Coronavirus - Travel impact

[Sojourner]

We have a long planned tour in Italy scheduled for May, and we'll have to make a decision about it in the next week or be stuck with large cancellation costs. Not an easy thing to do.

Is that because of the cancellation policies of the tour company you booked with? Was it an all-inclusive package (airfare, lodging, etc.)? Or did you buy travel insurance?

Relatives from Northern Italy (small mountain town above Bologna) bought plane tickets to come here for 3 weeks in April. DSI, DBI, DN and her husband planned to stay with us and travel a bit in the states. I'm guessing they'll lose all that plane fare when the gov. stops travel outside of Italy.

So you're assuming the airline would not refund their money if all outbound flights from Italy are cancelled? I hope it doesn't work that way here in the US.

Does anyone know what the refund situation would be if, for example, the outbreak in northern Italy gets much worse and the US gov't issues a travel alert (e.g. CDC "Warning Level 3") advising against all nonessential travel to Italy? Would airlines refund existing reservations for flights to that country/region? Very curious since I have a flight to Milan booked for early April. Also thinking I should start looking into int'l medical insurance coverage for that trip. I wonder if the cost for that kind of insurance is skyrocketing now because of COVID-19.

 

[brewer12345]

Wow, MREs are pretty expensive, aren't they. I guess if you're hunting/camping, they must come handy as they're light.

About $7 delivered per military ones, which is usually all I need for the day until I get home or back to the campsite. Cheap for a day of fun.

 

[FIYes]

We have a trip to Portugal planned for May. At this point no change in plans. Guess we will wait and see how things unfold.

 

[ivinsfan]

DW and I arrived in Chile today to begin a 3 week tour of Patagonia and cruise to Antarctica. Hurtigruten, the cruise line, has put out communications about their Coronavirus precautions. Today, upon arrival here in Santiago, they had us each sign a document stating we haven’t been to China in the last 14 days, that we’ve no fever or cold, and a couple other things.

I appreciate their steps of caution. But it is all a little scary. Their screening can so easily be outdone by a virus that seems deceptive in its incubation and transmittal.

At least it’s warm in Santiago, so hopefully that’s a plus of being in the Southern Hemisphere for now. But being away from home when the market is cratering is also a little unnerving. Not that I’d be doing anything differently investment-wise i guess if I were home.

All the talk of stocking up on important stuff also alarms me. I’m not at home for the next 3.5 weeks to even consider such a strategy.

Boy, I really hope this thing calms down.

That caution is the cruise line in CYA mode, the screening is only a reliable as the truthfulness of the people filling out the forms.

Hope your trip goes well, but a cruise ship is the last place I'd want to be right now.

 

[TromboneAl]

All the talk of stocking up on important stuff also alarms me. I’m not at home for the next 3.5 weeks to even consider such a strategy.

Boy, I really hope this thing calms down.

And we are a more level-headed group than the general population. Also, more forward thinking, meaning that the real show is yet to come.

 

[statsman]

Hope your trip goes well, but a cruise ship is the last place I'd want to be right now.

Followed by a plane trip overseas or any place still experiencing cold winter conditions and temperatures.

 

[Nemo2]

the cruise line, has put out communications about their Coronavirus precautions. Today, upon arrival here in Santiago, they had us each sign a document stating we haven’t been to China in the last 14 days, that we’ve no fever or cold, and a couple other things.

Our dentist, (who happens to be Chinese), has a similar notice in his office, with Wuhan specifically noted. Since Croatia, et al, are now also afflicted, I couldn't help but think that was a trifle passé.

 

[cathy63]

... So you're assuming the airline would not refund their money if all outbound flights from Italy are cancelled? I hope it doesn't work that way here in the US.

Does anyone know what the refund situation would be if, for example, the outbreak in northern Italy gets much worse and the US gov't issues a travel alert (e.g. CDC "Warning Level 3") advising against all nonessential travel to Italy? Would airlines refund existing reservations for flights to that country/region? Very curious since I have a flight to Milan booked for early April...

You have to read the Contract of Carriage for your specific airline to know what they're required to do. If you happen to be on American Airlines, they say:

Non-refundable tickets
We don't refund cash for non-refundable tickets. However, if you cancel your trip before departure, you can use the value of your ticket toward future travel on American. You'll need to rebook and travel within 1 year and pay a change fee plus any difference in fare.

We will refund a non-refundable ticket (or the value of the unused segment of your trip) to the original form of payment if:

You cancel within 24 hours of booking (and booked at least 2 days before departure).
We cancel your flight
We make a schedule change that results in a change of 61 minutes or more.
A passenger or their travel companion dies.*
Military orders require you to cancel your trip.*
*Supporting paperwork is required.

They also say that they will cancel flights if the government requires them to do so. A CDC Level 3 warning doesn't require cancellation of flights, but most airlines will cancel anyway due to low passenger demand in that situation. I suppose that the other U.S. based airlines have very similar rules, but you should check the airline you're ticketed on. Also, since your flight is to Europe, you should check and see what remedies are available under EU 261 rules for such a situation.

 

[Sojourner]

You have to read the Contract of Carriage for your specific airline to know what they're required to do.
...
They also say that they will cancel flights if the government requires them to do so. A CDC Level 3 warning doesn't require cancellation of flights, but most airlines will cancel anyway due to low passenger demand in that situation. I suppose that the other U.S. based airlines have very similar rules, but you should check the airline you're ticketed on. Also, since your flight is to Europe, you should check and see what remedies are available under EU 261 rules for such a situation.

Thanks. Very helpful info.

 

[luckydude]

New cases are now being reported in Switzerland, mainland Spain and France. All appear to be related to people who recently returned from visiting northern Italy.

My neighbor just canceled his family trip to SE Asia in late March during spring break. He wasn't worried as much about getting infected as he was about getting stuck if somebody in the same hotel, plane, bus, or community, etc. shows symptoms of being sick, and he and his family are forced into quarantine or isolation as a result. He has a job and his kids have school, and he can't afford the risk of not making it back home in time, as well as the additional, unforeseen traveling expense of getting stuck abroad.

While the risk of hospitalization and death from infection may be low, the risk of getting stuck is relatively high and can have real financial consequences for most folks.

Lucky Dude

 

[Sunset]

Wow, MREs are pretty expensive, aren't they. I guess if you're hunting/camping, they must come handy as they're light.

Yes, so for at home I'll stick to canned food, rice, pasta.

 

[NW-Bound]

In Tenerife, the largest of the Spanish Canary Islands, two Italian tourists were found to have the virus. Their hotel was put in a lockdown, and 700 guests were ordered to stay in their rooms, with police surrounding the place. Later news said they were allowed to go have breakfast, but could not leave the premises. It appears that there will be a quarantine period, but nothing specific was announced.

I did not plan to travel abroad this year. Will not be making plan now.

 

[cathy63]

In Tenerife, the largest of the Spanish Canary Islands, two Italian tourists were found to have the virus. Their hotel was put in a lockdown, and 700 guests were ordered to stay in their rooms, with police surrounding the place. Later news said they were allowed to go have breakfast, but could not leave the premises. It appears that there will be a quarantine period, but nothing specific was announced.

I did not plan to travel abroad this year. Will not be making plan now.

Sounds like they learned absolutely nothing from the Diamond Princess fiasco.

 

[NW-Bound]

Some initial reports said the order was for everyone to stay in the room, which the guests obeyed.

But then, they waited, and waited, and could not gather enough staff to make breakfast to bring it to each room. Remember that this is a hotel, where people usually go out to eat, and not everyone eats at the hotel restaurant.

So, I figure the authority had to compromise, and let them out of the room to go eat. Even then, the kitchen staff may be insufficient to serve all the guests. And all this while they were trying to figure out the logistics of administering the virus test, protecting the staff, alerting different countries of the guests, etc... What a fiasco!

 

[TromboneAl]

While the risk of hospitalization and death from infection may be low, the risk of getting stuck is relatively high and can have real financial consequences for most folks.

The cure may be worse than the disease.

 

[Sunset]

So if I was in that situation, I'd certainly phone my CC , and tell them I'm not authorizing the payment of the room for 14 days.

 

[TromboneAl]

I'm wondering about our planned trip from our sparsely populated rural area to densely populated Denver.

That shows me what an impact on travel there will be when the virus spreads across the US.

 

[Teacher Terry]

So I know someone going to Europe for a year after saving money and quitting their jobs. Now they find out a few days before leaving that some cities in Italy and Hungary are quarantining tourists for 14 days upon arrival.

 

[cathy63]

Some initial reports said the order was for everyone to stay in the room, which the guests obeyed.

But then, they waited, and waited, and could not gather enough staff to make breakfast to bring it to each room. Remember that this is a hotel, where people usually go out to eat, and not everyone eats at the hotel restaurant.

So, I figure the authority had to compromise, and let them out of the room to go eat. Even then, the kitchen staff may be insufficient to serve all the guests. And all this while they were trying to figure out the logistics of administering the virus test, protecting the staff, alerting different countries of the guests, etc... What a fiasco!

Right. This is what I mean by not having learned the lessons of the Diamond Princess. You can't use your own staff who might also be infected to prepare and deliver meals or you're just spreading the exposure. They need to find and bring in pre-packaged meals and deliver them without touching the food or the guests. Even if the guests have to live on cold muffins and sandwiches for a while, that's a lot better than spreading coronavirus.

You can't allow guests who might be infected to comingle with guests and staff who might not be infected, or your quarantine period will just have to extend another 14 days every time someone new is diagnosed.

 

[NW-Bound]

... You can't use your own staff who might also be infected to prepare and deliver meals or you're just spreading the exposure. They need to find and bring in pre-packaged meals and deliver them without touching the food or the guests. Even if the guests have to live on cold muffins and sandwiches for a while, that's a lot better than spreading coronavirus...

Perhaps they don't know how to vet an outside source that quickly. They are not sure that the sandwich shop down the street is any better than their own kitchen. The Italian guests that are sick, where did they contract the virus? They did not necessarily eat at the hotel restaurant.

It's a mess.

 

[braumeister]

We've decided to cancel our May trip to Italy and Germany.

We assume that essentially everyone will be exposed to the virus at some point, and it would probably happen sooner if we're in Italy since it would have more time to spread widely there.

So the next consideration is how hard would it hit us? Being older, it's more likely at least one of us would have severe symptoms, and we really don't want that to happen far from home.

Possible quarantine doesn't even enter into the decision, because as it spreads more widely, quarantine will quickly become pointless as a containment measure.

Besides, Europe will still be there after this is all over.

 

[TromboneAl]

Good decision. Even if it were relatively safe, you wouldn't enjoy yourselves.

 

[ncbill]

Well, we're taking one for the team.

Just booked airline tickets to visit one of our kids next month...& paid the extra ~3% for travel insurance in case one or both of us falls sick.

If the airline cancels we won't be going...it would be 12-14 hours by car.

 

[NW-Bound]

^^^ I don't think that travel counts.

That distance is so close, some people can even walk home.

 

[Scrapr]

I hadn't really thought about cancelling my April-May trip to London-Paris-Dijon. I have bought everything non refundable. And i haven't bought trip insurance yet. That premium is probably going up as we speak. The total cost won't kill me. But we'll see how it is as I get closer to lift off. Best case the D'Orsay is not crowded! I booked 1 night at a hotel next to Heathrow last night. I think I looked a couple weeks/a month ago and it was $50-60 iirc. Last night it was $30 *that should GBP not USD. So $38/night

I was talking with 2 friends this weekend about their separate trips to Ireland. The cancellation talk never came up

Since this is a solo trip it would suck to get very sick.

now a Chinese man has reported to have died in Beaune. France..about 20 minutes from Dijon. Testing for the beer virus. And one fatality in Paris