◼ COVID-19 / US Bloomberg Businessweek March 16, 202050
How low?
● Change in flight
fares,* March 4 to
March 7
Los Angeles to Calgary-11.4%
Los Angeles to Nairobi-11.0%
New York to
Casablanca-11.3%
New York to Lyon-1 6. 7 %
San Francisco to
Rio de Janeiro-1 7. 3 %
San Francisco to
Stuttgart-14.3%
through April. Melia Hotels & Resorts of Spain is
offering rebates of up to 45% and free cancella-
tions. “Many hotels are trying to be more flexi-
ble, because they want the travelers to come,
if not next week, maybe in three months,” says
Alexis Waravka, public affairs manager of Hotrec,
an association of hotels, restaurants, pubs, and
cafes in Europe.● Will bargains
win over wary
travelers?
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. is offering guests
full credit on their fare even if they opt out as
late as 48 hours before embarkation on trips
before the end of July. After that, the policy
returns to the stricter charges that usually apply
for the industry: They’d have to cancel at least
57 days before sailing to get everything but their
deposit back.
The looser terms may not be enough to offset
declining business for cruise operators. Travelers
on several ships have been quarantined for days to
weeks after confirmed cases of Covid-19 or because
of fears of possible infections, highlighting a risk
for the global industry’s more than 300 vessels.
Most notable was Princess Cruises Inc.’s Diamond
Princess, which saw about 700 people become
infected and was forced to dock for weeks off the
coast of Japan. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention recommended travelers defer all cruise
ship travel worldwide because of a higher risk of
person-to-person spread.
HolidayPirates Group, which runs travel deal
websites in 10 countries, is trying to quell some of
the traveler concerns by promoting information on
safe destinations, cancellation policies and insur-
ance, and tips on staying healthy. The Berlin-based
company, which saw sales slump 30% from late
February to early March because of virus-related
fears, is expecting the campaign and low-cost deals
to bring some business back. “The longer the sit-
uation takes, the more travelers will get used to it
and the less panic there’ll be,” says Chief Executive
Officer David Armstrong.
Claire Fletcher, 33, a marketing manager in
Durham, N.C., took advantage of a cheap offer in
January when she booked a round-trip flight for
$349 to San Francisco. The trip to see the city and
the redwood forests with two friends in early May
is on for now, but Fletcher says she’d be deterredShould I stay
or should I go?
○ The pyramids of Egypt have been on Genelle
Edwards’s travel bucket list for years. She started
having second thoughts about her two-week trip
to Egypt, due to start on March 16, after an out-
break of the new coronavirus on a cruise ship on
the Nile River and the death of a German tourist
from Covid-19 at a hospital in a Red Sea resort. “I’m
worried about being quarantined and stuck when
I’m there,” says the 68-year-old retired business
owner from Austin. “But also I’m concerned with
my age, as I’m almost at the highest-risk category.”
Edwards says she now plans to cancel, a deci-
sion that could be costly: She spent $8,500 plus
rewards points on the trip and may only be able
to rebook the flight. The conundrum—to travel or
not—is a common one, as the coronavirus spreads
globally: Those with existing reservations face
potentially steep losses for canceling, while those
contemplating trips must weigh the risk of getting
sick or being quarantined against the discount
offers from airlines, tour operators, and cruise
companies coping with plummeting sales.
While trip insurance doesn’t typically cover dis-
ruption tied to epidemics or fear of travel, some
coronavirus claims are nonetheless being accom-
modated: German insurer Allianz SE has started
covering medical treatment and trip cancellation
and interruption for customers who become ill
with Covid-19 or who are scheduled to visit regions
with major outbreaks, under certain circumstances
and for those with applicable benefits. Tourism in
Italy has practically ground to a halt after the coun-
try issued a nationwide lockdown on March 9.
For destinations with just a few cases, trav-
elers who cancel can generally expect to lose at
least part of the money. TUI AG, a tour operator
based in Hanover, Germany, reimburses excursions
affected by government-issued travel warnings, but
not those canceled because customers are simply
wary of traveling. “Fear of infection is not a reason
to withdraw from a trip,” says Susanne Stuenckel,
a spokeswoman for TUI.
The travel industry is starting to loosen some
conditions to encourage people to take advan-
tage of deals. German carrier Deutsche Lufthansa
AG, which is cutting as many as half of its flights
because of the virus, has waived rebooking fees