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Travel Advisors Deal With Torrent of Spring Break Cancellations, Vacation Swaps

Dennis Schaal photo
Linda Humphrey

Photo Credit: One travel advisor's clients from New Rochelle, New York, figured it would be safer to travel to Turks and Caicos than to stay home, where one of the U.S.' viral cluster outbreaks has formed. Pictured is an undated photo from Exhale Spa in Turks and Caicos. Exhale Spa

Skift Take

Spring break travel is in wait-and-see mode as travel advisors field calls from clients rattled by the coronavirus pandemic. Some travelers are swapping their trips for “safer” spots like Hawaii, Florida, and the Caribbean.

As the spiraling coronavirus pandemic collides with spring break, travel advisors are navigating a shifting travel landscape and a State Department advisory urging Americans to reconsider travel abroad. “Our spring-break business is hanging by a thread,” said Jack Ezon, founder and managing partner of Embark Beyond in Manhattan. Even so, most clients are rescheduling rather than sidelining their trips, Ezon said. About 35 percent of clients switched from far-flung spots to the Caribbean, Mexico and Florida. Requests for private planes flying to Miami, the Bahamas, the Caribbean and Mexico (Riviera Maya and Cabo) are up 30 percent.

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Sixty-nine percent of Europe-bound clients set to depart within the next 30 days have canceled, with 58 percent rebooking to the Caribbean, Mexico or the U.S. Overall, South Flor

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