Deciding Whether to Visit a Destination Struck by Disaster

Once travelers have purchased cheap airplane tickets and discount hotel rooms or cheap vacation packages, they sometimes must reconsider taking their planned trips when calamity strikes. Recently people planning to visit Japan or Egypt have been faced with just such a decision.

Tourists need to decide whether to cancel their planned vacation, look for an alternative destination, or stick with their original plans. Their decision should be based on how they answer the following concerns:

First and foremost they need to determine if it is safe to visit their planned destination. Visiting a governments foreign travel website can be helpful in gauging any danger. Travel.state.gov is a useful site for U.S. citizens to check out emergencies and crises in foreign countries. Tourists should also review information from trustworthy news sources and updates from travelers already there. If they remain interested in visiting a country in crises, taking out travel insurance is recommended.

Decide why they wanted to visit their planned destination. If the reason was for a stress free holiday, they may want to reconsider their plans.

Determine whether the locals will want tourists to come. Checking out local networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, and blogs can help potential travelers understand how residents are feeling. Often locals still want tourists to visit to help the economy. However, sometimes locals are simply overwhelmed by a disaster and a later visit may be more appropriate.

Figure out how flexible their itineraries are. If their already purchased airline tickets that allows changes to travel dates without a major change fee, or if their insurance policy will reimburse them for the costs incurred by making changes, then they might want to change their travel dates. If their dates are locked in, they might want to look into traveling to an alternative nearby destination instead. www.cheapfares.com

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