point the faces of some German passengers, when the Spanish speakers suddenly turned on their laptops…)

And when my flight got diverted due to thunderstorms one evening, I don’t think they even had a card in German to deal with that.  The information in Spanish was quite useful, but for those who didn’t understand it, “Welcome to Stuttgart” wasn’t exactly the first words they wanted to hear when we landed at the wrong airport.

Anyway, I guess the next time I fly to Spain I shall consider the last piece of advice that Spanair’s call centre gave me, the last time I spoke to them: “Next time, fly Lufthansa”.

Considering my recent good experience with their customer service, I might do just that!

So when booking flights recently, I still took them into consideration on the grounds that I at least know what I’m getting.

Except that they have now gone to new lengths to persuade me not to do it again, by moving my flight by one whole day!

“Please contact us to help you find an alternative flight, we will be pleased to help you” said the e-mail.  So I did.

I was told that the flight time had changed, and I would not make my connecting flight, so I had to fly a day later then the connection would be possible.  Sounds silly?  Because it is.  I checked later myself and found out that my flight had been cancelled completely, and I had simply been transferred onto the next available one.

It even transpired, that they hadn’t actually transferred my connecting flight to the next day, and this would be leaving a day before my new arrival time.  “You are staying overnight in Madrid?” the agent asked me.  No, as much as I like Madrid, staying there makes no sense if my flight has already left.  They needed to change that as well!

But in the heat of the moment I asked if there was not an alternative to avoid changing dates.  “Yes, you could fly a day earlier via Bilbao” was the answer.

Not really the best solution either.  I even considered taking a refund and re-booking with someone else.  But in the end I said I would need to think about it.

So far, so good.  Except I then asked if there was another number I could call, because it was not really my problem that they had moved the flight and I did not see why I should have to take on the cost of calling Spanair’s not-so-cheap phone number.

“We are a Spanish company” the agent blankly told me.

So?  I pointed out that I took that into account when I booked with them, but their number cannot be called using Skype, so it was an international – and expensive – call.  At the very least, she could give me a normal Spanish number.

“We are a Spanish company”, the agent repeated.

OK, I had had enough.  I repeated in Spanish that it was not my problem that were changing my flights by a whole day, and that I wanted someone to find a reasonable solution for me.

“Next time, you fly Lufthansa” the agent replied and hung up!

Quite apart from being a very rude way to deal with a customer, it really is a shame that she hung up, as I would have liked to tell her what it means to fly with Lufthansa.

In fact, it makes almost no difference whatsoever, as Lufthansa at present does not normally fly to Lanzarote – they codeshare with Spanair.  But then, perhaps the call-centre agents are friendlier?

Here are some examples:

We are curious to know why this is.  Can anyone tell us?

Since you can often buy stamps in shops selling postcards, the logical extension of this is for them to have their own post box as well. Although they rarely say on them how often they will be emptied.

Here are a selection of the models that we have seen:

The street corner version

In the entrance to a supermarket

The mini in-store version

Do you know of any others?

©LanzaroteGuidebook.com

The 96 page guidebook is available free of charge as a download from the Lanzarote Guidebook homepage, or can even be sent to you by post for a small fee to cover postage and packing.

The Guidebook is packed with useful information and some great photos of the island.  Researched and written by long term island residents Lanzarote Guidebook contains all of the information that holidaymakers and independent travellers could need to know. As well as lots of handy inside tips.  And as it is published quarterly the information is always accurate and up to date. Unlike conventional guidebooks which can be obsolete by the time they hit the shelves.

Of course, if you are lucky enough to be visiting Lanzarote this Christmas, then you can pick up your own copy at the airport, eg. at the information desk on the arrivals level.  It is also distributed via car hire companies, hotels and private villas.

¡Feliz Navidad!