The Coronavirus has made huge news in the last few weeks, especially with cruise ships in Asia.   Quarantines and not being able to dock were top headlines.

So how can you travel safely and stay healthy in 2020?

These are some of the tips the My Vacation Lady received in an email from one of the cruise lines that had their passengers quarantined on the ship for 2 weeks.

In an abundance of caution and based on our recent learnings from Diamond Princess, we ask for your assistance in encouraging your clients – our guests – to follow these best practices for travel:

• Pack 14 days of extra medication — In the event of unexpected travel delays and emergencies, please remind your clients to bring additional prescription medication for at least two weeks beyond the length of the cruise.

  • Also they should bring a list of the names, strengths and dosages of all medications in case refills are required.

• Provide Emergency Contact — It is critical that each of your clients provides a validated emergency contact & phone number.  The emergency contact should not be traveling with the client. Since we will always be able to reach you, their travel advisor, this emergency contact should be another personal connection.

• Mobile phone instructions — Your clients should enable an international travel plan inclusive of voice and data. Cell phones will not work the same in all countries without an international plan and Wi-Fi is not as available in many countries. An international plan will enable your clients to stay connected at a reasonable rate and ensure they can be contacted.

• Purchase travel protection — The team at My Vacation Lady is able to offer our clients a number of different travel insurance policy options.  We do highly recommend considering a travel insurance policy that includes a Cancel for Any Reason Option.  All policies are different so please ask our team members for the best options in protecting your vacation investment.

• Practice healthy travel habits — According to the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the simplest and most effective way to prevent illness, is to take extra care to practice basic health habits, including:

    • Washing your hands frequently, with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds
    • Taking advantage of hand sanitizer wherever it’s available
    • Covering your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing using a tissue or your bent elbow. And always dispose of the used tissue and wash your hands afterwards
    • Avoiding touching your eyes, nose and mouth with your hands
    • Avoiding close contact with sick people

We are not physicians and we will never tell you that you should travel if you are concerned about the Coronavirus.

We do need to let you know, that MOST travel insurance policies that do not include a CANCEL FOR ANY REASON option, will NOT cover the FEAR of catching the Coronavirus.  We can offer a variety of travel insurance policies to you to choose from.

The team at My Vacation Lady is on hand to assist our clients with any questions that they may have.