How to prepare best for holiday to the US at the end of June

Phaedos

Hi,

I know there are a lot of posts about this at the moment, but I'm wondering how best to protect myself from financial loss do to the volcanic ash. Basically I have flights booked, late June, to the US, but no hotels/car rental/activaties yet. I believe I would get flights refunded if they got cancelled if there was any volcanic ash at that time? but if i want to book the other stuff now, I'm worried that if my flights were cancelled or delayed, I'd lose money from hotels etc.

Is there anyway to insure for this at this stage? as it's still unknown if there will be volcanic ash then or not, so surely insurance companies would be fine to insure it still? it's not like I'm going next week or something...If so what do I look for in the TnC's, nat disasters? anything else? any particular ones people would rec?

Many thanks

malid

Hi Phaedos

There are lots of sites you can book hotel through that don't take payment up front and/or you can cancel up to 48/24 hours before arrival - sometimes even less. We have travelled to the west coast many times and have even changed our plans when we are out there. I don't think you will have a problem. Whereabouts in the US are you going? I really hope the ash situation will be ok for you. Enjoy!

ferf1223

I agree with malid - certainly booking direct with most US hotels will give you a lot of flexibility in terms of cancellation - sometimes until 6pm on the day of arrival, sometimes 24/48/72 hours - just depends on where and the hotel's policy. But in some cases it will cost you more - sometimes hotels have pre-paid, non-cancellable rates that are less expensive, so you would just need to be careful about avoiding those.

As far as rental car, I know that with carhire3000 you can cancel up to 48 hours before with no charge IF you prepaid the full amount (you lose the deposit if you only paid the deposit).

Reservations made through some US car rental companies don't require a credit card (Dollar at least)...so can be cancelled anytime without penalty. Problem there is the rate you're quoted online doesn't include the relevant insurance waivers you would likely want and there's a chance you would end up paying quite a lot more for the rental that way if your trip did go ahead (which I hope that it does!)

ailuro2

I agree with the above, most hotels are cancellable, make sure it says that in the blurb, and make sure you have the number of the hotel IN YOUR PHONE so you can phone the hotel and cancel if you get stuck at the airport.;)

Same with your carhire.

Do it now and it will be cheaper. We have found the Hampton Inn chain to be clean and nice at a reasonable price. They are all over Canada and the States, there will be a few where you're going more than likely. Remember to use TripAdvisor for reviews, they're never far off the mark.

IF you're feeling flush Marriott is another chain who we have always found to be good no natter where we are. They are more expensive, depends on what you're after really.

Have fun, enjoy the holiday, hope you get off ok.
We fly beginning of July for our cruise, and are trying not to think about ash disruptions.

Phaedos

Thanks for the replies, very helpful. Let's say I wanted to book hotels in advance (just perhaps to get some discounts) is there any insurance we could take out that would cover the possibility?

Also does anyone know if the zero credit card is still the best way to get money out when in the US, since the ATM's charge their own fee anyway, or is getting it changed before hand the best bet?

thanks for the advice

dzug1

It's very difficult to generalise about whether paying interest on the zero credit card is better than paying up front to change cash here - it depends what else you use it for and when you pay it off. Bear in mind that any purchases on it will get paid off first and that you will carry on paying until everything is clear

From another thread:

there are a handful of insurers who WILL provide cover for Ash-related claims - but at a premium. They are:

M&S Money
HSBC
First Direct
Santander

Phaedos

dzug1 wrote: »

It's very difficult to generalise about whether paying interest on the zero credit card is better than paying up front to change cash here - it depends what else you use it for and when you pay it off. Bear in mind that any purchases on it will get paid off first and that you will carry on paying until everything is clear

From another thread:

there are a handful of insurers who WILL provide cover for Ash-related claims - but at a premium. They are:

M&S Money
HSBC
First Direct
Santander

Thanks, I would only be using the card for ATM cash withdrawals, and would pay the balance off in full as soon as I got back home. It is very difficult to know if the exch rate will be significantly better via the card than the best rate available in the UK, to such an extent that it becomes worth while to pay the 2 weeks of interst and US ATM bank fees(I guess these would only be one or two dollars if I got it all out in one lump sum, but I guess than then kind of negates the benefit of having a card and not having to carry bulk cash).

I guess I will prob get the bulk of my money changed at home at the best place then just use the card as back up.

Thanks for the insurance advice too, I will check a few of those names out.

ferf1223

Phaedos wrote: »

(I guess these would only be one or two dollars if I got it all out in one lump sum, but I guess than then kind of negates the benefit of having a card and not having to carry bulk cash).

Where are you going? Many ATMs in the US have a withdrawal limit of somewhere between $200 and $500...so you would have to pay a fee for multiple withdrawals unless you would only be looking to withdraw that much.

malid

Phaedos wrote: »

Thanks, I would only be using the card for ATM cash withdrawals, and would pay the balance off in full as soon as I got back home. It is very difficult to know if the exch rate will be significantly better via the card than the best rate available in the UK, to such an extent that it becomes worth while to pay the 2 weeks of interst and US ATM bank fees(I guess these would only be one or two dollars if I got it all out in one lump sum, but I guess than then kind of negates the benefit of having a card and not having to carry bulk cash).

I guess I will prob get the bulk of my money changed at home at the best place then just use the card as back up.

Thanks for the insurance advice too, I will check a few of those names out.

Hi again

Using your credit card to get the cash out at an ATM then paying it off when you get home is an expensive option as you wil be charged daily interest. If you are able to, you are better off using your debit card and there are ones which are better than others. There is an article on MSE about this - go to Travel and follow the prompts. There are also loads of threads on the forum just type into the search bar.

If this has been useful - please click on thanks

northwest1965

Phaedos wrote: »

Also does anyone know if the zero credit card is still the best way to get money out when in the US, since the ATM's charge their own fee anyway, or is getting it changed before hand the best bet?

thanks for the advice

Have you looked at something like the 'Caxton Card'?

eslick

take a few hundred dollars and post office credit card and you will be set, just pay for everything on the credit card and you will get the bank rate and no extra fees as long as you pay it off when you get back.