4 Steps To Prevent Unused Travel Plans | Money Saving Tip #101
What’s worse than a bad holiday? A holiday that goes unused… and for which you still have to pay! Especially when you’ve been thinking about it all winter and it has been the ultimate positive thought that kept you going in the snow and the icy weather. But life happens, and you now have to say goodbye to your dreams of drinking cocktails on a beach in Mexico for three weeks. The horror.
But fellow travelers, fear not: you can transfer your travel, and get your money back on most of your bookings. In fact, you might just be able to rebook your holiday for the (near) future. TransferTravel has got your back covered.
1. Travel Tip #1 Transfer Your Flight Tickets
Of all the things you need to sort out, this one is most likely the most stressful. Probably because it was also the most expensive: what can you do with your unused flight tickets?
You might be able to cancel them and get them reimbursed, however, this is very unlikely the cheapest solution. Most airlines charge a cancellation fee, and you won’t get much of your money back. What you can do, though, is pay a fee to change the name on the tickets and, just like that, sell your flight tickets to someone else. This works with low-cost airlines too.
Just add the details of your trip, the dates, and your price. Once you found a buyer for your flight tickets, you can request to change their contact details. We wrote a little guide to help you transfer your flights.
2. Travel Tip #2 Transfer Your Hotel or Airbnb Reservations
This one is second on the list: hotels and B&Bs are a big part of your expenses when going, well, anywhere, but especially abroad.
Have you got insurance that covers cancellation? If not, you might still be able to transfer your hotel booking. Yes, it’s a thing.
Some, although not all, hotels will allow you to change the name on your reservation, which makes it super easy for you to sell your unwanted hotel room. You should check with the hotel first, but some big hotel chains like Premier Inn even allow you to do it for free. So before booking any hotel, check if you can use TBC instead of a name for the reservation. That will make your life easier if you need to transfer your hotel booking to someone else.
Booked an Airbnb rather than a hotel? The platform offers three different cancellation types to the hosts: flexible, when you can cancel up to 1-day prior to arrival and get a full refund (minus the fees); moderate, where you can cancel up to 5 days for a full refund; and strict, when you need to cancel up to 1 week before, only to get back 50% of the price.
So what happens if you need to cancel your Airbnb booking? In some cases, meaning depending on the host, you might be able to transfer it. Simply contact the host and explain your situation and who would be staying instead of you. If the host agrees, you can get a full refund, and the host gets a new guest.
3. Travel Tip #3 Transfer Your Cruise, Your Train, or Your Camping Reservations
You booked a three weeks cruise in the Bahamas for your honeymoon but you are unable to go? You bought train tickets to travel to France but you have to cancel your plans? You can sell all your unused holiday reservations here!
When selling a cruise reservation to someone else, make sure to do it as soon as you know you won’t be able to go. Most cruise lines will let you change the name on the reservation (against a fee), but will only let you do it up to 60 days prior to departure. Contact the cruise line if you have any doubt about their cancellation policy.
Traveling on an international train? Please note that some companies like Eurostar do not allow the transfer of tickets, and you won’t be able to change the name on them. You may, however, request a full refund. You should always check with the train company their policy in terms of tickets transfer. If they are transferable, you can list them for sale too and get your money back.
4. Travel Tip #4 How Do You Transfer Your Travel?
From your flight tickets to your hotel booking, you can very simply sell your holiday. Just list the items you want to sell, the dates of validity, and the price you want for them (including the fees you might have to pay to change the names). That’s all!
Don’t forget to also take a look at our offers: you might not have been able to enjoy your holiday this time, but you might find something to cheer yourself up with one of our travel bargains!