How to Plan a “Coronacation”.

If you are looking for something that is not negative regarding Coronavirus, here it is. The one major positive coming from the whole pandemic, is that you can get AMAZING deals on travel. In fact, flights have not been this marked down since 9/11. The best part of all this is the fact that most places have either relaxed or gotten rid of cancelation fee’s all together! With this being said, I am not by any means saying you should be traveling when it is not advised. A lot of these deals have already extended a few months out! By then, we have no idea what this situation is going to look like. This could all blow over, and we may realize that media made things out of hand. We could also be in A LOT worse situation than we currently are. Overall, the travel industry is taking a huge hit due to COVID-19, and places have significantly lowered their prices. Right now is the perfect time to plan trips, with the hopes that the situation will improve. All at no risk to you!

Flights

Amid initial warnings from WHO, airlines around the world stopped services to mainland China. Since then, airlines have begun evolving their restrictions in order to accommodate customers. These airlines have also significantly reduced their prices on flights. I’ve been finding a lot of fares recently that are around 60-70% off the average ticket value. Right now it seems like no one knows what’s going to happen regarding the recent COVID-19 outbreak. And while this is true, airlines have made it so there really isn’t ANY risk whatsoever in booking While messing around on Google Flights, I found some phenomenal deals from the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport.

MSP to Cartagena, Colombia- $168 Roundtrip. The average hotel price in Cartagena is $50 USD a night. You could plan a 7 day trip for two people, including airfare for less than $350 USD (MIND BLOWN).

MSP to Atlanta- $35 Roundtrip

MSP to Puerto Rico- $79 Roundtrip

MSP to Salt Lake City- $97 Roundtrip ($172 less than usual)

MSP to Cozumel- $327 Roundtrip ($319 less than usual)

MSP to Palm Springs- $69 Roundtrip

MSP to Honolulu and Kahului (Maui)- $303 Roundtrip

Delta- Delta is broadly waiving change fees for travel impacted by coronavirus. That means all travel departing in March or April 2020, as well as all tickets purchased in March of 2020. If your travel is eligible for a waiver, you can move your travel dates and even select a new destination. The new ticket must begin before December 31, 2020 or your ticket expiration date. Your unused ticket will be applied toward your new flight. If the new fare is lower, you will receive a Delta travel voucher for the difference. If the new fare is higher, the difference will be applied.

American Airlines- The airline will waive change fees for customers who purchased tickets before March 1 for travel through April 30, no matter the destination. Customers who purchase tickets until March 31 will also not incur a change fee should they wish to alter their plans

Jet Blue- JetBlue has also enlisted extra precautions in a list posted to their website, as well as suspending change or cancellation fees for bookings made between March 6 and March 31 for travel by Sept. 8.

For a list of all airlines Coronavirus related change and cancelation fee’s, click HERE. *Make sure you read the stipulations carefully, before you purchase anything*

Accommodations

Recently public health officials have advised people not to travel or gather in groups in order to prevent the spread of the virus. On top of that, many employers have halted work related travel and are having employees work from home. Major conferences and trade shows have also be canceled. By doing so, the hotel industry is being severely impacted. According to USA Today, “The hotel Industry is seeking a total of $250 Billion in bailouts for owners, employees, and suppliers, saying devastated room bookings due to the Coronavirus are resulting in closures and mass layoffs. The contraction in travel due to the Coronavirus already has has a more severe impact on the hotel industry than 9/11 and the 2008 recession combined. As an example of how fast the industry has crumbled, the Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, which operates 54 hotels aimed at business travelers in major cities, has already had to lay off half of it’s staff of 8,000 workers, said CEO Jon Bortz. By the end of the month, another 2,000 will be idled”.

As of right now most hotel chains have waived their change and cancelation fee’s through April 30^th. Hilton Hotels has taken this a step farther. Any reservation–even advanced purchase bookings described as non-cancellable–that you book by April 30 for any future arrival date, can be changed or cancelled at no charge up to 24 hours before your scheduled arrival. Hilton Hotels and Resorts includes; Embassy Suites, Homewood Suites, DoubleTree and Waldorf Astoria.

Here’s Forbes list of the current cancelation policies for major hotel groups. Please note that a lot of the policies pertain to direct bookings. This means that travelers booking through third-party booking sites, may be out of luck. Third party booking sites have also followed the trend by relaxing change and cancelation fee’s.

Hotels.com- If you have booked lodging via Hotels.com, you have the option to cancel and be refunded.

Orbitz- The website lets you know which hotels/resorts have a no cancelation/change fee. They are waiving change fees for many hotels based on where you are traveling to or from. If you booked hotels for these destinations and are NOT a resident of these countries, you are eligible for a full refund.

Airbnb- Reservations made on or before March 14, 2020 for stays and Airbnb Experiences, with a check-in date between March 14, 2020 and April 14, 2020, are covered by the policy and may be cancelled before check-in. Guests who cancel will receive a full refund, and hosts can cancel without charge or impact to their “Superhost” status. Airbnb will refund all service fees for covered cancellations. For now, reservations made after March 14th will not be covered under the extenuating circumstances policy unless the host or guest contracts COVID-19. Guests who are blocked from going on their trip because of things like travel restrictions, cancelled flights, or a suspected/confirmed case of COVID-19 can also cancel their reservation without a charge. The site is giving guests the option to filter their search for a home based on the cancelation policy. For hosts, the site said it will waive it’s 3 percent host fee through June 1st on new reservations for listings whose hosts offer refunds to guests that would have otherwise been subject to charge. Airbnb will also be increasing the visibility of these listing to promote new bookings.

Cruises

Cruise ships have gotten a particularly bad reputation during the Coronavirus Pandemic. Ships are being plunged into chaos due to more and more countries denying access for ships to dock. According to the Cruise Lines International Association, “The cruise industry is a vital artery for the U.S. economy, supporting over 421,000 American jobs, with every 30 cruisers supporting one U.S. job, and annually contributes nearly $53 billion to the U.S. economy”. The CDC itself labeled ALL cruise ships as a “Level 3” and is telling people to avoid all non-essential travel. The CDC typical only posts travel health for countries and other international destinations, not ships, airplanes, or trains. The US government is currently advising all US travelers to defer all cruise travel. Amid all of the chaos, cruise lines are trying to stay a float. A lot of companies are changing their cancelation policies.

Royal Caribbean– Announced a new policy where they’ll allow ticket holders to cancel within 48 hours of the departure. The “Cruise With Confidence” policy allows guests on Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Azamara and Silversea to cancel up to 48 hours before sailing. Guests will receive a full credit for their fare, usable on any future sailing of the guests choice in 2020 or 2021.

International Travel

You may have read that the United States Government has prohibited non-US citizens who are from the 26 countries that make up the European Union’s Schengen area, or who have visited the Schengen area in the previous two weeks from entering the United States. The countries included; Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. The United States government’s policy went into effect on March 13, 2020, and is intended to be set in place for 30 days after. After this was set in place, the United Kingdom and Ireland were also added to this list.

This policy does not include or impact;

• American citizens, permanent legal residents and their immediate families. This includes any child, foster child or ward of a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident, or who is a prospective adoptee pursuant to the IR-4 or IH-4 visa classification.
• Members of the US armed forces and spouses and children of members of the U.S. Armed Forces.
• Anyone traveling at the invitation of the United States Government for virus-related work. Certain travelers related to NATO or United Nations work, and certain travelers doing work related to the CDC, Department of Homeland Security, State Department and other law enforcement issues.
• Certain classes of air or sea crew members.

While not prohibited from entering the United States, some travelers may be required to return to the US through select airports where enhanced screening procedures have been established. As of March 13, all American citizens and legal permanent residents who have been in high-risk areas and return to the United States are required to fly to one of the following 13 airports:

• Boston-Logan International Airport (BOS), Massachusetts
• Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Illinois
• Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Texas
• Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW), Michigan
• Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), Hawaii
• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Georgia
• John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York
• Los Angeles International Airport, (LAX), California
• Miami International Airport (MIA), Florida
• Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), New Jersey
• San Francisco International Airport (SFO), California
• Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Washington
• Washington-Dulles International Airport (IAD), Virginia

For a current list of countries and their travel restrictions, click HERE.