16 hours Ago By N/A (Inigo Roces)
EDITORS DESK Over the holidays, no doubt many are dreading the traffic that may be encountered when driving to and from family gatherings or Christmas parties. There’s always the matter of who needs to be picked up from where, what food to buy from which restaurant. The anxiety caused by this conundrum is amplified if you happen to be the family’s designated driver.
This year, I found the best solution is not to drive at all. Instead, I found an unlikely ally in the form of ride-sharing app, Grab. Of course, it’s not a matter of outright refusing and directing the puzzled relative to Grab.
Rather, I’ve found that recommending one of the app’s lesser-known features not only relieves me of the responsibility of driving the relative or picking up food, but also shows the said relative how to better utilize the service. Grab group rides We’ve all encountered this before, just before departing, a relative pulls you aside and asks if you can drop off this or that uncle or aunt. After all, they’re “on the way,” which is a relative term that may mean the same cardinal direction you’re going but not necessarily on the way.
Rather than stress out figuring out the best route, why not outsource? It turns out, Grab has Group Rides that allow several relatives to share a Grab car. These relatives need not be even that technology savvy to program it. Simply assign a point person and he/she can do the booking for the group.
There’s also a bill splitting option so that person need not be saddled by the likely larger fee serving as a school bus entails. Assuming you’re the point person, to get started, turn the Grab app and click on “Car.” Then scroll down to “Rides for every need” where you will see a graphic for group rides.
Here you can select from “Arrive together” or “Depart together,” select the common start or end point and begin adding the relatives. You can then invite up to two other relatives to the ride by sharing the link through their preferred messaging platforms. They simply need to click the link to join the group.
After which, they will be prompted to add their stop. Once everyone has entered their stops, the host passenger can proceed to book a ride. Grab takes care of route optimization on the passengers’ behalf by suggesting the best route based on the stops of the ride.
No more mental route math in the middle of party or the tedious entering stops on Waze just before departing. GrabFood group order Easily another source of stress during the holidays is the pot luck. No doubt many are eager to share their culinary discoveries during this time.
Rather than have each person book their own order, Grab also allows this aspect to be shared. To get started, turn on the Grab app and click on “Food.” Then select an establishment to order from.
Once at the restaurant’s order page, click on “Group order.” This allows you to invite friends and relatives to join in on the order. Some restaurants even offer more discounts with larger orders.
By accepting the invite, they’ll see the store’s menu on their own phone. No more huddling over some one’s phone just to see a food item. They can place their orders individually and the group order will be updated.
There’s also an option to split the bill in a variety of ways, from splitting the bill equally, or according to order. De-stress, drive less These features are certainly welcome additions, particularly for those who are typically the designated driver or errand boy during the holiday season. No more getting up and drive out.
This is one activity I can thankfully outsource. Thanks to what will most likely be most peoples’ solution for food and transport this holiday season, I might actually be able to sit back, relax, and actually recharge during the next family gathering. (Iñigo S.
Roces is the Motoring Editor of Manila Bulletin).
