RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – It was to be the trip of dreams: a month on the high seas in Asia, passing through the Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and finally Japan. Until the coronavirus emerged and thwarted preparations for the cruise out of Dubai on March 21st.
Now, a group of at least 50 Brazilians intends to cancel the trip, but the operator, MSC, is charging a fine of 60 percent for the cancellation.
The company changed part of the itinerary and says it will not allow the boarding of people displaying symptoms of the disease or who have recently been in the most affected areas. It further says it will isolate guests who run a fever along the trip.
Those who paid approximately R$15,000 for the trip, excluding the flight to Dubai, however, do not want to risk it. Most travelers are retired and over 50. Some of them suffer from respiratory diseases such as asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis and pulmonary emphysema.
The newly named Covid-19 is a virus that may cause respiratory diseases ranging from common colds to SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). According to the WHO (World Health Organization), 72 percent of infected people were over 40 years old and in 40 percent of cases the patients suffered from other diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular issues.
Deaths are also mostly found in older people who already had other associated clinical conditions.
The group wants to cancel the trip without having to pay the fine and to get their money back, since in all countries where the ship is to pass there is at least one person infected. Some of them are willing to go on another trip, far away from Asia, or get a bonus or credit from the MSC to board on a later date.
In late January, WHO declared the new coronavirus epidemic to be a global health emergency. In doing so, it recognized that the virus represents a risk not only in China, where it emerged in late 2019 but worldwide.
China, however, still accounts for 46,550 of the 46,997 confirmed cases, according to last Friday’s WHO report. There are already 1,368 deaths in the Asian country.
The Brazilian Ministry of Health advised against traveling to China at the end of January.
Amid the crisis, two planes were sent to pick up a group of Brazilians living in the epicenter of the disease, in the Wuhan region. They are currently in quarantine in Anápolis (Goiás State).
Joyce Pereira, 43, from São Paulo, would board the cruise ship with her mother, Ana Cleia Pereira, 66, and eight other family members who live in São Vicente, on the state coast. They gave up and will go to court against the MSC if they fail to reach an agreement.
“It makes no sense to run into the tragedy. It was supposed to be a dream cruise and it’s turning into a nightmare,” says Joyce. “The company wants us to cancel it as if it were our wish, but I don’t think it’s fair to pay for an epidemic.”
Retired journalist Eliane Costa, 63, is passionate about cruises. “I have been on many cruises and they have all been very joyful”, says the São Paulo resident, who already has another route on her agenda: New York, Canada, and Miami, in October. But she didn’t expect to have to deal with the stress of going to Asia.
“With ships adrift, so many dead, the MSC insists that it will no longer stop in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, where they are banning ships from docking. Thailand has also banned it and there should be another change. It is no longer the journey we wanted to take,” she says.
Luciano Nunes Volkart, 55, who lives in Bombinhas (Santa Catarina State), on the contrary, will take the trip anyway. “I won’t go unless they cancel everything. I believe that in 36 days when we go on board, the Chinese government will have already found a solution to the crisis”.
He also believes that the ban on boarding symptomatic passengers will work. “I’m pretty clear on that. I had leukemia, my immunity was low, but I don’t think the virus will travel on the ship. The company’s going to be worried because it’s damaging to themselves.”
For the cruise industry, the coronavirus is truly a publicity nightmare. For over a week, the Diamond Princess ship has been under quarantine in the Japanese port of Yokohama, with its 3,600 passengers and crew under lockdown and the number of people infected with the coronavirus reaching at least 175.
A second ship sailing in the South China Sea was refused access to five ports for fear that a person on board was infected with the virus.
According to the PROCON (Brazil’s Consumer Protection Agency), consumers who purchased tickets or packages to countries that have confirmed cases of the coronavirus are entitled to cancel free of charge or negotiate a re-booking with the payment of fines at the lowest possible amount.
Booking websites with offices in Brazil, travel agencies or airlines may offer consumers an alternative, such as rescheduling or changing destinations, but the customer’s decision should prevail.
The Consumer Protection Code (CDC) provides for the possibility of termination of contracts in situations where there is risk to the life, health, or safety of citizens. The rule applies to tourist services in situations such as earthquakes, wars, and epidemics, for instance.
In a note, the MSC says that passengers are subject to the standard cancellation policy. “It will be up to people to request reimbursement through their personal travel insurance,” the text says.
The company further says it is checking alternative ports for the stopover that was to take place in Shenzen, China.
PROCON’S position:
Those who have a package, ticket, and accommodation reserved for China can claim a refund or a replacement of services, with no penalty payment. The PROCON’s opinion is that the rule applies only to China, due to the fact that it is a recognized risk area of the disease. It does not apply, for instance, to nearby countries such as Thailand or Japan. Anyone unable to reach a favorable agreement with the supplier should seek out the city’s PROCON office.
Source: Folhapress