Complicated travel advice needed pls

Meekoblue

First off I'd like to apologise: this'll seem a trivial problem at this extraordinary time, but its weighing heavy on my mind.

I'm a nurse, so I'm in work and very much fortunate  in this regard. We're coming up to our 35th wedding anniversary soon and had planned a special holiday this year -New York & Pacific Coast Highway. 

We originally booked all the bits separately with flights from Thomas Cook, and that's where the fun started. They went bust and we got an instant refund from Lloyd's. Phew, panic over.

So I rebooked with Norwegian...
Then coronavirus happened...
Then the travel ban.. 

We are due to fly out May 28th, a lot can happen in that time, but I suspect not enough to 
1) prevent Norwegian going bust
2) restore free movement of people 
3) something to go right for us!

So - long story short:  it seems out insurance (chosen  on price because of my wife's health issues) wont pay out due to pandemic.

Norwegian will only rebook before mid November.  Opodo who we booked the flights with wont talk to us as it's not an immenent departure, Tickemaster (we booked a broadway show around $500) say it cant be cancelled....

I'm about £4k down at present and close to tears. I know that's rather self-indulgent given the real tragic stories out there. I still consider us lucky as we have employment and health.  But  it was to be some thing very special and its turning into a disaster.

Any advice would be much appreciated. 
Take great care everyone.

Meekoblue

Sorry, reading other message it appears I've posted in wrong board/thread, my apologies. 

Alan_Bowen

No this seems to be the right place to ask your questions. No airline is frankly guaranteed not to fail at the moment, there are some who are much weaker than even Norwegian! AS you seem to have put this all together yourself, I hope you have suitable insurance, one part of which should be scheduled airline failure protection. If you have never read the policy it might be a very good idea to do it now as in the current environment I suspect few insurers will be offering it for any airline! If you have then your flights are protected, if you haven't then I presume you paid by credit card so again you should be OK.
Broadway shows are completely closed at the moment if they are still closed when you travel you should get a refund of the actual theatre price for the tickets, which will be less than you paid since Ticketmaster whack on their own fees. Having just been to New York 4 months ago, the price of theatre tickets was a shock to the system and made London seem a real steal, very annoyed to discover the show we went to see is now expected over here next year.
I hope that gives you some hope, all is not lost, just don't get ill!

Meekoblue

Thank you Alan_Bowen for your encouraging words! 

mgdavid

Nothing to add to AB on this, but for the future the general concensus is always to book direct with the airline. Use skyscanner, kayak or brokers to find suitable routes and flights and best price, then go straight to the airline website. Also don't skimp on travel insurance, and do read the Ts & Cs thoroughly before you buy.

Ganga

mgdavid said:

Nothing to add to AB on this, but for the future the general concensus is always to book direct with the airline. Use skyscanner, kayak or brokers to find suitable routes and flights and best price, then go straight to the airline website. Also don't skimp on travel insurance, and do read the Ts & Cs thoroughly before you buy.

Whilst I agree with you on the above, hindsight is a marvellous thing, how many people had insurance for a world wide pandemic virus?

Meekoblue

Thank you for the above comments.
I tried to get SAFI insurance last year but was told they wouldnt touch Norwegian.  I dont mind buying insurances but if they wont provide the cover I cant do more than that.

Birseh_

Hi Meekoblue. Can you tell me the name of the insurance company and the policy name ii.e the xyz Gold Cover, Bronze cover or what have you. I will look at it in detail for you. Thanks.