Emilia vexler
Grisel Isaac
03/26/2021 4:32 PM
Clarín.com
Society
Updated 03/26/2021 4:32 PM
The feeling for those who already had the desire and the suitcases packed is that of
a
pandemic
déjà vu
.
From March to March, history repeats itself "glued" to long holiday plans: restrictions on leaving and returning to the country begin.
This time, to avoid the entry of
new variants
of the coronavirus.
The measure is general, to
discourage all travel to and from abroad
.
But from this Monday there will be no flights from Brazil, Chile and Mexico.
And more than 20% of the tickets sold for Easter are for these three destinations canceled by the Government.
The measures are for an indefinite period of time and in travel agencies there is
chaos due to rescheduling
.
Before this announcement, and the eventual escapades for Easter, there were already about 27,000 Argentines abroad.
"In terms of number of passengers, 21% of the total Easter bookings point to the three destinations that are restricted from tomorrow (for Saturday). Brazil is surprising, which had zero participation during January and February but
was chosen for Semana Santa
. Actually, historically Brazil is a good destination for Easter. Rio de Janeiro is very strong ",
Emiliano Leanza, from Avantrip
, tells
Clarín
.
The map of the trips sold for Easter is as follows: 55.3% chose national destinations, 21.07% Brazil, Chile and Mexico, and 23.5% took tickets to the rest of the world.
According to their data, those who bought tickets to these destinations are
outside the risk group
, they are couples, friends and young people who travel alone.
"They do not travel over 55 to Brazil," he details.
It also provides data that replicates the concern of agencies and travelers: "As of today, Friday,
no airline lowered the line on protocols to follow regarding restrictions
. All will wait for the official announcement to react."
Passengers in Ezeiza, two weeks ago.
Photo Rolando Andrade Stracuzzi
From Despegar they are handled with the same caution.
They are still waiting for definitions on rescheduling.
"It is still too early to measure the impact of these new measures. We are already working together with our partners and suppliers to adapt to the regulations issued by the Government. There was a significant increase in the volume of inquiries from our customers whose trips could be affected ", they mark.
The recommendation is to pay attention to the "My Trips" tab to verify the status of your flights, once the airlines make the respective definitions.
Letter
to Lammens
From the Federation of Travel Agencies (FAEVYT), Andrés Deya anticipates to
Clarín
the letter that they will send to the Minister of Tourism and Sports, Matías Lammens.
It is worth clarifying that the Government's measure is effective from Monday, since although the start is marked at 0 hours on 27, which is Saturday, it governs from the following 48 hours, 0 on Monday 29,
so there will be flights on the weekend.
"The entire sector is very complicated with the reprogramming of the three destinations where flights are limited. In the note to the ministry we are going to urgently request that the airlines authorize the reprogramming and the extension of the validity of air tickets. ,
without charges for penalties or restrictions of any kind
", he points out.
For now, and if there are no changes after this letter, the policy of Aerolineas Argentinas will continue to apply to allow
a change to be made without charging a penalty
.
They call it "common sense" and claim that it "was applied on other occasions."
If it is an exogenous factor, such as the measures of the pandemic, which has nothing to do with the passenger, another change is enabled again.
"We do not have a number of passengers (who were going to leave at Easter or arrive on that date). We
are working reservation by reservation.
There are 48 hours ahead to try to define how the programming scheme will be for the next few weeks "They explain from the flag carrier.
Through Administrative Decision 268/2021, the Executive suspended all flights from Brazil, Chile and Mexico but guarantees "the flights necessary for the return of national and foreign residents" who are in those countries provided they had left of the country prior to the entry into force of the rule and have an arrival date to the country until Wednesday.
At this point, Airlines are tying up the last loose ends and in the next few hours the announcement that there will be at least "a minimum schedule", with
a weekly flight to each of these destinations,
would be imminent
.
They are Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Florianópolis, Cancun and Santiago de Chile.
From Almundo they assure that the situation is controlled.
"Until now we have not come with specific queries about the changes. We had a drop in the number of international search sessions. With the official statement, the queries of the passengers at the destination began, via our exclusive WhatsApp while traveling and the situation is under control. Transmitting tranquility and downloading the official information that comes to us according to each destination and each airline, "says this newspaper.
But the official information does not arrive.
What happens, for example, if my ticket was the result of a change that I had already made last year (that is, a ticket already purchased and already changed once or twice? Can it continue to change?).
"When a flight is affected again and suffers a cancellation, it enables the passenger to select a new flight option. The selected alternative
may have an additional cost
depending on the procedure of each airline," they assure from that agency and recommend " accept the return alternative proposed by the airline, to guarantee their return soon. "
On the morning of this Friday, LATAM announced the temporary cancellation of
all its flights to and from Santiago de Chile and San Pablo
.
"Those customers with canceled flights may choose to make a change at no cost in the same cabin of the original trip (if it was taken in Economy, it will be in Economy); leave the ticket open, as long as they respect the validity of the ticket, change destination without penalty subject to rate difference or request the return of the ticket ".
Given the uncertainty that reigns at this time in the world of travel, Pablo Bazzetti, general manager of All Seasons, recommends
"rescheduling always thinking about the second semester
.
"
Those who bought tickets and flexible stays, with the possibility of changes included in the sale value, "are not going to have major problems, they are going to be able to reschedule."
With the rest of the rates, "we are going to have to start receiving policies from the chains and airlines, specifying what the rules will be to keep their reservations and to be able to reschedule."
What about the passengers who are out and were returning next week?
Do the agencies resolve it with the airline or does the Government intervene, which has already anticipated that
there will be no repatriation flights
?
"We are working on that. We will try to help our customers as much as we can taking into account the flight possibilities, commercial policies of each airline and the restrictions imposed by the government. Based on what the decree says, the government will do nothing to bring those travelers, so we will try to help them as much as possible, "says José Casabal, CEO of Volala.
ACE
Look also
Aerolineas Argentinas canceled 68 flights and confirmed that there will be no repatriation trips
Returning from Brazil: they control the PCR, but the subsequent quarantine depends on each passenger
