Cancellation of booked trips

[Blackcrusader]

No idea at all what the next 18 - 24 months will bring.nt.

There will be countries like Indonesia that are today recording highest figures. Nobody really knows the true numbers as who knows how many people who are infected will get medical treatment.

In the next 12 - 24 months expect to see a lot of business failures in the resorts and diving industry. Even though Taiwan has very low cases left under quarantine and there is no lock down the hotel industry has been decimated. Obviously no foreign tourists can enter. Domestic tourism for cheaper guest houses is still OK for many and my wife is actually turning new customers away as we still want to have social distancing which would mean only 2 persons to a room. I also have another business which is still running fine but it is sports related so very few live sports events on for the time being. Taiwan and Korea both have live sports events on.

I have seen reports that in Bali some stranded tourists are renting rooms in 3 star resorts for US$200 a month. I know people living in the Philippines who are now living in resorts there are very low costs now as well.

 

[Edward3c]

I understand and respect your point of view. But I am not sure if you aware of the fact that people voluntarely choose to book with a 10% discount on the prepaid part of their reservation with the very clear awareness they there would be no refund possible. Instead they could book without any deposit payment and pay the full amount at the end of their stay. This was clearly mentioned in the offerte, on our websites and on the invoice. And I asked their attention for this again in a mail, before I accepted the reservation with prepayment. Often I received a reply they understood and that their insurrance would cover in case they would have to cancel. However, now we will now have to reconsider our rates and condtions completely. No idea at all what the next 18 - 24 months will bring.
After the discussion on this board and other input we decided to offer our guests that they will have a full credit for the amount they paid (in Indonesian Rupiah), to be spend at any of our 3 resorts and this is without a time limit. And they can instead transfer the credit to somebody else as well.

Our (until recent) policy:

NO DEPOSIT – NO CANCELLATION FEE – PAY WHEN YOU CHECK OUT

To confirm your booking you only have to provide us with your full name(s) and a copy of your confirmed flight itinerary.

Payment can be done at the end of your stay, by internet banking, cash*, debit card or credit card.

Payment can also be done in advance. If you want to prepay, we offer you a 10% discount on the part of your reservation you pay in advance. This discount is not valid for the transfers by boat, car and airplane. To receive the 10% discount, you have to ask for this when you make the reservation and let us know which part of your booking you want to prepay. We will send you an invoice promptly and the invoice must been paid within 1 week after receiving your invoice. For any reservation made shorter than 30 days before your arrival date, we cannot offer this discount. By paying when you make your reservation you exclude also possible negative fluctuations in the exchange rates. Please note that there is no refund at all of this amount in case you cancel your trip, for whatever reason. Please note that we release temporary reservations after 7 days if we did not receive a copy of your tickets or a payment.

Yes, the booking I made was no refund, but because of COVID-19 they decided to amend their policy. That’s why when the lockdown is over I’ll be rebooking with them.

 

[Indah]

There will be countries like Indonesia that are today recording highest figures. Nobody really knows the true numbers as who knows how many people who are infected will get medical treatment.

In the next 12 - 24 months expect to see a lot of business failures in the resorts and diving industry. Even though Taiwan has very low cases left under quarantine and there is no lock down the hotel industry has been decimated. Obviously no foreign tourists can enter. Domestic tourism for cheaper guest houses is still OK for many and my wife is actually turning new customers away as we still want to have social distancing which would mean only 2 persons to a room. I also have another business which is still running fine but it is sports related so very few live sports events on for the time being. Taiwan and Korea both have live sports events on.

I have seen reports that in Bali some stranded tourists are renting rooms in 3 star resorts for US$200 a month. I know people living in the Philippines who are now living in resorts there are very low costs now as well.

We are not even sure which flights will be available for affordable rates by the time people want to start traveling for fun again. Without huge government supports many flight carriers will not survive.

 

[Indah]

Yes, the booking I made was no refund, but because of COVID-19 they decided to amend their policy. That’s why when the lockdown is over I’ll be rebooking with them.

That is very loyal of you. We also amended our policy, for as far as we hope we can afford. I hope for you, and for the whole dive industry, your next trip will be soon.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Kudos to the NAD Lembeh owners to allow for the credit. I have been checking on the family of one of the dive guides through text messages since this started. My understanding is that owners of NAD have continued to pay the staff (even if it's reduced) during all of this. I think this speaks volumes to how much the owners care about the people that make NAD such a special place.

The management at Absolute Scuba In Padang Bai has done very much the same thing.

 

[Indah]

The management at Absolute Scuba In Padang Bai has done very much the same thing.

We all do as much as we can and as long we can do this. But I wonder how this will be the end of this year.

 

[Blackcrusader]

We all do as much as we can and as long we can do this. But I wonder how this will be the end of this year.

A lot of countries may not allow international flights for several months yet. So focus on whatever domestic tourism can bring. The wealthy are still wealthy in most cases.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

It would be nice to have a topic focused exclusively on ‘xxxxx country Has now opened its airport with no 14 day quarantine’

 

[SeaWarden]

If you would like to sell any boat engines, and/or boat to keep the business alive during this period please let me know. We are looking to purchase additional speedboats.

I understand and respect your point of view. But I am not sure if you aware of the fact that people voluntarely choose to book with a 10% discount on the prepaid part of their reservation with the very clear awareness they there would be no refund possible. Instead they could book without any deposit payment and pay the full amount at the end of their stay. This was clearly mentioned in the offerte, on our websites and on the invoice. And I asked their attention for this again in a mail, before I accepted the reservation with prepayment. Often I received a reply they understood and that their insurrance would cover in case they would have to cancel. However, now we will now have to reconsider our rates and condtions completely. No idea at all what the next 18 - 24 months will bring.
After the discussion on this board and other input we decided to offer our guests that they will have a full credit for the amount they paid (in Indonesian Rupiah), to be spend at any of our 3 resorts and this is without a time limit. And they can instead transfer the credit to somebody else as well.

Our (until recent) policy:

NO DEPOSIT – NO CANCELLATION FEE – PAY WHEN YOU CHECK OUT

To confirm your booking you only have to provide us with your full name(s) and a copy of your confirmed flight itinerary.

Payment can be done at the end of your stay, by internet banking, cash*, debit card or credit card.

Payment can also be done in advance. If you want to prepay, we offer you a 10% discount on the part of your reservation you pay in advance. This discount is not valid for the transfers by boat, car and airplane. To receive the 10% discount, you have to ask for this when you make the reservation and let us know which part of your booking you want to prepay. We will send you an invoice promptly and the invoice must been paid within 1 week after receiving your invoice. For any reservation made shorter than 30 days before your arrival date, we cannot offer this discount. By paying when you make your reservation you exclude also possible negative fluctuations in the exchange rates. Please note that there is no refund at all of this amount in case you cancel your trip, for whatever reason. Please note that we release temporary reservations after 7 days if we did not receive a copy of your tickets or a payment.

 

[Indah]

If you would like to sell any boat engines, and/or boat to keep the business alive during this period please let me know. We are looking to purchase additional speedboats.

Thanks for the offer. Our boats/engines/compressors/tanks are probably the last things we would sell however. We have quite some land with full ownership we will try to sell some parts of. And maybe some of our cars. Another solution we consider is to try to find a partner who would like to live and work in Indonesia and could invest money to cover the costs until we can start again. With 3 resorts we could use some extra input anyway. Firsts we will have to see how the situation worldwide develops. In the meantime I wish all affected by this extreme situation all the strength you need.