Travel Changes?

[gotomu212]

I'd really love to know what country your "Health Ministry" is from. Because I haven't heard of any country so far raising France, Germany, etc to that high a level. I actually agree with @Networth.
That seems a bit random. Because the UK has 53 cases, and France has 212? What is the magic cutoff number?

Sorry, everyone has to choose what they personally are & aren't comfortable with. Just seems a bit random.

Sayhello

I’m not the OP and I don’t know if it’s the same country, but my brother is in Israel and they have raised the level and require quarantines returning from France, Germany, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland as of today (his wife is in Switzerland and we were scheduled to go in a few weeks so that has thrown a wrench into things).

 

[disneyholic family]

I’m not the OP and I don’t know if it’s the same country, but my brother is in Israel and they have raised the level and require quarantines returning from France, Germany, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland as of today (his wife is in Switzerland and we were scheduled to go in a few weeks so that has thrown a wrench into things).

i've said numerous times i'm in israel.

It's interesting. I just watched the news conference with Vice President Pence and the task force members.
They're definitely taking the 'nothing to see here' approach, which is probably the best one for the US.
They kept saying that no one under the age of 30 has died in korea and that the people at risk are the "elderly". However, they never define what they mean by "elderly".
The health ministry here is defining "elderly" as 60 and up, which to me isn't all that elderly, especially given that i'm in that group. Never thought of myself as "elderly".

It stands to reason that a small country with serious security risks must be far more vigilant in situations of this kind, explaining the differences in approach.

 

[gotomu212]

i've said numerous times i'm in israel.

It's interesting. I just watched the news conference with Vice President Pence and the task force members.
They're definitely taking the 'nothing to see here' approach, which is probably the best one for the US.
They kept saying that no one under the age of 30 has died in korea and that the people at risk are the "elderly". However, they never define what they mean by "elderly".
The health ministry here is defining "elderly" as 60 and up, which to me isn't all that elderly, especially given that i'm in that group. Never thought of myself as "elderly".

It stands to reason that a small country with serious security risks must be far more vigilant in situations of this kind, explaining the differences in approach.

I don’t like to generalize but having family living in Israel since the 90s it always sort of felt like the US approach was fear and wanting to get to normal as fast as possible and Israel was like “here we go again, buckle up, you all know the drill”.

I have the same reaction to elderly- while fearing for my kids is always the worst and knowing they are relatively safe does make me feel better, don’t all of us have parents,grandparents, friends, and coworkers in the 60+ age? In my division at work everyone but me is over 50 and several are 60s and 70s. Things would get serious quickly if even a tenth of them were out sick. Telling me not to worry when the rates of death are so high for those demographics doesn’t really make me feel better.

 

[TarotFox]

This just highlights a million problems with the US -- late retirement age, lack of access to healthcare, disaster response, lack of sick days... it's going to be bad for many here if containment fails.

 

[jbehr12]

Thanks! I'm with you

I’ve gotten the flu before and I’m still alive. The flu is statistically more dangerous. LET’S TRAVEL!

 

[sayhello]

have you tried calling ABD?
and when you're on the phone with them, asked them to escalate to someone who actually might know something?
today is only the 4th and you're going on the 12th, so there's still time.
I don't know why you would necessarily lose a chunk of change.
Do you have travel insurance?
Is coronavirus considered force majeure so it wouldn't be covered? possibly.
for sure, the airline will let you take a credit for use within the year.

No, epidemics and pandemics are not considered a covered reason in the vast majority of Travel Insurance policies. My current policy specifically lists epidemics as a non-covered reason.

I’m not the OP and I don’t know if it’s the same country, but my brother is in Israel and they have raised the level and require quarantines returning from France, Germany, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland as of today (his wife is in Switzerland and we were scheduled to go in a few weeks so that has thrown a wrench into things).

Thanks. Israel always seems to know more than we do.

i've said numerous times i'm in israel.

It's interesting. I just watched the news conference with Vice President Pence and the task force members.
They're definitely taking the 'nothing to see here' approach, which is probably the best one for the US.
They kept saying that no one under the age of 30 has died in korea and that the people at risk are the "elderly". However, they never define what they mean by "elderly".
The health ministry here is defining "elderly" as 60 and up, which to me isn't all that elderly, especially given that i'm in that group. Never thought of myself as "elderly".

It stands to reason that a small country with serious security risks must be far more vigilant in situations of this kind, explaining the differences in approach.

Sorry, I missed that you were from Israel. I know Israel is very serious about security, and your scientists seem to know more than ours.

I don’t like to generalize but having family living in Israel since the 90s it always sort of felt like the US approach was fear and wanting to get to normal as fast as possible and Israel was like “here we go again, buckle up, you all know the drill”.

I have the same reaction to elderly- while fearing for my kids is always the worst and knowing they are relatively safe does make me feel better, don’t all of us have parents,grandparents, friends, and coworkers in the 60+ age? In my division at work everyone but me is over 50 and several are 60s and 70s. Things would get serious quickly if even a tenth of them were out sick. Telling me not to worry when the rates of death are so high for those demographics doesn’t really make me feel better.

I'd love to know what "elderly" is, too. Pence is "elderly" himself if it's defined as 60+.

I work in a building with 9,000 people. Honestly, it's just as risky for me to go to work as it is to go on vacation. But there are no cases in Ohio yet, and I keep hoping it stays that way.

Sayhello

 

[Rapunzellover]

I'm in California, and there's people in my county being monitored. It could be here. I also work at a school(teach), so very high risk job with lots of public interactions. I'm trying not to worry too much, but I've got conferences coming up in Sacramento and LA. I'm reluctant to fly right now, tbh.

But my advice for those looking for refunds in case of coronavirus cancellation... be persistent. And firm. But don't yell, cuss, or get angry (it's easy to want to when it comes to losing money).

Always ask for a supervisor. When they say no exceptions, give them a logical argument (like not getting the refund will cost them your future business) and don't take no for an answer. There is always someone who can make an exception. Tell them that, and insist on talking to the person who can make that exception. If you get the run around, keep calling. Don't just roll over and give up thousands of dollars.

 

[neurosx1983]

I called ABD this evening, got supervisor on the phone, and surprisingly did not get shut down on my request to get some sort of refund (apart from the cancel for any reason refund)...they told me they would check with their superiors and let me know. Of course, the chance of something happening is low, but I was appreciative that they're at least going to look into it.

As much as I've been looking forward to this trip and even though I made a lot of pre and post plans, Ive decided if they waive the cancellation policy, I'm out. Will go somewhere warm and relax on a beach.

Even if they don't waive, I may do the cancel for any reason, but that's a harder pill to swallow...mostly because you just get an ABD credit, not actual money back. And you lose 25%.

Anyway, from my conversations almost on a daily basis with ABD, they really do seem to be confident in their decision to keep the trips going. I hope they're right. Not a single person has dropped out from our group, yet!

 

[disneyholic family]

I called ABD this evening, got supervisor on the phone, and surprisingly did not get shut down on my request to get some sort of refund (apart from the cancel for any reason refund)...they told me they would check with their superiors and let me know. Of course, the chance of something happening is low, but I was appreciative that they're at least going to look into it.

As much as I've been looking forward to this trip and even though I made a lot of pre and post plans, Ive decided if they waive the cancellation policy, I'm out. Will go somewhere warm and relax on a beach.

Even if they don't waive, I may do the cancel for any reason, but that's a harder pill to swallow...mostly because you just get an ABD credit, not actual money back. And you lose 25%.

Anyway, from my conversations almost on a daily basis with ABD, they really do seem to be confident in their decision to keep the trips going. I hope they're right. Not a single person has dropped out from our group, yet!

I'm very sorry you're faced with this decision. It must be terribly upsetting when all you were interested in was an enjoyable trip with the family. An expensive enjoyable trip.
I have to say that i'm surprised that ABD has been so inflexible.
Perhaps they don't believe that this approach will hurt future sales.
My familiarity with disney travel policies is from WDW and DCL, so to be honest, i hadn't even paid attention that the deposit is completely lost 14 days after booking.
I'm not sure i'll book with them again after this.
As for our October trip, given what i know now about ABD's approach, i may well cancel when i reach PIF. I'll consider the $1000 deposit an expensive lesson learned.
.

 

[lovetotravel]

I called ABD this evening, got supervisor on the phone, and surprisingly did not get shut down on my request to get some sort of refund (apart from the cancel for any reason refund)...they told me they would check with their superiors and let me know. Of course, the chance of something happening is low, but I was appreciative that they're at least going to look into it.

As much as I've been looking forward to this trip and even though I made a lot of pre and post plans, Ive decided if they waive the cancellation policy, I'm out. Will go somewhere warm and relax on a beach.

Even if they don't waive, I may do the cancel for any reason, but that's a harder pill to swallow...mostly because you just get an ABD credit, not actual money back. And you lose 25%.

Anyway, from my conversations almost on a daily basis with ABD, they really do seem to be confident in their decision to keep the trips going. I hope they're right. Not a single person has dropped out from our group, yet!

Instead of a refund, did you ask to move or park 100% of your money for a new trip so you at least don’t loose 25%?

 

[neurosx1983]

They might offer to just change the date.
In any case I must say that ABD exudes a shocking amount of confidence during this time. Good for them. And good for their customers too bc As I mentioned not a single person has dropped out of this trip

 

[Candycane83]

They might offer to just change the date.
In any case I must say that ABD exudes a shocking amount of confidence during this time. Good for them. And good for their customers too bc As I mentioned not a single person has dropped out of this trip

Very surprising no one has dropped! I see everyone on the cruise boards cancelling mostly anything to do with Europe at this time. Maybe people in your group are also waiting until the very last min to decide if they are doing or not too?

 

[lovetotravel]

Very surprising no one has dropped! I see everyone on the cruise boards cancelling mostly anything to do with Europe at this time. Maybe people in your group are also waiting until the very last min to decide if they are doing or not too?

I can’t see how they will wait last minute unless something like a level 3 occurs. Some people may already be enroute or at their pre-trip! That would suck to be at the pre-trip with nowhere to go after.

 

[laceltris3]

Same, I live in midtown Manhattan and work in a building a couple of blocks away from where the Westchester fellow works (really hope he pulls through, I understand his condition is currently serious). I've always had the attitude that I'm more likely to get the virus here than anywhere else given my location within the US. I'm on immunosuppressive meds as well, joy. So, am I practicing "social distancing" and working from home right now? Yes. Am I canceling my September ABD? Nah. Not unless Disney does it for me.

Good luck to you, @neurosx1983 ! Hoping we both stay healthy (and that, you know, most other people do too)!

This is more or less my attitude. The new case in Texas yesterday is like 20 minutes from me. Our low case numbers reflect lack of testing more than anything else and I am pretty sure the US has at least as many as France and Germany are reporting (if not many more, given what's going on with that cruise ship out of SF). Nobody is waiving change penalties out as far as July. I will monitor the situation this month, and likely PIF at the end of the month for our trip. I am honestly hoping that we can get through May without school closings here, but I can handle a summer self-quarantine or working from home.

 

[laceltris3]

Very surprising no one has dropped! I see everyone on the cruise boards cancelling mostly anything to do with Europe at this time. Maybe people in your group are also waiting until the very last min to decide if they are doing or not too?

I think cruises are a materially different situation, given what has happened. I would like to think that they know now the route in Japan is not the way to go, but I can understand the fear of being trapped or denied docking.

Also, did anyone see that in New Hampshire the positive case who was supposed to be in self-quarantine broke it to go to an invitation-only event for Dartmouth Business School and now there is another case? I can understand people who risk losing thousands of dollars they have spent on a trip, but not people who know they have it selfishly exposing others.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

Also, did anyone see that in New Hampshire the positive case who was supposed to be in self-quarantine broke it to go to an invitation-only event for Dartmouth Business School and now there is another case? I can understand people who risk losing thousands of dollars they have spent on a trip, but not people who know they have it selfishly exposing others.

I just finished reading an article about this. I think that guy should be prosecuted and/or sued. The article said there was no law against ignoring advice, but I would argue in this case when you knowingly do something there are both civil and criminal laws that can fit. If my kids went to Dartmouth and were at that party, I would be LIVID. He better hope no one dies from his arrogant stupidity and recklessness.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

We just cancelled OYO trip to Netherlands for spring break. Staying home seemed to be the most enjoyable thing at this point. Some things I learned about canceling trips: Right now, Delta is waiving all change fees and penalties for international flights and are issuing a credit to be used 1 year from original ticketed date. If you have non-ABD insurance, you can transfer the insurance to another trip if they allow it, mine did not but some will. I don't know if ABD allows you to move your insurance to a new trip without a fee if they cancel your trip. We had minimal loss, except for a private tour guide who charged us time for working on our itinerary and tickets purchased, but refunded most of our deposit.

I wanted to thank you, again, for posting this. I would not have known, otherwise, that Delta was making this exception and I was nervous about losing $800 in our cancellation. I cancelled our Delta flights yesterday and got the no-penalty, full e-credit for future flights to be used by mid-December. Should all go well, we will be able to use that credit toward our flights for the Rhine ABD this summer. Our resort in Mexico also offered us a credit instead of taking our two-night deposit which was very kind of them.

 

[KD1234]

Sorry, jumping in a bit late here. I'm one of those "at-risk" people as I'm immunosuppressed. We're going to WDW in April for Spring Break and to our Southern CA/DL ABD in June. My husband is a physician who has been in communication with SC's governor's office regarding protocols for this thing. (We don't live in SC.) We are still going on our trips, and personally, I only worried about the panic, not the virus itself.

 

[sayhello]

Sorry, jumping in a bit late here. I'm one of those "at-risk" people as I'm immunosuppressed. We're going to WDW in April for Spring Break and to our Southern CA/DL ABD in June. My husband is a physician who has been in communication with SC's governor's office regarding protocols for this thing. (We don't live in SC.) We are still going on our trips, and personally, I only worried about the panic, not the virus itself.

I totally get this. I was sick over the weekend (started as a bad cold, ended up a mild case of bronchitis). I was supposed to go to NYC over the weekend, and was glad I cancelled when I got the cold. Not only did I end up getting sicker, but I REALLY was worried about getting quarantined in JFK for who knows how long. (I'm sure the folks at the wedding I missed are glad I cancelled, too.)

Sayhello

 

[Candycane83]

I just got an email from Tauck offering travel credit for all PIF trips through June 30, 2020 to use between 2020-2021. Airfare change fees are not covered.