Planning for a season on snow.

Tony Crocker":28x96l20 said:
sbooker":28x96l20 said:
The main hurdle to all this is the ability to travel with some kind of insurance.
Sorry to disappoint you, but trip cancellation policies all exclude "Acts of God," which explicitly includes pandemics.

I have just been dealing with this issue this week when we signed up for a 2023 eclipse cruise off NW Australia. Due to remote location the operator requires $1 million in evacuation/emergency medical insurance, which is generally wrapped into a comprehensive trip cancellation policy.

The trip cancellation policies as in this case typically run about 8% of trip cost, which I always refuse because that adds up to big numbers over time when you travel as much as we do. We have our own evacuation/emergency medical insurance for $100K. The operator agreed to charge us only the $45 for the $1M emergency medical and not the $1,812 for trip cancellation. The trip cancellation would cover a traveler or immediate family member who contracted COVID-19 on the trip or just before. It would not cover the real risk, which is that the operator is forced to cancel by government order or that Australia forbids foreigners from entering without quarantine, which is of course where we are now.

There is no way sbooker should consider an extended ski trip to the US in 2021. Or period until the prospect of limited ticket sales with advance reservations required is no longer a threat. We who live here will need to be flexible and figure out which ski areas work best. But if there is rationing, it will be the high profile places on Epic and Ikon that will be most affected.

There may be a scenario where skiing in Canada returns to normal earlier. But even coming from Australia I don't think any form of commitment is necessary more than 6 months in advance. So I'd recommend sitting tight and seeing what the situation looks like a year from now for 2022.

With regard to Canada, we received an unpleasant e-mail from Mustang yesterday. They have decided the borders will likely be closed to foreigners during the upcoming ski season and are thus cancelling all reservations for non-Canadians. Starting September 1 they will have time to sell 2021 seats to Canadian residents. If non-Canadians want to reserve their seats for 2022, that will cost an extra 20%, about $1,000CDN.
I expected that would be the situation and that is why I said this winter would be unlikely. I do think things will quite rapidly get back to normal sometime mid next year though. Even without a vaccine politicians will have to make tough decisions to keep economies and businesses alive. 21/22 season will be a goer.
And when I say ‘safely travel’ I am referring to the ability to be covered for medical expenses. Taking a punt on cancellations is something I would weigh up closer to the trip. And I agree we should wait as long as possible to see what the situation is.
 
I've not checked this out fully but it's a start as far as insurance is concerned.
https://www.sevencorners.com/#start

While you can choose a specific trip period, the premium is actually CHEAPER if you choose the multi trip, 365 day insurance. (the break even seems to be around 55 days)
It covers $100,000 USD for:
COVID-19 Medical Treatment — The plan covers medically necessary treatment for:
COVID-19 (the disease);
SARS-Cov-2 (the virus); and
Any mutation or variation of SARS-CoV-2.
You MUST also choose the duration of EACH trip, which can be up to 30, 45 or 60 days. Deductable can be $0, $250 or $500. It covers up to $1,000,000 for other regular medical expenses.

It also covers normal travel costs, baggage, delay, etc. (Although personal liability is only $25,000)
 
Insurers seem willing to offer trip cancellation coverage of you the traveler contracting COVID-19. They will not cover closed borders, quarantines or trip cancellation by government order.
 
Tony Crocker":22xxk4u9 said:
Insurers seem willing to offer trip cancellation coverage of you the traveler contracting COVID-19. They will not cover closed borders, quarantines or trip cancellation by government order.

I am sure there are other majors concerns with regard Covid while travelling but to my mind the biggest risk is contracting Covid and having to be admitted to hospital (a stay in ICU perhaps) at a cost of what could be a few hundred grand for all I know. I could stomach the risk of booking a trip and the ski resort shutting for example. I could put that down to bad luck. Medical issues are another story.
 
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