The Scenic Group has announced the suspension of all river and ocean cruises as well as all land tour operations on its Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours, Emerald Cruises and Evergreen Cruises & Tours brands through August 31 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Scenic Eclipse sailings will be suspended through September 30.
The company will compensate affected river and ocean cruise guests by offering flexible Future Travel Credits valued at 110 percent. Meanwhile, impacted land tour guests will receive Future Travel Credits valued at 100 percent.
Guests can apply the Future Travel Credits to any new or existing booking on any of the aforementioned brands all the way through June 30, 2023. What's more, the Future Travel Credit is fully transferrable to another guest and guests unable to travel by June 30, 2023, will receive a cash refund equal to the amount paid.
The Scenic Group also said that it's committed to protecting travel advisor commissions on bookings for suspended cruises that have been paid in full and for the total amount of the Future Travel Credits.
Rob Voss, COO for The Scenic Group, acknowledged that there's been progress in recent weeks but reiterated that there are still far too many unknowns to commence operations.
"Our top priority is to ensure that our guests and crew are able to travel safely before we resume operations," Voss said in a statement. "Although we see some easing of national lockdowns and progress being made on COVID-19 measures, the restrictions on travel still vary considerably from country to country, making it difficult to navigate. There is also a need for the further development of industry-wide health protocols that will truly work."
"Suspending operations through August 31, 2020, just makes sense as it allows more time for those protocols to be developed and gives our guests enough notice to better plan for their future travels," he concluded.
For the full details of the cancellation policy, click here for Scenic and click here for Emerald.
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