Patrick, read again, "provided that the total reimbursement cannot exceed the total trip cost you paid to Insight Vacations."

We are paying our own air on our next tour because we did not like the flight choice Insight offered from from Insight Canada's partner airlines (arrival at 11:00 PM in Casablanca the evening before the tour start after the greet and meet and included dinner).

We purchased trip cancellation/ interruption insurance for the airline tickets in addition to Insight's travel protection plan to be sure we are covered. Cuddles is right, once the extra insurance and flight booking fee is factored in there is little savings in doing your own booking.

quote:

Tour Cancellation: Insight reserves the right to cancel any booking no later than thirty (30) days before the departure. However, between 01 May and 30 September, Insight will give fifty (50) days notice. Insight will, wherever possible, offer an alternative tour of similar standard. If there is a difference in cost, it will be at the passengers' expense. If an alternative tour is not accepted by the tour participant with seven (7) days, Insight will refund all monies and will be under no further obligation or liability. Insight Vacations is not responsible for any additional costs/penalties incurred on travel arrangements and air tickets purchased separately from the 'Air and Land' inclusive package.

Based on the above exerpt from Insight Vacations' brochure, the following questions need to be asked:

Has Insight Vacations offered an alternative tour (where possible)? If not or the tour participant has declined, then Insight Vacations will refund all monies to the tour participant(s). If air tickets were purchased through Insight Vacations 'Air and Land' inclusive package, it will also be refunded.

If air tickets were purchased separate, then Insight Vacations cannot be held responsible for its costs/penalties. This is where travel insurance needs to be purchased. When buying travel insurance you will have to confirm that tour operator cancelling or rescheduling a tour is one of their covered reasons.

Example:

Let's assume only the 'land only' portion of the Italian Escapage tour was purchased for $3235, then Insight Vacations will fully refund the cost of the 'land tour' to the client if it is cancelled and no alternate tour can be offered or declined. Whereas if travel insurance was purchased that covers this tour operator cancellation/reschedulation, it will re-imburse the cost of the air tickets that were independently purchased.

quote:

Originally posted by kathrynd:
We purchased trip cancellation/ interruption insurance for the airline tickets in addition to Insight's travel protection plan to be sure we are covered. Cuddles is right, once the extra insurance and flight booking fee is factored in there is little savings in doing your own booking.

Buying additional travel insurance is needed to fully protect your air tickets from an operator cancelled tour. When purchasing the additional travel insurance, you will however need to confirm it will provide coverage for tours cancelled/rescheduled by the operator.

My experience has been that you can usually find lower air fares by booking flghts independently as opposed to purchasing Insight Vacations 'Land and Air' inclusive package. The difference is marginal at best but the 'Land and Air' inclusive package does offer some 'intangible' advantages:

'Peace of mind' that air fare is fully refunded by Insight Vacations in the event the tour is cancelled by the operator.

Airport transfer will be provided outside of scheduled transfer times for those clients who purchased the 'Land and Air' inclusive package.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: PatrickC,

quote:

Let's assume only the 'land only' portion of the Italian Escapage tour was purchased for $3235, then Insight Vacations will fully refund the cost of the 'land tour' to the client if it is cancelled and no alternate tour can be offered or declined. Whereas if Insight Vacations Travel Protection Plan was purchased, it will re-imburse the cost of the air tickets that were independently purchased up to $3235 to the insured clients.

No, the Travel Protection Plan will only cover the air tickets out of the non refundable portion of the original $3235 tour payment (if you break your leg for example in the week before departure and face a 50% cancellation fee, you will be covered for up to $3235 for all prepaid non refundable expenses including the air tickets.

quote:

Originally posted by kathrynd:
No, the Travel Protection Plan will only cover the air tickets out of the non refundable portion of the original $3235 tour payment (if you break your leg for example in the week before departure and face a 50% cancellation fee, you will be covered for up to $3235 for all prepaid non refundable expenses including the air tickets.

As the client is cancelling the tour due to an injury/illness prior to departure, Insight Vacations will only reimburse the portion of the total cost of the trip that is still refundable to the traveller(s). Whereas the travel insurance provides the coverage for the non-refundable portion of the trip.

This is different from the situation described by the original thread starter where the operator cancelled the tour. In this scenario, Insight Vacations is fully responsible for refunding the total payment received by them including flights if purchased in their "Land and Air" inclusive package.

If flights were purchased separately, then Insight Vacations is not accountable for them. It will be up to the traveller(s) to purchase travel insurance so their flights are covered for this situation.

Patrick is right in saying if your book Land and Air you are reinbursed land and air.
A case I had with the sister company (T)....
My passport was lost by the Russian Embassey in Ottawa. By the time they located it and sent it back by express it was too late. My TA had not cancelled my trip until the morning of my departure but I had purchased travel insurance with a company which, fortunately for me, had a clause which read I would be fully reimbursed for entire trim less my deposit of $200.00 and Canadian taxes because my passport was lost. I have since been told this is very rare in insurance policies so if you have to send your passport away to get a visa it is something to check for. T. actually came foreward and reimbursed me for some of the cost, I forget how much. All in all a haopy ending and I spent my holidays in Italy.

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the feedback.

I do have additional info now that Insight has been in touch with our travel agent. Albeit, after many attempts for us to contact Insight, we finally have some answers.

1. Trip Cancellation coverage through insight. Though the disclaimer does say that flights are covered, this is only under certain provisions of cancellation. When I spoke to the insurance department, I was advised that had Insight cancelled the tour for any other reason than not enough people, my parents would have been covered. It is such a scam ----- be forewarned. I have personally told my parents to stuff the trip and go independently, but they are very loyal Insight people and would like to work it out.

2. As for comparable tours. There has been one that is mildly similar that Insight offers, but this is significantly less money. Insight has not gotten back to us if they will compensate the price differentials?!? I think if you pay early you get a % off. My parents paid in November for the old tour that was cancelled. Insight still has the money, but b/c this is a new booking there is some confusion as to whether they will receive this discount! Also terrible....

Anyways, I love the New Zealanders comment about breaking arms to get coverage.....It is terrible to think that bodily harm is the only way to avoid being taken advantage of by a company.

I think this makes a fab human interest story. I am interested to know how many other people have been impacted both positively and negatively from Insight's cancellation of their pre-arranged tours.

Thanks

My Switzerland Tour with Insight May 2003 was cancelled but I was changed to later date, which was fine because I just went to my friends in England first, instead of the other way round.

I had 2 tours booked with Trafalgar Tours to East Coast Canada & America May 2006, I had paid for everything was well as insurance, when I start paying big amounts of money I get my insurance at the same time so if anything happens, I'm covered.

Well 1 month before I was due to go away, my TA called and told me, my 1st tour had been cancelled,it was a TG. Well anything close to my itinerary earlier or later dates were all gone, because most people book months ahead. I got some money back, some in credit, had to change a couple of internal flights had to pay a cancellation fee.
Instead of 2 tours I ended up doing 3.
I ended up finding 2 tours as close as I could get to the one that was cancelled, I was lucky to get on them, one with TT and the other with Cos--s. TT tours did try to help.

Well that was not all that happen with that holiday. I had a delayed flight from Melbourne missed my conection in LA instead of a direct flight to Toronto I got re-routed via Chicago delayed there too. Stayed with friends between tours ended up in hospital. Toronto flight cancelled put on later flight. Boston rang for my tansfer, company no longer in business, thankfully the guy on the phone belonged to another transfer company and I got to my hotel. Everything after that went well with flights and my last tour to the Maritimes. It was not my month.

OMG Allison - that saga is enough to put you off traveling forever. Just as well you are addicted

Sometimes when these things happen you just have to solve one problem at a time and not look at the full picture as the full picture is too much to deal with.

nvanvalleygirl

I'm sure that once the dust has settled that you will find that Insight will 'come to the party' and do the honorable thing and compensate where it can. I believe it would be very unusual for them not too do their best to help your parents.

We will wait for your next installment...

Please note: It has recently been pointed out by an Insight Vacation representative while in the process of booking a tour that Insight Vacations Travel Protection Plan will not cover independently booked flights should the tour operator cancels or re-schedules its tour(s). To be fully covered, you have to buy additional travel insurance that will cover your independently booked airfare from tour opearator cancellations and/or reschedules. The Insight Vacation Travel Protection Plan does not provide for this coverage. The Insight Vacation Travel Protection Plan will only provide coverage for independently booked flights if it falls under a covered event (i.e. illness, injury, death, and etc.) The Insight Vacation Travel Protection Plan's "Any Reason" cancellation waiver will however cover independently booked airfare in the form of travel certificates.

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