Coronavirus - Travel impacts II

[explanade]

2 Genova (09MAR2020)
6 Nice
10 Lyon

Which airline?

Many airlines are holding firm on refunds because they're facing a cash crunch.

There are a few people who report complaining loudly enough and getting "exception" refunds.

 

[Sunset]

Which airline?

Many airlines are holding firm on refunds because they're facing a cash crunch.

There are a few people who report complaining loudly enough and getting "exception" refunds.

AA has changed my flight twice now (a return flight to/from UK) scheduled in May.
I'm planning to cancel it, and have tried phoning in but the phone line gives me the overloaded message.

I bought the ticket with miles & cash, so basically want to know what happens when I cancel. The web site has a button "Cancel".
But there is no indication does it just cancel and do whatever it does ?
Or does it take me to a page with options, and choice, and then let me pick, or tell me before action is performed ?

I know if I click it, and it cancels out (maybe lose my miles) , there is no way I can phone in to reverse the process...

A more detailed website would help, and cut down on phone calls.

I know it's not an emergency, as I can wait, and simply hope UK ban's all USA flights due to Covid-19 , then wait for AA to cancel flight. Of course it's possible that might not happen

 

[Ready-4-ER-at-14]

Our son just cancelled his wedding celebration ceremony in Japan in May about a day or so ago. They had the civil service in Feb.
We and our relatives all cancelled flights on United, cancelled hotel stays in both Tokyo and a city a few hundred miles away where her family lives.
One service said refund to credit card in 24 hrs. Other said 30 days.
Not sure status of air fare as spouse did it and has not "debriefed" me yet.
We did buy travel insurance when we bought tickets in jan or feb but no idea if
they pony up if we get stiffed over this.

He plans to reschedule in the fall when things are more understandable and predictable. We may do some sort of online meet and greet soon.

 

[Retired Expat]

AirBnB cancellations

Check your hosts policy as you might be able to cancel anyway. But it only makes sense if flight restrictions keep you from going somewhere or an area is still under lockdown that the extenuating circumstances clause will apply. I am likewise trying to cancel my extended European vacation.

At least 70% of things were cancellable and the others likely will become so as they push out the waiver dates because this isn’t going to clear up in a couple of weeks

 

[davebarnes]

Which airline?

None. Trains.
We were scheduled to travel to Nice from Genova had had tickets on Thelo. They refunded 100%.
We were scheduled to travel from Nice to Lyon on the TGV and SNCF refunded 100%.

The only tickets/bookings we did not get refunds for were the €82 for 2 museums in Milano. They gave us a credit good for 1 year. Whatever.

 

[Dtail]

AA has changed my flight twice now (a return flight to/from UK) scheduled in May.
I'm planning to cancel it, and have tried phoning in but the phone line gives me the overloaded message.

I bought the ticket with miles & cash, so basically want to know what happens when I cancel. The web site has a button "Cancel".
But there is no indication does it just cancel and do whatever it does ?
Or does it take me to a page with options, and choice, and then let me pick, or tell me before action is performed ?

I know if I click it, and it cancels out (maybe lose my miles) , there is no way I can phone in to reverse the process...

A more detailed website would help, and cut down on phone calls.

I know it's not an emergency, as I can wait, and simply hope UK ban's all USA flights due to Covid-19 , then wait for AA to cancel flight. Of course it's possible that might not happen

Yeah, we have a $1200 cost flight with AA. They stated that I should wait until closer to the 04/08 date, as any cancellation now they indicated I would only get a credit but not a refund.
This is my last travel cost that I am trying to recoup.

 

[harllee]

Check your hosts policy as you might be able to cancel anyway. But it only makes sense if flight restrictions keep you from going somewhere or an area is still under lockdown that the extenuating circumstances clause will apply. I am likewise trying to cancel my extended European vacation.

At least 70% of things were cancellable and the others likely will become so as they push out the waiver dates because this isn’t going to clear up in a couple of weeks

Thanks, our Air BnB does not start until May 1 so we have some time to decide to cancel or not (probably will cancel). I expect our area will be on a lock down soon so that may help get us a refund. If the host will not give us a refund we might ask if we could reschedule for a later date, it is still a place we would like to go.

 

[Sunset]

Thanks, our Air BnB does not start until May 1 so we have some time to decide to cancel or not (probably will cancel). I expect our area will be on a lock down soon so that may help get us a refund. If the host will not give us a refund we might ask if we could reschedule for a later date, it is still a place we would like to go.

Ours is in May as well, and while we could cancel now and get about 30% back, that remains the same until very close to the actual stay, so I might as well wait until the country is closed to foreigners, and hope that prompts AirBnB to change policy.

 

[explanade]

If you cancel a flight, you might have little recourse.

If the airline cancels the flight because they scale back flights and/or certain regions like Schengen are block non-residents from landing, then you should have some options, like 1-year credit and then cash if you can't find another flight to use on that credit.

Remember most tickets are nonrefundable.

But there are accounts of people with refundable tickets not getting cash refunds.

Cash crunch at the airline and they're hoping for govt. bailout money.

They had spent a lot of their cash flow in the feast years on stock buybacks.

 

[sengsational]

I had several travel partners (airlines and tour operators) cancel and only offer a coupon for future travel (which isn't what I bought), and no option for money back.

So I filled-out dispute forms online for my Citi card transactions where the travel provider did not offer a refund. And I opened disputes over the phone for my Fidelity / Elan transactions (their web dispute thing bombed, so had to call). Elan sent me a paper form to fill-out, describing the basics (similar to the online form I did at Citi).

In all cases, I got temporary credits applied. We'll see where the chips fall.

 

[sengsational]

AA Social Distancing

American Airlines sent out an email about policy changes:

• No food/beverage on flights <4.5 hrs
• They'll let you shift to an open set (wow, thanks!)
• Lap dogs still ok, but no checked baggage pets

Bullet point 1 is great for the flight attendants, and I often just drank my water and ate my own (more healthy) snacks anyway. I changed seats to an open one if I wanted to anyway. Too bad about pets. They said that flight delays made it more likely pets would get stranded.

 

[harllee]

Just cancelled my airbnb rental starting May 1 because our area is on a "stay at home" rule until at least April 30. I contacted our host and she gave us a full refund (we are getting a refund of the service fee also). That was a nice gesture on the host's part--she was not required to do this under the Airbnd rules. I told her that we would try to rebook with her at a later date. I am sure these airbnb hosts are losing alot of money.

 

[Souschef]

Princess refund posting

Processing Time for Refunds

Thank you for your patience during this time. Given the volume of refund requests and the care being dedicated to ensure each guest’s request is processed accurately and in a coordinated manner, please allow for approximately 60 days for refunds to be processed. All refunds will be processed in due course, but delays should be anticipated. Please allow sufficient time for us to manage this process and know we are doing everything in our power to expedite where possible. ​

We have enhanced the temporary policy updates that we made previously as part of our Cruise with Confidence program, offering you peace of mind regarding your summer cruise or cruisetour vacation during the evolving situation with the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak.



I figured 18 ships times 2500 passengers average is 37500 times the number of cruises cancelled, It will be a miracle if they get it done in 60 days.
​

 

[athena53]

American Airlines sent out an email about policy changes:

• No food/beverage on flights <4.5 hrs
• They'll let you shift to an open set (wow, thanks!)
• Lap dogs still ok, but no checked baggage pets

Bullet point 1 is great for the flight attendants, and I often just drank my water and ate my own (more healthy) snacks anyway. I changed seats to an open one if I wanted to anyway.

Yeah, it struck me that they're not giving up very much- and saving some due to elimination of beverages and snacks on most flights.

Hilton came through with happier news: I was supposed to drop to Silver status 4/1 after being Gold for 10+ years. I'd assumed the latter was permanent since I don't use Hilton enough to re-qualify anymore. They're extending my Gold status for another 1-2 years. Not sure which but I appreciate it. If I ever get to go to Chicago with my granddaughters again it's good for the continental breakfast buffet at the Hilton O'Hare, which is where we stay.

 

[Sunset]

Just cancelled my airbnb rental starting May 1 because our area is on a "stay at home" rule until at least April 30. I contacted our host and she gave us a full refund (we are getting a refund of the service fee also). That was a nice gesture on the host's part--she was not required to do this under the Airbnd rules. I told her that we would try to rebook with her at a later date. I am sure these airbnb hosts are losing alot of money.

Also if the host cancels, it have hurt them from Airbnb.

I'm STILL waiting for airbnb to extend their cancellation policy:

https://www.airbnb.com/#covid-19-learn-more

"We are now offering Guests full refunds and Hosts no charge cancellations for reservations booked on or before March 14th with a check in date of April 14th or earlier. Please note this policy will not cover any new bookings."

 

[harllee]

From what I see on the Air Bnb Facebook page they probably not going to extend their cancellation policy past April 14 (look at all the negative comments there). That is why we went ahead and contacted our host and it worked out for us.

 

[grasshopper]

AA has changed my flight twice now (a return flight to/from UK) scheduled in May.
I'm planning to cancel it, and have tried phoning in but the phone line gives me the overloaded message.

I bought the ticket with miles & cash, so basically want to know what happens when I cancel. The web site has a button "Cancel".
But there is no indication does it just cancel and do whatever it does ?
Or does it take me to a page with options, and choice, and then let me pick, or tell me before action is performed ?

I know if I click it, and it cancels out (maybe lose my miles) , there is no way I can phone in to reverse the process...

A more detailed website would help, and cut down on phone calls.

I know it's not an emergency, as I can wait, and simply hope UK ban's all USA flights due to Covid-19 , then wait for AA to cancel flight. Of course it's possible that might not happen

I was able to cancel a flight with AA with points and had the points credited the next day. Here comes the but, I was able to get a phone call in and had a really nice phone rep. Also I explained that I was going to visit my Mom and no visitors were allowed.

 

[JoeWras]

Oberammergau Passion Play in Germany was postponed 2 years. This event draws close to a million to Bavaria over the summer months and occurs only every 10 years.

Our trip was postponed. I have no idea what we'll recover from our payments. Not going to stress about it right now. It is still being sorted out. Maybe our stimulus payment will go partly to recovering from a loss on this.

 

[gwraigty]

DD's travel plans to NJ in late May have been postponed because of the BTS concerts being postponed. No ticket refunds, because they'll be honored for the new dates, which have not been set yet. Her flight itinerary was changed by SW a week ago. She's hoping to be able to change her flight and hotel reservations when they announce the new concert dates. However, if that doesn't happen by sometime in early May, I'm guessing she's going to have to cancel the flight and eat the cost of the nonrefundable tickets, unless the recommendation not to fly except for essential needs turns into an outright ban. She'll have plenty of time to still cancel the hotel.

 

[cathy63]

DD's travel plans to NJ in late May have been postponed because of the BTS concerts being postponed. No ticket refunds, because they'll be honored for the new dates, which have not been set yet. Her flight itinerary was changed by SW a week ago. She's hoping to be able to change her flight and hotel reservations when they announce the new concert dates. However, if that doesn't happen by sometime in early May, I'm guessing she's going to have to cancel the flight and eat the cost of the nonrefundable tickets, unless the recommendation not to fly except for essential needs turns into an outright ban. She'll have plenty of time to still cancel the hotel.

If her flight is on SW (Southwest), there's no reason for her to eat the cost of the tickets. Their standard policy is that if you cancel your trip, you get a credit for the full value of the ticket, which you can use for up to a year from the original purchase date. They have no cancel or change fees. For COVID-19, they've lengthened the validity period for credits, so if she cancels a May flight, she'll have until June 30, 2021 to use it. The only limitation is that you have to actually cancel, you can't just no-show.

 

[timo2]

Previously in this thread some posters mentioned they were embarking on South American Cruises. Stories are starting to appear about some of these cruises. So now I'm concerned about the previous posters. Here is today's story.

Holland America Zaandam: Four passengers have died aboard a Holland America cruise ship that soon may make its way to Port Everglades, the liner announced Friday......The ship was prohibited from disembarking in Chile and is now seeking to make its way to Fort Lauderdale. That plan has drawn the wrath of Broward’s county commission, which is considering turning it away.

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/corona...KwREmAdjYJhz1P3l_owESdDAKLDkWFdLdtgxmtLL9O2gg

 

[sengsational]

I'm not sure about the infection rate in Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades), but I might just not want to get off; the infection rate ashore might be higher than on the ship

 

[ivinsfan]

Previously in this thread some posters mentioned they were embarking on South American Cruises. Stories are starting to appear about some of these cruises. So now I'm concerned about the previous posters. Here is today's story.

Holland America Zaandam: Four passengers have died aboard a Holland America cruise ship that soon may make its way to Port Everglades, the liner announced Friday......The ship was prohibited from disembarking in Chile and is now seeking to make its way to Fort Lauderdale. That plan has drawn the wrath of Broward’s county commission, which is considering turning it away.

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/corona...KwREmAdjYJhz1P3l_owESdDAKLDkWFdLdtgxmtLL9O2gg

A couple is our state is on this ship and bleating about how the government needs to help because it's awful. They also glibly say it wasn't THAT bad when got on the ship on March 8th. Quick poll, how many reading here now would have gotten on a cruise for an extended journey 3 weeks ago?

 

[athena53]

A couple is our state is on this ship and bleating about how the government needs to help because it's awful. They also glibly say it wasn't THAT bad when got on the ship on March 8th. Quick poll, how many reading here now would have gotten on a cruise for an extended journey 3 weeks ago?

OK, I confess to having left for my South American trip in March 10 but that involved only a 4-day cruise on a 20-passenger ship in the Galapagos and that portion was cancelled before we could get there. I would not have left for a cruise on a megaship at that date.

Just threw in the towel on a 2-day trip to Chicago with my granddaughters (ages 3 and 6) scheduled for May 5-7. Hilton points re-deposited, no problem. AA has given me a credit for the flights but no idea what change fees I'll get socked with when I re-book. (Booked well before all this hit, so not part of the group who can re-book recent reservations with no change fees.)

I was truly looking forward to taking the 3-year old for the first time but the one thing that made the Chicago Children's Museum so wonderful for her older sister on our last visit- all the hands-on exhibits- makes it a giant Petri dish. They're closed through the end of April, anyway.

 

[JoeWras]

A couple is our state is on this ship and bleating about how the government needs to help because it's awful. They also glibly say it wasn't THAT bad when got on the ship on March 8th. Quick poll, how many reading here now would have gotten on a cruise for an extended journey 3 weeks ago?

Not me, but we had good friends who did! It was Caribbean. They are now safely back, through Port Everglades a few days ago. Excursions closed down during their trip. I was surprised they went.

But then look at me. I went on a short disaster relief trip to a coastal island only accessible by ferry. We were in tight quarters, so if it hit us, we'd all get it. (We're now at day 14, nobody got anything. Whew!) The world closed down around us, although the islanders were still pretty independent. We were one of the last outsiders to leave before they locked down the island.

If I had to do it again, I would have cancelled it. I think I was blinded by the "only 3 cases in the state" thing. This is where testing would have helped because I think it would given me ammo to cancel the trip.