Agent waives Bali cancellation fees

TRAVEL agent Flight Centre has agreed to waive its cancellation and amendment fees for passengers travelling to Bali, up to and including 16 October.
Flight Centre spokesperson Hayden Long said the policy would then be reviewed.
“We will review the fees policy in two weeks when we have a clearer picture of Bali,” he said.
“However, airlines, hotels and other suppliers may charge their own cancellation and change fees.”
Mr Long said that despite the horror of the weekend, many travellers had opted to postpone their trips or swap to another location rather than cancel.
“We haven’t had many cancellations, actually,” he said.
“Everyone is concerned, but most people have just postponed their trips or chosen to switch to alternate destinations, such as Thailand or Malaysia.
“I don’t expect it (the bombing) will stop people from travelling. They are just concerned about going to Bali.”
Mr Long said the bombings came just as the island had returned to its former glory as a popular holiday destination after the 2002 attacks.
“There was a gradual increase in flights and it had slowly returned to normal after 2002,” he said.
“Bali had again become one of our most popular travel destinations.”
General manager Australian operations for Harvey World Travel Mark Cario said it was too early to determine the impact that Saturday’s blasts would have on the island.
But, he said many Australians were still travelling to Bali.
“Surprisingly, the majority of airlines have reported that flights to Bali are still reasonably full,” Mr Cario said.
“There has been a small number of cancellations, but the majority are deferring their trips.
“It’s amazing how resilient Australians are. They refuse to have their freedoms limited by terrorism.
“Bali hotel operators report that it’s quiet on the island and things have pretty much gone back to normal.”
Mr Cario said the refund policy varied among individual airlines and he encouraged travellers to visit their local travel agent to obtain the best advice for their personal situation.
“The majority of carriers are waiving cancellation and amendment fees but the best thing to do is go back to your travel agent and find out what your options are,” he said.