Beverly Lynn
comfortably numb
- Joined
- Oct 17, 1999
- Messages
- 1,337
Traveler's Rights and Airline Responses: What You Need to Know in Response to This Crisis
It's day four of this terrible crisis and the gloom most of us feel here in New York has yet to abate. Yesterday, there were numerous bomb threats in midtown Manhattan, threatening the city's now tallest building, the Empire State Building as well as its major hubs of transportation (Grand Central Station, Pennsylvania Station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal).
But not all the news is bad. The major airlines have responded to this crisis in a reasonable manner thus far. The two hijacked carriers, American Airlines and United Airlines, have set up emergency numbers to allow family members quick access for information. Go to www.aa.com or www.united.com for more information on that. And all of the airlines are offering passengers the choice of either being re-routed or getting a full refund, many for flights through this weekend. For more information on each of the airline's policies, we'll defer to our colleagues at Smarter Living ( www.smarterliving.com). That site has a comprehensive list of carriers, both foreign and domestic, along with their refund and rebooking policies.
In general, the airlines are waiving their printed policies about so-called force majeur events. Refunds seem to be readily available, not only for already cancelled travel, but for those already booked travelers who are nervous about flying in the near future.
At this writing, all of the major airports in the country but four have been certified as having complied with the new heightened security measures being required by the Department of Transportation. Those that aren't yet open for business include Boston's Logan, Chicago's O'Hare and the two Washington, DC area airports (which are open, but not yet ticketing passengers).
If you had hotel reservations that are going to go unused, you're in luck if you used a major chain or booking service. Hilton, Choice Hotels, Holiday Inns, Motel 6, Radisson, Red Roof Inns, Ritz-Carlton, Priceline, Hotwire and Orbitz are all waiving cancellation fees and working with clients on refunds. For the smaller or individually owned properties there's obviously no one set policy, but sources tell us that most hotels are being reasonable about issuing refunds.
We're going to devote most of the rest of this issue to the needs of those stranded in travel. We'll cover the alternatives to air travel, the situation for tourists in New York and DC, your options if you're abroad right now and what to expect in Terms of security measures if you do end up flying in the next couple of days.
It's day four of this terrible crisis and the gloom most of us feel here in New York has yet to abate. Yesterday, there were numerous bomb threats in midtown Manhattan, threatening the city's now tallest building, the Empire State Building as well as its major hubs of transportation (Grand Central Station, Pennsylvania Station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal).
But not all the news is bad. The major airlines have responded to this crisis in a reasonable manner thus far. The two hijacked carriers, American Airlines and United Airlines, have set up emergency numbers to allow family members quick access for information. Go to www.aa.com or www.united.com for more information on that. And all of the airlines are offering passengers the choice of either being re-routed or getting a full refund, many for flights through this weekend. For more information on each of the airline's policies, we'll defer to our colleagues at Smarter Living ( www.smarterliving.com). That site has a comprehensive list of carriers, both foreign and domestic, along with their refund and rebooking policies.
In general, the airlines are waiving their printed policies about so-called force majeur events. Refunds seem to be readily available, not only for already cancelled travel, but for those already booked travelers who are nervous about flying in the near future.
At this writing, all of the major airports in the country but four have been certified as having complied with the new heightened security measures being required by the Department of Transportation. Those that aren't yet open for business include Boston's Logan, Chicago's O'Hare and the two Washington, DC area airports (which are open, but not yet ticketing passengers).
If you had hotel reservations that are going to go unused, you're in luck if you used a major chain or booking service. Hilton, Choice Hotels, Holiday Inns, Motel 6, Radisson, Red Roof Inns, Ritz-Carlton, Priceline, Hotwire and Orbitz are all waiving cancellation fees and working with clients on refunds. For the smaller or individually owned properties there's obviously no one set policy, but sources tell us that most hotels are being reasonable about issuing refunds.
We're going to devote most of the rest of this issue to the needs of those stranded in travel. We'll cover the alternatives to air travel, the situation for tourists in New York and DC, your options if you're abroad right now and what to expect in Terms of security measures if you do end up flying in the next couple of days.
