As the global outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) continues to evolve, Forbes Travel and our consultants are committed to providing direction to our clients to ensure their health and wellbeing, above all else.
We are not in a position to counsel our clients as to whether it is safe or not to travel, unless specific government advice has been issued by the Canadian Government, indicating either Level 3 (avoid non-essential travel), or Level 4 (avoid all travel).
Currently, Level 3 notices have been issued for China, Iran and Northern Italy.
Level 2 notices (practice special precautions) have been issued for Japan and South Korea.
We encourage our clients to avoid making personal travel decisions based on potentially biased information, either hearsay or being circulated on social media.
Instead, we strongly suggest heeding advice provided by:
The Government of Canada
Travel health notices:
https://travel.gc.ca/travelling/health-safety/travel-health-notices
Specific advice for COVID-19:
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/latest-travel-health-advice.html
World Health Organization (WHO)
Information and guidance:
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
Rolling updates:
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/events-as-they-happen
Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (US Department of Health and Human Services)
General information:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Several air carriers (a growing list including British Airways, United Airlines, American Airlines) are waiving change fees for international and domestic travel booked over the next few weeks, with Delta Airlines including a waiving of change fees for any international flights previously booked that are scheduled to fly in March.
Also, some suppliers (Viking Cruises as an example) are making temporary exceptions to their standard cancellation policies, offering all guests with existing reservations, and new reservations made through April 30th, 2020, the ability to change their cruise date or cancel their cruise at any time, up to 24 hours prior the planned departure, without incurring cancellation fees. Guests will be issued vouchers for future travel for 24 months, which can be used on any cruise.