A year ago we planned a week long Singapore stopover before embarking on a hiking holiday in Northern Italy and Switzerland. The COVID19 coronavirus changed everything. Things are moving fast and there is no indication it will get better soon.
The Australian Government has recommended to show precaution when travelling to Italy and Singapore are blocking transiting passengers at Changi Airport who have visited Northern Italy. It was time to reconsider our holiday.
In this post:
Why We Are Cancelling Our Trip To Singapore and Northern Europe
With any major disruption there are pros and cons of sticking with your planned itinerary. We have decided to cancel our trip for a number of reasons:
- We had planned to visit the Covid 19 hotspot of Northern Italy and Switzerland next door
- Whilst the chance of catching the virus is low, if you do catch it you are at the whim of local authorities
- There is a small chance you could get isolated in a hotel/airport/plane like the guests in Japan and Tenerife
- Airports are risky and some companies are banning staff from travelling through Singapore Changi Airport
- We had not prepaid a lot of our holiday so the cost of change was low
- Most importantly we would not be able to return via Singapore Changi Airport as they are not allowing transit for any travellers from Northern Italy!
Travel Insurance Does Not Cover Disruptions Due To Coronavirus
We used CommBank credit card insurance. When you read the fine print, like most travel insurance it will not cover travel cancellations. This was also confirmed when Julie called the call centre.
Which is why we recommend never to prepay for any holiday where possible. As a result we were able to cancel 8 nights accommodation which left only 5 non refundable nights. Our car rental was easy to cancel so that just left our flights.
We reached out to all the non-refundable bookings to see what alternative arrangements could be made and were pleasantly surprised!
Singapore Airlines Is Allowing Limited Free Changes
We are currently on a “stopover” from Sweden using our cheap business class travel hack. We planned to fly over in May and use a frequent flyer redemption flight home.
Singapore Airlines are cancelling a lot of flights but 10 weeks out have not cancelled any of ours, just the same flight (SQ232) on either day. I called them and they took down my details and promised to call back in 24 hours.
On call back they offered to change our flights with the standard booking fee. This would be US$250 for each flight plus US$25 for the redemptions.
I suspect this will shortly change as they are offering fee free changes for flights up to 30th April. We are currently outside the window but this may be extended.
Sofitel So Singapore Are Flexible But Not Refunding
We had originally got a great deal by booking directly, but it was prepaid with no cancellations. I sent an email to the hotel explaining our situation. While the Sofitel So did not refund our payment they offered a credit valid to the end of the year, which they agreed to extend to the end of January (which works with our upcoming skiing holiday).
Hotels In Northern Italy “May” Refund Under Certain Circumstances
The only hotel that has not been helpful is the Bella Vista Lake Garda. While the Trentino Government is allowing some cancellations, it appears our reason is not included on their list
KLM Are Allowing Refunds On Flight Cancellations
KLM are allowing cancellations on all ticket numbers starting with 074 booked before Tuesday 31st March and for travel until Saturday 31st May. While we had booked a non refundable fare we happily discovered we could get a refund. Just visit their refunds website.
We chose the option “health situation in China” and in the explanation page mentioned that we could not get home as we were transiting through Singapore. They will refund the payment back to our ANZ Travel Adventures credit card.
Summary
Whilst insurance is not going to help with the changes due to Covid 19 many companies are providing flexibility. Send them a friendly email and keep your fingers crossed. As the outbreak is moving fast things can change that may benefit you. The silver lining is we are now planning a road trip to visit Dr Annie (our guest blogger) in Alice Springs. Giving an opportunity to add some Australian stories!
