The latest information from the Icelandic Meteorological Office indicate that the Eyjafjallajökull volcano is currently in a ‘paused’ phase ie. no longer emitting ash but only steam. However, volcanoes are only regarded as being dormant if they are ‘paused’ for three months.
With the massive disruption to UK travellers recently, Your Travel Planner has researched and called travel insurance companies to see which policies are offering specific cover for volcanic ash clouds.
Here’s what we found. Look out for the policies that will cover you to make alternative travel arrangements home:
Remember: You’re covered for cancellation from the date that you take out your policy, not the date that your holiday starts. So whatever the volcano news in the months to come, you’re covered for cancellation. BUT,you won’t be covered if you take out a policy during an airspace ban.
Aviva Travel Insurance
Cancellation and Enforced Stay Abroad (alternative travel arrangements home)
Aviva recently launched an optional add-on to their standard travel insurance policies, to provide cover for any future event causing a closure of airspace, airports or ports. This optional upgrade is £10 per person on an annual policy and £5 per person on a single trip policy.
This cover means you will be able to claim for cancellation of your trip if airspace, airport/port is closed for more than 24 hours from the time stated on your travel ticket.
A section called Enforced Stay Abroad has also been added which covers you if you can’t return home due to the closure of airspace or an airport/port. The cover provides £100 per person for each 24 hour period (to a maximum of £1500) that you are unable to return home OR if you need to make your own way home after a 24 hour delay (and the carrier or handling agent has been unable to offer you suitable alternative travel arrangements), Aviva will pay you up to £1,000 per person for reasonable and necessary additional travel expenses that you incur.
Columbus Direct will cover to travel delay and abandonment if the policy was taken out when there was no airspace ban.
They have also added a new “Emergency Travel Upgrade” as an option on its gold and silver policy ranges. This helps passengers pay for alternative ways home in case of being stranded overseas. The upgrade costs £20 per policy and reimburses up to £4,000 of expense.
Independent Traveller option (accommodation only for getting home)
M&S travel insurance policies are underwritten by AXA, who are only providing cover under the optional Independent Traveller section. If you’re stuck abroad, this section covers you for accommodation only, with the assumption that the airlines will cover the flights. Independent Traveller cover is optional, but included in M&S’s annual policies. Other expenses incurred such as food and beverage will not be covered.
Direct Travel Insurance
Delayed departure or abandonment
A company that honoured claims for ash cloud, Direct Travelsay they are continuing to consider the ash cloud as “adverse weather”. missed or delayed departure or abandonment, to cover accommodation and transport that cannot be recovered from another source.
Depending on your policy, the benefit of cover is upto £350 for delayed departure, upto £6,000 for abandonment and upto £1000 for missed departure. If you are stranded abroad due to travel disruption, Direct Travel will automatically extend your policy period until you return home, at no extra cost.
However, Direct Travel are not covering additional repatriation costs ie. alternative travel arrangements to get home.
World First
Travel delay and abandonment
World First are covering the ash cloud under travel delay and abandonment. Travel delay provides £25 for the first 12 hours and then £10 thereafter, to a maximum of £100 per person. After 24 hours you can then claim under abandonment. Policyholders who become stuck abroad due to any new event will have their policies automatically extended until the next available flight is offered.
To keep up-to-date with this changing travel insurance situation, Your Travel Planner recommends moneymaxim who is keeping their site updated with the latest situation.
Last month, VisitDenmark launched their 2010 ‘Be our Guinea Pig‘ holiday testing programme, giving 2 families and 4 couples the chance to go on a FREE holiday to Denmark. The closing date for applications is noon Friday 26 March, so there’s still time to apply.
Successful applicants will be asked to test different types of activities, transportation and accommodation and document their trip through a short holiday video. The video will be published on the VisitDenmark website.
Commenting on the ‘Guinea Pig’ programme, Henrik Kahn, Director of VisitDenmark said, “This is a fantastic opportunity for enthusiastic and adventurous travellers to experience our wonderfully diverse country whilst documenting their experiences to highlight just how much fun a holiday in Denmark can be. Applicants don’t need to have any experience of writing or photography - just an ability to express themselves in an interesting and original way. All they have to do is choose which holiday they want to apply for, click the appropriate link - and cross their fingers!”
The Guinea Pig holiday test programme is open to all UK residents but certain terms and conditions apply. Each holiday includes accommodation, transport to Denmark (by air or ferry) and the different activities to be tested for each trip. Choose from these six different trips:
Air New Zealand unveiled their new design in enhanced economy seating when they launched the ‘Skycouch’ last week.
The ‘Skycouch’ is a specially designed row of three seats that gives passengers a lie-flat space to relax and grab some quality sleep.
6 things you need to know about the Skycouch
The Skycouch seats will only be in the first 11 window rows in economy, giving a total of 22 Skycouches per aircraft
Passengers will be able to buy three adjoining economy seats at a discounted price and then turn them into one fully flat bed/couch
Obviously, this will be more cost effective if you’re travelling as 2 adults or a family. Pricing is still be to be announced, but Air New Zealand say that for two adults, purchasing the Skycouch will be based on buying two seats at standard prices with the third seat at approximately half price
You’ll be able to buy Skycouch seats from April 2010, when flights on the B777-300ERs go on sale for the first time
The first routes will be selected services between Auckland and Los Angeles from December 2010
Further routes will include the through service to London from Auckland via Los Angeles (from April 2011) and then all Asian, North American and UK services to have the new product by around 2012.
Skyscanner, the flight comparison site, has revealed its most searched for destinations from UK airports for travel in 2010.
Spain takes the top three positions, with Malaga in the top spot, followed by Tenerife and Alicante.
Dalaman holds its position as the 5th most searched for destination for a second year in a row, whilst Orlando and New York break into the top ten.
Brand new entries to the top 50 are Johannesburg and Cape Town, which will be welcoming the World Cup in 2010.
Overall Spain is yet again the most popular country for Brits to visit, with 11 Spanish destinations within the Top 50, five of which are in the top ten.
Barry Smith, Skyscanner co-founder and business director, says, “These early indications show that Spain is still by far the most popular destination for British travellers. Medium and long haul locations also seem to be on the rise compared to last year, suggesting that holiday budgets may be growing after a tough financial year.”
Top 10 Most Searched for destinations for 2010, from UK airports
1. Malaga, (Spain) [+1]
2. Tenerife (Spain) [+2]
3. Alicante (Spain)[0]
4. Orlando (USA) [+12]
5. Dalaman (Turkey) [0]
6. Faro (Portugal) [0]
7. New York (USA) [+5]
8. Palma (Spain) [-1]
9. Lanzarote (Spain) [+4]
10. Geneva (Switzerland) [-2]
New Entries to Top 50
1. Johannesburg (South Africa)
2. Cape Town (South Africa)
3. Melbourne (Australia)
4. Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)
5. Hong Kong (Hong Kong)
6. Perth (Australia)
7. Munich (Germany)
8. Brisbane (Australia)
Going Up: Highest Climbers
1. Las Vegas (USA) [+13]
2. Orlando (USA) [+12]
3. Bangkok (Thailand) [+11]
4. Sharm El Sheikh (Egypt) [+11]
5. Auckland (New Zealand) [+11]
For a short break this Autumn, how about watching the celebrations of the 20th anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall?
During 2009 in Berlin, there’s a series of special events and exhibitions to celebrate this moment in history and the ‘peaceful revolution’ that lead to the reunification of Germany and a divided Berlin.
Exhibitions include an open-air exhibition on Alexanderplatz, telling the story of the Peaceful Revolution in 1989/90 leading to the wall’s eventual demise and the ‘Moments in Time’ exhibition, featuring films, photographs and recollections from private individuals and those involved in events.
November 9 will see the climax of the 20th anniversary of the Fall of the Wall at the city’s world-famous landmark, the Brandenburg Gate. At the ‘Festival of Freedom’, some 1000 dominos measuring 2.5 metres in height will be used to create a ‘domino effect’ as a symbolic fall of the Wall.
Are Low-Cost Flights really cheaper than Scheduled Flights? British Airways say ‘not always’.
British Airways are highlighting that no-frills can mean bigger bills, when all the added extras are taken into account.
This week, a ‘value calculator’ was launched on ba.com. It allows customers to check the true cost of Ryanair and EasyJet’s added charges versus the value of BA’s full service.
Richard Tams, head of UK & Ireland sales at British Airways, said: “With BA, the price you see is the price you pay. It’s been well documented that some of the no-frills carriers charge for a range of ‘extras’ that we consider to be part of our core service, from checking in a bag to food and drinks on board. We’re just making these transparent for customers.”
“On a round trip customers can be paying up to £375 on Ryanair and £79 on EasyJet for these ‘extras’ in addition to their fare. The no frills carriers claim they’re always cheaper. Our calculator shows they are not.”
The ‘value calculator’ enables customers to select how they’re choosing to travel eg. checking in at the airport or online, selecting a seat 24-hours before they fly, taking a bag, or opting for food and drink on board. It will then calculate what Ryanair, EasyJet and BA will charge in total for those options.
This week’s special fare from Virgin Atlantic (as part of their 25th birthday promotions) is London to Havana, return from £425.
The terms are:
Applies to departure dates of 13 May 09 - 21 Jun 09 and 1 Sept - 28 Oct 09
Includes all taxes, fees and surcharges
Additional credit card charges and weekend travel supplements apply
Book from 7 May to 10pm on 13 May 09
It’s a shame that the travel period for the offer is in the rainy season (May to October); the wettest months are May and June. It’s also the hurricane season, but apparently, most hurricanes strike between August and October.
However, if this doesn’t bother you, the good news is that summer temperatures in Cuba average around 81°F (27°C) with humidity at about 80 percent. Visit Virgin Atlantic’s website for more details and more news of their weekly offers.
Taking a holiday in the eurozone this year may be cheaper than you think, according to the annual Holiday Costs Barometer from Post Office Travel Services.
The Post Office Holiday Costs Barometer provides prices for a basket of 10 goods typically bought by holidaymakers - including meals and drinks - from 18 holiday destinations.
Bulgaria, Turkey and Croatia are Europe’s best buys, but Spain and Portugal are two countries in the eurozone that have made it to the top 10.
Sarah Munro, Post Office head of travel services said: “The eurozone has taken a bashing this year but our survey suggests that tourist outlets in many resorts are taking dramatic steps to encourage tourists. Despite the weak pound, this means that UK tourists who shop carefully could find that they get more than expected for their money.”
Your Travel Planner says, “This is great news for people who are still considering a holiday in the more traditional European destinations. If you can book your transportation and accommodation in Pounds, eurozone countries could still be a viable option for people on strict budgets.”
To read more on this story, see the announcement from the Post Office or the article on the Guardian website.
As well as a Birthday Fare for London to Shanghai return this week from £349, Virgin Atlantic also has a 5 Day Easter Fare Sale (bookable from Good Friday to Tuesday, 14th April).
The latest information from the Icelandic Meteorological Office indicate that the Eyjafjallajökull volcano is currently in a ‘paused’ phase ie. no longer emitting ash but only steam. However, volcanoes are only regarded as being dormant if they are ‘paused’ for three months.
