AI and the reservation Snafu!

Computers can be helpful, no doubt. I am writing on one as we speak! However, this is a tale of an AI mishap. I tried to make a reservation today for an upcoming trip to Florida. Simple enough? Not so much.

The Call

I dialed the Hilton Hotel phone number for the hotel, spoke my way through the various questions until they understood that I wanted reservations. AI asked me the dates of the trip. I told her, she responded, “1955 is in the past, give a new date.”

Needless to say, I said nothing about a date before I was ever born. Date of arrival and departure established, AI moved on to ask how many adults and children. I said, two, and 0 children. Before turning me over to the reservation specialist, AI stated the dates, and ended with, “222 adults and nine children, is that correct?”

“No,” I said as she moved me to the agent.

No Room at the Inn!

The agent, Stephanie, greeted me, and I shared my AI experience. We both laughed, and she proceeded to check for reservations.

Checking the dates of this winter getaway, the sweet agent said, “There are no rooms to be found, not even within a fifty-mile radius,” Stephanie said, adding, “I don’t know what is going on, I’m going to check again.”

Upon checking she said, “Oh, they still have the 222 adults in the system, I will remove it.”

She still found the rooms everywhere were full! “Did you check for the nine children,” I inquired. She did and the system still had me checking in with nine little darlings. I have three children, all grown. Even in my youth, nine were more than I anticipated. Upon correcting the number of children staying at the hotel to 0, lo and behold she found a room!

Reserving the room, at the end of our conversation, Stephanie, who told me she is a senior like me, said, “Is there anything else I can for you?”

I said, “No, those other 220 people have to make their own reservations.”

Long story short, AI can be helpful, or not. I went on home to the farm and out to the shed and picked up one of the reluctant kittens. In the quiet, I held it happy to be in the backroads, in a simple place. I savored the moment. Do you have any funny, or anxiety raising reservation experiences to share? I’d love to hear!