GREAT EATS HAWAII: HONOLULU TO TEL AVIV, ISRAEL

HONOLULU TO TEL AVIV, ISRAEL

UNITED AIRLINES

What an adventure getting to Israel via United Airlines. Flight started nicely in the United Lounge in Honolulu, Service and food here have been greatly updated and now includes free Champagne. With a little Bubbly and some snacks we were ready for the five hour flight to San Francisco. We literally had one hour to get to our plane and check in for our flight to Tel Aviv. Everything was fine and we were in our seats with a glass of Champagne in hand. Time went on and we were told they needed someone to sign off on a repair before we could takeoff. We waited over an hour on the ground when the Captain informed us we were cleared. We taxied out and came to a stop. Waited again. The Captain came back on and informed us that a passenger was ill and that the plane would have to return to the ramp to let the passenger off. We went back to the ramp. After a few minutes the Captain came back on and said that because of regulations the crew could not fly the aircraft because they would exceed their flight hours for a 24 hour period. The delays caused the plane to be cancelled. Bare in mind this was like 1:30 am in the morning. The next flight out would be the next day at 8:00 am. United informed us to go to the ticket counters. We were offered a voucher for a night stay at a local hotel. But it was now like 2:30 am and leaving the airport and returning would be maybe a two hour sleep and travel to and from the hotel. They were offering meal vouchers also but when the agent learned I was able to use the United Lounge she said the food was better there and did not give us vouchers. Turns out the lounge did not open until the next day at 7:30 am. The plane was leaving at 8:00 am. We ended up trying to sleep in the baggage claim area from that point forward. Just miserable. Flight to Tel Aviv was pretty smooth. Food was ok but typical United Service where they basically go through the motions and disappear. They did hand us a bottle of water so they would not have to pour water during the flight. Just sucks when you pay or use miles to upgrade and the service is so lousy. United does not understand or care to teach customer service like Asian or European airlines. There is no comparison and United always comes up short.