Travel Changes?

lovetotravel said:
"With this in mind, we are offering a temporary adjustment to our Adventure Vacation Date Change Policy to provide more flexibility for our guests. Guests currently booked on Adventures through July 31, 2020, can change their reservation and receive a 100% credit to be used toward a future Adventure. Guests may select an alternate Adventure or place their booking on a future hold date by calling a Vacationista at 1-855-223-0025 or 407-566-8345. Guests will have until December 31, 2020 to select a new travel date. This future travel credit is non-refundable and standard prevailing rates will apply."

I'm confused about this in regards to the recently released new flexible policy to cancel for a full refund before or at the PIF for guests who book a new trip. This wording in the email sent to guests about rebooking a July 2020 trip seems contradictory to the new policy. It says the future travel credits is non-refundable. If this is the case, why would you do this because I would rather wait it out for it to be cancelled. Because then I would get a full refund and have the chance to use those funds to book a future trip with the new flexible policy. But maybe I might be misreading this?
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You’re not misreading. The refundable deposits apply to new reservations only.
 
lovetotravel said:
"With this in mind, we are offering a temporary adjustment to our Adventure Vacation Date Change Policy to provide more flexibility for our guests. Guests currently booked on Adventures through July 31, 2020, can change their reservation and receive a 100% credit to be used toward a future Adventure. Guests may select an alternate Adventure or place their booking on a future hold date by calling a Vacationista at 1-855-223-0025 or 407-566-8345. Guests will have until December 31, 2020 to select a new travel date. This future travel credit is non-refundable and standard prevailing rates will apply."

I'm confused about this in regards to the recently released new flexible policy to cancel for a full refund before or at the PIF for guests who book a new trip. This wording in the email sent to guests about rebooking a July 2020 trip seems contradictory to the new policy. It says the future travel credits is non-refundable. If this is the case, why would you do this because I would rather wait it out for it to be cancelled. Because then I would get a full refund and have the chance to use those funds to book a future trip with the new flexible policy. But maybe I might be misreading this?
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Yes, I'm in the same boat. I will wait and see (I'm actually hoping my trip goes) Also, I don't think they are promising to reimburse airfare is we opt to move our dates?
 
DCPhotoGal said:
Yes, I'm in the same boat. I will wait and see (I'm actually hoping my trip goes) Also, I don't think they are promising to reimburse airfare is we opt to move our dates?
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Yes it doesn’t say about the airfare. Another reason for me to wait. With Airlines being so flexible about changes though, you’d only get a refund on the air if it was booked with ABD.
 


disdel said:
We certainly understand the "fine print", and have no qualms about dealing with our choices. We have experienced our fair share of missed ports and altered itineraries, including several storms and an early 90's cruise where our ship crashed into the pier in St. John, CA, leaving us with a hole in the bow you could drive a truck into. It's what happens.

My only point was that I'm not using my $$ to not experience what we wanted. Will an ABD Danube river cruise still be awesome ? I have no doubt whatsoever. It's just not the experience we were spending on.

In the case of missing Castaway Cay, again, stuff happens, and, yes, there is more to Disney cruise, and yes, DCL always goes above and beyond with more onboard activity. DL and WDW do the same (well, they used to). I don't think the analogy is quite right. This trip was not sold, priced, or booked as simply an ABD Danube River cruise. There are many other dates we could have done that. And, as I said, I'm fully aware of the fine print, and of consequences of my own actions. However, in line with many of the earlier posts in this thread, my feeling is that ABD is being short-sighted. I tried to move my trip to the equivalent, in 2021. They'd still have my $$, and loyalty. I was only offered the opportunity to move it up until March 2021. Like I said, I'll wait it out until PIF, and then make the choice. Hopefully, they'll reconsider the limits on any rebooking. That's all.

And thanks, DisneyWishes - yep, I have the "Displacement"info, which is right now our best option when we reach PIF. Did they mention how far out the actual booking could be ? As I said, when I called, I was told I had to travel by next March, so they advised to let the reservation stand for now until PIF.
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I was told yesterday that I had until December 31, 2020 to re-book with my "displaced status" deposit and that, at the time of booking, I could choose any trip that was currently being advertised by ABD (and could take advantage of any discounts). So, I am under the impression that you would be able to book past March 2021 if you take the "displaced" status on your PIF date. I would definitely wait it out!

lovetotravel said:
"With this in mind, we are offering a temporary adjustment to our Adventure Vacation Date Change Policy to provide more flexibility for our guests. Guests currently booked on Adventures through July 31, 2020, can change their reservation and receive a 100% credit to be used toward a future Adventure. Guests may select an alternate Adventure or place their booking on a future hold date by calling a Vacationista at 1-855-223-0025 or 407-566-8345. Guests will have until December 31, 2020 to select a new travel date. This future travel credit is non-refundable and standard prevailing rates will apply."

I'm confused about this in regards to the recently released new flexible policy to cancel for a full refund before or at the PIF for guests who book a new trip. This wording in the email sent to guests about rebooking a July 2020 trip seems contradictory to the new policy. It says the future travel credits is non-refundable. If this is the case, why would you do this because I would rather wait it out for it to be cancelled. Because then I would get a full refund and have the chance to use those funds to book a future trip with the new flexible policy. But maybe I might be misreading this?
Click to expand...

I took the future travel credit for my July 19 SoCal/DL trip. The PIF was yesterday and the trip hasn't been officially canceled yet. My only alternative would have been to pay the balance on the trip and wait it out to see if it would be cancelled. It probably will be canceled, but I didn't want to give ABD another $4K and then wait on pins and needles for the next 6 weeks to see if they would cancel or not. For me, taking the credit was the best option.

On the other hand, we also have an August ABD Rhine Cruise booked and I check Ama's website daily to see if they are going to cancel past June 30. If that trip is cancelled prior to PIF, I will gladly take a full refund on my deposit and then maybe take advantage of the new booking policy at that point!

So I think whether you take the credit or the refund is very much based on when your PIF is scheduled and when they actually cancel the trip (if they cancel). I hope that makes sense.
 
disdel said:
I don't think the analogy is quite right. This trip was not sold, priced, or booked as simply an ABD Danube River cruise. There are many other dates we could have done that. And, as I said, I'm fully aware of the fine print, and of consequences of my own actions. However, in line with many of the earlier posts in this thread, my feeling is that ABD is being short-sighted. I tried to move my trip to the equivalent, in 2021. They'd still have my $$, and loyalty. I was only offered the opportunity to move it up until March 2021. Like I said, I'll wait it out until PIF, and then make the choice. Hopefully, they'll reconsider the limits on any rebooking. That's all.
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I agree with you. The analogy wasn't quite right. It's more like changing a DVC cruise (with all the special attendees and experiences) to a regular cruise. Or maybe a Star Wars cruise to a regular cruise?

TXTransplant said:
But, I do think the idea that the cruise should be cancelled because Oktoberfest is cancelled is a bit of a stretch. If the cruise is allowed to proceed, ABD and AMA are going to NEED it to go. Considering the state of the industry right now, cancelling it for that reason would be a pretty bad financial decision on the part of those companies.
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I agree that the cruise shouldn't be cancelled, but I do think that under the circumstances it would be appropriate to allow people to cancel and get their money back given the cancellation of the main event. I wonder what will happen with the Christmas Markets cruises? Presumably those could be in danger soon, especially if there is a resurgence in the fall as a lot of people are expecting.
 
lovetotravel said:
"With this in mind, we are offering a temporary adjustment to our Adventure Vacation Date Change Policy to provide more flexibility for our guests. Guests currently booked on Adventures through July 31, 2020, can change their reservation and receive a 100% credit to be used toward a future Adventure. Guests may select an alternate Adventure or place their booking on a future hold date by calling a Vacationista at 1-855-223-0025 or 407-566-8345. Guests will have until December 31, 2020 to select a new travel date. This future travel credit is non-refundable and standard prevailing rates will apply."

I'm confused about this in regards to the recently released new flexible policy to cancel for a full refund before or at the PIF for guests who book a new trip. This wording in the email sent to guests about rebooking a July 2020 trip seems contradictory to the new policy. It says the future travel credits is non-refundable. If this is the case, why would you do this because I would rather wait it out for it to be cancelled. Because then I would get a full refund and have the chance to use those funds to book a future trip with the new flexible policy. But maybe I might be misreading this?
Click to expand...
Because a) some people just don't want to wait. If the trip is still a "go" this year, and they don't feel comfortable going, then they can get out of going, and instead book for 2021, when they are more likely to feel good about it. Also b) if they haven't Paid in Full yet, but don't feel comfortable going, and don't want to Pay in Full and then play chicken on whether the trip gets canceled or not, they can get out of the trip, and rebook for 2021, when they are more likely to feel good about it.

It's a less stressful way to get out of a trip that may or may not be cancelled.

Sayhello
 


CaliforniaGirl09 said:
I agree with you. The analogy wasn't quite right. It's more like changing a DVC cruise (with all the special attendees and experiences) to a regular cruise. Or maybe a Star Wars cruise to a regular cruise?


I agree that the cruise shouldn't be cancelled, but I do think that under the circumstances it would be appropriate to allow people to cancel and get their money back given the cancellation of the main event. I wonder what will happen with the Christmas Markets cruises? Presumably those could be in danger soon, especially if there is a resurgence in the fall as a lot of people are expecting.
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I almost brought up the example of a Star Wars cruise vs. a regular cruise, but I didn't because I couldn't really think of a reason why Disney wouldn't be able to provide the Star Wars related activities (Maybe a norovirus outbreak? Or just really, really bad weather? We went on a Thanksgiving Cruise out of Galveston, and the weather to Key West was so bad that we couldn't go out on deck for a couple of days). But, for the most part, they are able to control what happens ON the ship. It's what happens off the ship where they lose control.

But, this discussion brings up a bigger point about the future of the cruise industry over the next year or two (at least until we have a vaccine). When you book a cruise, for the most part what you're paying for is what the ship provides - lodging, food, and entertainment ON the ship (I realize river cruises do include some excursions). But, for most of us (although, I realize there are exceptions, like transatlantic cruises), we don't cruise simply to stay on the ship the entire time. We expect to be able to get off and enjoy the sights and sounds of whatever ports of call are on the itinerary.

As far as cost goes, ABD charges more for the Oktoberfest and Christmas Market cruises, but looking at the itineraries, it doesn't LOOK like they are actually providing anything more than what they provide on a "regular" cruise (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong). You're paying more because these events are typically "high demand" times of travel. Presumably there is higher demand during these events, but no more capacity, so the price goes up.

So, what happens if we end up in a situation where the cruises are allowed to proceed but you CAN'T get off the ship? How many people want to take a river cruise but never disembark to explore the cities they are passing by? I can't imagine paying $$$ for a trip and flying all the way to Europe only to confine myself to a boat that I can't get off of.

From the perspective of the travel companies, of course these trips have to proceed. At this point, they can't afford for them NOT to.

But, depending on how long this continues, how do you convince people to book a cruise where they can't get off the ship? Well, for new trips, you offer deep discounts. But, when people are booking a year or more in advance, that's not fair to the people with existing reservations.

Do you allow people to cancel? Well if companies make that too easy, they run the risk of having to cancel the entire trip. Unfortunately, that's not how you get the travel industry "up and running" again.

We sort of started this discussion a few pages back, and as things start to unfold, it really keeps opening up more and more cans of worms.

You could take it even beyond the cruises, too. I know the Japan itinerary doesn't include Tokyo Disneyland and Sea, but if I travel to Japan (and we hopefully will in the next couple of years), I would be horribly disappointed if I could not add on a visit to those parks because they are closed. Because, for me, going to Japan is probably going to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip. I would definitely want to reschedule to a time when those parks are more likely to be open. I'm certain Japan is a wonderful place to visit even if you don't visit those two parks, but I don't have an unlimited travel budget and want to get the most out of the time and expense it takes to get there.

Companies like ABD are really caught between a rock and a hard place here. The lesson I'm learning is that I am having to temper my expectations of travel, and might have to continue to do so for quite some time.

And as unfortunate as it is, some companies may simply not exist as we know them once we get through all of this. As much as we want to be loyal to those companies with "great" customer service and generous cancellation and refund policies, if they don't have enough money on hand to weather this storm, we won't be able to book with them in the future.

If you follow Samantha Brown and have been watching her new show "Places to Love", you know it's not just about the destination - it's about the experiences you have and the people you meet while you're there. Companies like ABD, Tauck, Wildland Trekking, Walks of Italy, Mauna Kea Summit Adventures, and...I could go on, but you get the point...are ALL excellent at providing exactly those types of "experiences". But they do so at a cost (In my circles, I honestly know VERY few people who are willing to pay for guided travel; most people just book a plane ticket and hotel and go it on their own. And they look at me like I'm nuts when I say I'm going to Alaska with Nat Geo.), and it will be really interesting to see who and what is still standing in a year or so.
 
Another update on Quark. I was speaking with them yesterday. The CSR I spoke with was lovely. She told me they just cancelled their April 30th departure and at this point she doesn't expect any cruises to leave before July. However they have not cancelled anything beyond the aforementioned April cruise. She also told me that at least 2 of their Arctic cruises next summer are already sold out and some have very limited availability. She said most people booked this summer are re-booking next year. We will definitely not be re-booking for next year -- my plans for next summer involve a trip that can very easily be cancelled up until a few days before departure without any penalty (I would like to try for the Waldorf Astoria Maldives once again, maybe combined with a week in India).
 
*WDW*Groupie* said:
Another update on Quark. I was speaking with them yesterday. The CSR I spoke with was lovely. She told me they just cancelled their April 30th departure and at this point she doesn't expect any cruises to leave before July. However they have not cancelled anything beyond the aforementioned April cruise. She also told me that at least 2 of their Arctic cruises next summer are already sold out and some have very limited availability. She said most people booked this summer are re-booking next year. We will definitely not be re-booking for next year -- my plans for next summer involve a trip that can very easily be cancelled up until a few days before departure without any penalty (I would like to try for the Waldorf Astoria Maldives once again, maybe combined with a week in India).
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Yes, I plan on booking flexible policy trips for next year in case we have a repeat of this year!

One of my claims on my 2 canceled trips with CFAR has finally been processed. It took 2 months, but I was able to get 75% of my non-refundable fees. I have 2 more trips that might get canceled this year and I was told I could move them to new trips if I don't incur penalties. I need to use those credits within 2 years of when I originally purchased the insurance.

If my ABD trip gets cancelled, I will have trip credits upon airline credits upon insurance credits, all expiring 2021-2022.
 
AbD canceled my Italy June 5 2020 earlier this week. I called today and was connected immediately with a vacationista (no wait!). She did try to get me to reschedule, which is expected. I said no thank you and that was that. It was painless. She did say that it could take up to 30 days for my refund to be credited back to my card. I am so relieved. Now, just waiting for DCL to cancel my Greek cruise that starts on June 13….
 
TravelJunkieHubby said:
If there isn't a vaccine by the PIF dates next year but the number of COVID cases are down, are you comfortable traveling overseas?
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.
no.
However, I might possibly travel if i test positive on an antibodies test.
At least to fly to the USA to get my mom who's been stuck in suburban detroit since all this started.
.
 
Eastridge said:
ABD told me that the refund for my cancelled June trip could take up to 90 days. I hope the 30 day estimate is more accurate!
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The part I paid by gift card took 7 days (got it today)...so hopefully the credit card part takes no longer than another week. They told me it usually takes 7 days, but considering COVID that it might take up to 30.
 
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I have been waiting for 10 days for a return call from a manager at Quark. Apparently their top priority is re-booking passengers for 2021. You'd think that since I have already paid in full that I would maybe get some priority, but nothing.

Yesterday I received an e-mail saying they have now cancelled all summer, 2020 Arctic cruises. However they are not offering any refunds. That is their official line. As of now I am not interested in re-booking and will be pressing for a refund. However I need to wait for a manager to contact me, which I am told will be "any day now". For such an expensive trip I expect better customer service.
 
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*WDW*Groupie* said:
I have been waiting for 10 days for a return call from a manager at Quark. Apparently their top priority is re-booking passengers for 2021. You'd think that since I have already paid in full that I would maybe get some priority, but nothing.

Yesterday I received an e-mail saying they have now cancelled all summer, 2021 Arctic cruises. However they are not offering any refunds. That is their official line. As of now I am not interested in re-booking and will be pressing for a refund. However I need to wait for a manager to contact me, which I am told will be "any day now". For such an expensive trip I expect better customer service.
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So sorry you are experiencing this trouble. Keep us posted.
 
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