Barcelona to Marseille by Crappy Eurolines & ALSA

Complain Rant.

What a shock I got today morning heading to the bus stop. I arrived 45 minutes before the bus departure time and proceeded to the information counter to enquire which bus and which platform should I wait. Platform 24 he said and I looked for a cosy spot to wait.

At 915 I proceeded to the platform where the bus was already waiting. I raised an eyebrow when I notice the bus was not ALSA the bus company which I bought the ticket from. The bus driver said (in the best I could understand) … go upstairs and check in.

So I went up to ALSA waited in the long queue which left me with 5 minutes and they redirected me to eurolines at the far corner of the bus station hidden which I could not see the booth and nobody was manning the booth.

Back downstairs I ran to the bus to see the bus driver again and a new euroline lady was there scolding the passenger’s that they were all late for check in which was supposed to be done half an hour ago. I begged to be let on, I pleaded that I had no idea and that the ticket said no such thing, I told them I was there but nobody was at the booth, all fell on death ears.

Bus driver pointed to the lady and shrugged.
Lady pointed to bus driver and raise hands in the air.

Well since being nice was not getting me anywhere …. Be aggressive then I thought so I complained with as much vigour I could but without cursing for I knew once you use the F word that slim chance of help will be out the window. Voice was raised, frustration showed and I headed back upstairs to complain to someone, anyone but of course the eurolines booth was empty. No people manned the booth.

The euroline lady came upstairs and from what I could interpret was having a gossip session with the ALSA lady booth and I took it she was complaining about dumb passengers that did not show up early for check in, all this feeling base on the facial expression and the purse of her mouth while she gossiped. I walked straight to her ignoring the long queue of people going to the ALSA booth and scolded her.

There is no one at the Eurolines Booths ! How am I suppose to know about check in, look at my ticket I told her shoving it to her face, where does it says check in? It says pass it to the bus driver! I made a big fuss in front of the ALSA booth raising my voice to that lady but still controlled enough not to swear. The ALSA Lady Booth made a gesture to see my ticket and I gave it to her while still battering down this eurolines lady that I now think is French. ( I was on a bus from Barcelona to Marseille and eurolines was French )

The ALSA Lady was busy doing something while I kept up my ruse and handed me a different ticket though the window. What’s this ??? Oh a replacement ticket for 3 hours later. Great, my disappointment still not wavering but was relieve that I did not at least have to spend money to buy another ticket. The eurolines lady had the nerve to say this new ticket says clearly to check in half an hour earlier. LOOK AT MY TICKET I shouted at her …. and she backed off immediately.

Noting that I was not going to get much more than a replacement ticket I left to cool my head. Half an hour later I decided to check in early, might as well get this check in over with so I can wait in peace for the next bus. I decided to camp outside the empty euroline booth if that’s what it takes to get me check in but when I approach the booth lol and behold the same euroline lady that was walking around and gossiping was manning the booth.

I grimace at her and pass her my ticket saying Check In. Do you need my Passport … … No she said and passed me back my ticket with a slip of paper, crumpled with a measly stamp of eurolines behind and a sticker for my undercarriage luggage? Seriously why the F*CK is the check in so important if all it was is to get a sticker and a stamp on a piece of paper.

*Roll Eyes* ….

It was bound for disaster when one company starts selling ticket for another company. The line of responsibility gets obscured and you never know which to blame. I will choose to blame eurolines however due to the lack of customer attitude orientation. Sell your own tickets and dun try to sell it through another bus company. Did not help either that the ticket I bought a week earlier was a promotion ticket at dirt cheap price of 18 euro. BAH