Airfare & Insurance

[RMM34667]

I am so out of my element on this. But I know someone here knows the answer.

 

I found an amazing airfare for my Mediterrean Cruise next May. When I go Princess and look at their airfares it is about 3x higher.

 

But the rate is non refundable. If I buy trip insurance and have to cancel (of course for a covered reason) does that cover the non refundable airfare.

 

I want to JUMP on this airfare TODAY but am leary. My Mom (traveling buddy) is 77 and my dad (not coming) is 84 with Alzhiemers.

 

Any advice would be appreciated. THANKS.

[Pam in CA]

Frequently, Princess airfare is lower to/from Europe because they go through a consolidator. Plus, they offer two different types of fares: refundable and non-refundable. That said, if you've found what you think is a great fare that's a lot cheaper than Princess, go for it.

 

If you buy Princess insurance, it will cover only what you purchased through Princess, i.e., not independent air. If you buy independent insurance, it usually covers the entire cost of the trip but you should check the policy to make sure it does. One benefit to the Princess insurance, even though it won't cover independent air, is that after final payment, there's "cancel for any reason." When checking independent air, make sure it has this option. With older parents, or even young children, a lot can happen in a couple of months.

[RMM34667]

Thanks Pam. The difference is about $900 each. We have Princess Insurance for our cruisefare and I expected to add Princess Air at a later date. But I look every day and this is the lowest fare I've seen in six months.. way low. (US Airways rt Rome $869 including taxes).

 

I guess I'll call or email Insure My Trip to see what their options are. Cause if I book this air I will also be booking a night in Rome pre cruise and air (or maybe even train) Rome to Venice.

 

I think I'll also call Princess Air.. see if they can do better than $1700+.. And that rate gets us INTO Venice after 10PM.. It works cause it's over night in Venice but I'd rather be enjoying the ship by that time!!

[UKLloyd]

I have a similar question to this. I am travelling from the UK and booked through Princess air. We were charged £1,200 for the 2 of us. We were told it will almost certainly be with British airways. We checked with British airways after booking (Silly I know :)) and the flights are £420 Total. So Princess are making £800 on a £420 flight. Can we cancel with Princess and book this ourselves?

 

thanks guys.

[iancal]

If your deal is that good, book that air ASAP before the seats disappear or the pricing tables change.

 

We booked a last minute Med cruise in Sept. and picked up good airfare. We were going to wait for a day but decided to book the air immediately. Good job, because the next day the fare had increased from 1150 to 1650.

[Pam in CA]

I have a similar question to this. I am travelling from the UK and booked through Princess air. We were charged £1,200 for the 2 of us. We were told it will almost certainly be with British airways. We checked with British airways after booking (Silly I know :)) and the flights are £420 Total. So Princess are making £800 on a £420 flight. Can we cancel with Princess and book this ourselves?

 

thanks guys.

UK bookings are very different from US bookings, particularly when it comes to air. Only someone from the UK with experience can really answer the question with any measure of authority.

 

As for flying to Venice, I've been looking at flights for my cruise next October and every single flight I saw from LAX had at least two plane changes, usually with just over an hour between flights, and/or having to change from Heathrow to Gatwick. That's way too stressful for me. I decided to fly on a direct flight from LAX to LHR, found a hotel a mile away from the terminals with a shuttle for $85, including VAT, and book a flight separately to Venice the next morning. The BA flight at 9:40am is only $127/pp. So, I'll have just two flights total, get some rest and catch up on jet lag overnight, and fly refreshed to Venice the next day. And, even paying for the hotel, I'm saving a bundle. :) I'm in a slightly different situation in that I'm not flying round-trip; I'll book a flight from MIA to LAX (no direct flights from FLL to LAX on AA) in a few weeks.

[Astro Flyer]

As for flying to Venice, I've been looking at flights for my cruise next October and every single flight I saw from LAX had at least two plane changes, usually with just over an hour between flights, and/or having to change from Heathrow to Gatwick. That's way too stressful for me. I decided to fly on a direct flight from LAX to LHR, found a hotel a mile away from the terminals with a shuttle for $85, including VAT, and book a flight separately to Venice the next morning. The BA flight at 9:40am is only $127/pp. So, I'll have just two flights total, get some rest and catch up on jet lag overnight, and fly refreshed to Venice the next day. And, even paying for the hotel, I'm saving a bundle. :) I'm in a slightly different situation in that I'm not flying round-trip; I'll book a flight from MIA to LAX (no direct flights from FLL to LAX on AA) in a few weeks.

That's a good idea & something we'll consider when flying to Rome a year from now. :)

[ddgg]

I am so out of my element on this. But I know someone here knows the answer.

 

I found an amazing airfare for my Mediterrean Cruise next May. When I go Princess and look at their airfares it is about 3x higher.

 

But the rate is non refundable. If I buy trip insurance and have to cancel (of course for a covered reason) does that cover the non refundable airfare.

 

I just deposited checks from Travelex for this same situation...We booked a cruise out of Grenada. We booked non-refundable independent air. The cruise company cancelled and refunded our deposit.

 

The airline will usually give you a year to make new reservations anywhere you wish--but you must pay an exchange fee--usually $100 to $200 per person. The exchange fee is what the insurance will pay you. They will NOT reimburse you for the total cost of the airfare if the airline gives you the ability to rebook those tickets.

 

We bought insurance with Travelex through insuremytrip.com. They sent us a check for $100 per person. The claim was processed in about 30 days. We have booked another cruise, and I bought another Travelex policy.

 

Hope this helps.

[RMM34667]

I think I found my solution. I played with the dates on Princess Air today. I found that if I stay in Rome one night the air fare goes from $1704 to $916. I think the issue is the early morning flights are cheaper. It is still restricted and non refundable, but would be covered by the Princess Insurance.. (that is the way I understand it anyway)

 

So now that I understand the pricing a little better I'm going to wait a few weeks. Leaving Monday on a short Carnival cruise with the family. Of course I do check every day and price out the air fare at Princess as well as Kayak. But its been a good week.. Cruise Fare dropped $430 pp and now I'm looking at saving another $800+ on airfare!!!

 

Turning 50 is looking better every day!!

[Bowie MeMe]

I insure my trips with an insurance carrier that is NOT the travel provider. If for some reason the company goes broke your little cruise fare would not get much attention with the bills of the company. I cover my cruise cost, my air fare (sometimes estimated if I don't know from the start), prepaid excursions or hotels, and excursion down-payments. This is the amount that I insure. My TA sends the information to the insurance agent who then deals directly with us. If at final payment and final details I think that I need to increase the amount insured it is easy to pay a little more and have the whole trip insured. Thankfully I have never had an occasion to see if this insurance plan is good:D. Like house and auto insurance -- you pray you never need it. If the trip is not that expensive (SWA to FLL for a 7 day cruise under $2000 or so ) then I tell myself it is self-insured and that's fine too if that is what you choose after thinking it through. At least price out what independent insurance costs compared to what you get from Princess insurance.

[Pam in CA]

The Princess insurance does NOT cover or refund the air but they will make every effort to get you to the next port should you miss embarkation. There might be instances when this is not possible; for example, the Icelandic ash cloud closing most European and British airports for days. But should you cancel the cruise after final payment, you won't get the airfare back or a credit. :(

[caribill]

I think I found my solution. I played with the dates on Princess Air today. I found that if I stay in Rome one night the air fare goes from $1704 to $916. I think the issue is the early morning flights are cheaper.

 

So now that I understand the pricing a little better I'm going to wait a few weeks.

 

Today's pricing may not be available in a few weeks or even tomorrow.

 

Pricing is based on supply and demand, and if the few seats available at the low price are sold, then you will have to pay a higher price.

[JoAnneNYI]

We flew into Rome (cheaper) and then took an early am train right into venice for our cruise. We could walk from the train station to the pick up point for our ship....