AAA – Upper Arlington

My husband and I went in looking for fairly basic items: a US road atlas, a Southeast States map, and a triptych. I’d read mixed reviews of this AAA, but it was close to our house, so we went. We were greeted immediately by someone at the front counter, and she began to set up the Triptych for my husband. She asked him about a roadway preference (between two Ohio routes) and offered her own opinion about which roadway was quicker. (Based on our experience, I’d agree with her.) We talked briefly about the drive, she printed out the Triptych, we got our map selections and left. It was a simple transaction, but we were attended to warmly and efficiently.

I like the new store — very similar to their old one. They were well stocked for tour books and maps. The people working there were friendly. A good experience.

I was very disappointed with my visit to the new AAA at Kingsdale Center. The young agent who assisted me failed to engage me in any way regarding my trip. I asked for trip tiks for the various legs of my journey. She sat there and typed in my locations and printed out my trip tiks. She did not show them to me, she did not ask any questions about the trip, she just put them in a bag and handed them to me. There was a total lack of engagement, no expression of interest in my needs and my trip.
Also, after I got home and reviewed my trip tiks, I discovered that AAA has changed the trip tik format. To me they no appear to lack the detail the old trip tiks contained. They do show a larger area which is helpful, but lack information previous trip tiks contained. The new ones just look like screen shots off of a Garman or other gps system.
I did not need AAA for the information I received. I question my need for my membership. I have access to roadside repair from both my auto dealer and auto insurance agency. Travel information was what I use AAA for. Now maybe not even that.

i went in to get some maps and book hotels. I wasn’t exactly sure where I wanted to go except to Nashville, then later in week to South Carolina to visit my brother. I was hoping to get some ideas on some stops between Nashville and my brothers house which didn’t happen. I wasn’t able to book a room in Nashville while there had to do on my own at home. I received a trip tick from Nashville to Gatlinberg and one from Nashville to Atlanta. This is really not what I had hoped for. I wanted someone to say that after Nashville I should go here or there. I felt they should know the places to visit. I have four days to kill between Nashville and South Carolina and still not sure where to go.

After reading about what AAA offers members when traveling, I went to this location. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was looking for — I had read about a «TripTik,» but wasn’t positive on what that entailed. I decided to take my chances and come in and see what it was all about, and I’m happy I did.
I’ve been a AAA member for 5+ years, but had never been to an in-​person location before. I’ve had my share of conversations with AAA employees via phone in the midst of some sort of crisis — my tire popping mid-​drive, my car dying, locking myself out of my car… all kinds of fun stuff. Those conversations were kind of hit or miss, with some employees being very kind and helpful and others being very short with me. The employees at this location were extremely friendly and helpful, which was great!
We walked in and were greeted by a very friendly woman behind the counter. She told us to feel free to look around and someone would be with us shortly. We were then helped by Lydia (I believe), who arranged our TripTik for us.
I like to think I’m a pretty savvy person and can figure out most things myself. But when it came to figuring out the best way to travel to Colorado, I was a bit lost. I’d been to several different «road trip mapping» websites, and none of them were all that helpful. I knew we wanted to drive about 6 hours every day over a period of 3 days, but I hadn’t found a website where I could map that out and then find nearby hotels that were pet friendly. Thankfully, a TripTik was the answer!
AAA made the whole process seem simple. We would stop once in Missouri and once in Kansas before reaching our final destination. Our TripTik was a bound booklet with detailed driving instructions and maps. The route the computer selected for us was one that avoided construction as much as possible. There were also indicators about when the routes would be busiest. Although we will most likely be using a GPS most of the way, it’s nice to have detailed instructions in case something happens (no cell reception, etc).
After that, we were told that we would be helped by another representative who could book our hotels for us. I didn’t come in expecting that, so that was wonderful! I’d also been looking into this but didn’t know what hotels were close to the highway, best rates, pet friendly, etc. Ann, the other representative, helped us out. She found us AAA-​rated hotels of 3-​stars or better right off the highway. We have stayed in some atrocious hotels, so I’m hoping this is the solution to avoiding that. Although we booked only a week in advance, Ann found us hotels around the $ 110 – 130 range that allowed for pets. She printed our confirmations for us and we were good to go!
The best part? All of this was free of charge with my AAA membership. Coming into AAA saved me a ton of time and effort. It also made a stressful trip a lot less so. I’m really grateful that this location was so close to us and that the friendly representatives were able to help us out! I’d definitely recommend coming in before a big trip.