Tia Moana - Superyacht Tia Moana Bora Bora Cruises and St. Regis Bora Bora Review Flight to Tahiti

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2008 Date: 1/9/2008

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Tuesday - Vail and Departure	Vail Lift
After a room-service breakfast, we took a cab to Vail, a short 20 minutes away. They actually have a very regular bus service from the parking lots below the village which runs almost every 30 minutes or so. Unlike Europe, the summer season ends after Labor Day (September 3rd in this case). It was really disappointing to get to Vail, to have none of the lifts open and everything was under renovation or construction.

West end Vail.	Ski slope map.	Bronze sculpture.	Small cable car cabin.

Most of Vail (west end) was under construction.	The bike rental shop was one of the few shops open.	Back to Beaver Creek. Took the bus for a 30+ minute ride for a few bucks.	Octoberfest was gone within a day, now the center village was turned into a skating rink (sans water until it was colder outside).

Village center at Beaver Creek.	Pepe sitting next to bronze sculpture asking for directions.	Beaver Creek does a wonderful job of beautifying the village.	Stores in Beaver Creek.

Denver airport.	Terminal building.	Onboard flight to Madison direct.	2x2 seating.

Flights	Commuter Jet Back to Madison
After a 20 minute shuttle ride to the airport, we found that the commuter flight to Denver was overbooked - well not actually. The flight was full, but because of the high altitude and temperature, the flight could not take a full load. We were offered a free round-trip certificate from United, as well as a segment refund as compensation. The gate agent assured us we'd get the refund and said the rental car to Denver was only $50 plus a three hour trip to get to the next flight (time enough not to miss it). The only accurate thing he said was that we'd get a certificate. The rental car was over $110 (when all was said and done) and the trip, assuming no traffic would have been about 3 hours which was pushing it. We made it just in time to board our flight without missing it. The real hassle started when trying to get a refund for the bumped flight. Because I booked through Expedia, and the first segment was with American, it was paid through American. But American doesn't give refunds for United flights. Expedia was an absolute disaster, so was American, and United. I never got the refund as promised, since I gave up after more than two hours of phone time with various agents. Buyer beware - if you ever have to change, cancel or get a refund from Expedia, good luck. In this case, I don't think a travel agent would have done better. In the end, with all the time wasted, the free certificate is a wash. The better way to travel is to book to Denver and rent a car.