We are disheartened by what is happening in the world with the Coronavirus Pandemic.
Our hearts go out to those that have had to make the decision to cancel their trips. So many students have worked months and months to earn the funds to participate in this exciting event, and now they find it is canceled. We are fielding many calls in our office from parents inquiring about refunds for their child’s canceled trip. Please know that we are your advocate. We are working with our vendor partners, who are also in the midst of this pandemic, to request refunds. They are fielding requests like ours from Tour Operators around the world. This is a completely unprecedented situation for us as a company and industry. This may take a great deal of time to resolve, so we ask for patience. We ask that parents do not contact us but obtain all information from your school. We are in contact with the school and group leader and providing them with information when it is available. Please know that we are working on your behalf.
Our trip has been canceled. When can I expect a refund?
We are working with our vendor partners on your behalf to obtain refunds for your trip and minimize your financial loss. All refunds, whether you canceled inside or outside of your cancelation period, will be processed as quickly as possible. This will take time as we work through the process. We are dealing with an unprecedented number of requests; therefore, we estimate it may take 8 weeks to receive your refund. We ask for your patience.
How much of a refund will I receive?
As a student tour operator in business since 1983, our job is to ensure that your trip is paid for in advance to assist in a successful trip. We are working with our vendor partners on your refund. Until we receive answers from every vendor, we do not have an answer.
What happens if we are on our trip and the amusement park closes. Can we get our money back for the tickets?
A partially used ticket cannot be refunded. If your ticket is for the dates the parks are closed, most parks are providing full refunds. If you are cancelling and the park is still open, some provide refunds and others do not, but may allow you to reschedule. It is dependent upon which park you are scheduled to visit.
We are scheduled to fly. Will the airline give me a refund?
Some airlines are easier to work with than others. This answer depends on the airline policy.
Our travelers want to purchase travel protection, but since we’ve paid off our trip, we’ve been told it’s too late to purchase it. How do we get the protection?
Travel Protection is a product that is purchased on an individual basis. If you request to purchase the protection, we will ask if you have fully paid for the trip. If the individual traveler has not yet made their final payment, they are still able to purchase Travel Protection that includes CFAR (Cancel for Any Reason). If a claim is made on this policy, the traveler will be asked to prove when their trip payments were made. If your individual trip was paid off fully to the school or to our company prior to purchasing the protection, the claim may be denied. This will be a decision made by Travel Insured International. Our only involvement with this product is to offer it to our trip participants. Please note, if the decision has already been made to cancel the trip, we are not allowed to offer this product to your travelers.
If we decide to move our dates to July of 2020, can we now purchase Travel Protection that includes CFAR?
Your trip is already registered with Travel Insured International. If you move your dates, there will be no new opportunity to purchase travel protection. Those that have it will be able to keep it, but no additional travelers will be able to add this optional protection.
How do I make a claim if I have Travel Protection that includes CFAR?
Once it is provided to us by Travel Insured International, all documentation will be provided to you by your group leader as well as on our portal after you log. Travel Insured International is receiving an unprecedented number of claims that will take time to process. Please have patience when waiting for this document.