Tour operators with clients in or near Brussels were working to adjust those travelers’ itineraries in order to bypass the Belgian capital, which was on lockdown Tuesday following deadly terror attacks at the airport and in a subway station.
“Two of our itineraries were scheduled to take the Eurostar from London to Brussels today. Accordingly, we have arranged alternative transport for them to bypass Brussels. They will be going by ferry from Dover to Calais and then proceed to Amsterdam via coach,” said Trafalgar CEO Gavin Tollman.
Trafalgar guests with Brussels in their in their itinerary who are departing in the next 30 days (through April 22) may rebook without penalty on any future 2016 departure date, or 2017 if their selected 2016 itinerary is not available.
The Globus family of brands had some Cosmos travelers in Brussels at the time of the attacks, and the company said the travelers were safe and departed Brussels on Tuesday as scheduled.
“We are working closely with our representatives in the city to ensure the safety and well-being of future travelers,” the company said in a statement.
Guests traveling with any Globus brands (Globus, Cosmos, Monograms and Avalon Waterways) who are scheduled to travel within the next month (through April 22) on any cruise or tour that includes Brussels may rebook to any future 2016 departure date, or to a 2017 departure date if their 2016 itinerary is not available.
It is still early in the Europe travel season and operators are just beginning to send clients across the pond. Some, such as Tauck and Collette, do not have any travelers in Belgium yet. But Collette said it hopes that travelers with upcoming plans to Belgium and Europe will not pull back due to this incident.
“We encourage our guests to continue with their travel plans to all destinations. As always, we remain vigilant and will act in the best interest of the safety and security of our guests and employees,” Paula Twidale, Collette's executive vice president, said in a statement.
Tom Jenkins, CEO of the European Tour Operators Association, voiced concern about how much and whether the attacks in Brussels would impact the Europe travel season, which is still recovering from the terror attacks in Paris in November.
“The natural reaction to an event such as the one in Brussels is one of horror and our thoughts are immediately with those who were caught up in the incidents and with those whose lives have been disrupted,” said Jenkins. “It is very difficult to work out even the short-term impact of such an event. Obviously, Brussels, already suffering from reduced demand, is not going to be helped by what happened. And as this has occurred at a crucial time in the booking period, the industry will be feeling very anxious.”
He noted that security throughout Europe is extremely tight at the moment and that travelers should put the terror risk into a realistic context.
“We have to place what happened within the other context of risks, risks posed by say drunk driving and people being a victim of a drunk driver or someone texting behind the wheel or of dying of medical malpractice,” said Jenkins, adding that compared to those things, “the threat posed by ISIS is minimal.”
Unfortunately, he said, being able to have that kind of perspective takes time and “time is not immediately on our side — fear does a lot of damage in our industry.”