With all of the news about the COVID-19 pandemic, It seems like we’ll never feel safe traveling ever again.  While most airlines and hotels are basically closed for business, this won’t last forever. We want to answer your most important questions about the state of travel and the question on everyone’s mind:

SHOULD I BOOK THAT TRIP?

We’re just months away from the summer travel season and while this would usually be a great time to travel and get excited, unfortunately, the COVID-19 global pandemic has brought travel to a screeching halt.  Even though we may not be able to travel right now, it is the perfect time to dream and research your dream trip. Now, if you had a trip already planned – it’s the perfect time to postpone your trip and not cancel it. 

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When can we get back to traveling? We don’t currently know.

But as things seem to be changing every single day, we wanted to break down the facts for you about the current state of travel. Things are changing so rapidly that they may change from we’ve recorded this to when you’re reading this. The World Health Organization recommends travelers refrain from ALL international travel right now. The good news is that the curve is supposed to flatten by summer, but we need to keep checking for any changes. 

Air Travel

Right now, air travel is the cheapest it has been in decades and it can be tempting to book ALL THE FLIGHTS. We’ve seen roundtrip economy flights to Europe from the U.S. are less than $400, which is usually when flights are upwards of $1000 to sometimes $1500!

Roundtrip business class flights from the U.S. to Europe are selling for under $2,000, which is generally about ½ the price of a normal business class flight.

*We recommend checking with your specific airline to check their terms & conditions since they’re constantly changing.

The big 3 airlines in the U.S. – United, American Airlines, and Delta – all have similar Coronavirus changes to their terms & conditions.

United Airlines: 

  • Can change or cancel any travel plans for the rest of the year for no fee – Must be done by April 30. 
  • If you cancel your travel plans – you get a travel credit that is good for 2 years.
air-travel-covid

American Airlines:

  • Bought your ticket before April 7, 2020, for travel through September 30, 2020, you can rebook without change fees. Includes all AAdvantage® award tickets.
  • Buy a new trip March 1 – May 31, 2020, for all future travel, you can also change it at a later date without change fees.
  • *You may owe any difference in ticket price.

Delta:

  • Tickets purchased between March 1 and May 31, 2020 can be changed without a change fee for up to one year from the date you purchased it.

The pros:

  • Cheap flights
  • Changeable flights through the end of the year (if you change by 5/31 or 4/30)

The cons:

  • We don’t know when it will be safe to travel
  • You may have to rebook for a later date, which requires you to be flexible
  • You won’t get your money back. – but you will get a travel credit.

Our advice: Booking travel is like gambling right now.  If you’re a person who is in a position to take a financial risk, now is a good time to do that. We don’t know when the curve will flatten across the world, but we do know that the airlines are showing more forgiveness during this time in order to stay afloat. Booking a trip for the fall or winter time period is fairly low risk. Just set a reminder to check the airlines updated terms & conditions to see if you still want to go.

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One note. The airlines will NOT REFUND YOU. You will not get your money back,  if you cancel. You will only get a credit for the airline. However, if the airline cancels on you, you WILL get your money back.

Hotels

The big hotel groups like Hilton and Marriott are offering flexible policies similar to the airlines, but AirBnb is not. This is because Hilton and Marriott have major overhead costs,NEED YOUR MONEY, and have loyalty programs.  Whereas AirBnb as a company doesn’t own any of the properties.

*Note: “Guests who booked via online travel agents or other third-party travel professionals are advised to contact their booking provider for information on their policies.”

Should you book it? Because of the flexibility of hotels, we would recommend booking if you have the cash flow as you can save bundles of money with the cheap rates right now. But we wouldn’t recommend booking Airbnb. 

For example, if you’re planning a trip to Europe this fall, it would be smart to book a few big hotels stays and leave spots open for AirBnb’s.

Cruises

While we love cruises and we’ve been on over a dozen cruises ourselves, we do NOT recommend booking a cruise right now. Since the CDC has recommended that we don’t book cruises, we will follow their guidelines and recommendations. All of the cheap prices may look like great deals, but the cancellation and change policies for cruises are not flexible like hotels and airlines.

cruises-covid

Should I book it? With all this said. It’s a NO from us on cruises. While we love cruises, especially small ones like Silversea and SeaDream, it’s just not safe to book these right now for the immediate future. 

We would change our suggestion if we see the cruise lines change their cancellation policy.

Travel Insurance

Lastly, let’s talk about travel insurance. Because of the volatility of the travel market, you might think, “I’ll just buy travel insurance and everything will be ok.” We wish that were the case, but it’s not.

It’s important to know that not all travel insurances are created equal and you MUST read the fine print. Also, if you rely on your credit card that comes with a level of travel insurance, it most likely won’t cover changes or emergencies due to COVID-19. ‘

Because there are global travel alerts right now, most travel insurance companies are NOT GOING TO COVER YOU. You should consult with the travel insurance company directly to see if they are providing insurance that covers COVID-19 related emergencies. You can also inquire about CFAR, which stands for Cancel for Any Reason. Make sure one of those reasons is COVID-19.

Talk to the insurance company ahead of time about options. Not everyone will qualify for this insurance so you need to talk to the company prior to purchasing. 

Allianz Travel Insurance, one of the largest travel insurance companies, states the following on their site: We are currently accommodating claims for:

  1. Under Emergency Medical Care Benefit: Emergency medical care for a customer who becomes ill with COVID-19 while on their trip.
  2. Under Trip Cancellation or Trip Interruption Benefits: Trip cancellation and trip interruption if a customer becomes ill with COVID-19 either before or during their trip.