Dear AFF Forum Team,
After much fantasising, research, more research and then some more research (and a lot done on this website), we are about to put down a deposit on a 16 day cruise to Antarctica - Falklands, South Georgia, Antarctica - in January/February 2021 ! Yikes, I never thought I'd be booking anything that far in advance ! I understand that with a short season of four or five months, select cruise operators and maybe 55,000 cruise spots available, long term planning for this destination is the norm. But how do folks manage insurance ? I thought my Amex platinum charge card would cover the trip, but Chubb and the PDS fine print say that activation of insurance is triggered only on booking flights from Australia. And that isn't likely to happen for at least another year, because I'll be using points, and therefore only able to book 11 months in advance. I asked Ponant, with whom we're about to book, if they have insurance, and they do not. I called the Insurance Council of Australia, and they were not helpful. I called 1Cover and they do not insure beyond one year. So my question to this brains trust is: would anyone know of an insurer who will cover for trips this far in advance ? Or do we just live with the terms and conditions of Ponant, that in the unlikely event we need to cancel, then we will be refunded our deposit less $400 per person? Any comments and advice most welcome, and with thanks.
After much fantasising, research, more research and then some more research (and a lot done on this website), we are about to put down a deposit on a 16 day cruise to Antarctica - Falklands, South Georgia, Antarctica - in January/February 2021 ! Yikes, I never thought I'd be booking anything that far in advance ! I understand that with a short season of four or five months, select cruise operators and maybe 55,000 cruise spots available, long term planning for this destination is the norm. But how do folks manage insurance ? I thought my Amex platinum charge card would cover the trip, but Chubb and the PDS fine print say that activation of insurance is triggered only on booking flights from Australia. And that isn't likely to happen for at least another year, because I'll be using points, and therefore only able to book 11 months in advance. I asked Ponant, with whom we're about to book, if they have insurance, and they do not. I called the Insurance Council of Australia, and they were not helpful. I called 1Cover and they do not insure beyond one year. So my question to this brains trust is: would anyone know of an insurer who will cover for trips this far in advance ? Or do we just live with the terms and conditions of Ponant, that in the unlikely event we need to cancel, then we will be refunded our deposit less $400 per person? Any comments and advice most welcome, and with thanks.