Guest blog from Ben, The Travel Journal
Travel & COVID-19…where to start? Who would have thought we would be where we are a few months ago, such strange and worrying times for each and every one of us.
What has frustrated me is the so called travel experts that are giving confusing and sometimes contradictory advice and travel predictions. It feels like anyone and everyone is happy to hop on the band wagon for airtime at the moment regardless of whether it is their area of expertise or not and unfortunately we do get sucked in by what they preach, but in most cases they are clutching at straws to try and make headlines and gain airtime.
Basically if you had a package booking that has been affected by COVID-19 and the government indefinite travel ban then YOU WILL get your money back. Understandably most tour operators are trying to encourage re-booking rather than cancelling your holiday to try and keep the industry alive but should their incentive to re-book not be acceptable then refunds will be given but transactions will take a while to process due to the extreme volume of bookings being administered.
The grey area at the moment applies to all bookings that were made outside of a package arrangement which are generally bookings made direct with airlines, hotels, and sites such as Air BNB. In these instance’s each supplier are entitled to enforce their own terms and conditions outside of the package regulations.
Insurance companies are paying out for such loses where bookings have been made directly but this is all dependent on the level of cover opted for at the time the policy was taken out, as basic cover would fail to offer the cover and protection.
There is the option to make a chargeback with your bank for failure to provide the goods purchased and for example this has deemed successful with airlines playing hard ball at refunding tickets which were made directly via their own sales channels.
What is fact is that the travel industry is without doubt the worst affected industry of the global pandemic and so many livelihoods worldwide depend on it. I have been very fortunate as a majority of my clients have chosen to save the travel industry and postpone their holidays and not cancel.
I believe that when it is safe to do so the travel industry will come back with a bang as everyone will be wanting that holiday booked to look forward to as nobody’s four walls can create the magic and excitement of travelling.
My travel predictions are that sadly we will not be travelling great distances this summer but hopefully come autumn/winter we will be able to spread our wings a little further to warmer climes. What is evident is that early booking for 2021 will lock-in the best deals as after the kickstart the demand will not meet the supply due to massive cuts in travel capacity. Fake news suggests there will be deals to be had but I strongly believe that travel will be charged at a premium and only those that plan ahead now will avoid the increases that are inevitable with the knock-on effect of the global crisis.
So why not plan something exciting to look forward to after all this is over? Celebrate with family and friends abroad in a nice villa or throw caution to the wind and finally escape to that desert island paradise in the Maldives – either way I have all the suggestions and inspiration to help create and book your dream holiday from the comfort of your own home via email, phone, or facetime! Get in touch, I would love to hear from you.
Ben, The Travel Journal
🌞You can find a few ideas for making the most of holidays at home this summer here🌞
Thanks so much to our guest blogger Ben. You can keep up to date with The Travel Journal on Facebook here.
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