COVID-19 luxury travel company policies

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It’s been a tumultuous week for the travel and tourism industry as the coronavirus (COVID-19) health crisis continues to wreak havoc worldwide. An increasing list of countries have shut down borders, cities are in lock-down, cruise lines have suspended services, airlines have reduced capacity and grounded aircraft, global travel events have been cancelled or postponed, sporting events have been scrapped, hotels, resorts, casinos have pulled down the shutters, ski-fields have ended seasons early and some of the world’s most iconic rail services have grinned to a halt. The list goes on and on.Global luxury tour operators have also been forced to temporarily suspend itineraries and trips for several weeks, and spare a thought for Melbourne based Constellation Journeys which this week cancelled its Around the World itinerary aboard a chartered Qantas 747 that was due to take-off in late April.Event cancellations continue to roll in. Overnight, organisers of the 42nd edition of the once-a-decade Oberammergau Passion Play in Germany – which was due to commence mid-May but has been in limbo for a week – were required to cancel the five-month long event, delaying its running until May 2022 instead. And this afternoon came confirmation from Tourism Fiji that the annual Fiji Tourism Expo in early May has also been shelved due to the pandemic.Rather than running separate articles for each individual cancellation, LATTE has prepared this COVID-19 cancellation policy shortcut, offering a snapshot of what amendment and cancelation policies the major luxury hotel, resort and accommodation groups; events, rail service operators and cruise lines have adopted during this unprecedented period. We’ve provided a direct link to the operator’s website where their details can be found as this fluid situation continues to evolve.(And if your luxury property and brand is not on the list, simply send us an email with a link to your online COVID-19 policy at latte@signaturemedia.com.au)

HOTELS, RESORTS, LODGES and COLLECTIONS

Accor – Raffles, SO/, Sofitel, Orient-Express, Fairmont Aman Resorts Anantara Belmond Chevel Collection Design Hotels Dorchester Collection Hilton – Waldorf Astoria, LXR, Conrad IHG – InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Regent, Kimpton Virgin Limited Edition Small Luxury Hotels of the World The Leading Hotels of the World Langham Hospitality Group Lux Resorts Mandarin Oriental One&Only Resorts QT Hotels & Resorts The Red Carnation Hotel Collection Relais & Châteaux Rosewood Hotels & Resorts Singita Six Senses Resort Hotels Spas Small Luxury Hotels of the World Taj Hotels The Star Entertainment Group Viceroy Hotels & Resorts 

EVENTS

Essence of Luxury Travel (22-25 March 2020) Duco Travel Summit (30 March-3 April 2020) ILTM Africa (2-4 April 2020) ITB India (15-17 April 2020) Arabian Travel Market (19-22 April 2020, postponed to 28 June-1 July 2020) ILTM Arabia (20-21 April 2020) CINZ MEETINGS (22-24 April 2020) Fiji Tourism Expo (4-6 May 2020) ILTM Latin America (5-8 May 2020) Rendez-Vous Canada (5-8 May 2020) ATE (Australian Tourism Exchange) (10-14 May 2020) Germany Travel Mart (10-12 May 2020) INDABA (12-14 May 2020) ILTM Asia Pacific (18-21 May 2020) TRENZ (18-21 May) South Pacific Tourism Exchange (25-26 May 2020) IPW (30 May-3 June 2020 – pending final decision by 3 April) 

CRUISE LINES

Aqua Expeditions Azamara Avalon Waterways AmaWaterways Celebrity Cruises Crystal Cunard Hapag-Lloyd Cruises Hurtigruten Oceania Cruises Ponant Regent Seven Seas Cruises Silversea Seabourn Scenic Group SeaDream Sea Cloud Cruises Viking Windstar

RAIL JOURNEYS

Great Southern Railway – The Indian Pacific, The Ghan Golden Eagle Luxury Train Glacier Express The Blue Train Rocky Mountaineer Belmond – Venice Simplon-Orient Express, Andean Explorer, Royal Scotsman Maharaja’s Express

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