The Sunday Times - UK (2021-12-19)

2 December 19, 2021The Sunday Times

Travel

1 Should I book now or should I wait?

The industry experts I spoke to are

unanimous: wait — but only until January,

when tour operators will be vying for

your custom like Turkish waiters on the

Marmaris waterfront. “There are going

to be good deals on offer and your money

will be safe,” said Mark Godfrey at

Premier Holidays.

2 Are airfares likely to drop next year?

Airline sales are about to launch

— with British Airways focusing

on its US routes — but when

the discounted seats are

gone, fares will be higher

than in 2019, and will

remain so until airlines

are confident that the

demand is sufficient to

increase the number of

flights operating over

any given route. In the

meantime, they’re focused

on yield: filling fewer flights

at higher prices. Because those

prices rise as seats are sold, people

who book early get the lowest fares.

3 What about long-haul winter sun?

The Caribbean will be tricky between

now and April. Airlift is constrained

and forward bookings for the region

are so healthy that the Caribbean Hotel

& Tourism Association believes it will

reach 70 per cent of pre-pandemic visitor

numbers in 2022. The Maldives is also

oversubscribed, with operators reporting

demand much higher than in 2019. But

beyond these hotspots you’ll find capacity

and value. “We have discounts of up to

50 per cent from Malaysia, Thailand and

Bali [above],” Godfrey said. Rachel

O’Reilly at Kuoni said: “Try the Seychelles

and don’t forget Sri Lanka — it’s open and

great value.” Look too at Mexico: Tui has

up to 28 per cent off February departures

and no testing is required for entry.

4 Can I book direct?

You could book your flights here, your

hotel there and your car hire somewhere

else, but doing so will deprive you of the

biggest holiday necessity in 2022: peace

of mind. DIY bookings are not protected

by the Package Travel Regulations, so if

you’ve bought flights with the airline,

hired a car straight from the agency and

rented a flat through an online booking

platform, for example, you have little

recourse if anything goes wrong.

5 What does peace of mind look like?

The industry knows that if it’s going to

continue to ask customers to pay up front

CHRIS

HASLAM

Chief Travel Writer

for a product that could vanish at the

flick of a minister’s finger, it needs to

offer cast-iron guarantees. If you cancel

because someone in your party tests

positive for Covid, or simply because

you’ve changed your mind, you won’t be

offered your money back, but you will

still enjoy unprecedented flexibility. Tui

will let you make fee-free changes for any

reason up to 14 days before departure

or, if it’s Covid-related, right up to the

day of departure. Virgin Holidays will let

you change your dates fee-free as many

times as you like for departures scheduled

to April 30. Kuoni’s Flex guarantee allows

fee-free changes of dates or destination if

restrictions are introduced within three

weeks of departure, or free cancellation

and a refund up to 35 days before the

departure date. The easiest way to find

out about such peace-of-mind promises

is to ask the travel agent or tour

operator.

6 What are my rights

if it all goes wrong?

If you book a package

holiday that is cancelled

because of Covid, or

offered with significant

alterations to the trip you

booked, you are entitled to

a full refund within 14 days.

Tour operators would prefer

it if you took a refund credit note,

but if you want cash, you’ll get cash. The

key word here, though, is “package”: to

be protected under the law your holiday

must comprise at least two separate

components — such as a flight and

accommodation, or car hire — that have

been arranged by a single travel company.

7 Do I need special insurance?

If you or a member of your party falls

ill with Covid and cannot travel, tour

operators will offer you a credit note.

To get your money back under such

circumstances you should have a travel

policy that includes cancellation and

curtailment insurance. Such policies will

typically cover cancellation losses arising

as a result of infection within the two

weeks before the departure date, and any

expenses incurred if you or a member of

your party test positive while overseas.

8 What’s availability like in the UK?

Domestic bookings for 2022 are lower

than at this time last year for 2021, so

there’s still plenty on offer in most

regions. Center Parcs and Hoseasons have

capacity in the February and Easter

school holidays. If you’re planning to

drive Scotland’s North Coast 500 in 2022,

though, you need to book hotels now,

because the summer months are filling

fast. And in Cornwall it’s the usual story:

“Holidays have sold a lot earlier than

usual; we’ve taken almost double the

number of bookings to date versus pre-

pandemic years,” Penelope Dale at Classic

Cottages said. “Those thinking of a UK

break next year should book soon.”

DON’T GIVE

UP HOPE

FOR YOUR

2022 HOLS

T

I totally agree with Chris Haslam

(“Latest rules turn travel into Russian

roulette”, last week), but I keep on

playing, and hopefully I will eventually

win more holidays than I lose. I managed

to go to Sharm el-Sheikh, departing two

days before the national shutdown in

March 2020 — worth the risk. My

Mississippi trip for late May 2020 was

cancelled on March 30, but I got a full

refund, including airport parking and car

hire, each separate bookings. I’ve also

booked for Florida in March 2022. While

there have been disappointments, I have

not suffered any financial losses, thanks

to the travel industry’s Covid-induced

flexibility, and the planning of all the

holidays has given me considerable

pleasure. Take the gamble — you can

never recover time.

Barry Higgs, Cheshire

We couldn’t agree more with your

article. The UK shouldn’t require fully

vaccinated people to take two tests to

enter the country. We live in southern

California and are triple-jabbed; we love

going to London for Christmas and were

planning a trip this year, booking our

tickets long ago. Now, though, the new

restrictions make travel so much more

challenging. My heart says that I want my

Sunday roast in London, but my head says

it’s too much hassle for a seven-day trip.

Hank Blank, California

We have just cancelled a three-day trip

to Seville to celebrate 30 years together.

We were anxious that a positive test in

Spain would leave us in quarantine

there, potentially not getting home for

Christmas and, more importantly, leaving

our school-age child with no care.

Andrea Williams, via thetimes.co.uk

I have just cancelled an eagerly

awaited trip to Egypt, cruising the Nile

to celebrate my husband’s 60th birthday

next February, because all the potential

hassle has negated the joy that a trip like

this should bring. I don’t know whether

we’ve made the right decision, and my

sadness was compounded further when

I turned to page 12 of the Travel section

last Sunday to find the article about

cruising the Nile. I shall keep my fingers

crossed for the day when “normal”

service resumes.

Rachel Clarke, Leeds

EGYPTIAN TREASURE

During a recent cruise on the Nile we

experienced the same excellent service

from Egyptologists and hospitality

providers that Jonathan Thompson

describes (“Nile in style”, last week). The

scenes on the banks of the river could

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