Dear TRAVEL PROBLEM SOLVER: I booked a visit to Legoland New York Theme Park & Resort from an offer I received from the theme park for its combined package of Brick-or-Treat hotels and parks in October.
I paid the quoted price, but they sent me a follow-up email that didn’t charge me for park tickets and I had two options: pay or cancel.
Multiple calls to the company keep them on the line – pay or go. You cannot speak to anyone other than the customer service representative. Climbing to management is only done internally. Answers take between seven and ten days. But after two attempts, I never got any response.
I also sent an email to the customer service address and received no response. I can’t believe a new family-focused attraction in our area would last like this, especially when they made a mistake. I think they should honor the price they quoted, but I would love to be able to talk about it with a representative with authority to make decisions.
The additional price increases the visit by $ 1,094 by an additional $ 600, or an increase of 60%.
Can you help? We are going there soon and of course this bad news has come to us after we told the kids so we are in a difficult situation!
– Noreen O’Donnell, Brooklyn, New York
ANSWER: Oh, you’re in a tight spot. Once you’ve told the kids, you practically have to go. As a father of three, I have experienced it many times. And to give you an idea of how serious he got, we had to move to Orlando to satisfy his theme park wishes. But I digress.
The offer you received from Legoland New York Theme Park & Resort should have included theme park tickets. When you reported this error to the company, you should have fixed it immediately. Instead, the company led you through a proverbial maze of Lego calls and emails.
This is a pity. I love Legoland. I’ve visited Legolands in Florida and California with my kids, and they love it too. Okay, some of the little attractions aren’t really for adults. But Lego people talk to kids of all ages. When this happiness collapses like a poorly built tower, then no one is happy.
Perhaps the most terrifying part of your experience was dealing with Legoland customer service agents. They did not offer a substantial answer to your legitimate complaint or a way to appeal your case. As the day of your arrival approached, you had to do something.
There is a way out of the Legoland customer service maze. I post the names, numbers, and email addresses of Legoland customer service executives on my non-profit customer service site at www.elliott.org/company-contacts/legoland-new-york-resort/ .
Legoland says you experienced an “unfortunate system error” during your booking. Due to this error, the reservation you made does not have valid tickets.
I contacted Legoland on your behalf. The company reviewed your reservation and apologized for the difficulties you were experiencing. You have received an email with the promised park tickets.
