We are committed to keeping up with this changing world to make sure that all of our clients and team members have the safest and most enjoyable experience possible while here in South America.
To get ready, we have put together a new set of protocols and safety guidelines. These will be part of a living document, ready to be modified as any further information comes out by local authorities.
These apply to everyone involved with making our trips happen, including our travel designers, guides, drivers, and providers.
The general measures include the basics for disease prevention, including washing hands, wearing a mask, avoiding crowds, and keeping their distance when in places around other people. This also includes measures on what to do if one has symptoms.
Along with our team members that you meet on your travels, our staff behind the scenes will also have a set of safety measures.
Right now, our office staff are working from home, making social distancing much easier. For any meetings, we are currently using online conferencing platforms.
When our office does open back up, the same general measures will apply, such as frequent hand washing, wearing masks, regular cleaning of common areas, and reduced office capacity.
Hotels and other suppliers will be held to very high standards and must adhere to the official government guidelines and protocols. Some of the most noticeable changes here will be during check-in and during breakfast – Check-in and check-out will be entirely contactless, as will payment for any additional services; breakfast at the hotels will be table service rather than buffet-style.
Also, while the hotels we work with are always quite clean, you may notice that they will have stepped up their hygiene standards even more, keeping guests and staff alike as safe and healthy as possible.
When traveling, one of the most important parts is getting from place to place safely. With COVID-19, safety and hygiene are more important than ever.
Any transport providers must follow clear measures to mitigate any risk. This includes operating at 50% capacity – the upside of which is extra space for each person while you’re on the move.
And while our drivers are friendly, they will maintain their distance, greeting travelers with a nod or a wave rather than a handshake. They will also know where the medical centers are, just in case they are needed during transport.
Our guides help make our trips extraordinary, being some of the friendliest, most passionate and knowledgeable people you will ever meet.
Even though they are likely to feel like part of the family, our guides will also be sure to maintain a safe distance, and greet travelers with a wave rather than a handshake.
Guides are also well-versed in first aid and will be able to help in any situation that may arise – possible COVID-19, discomfort from altitude sickness, or even just a scrape.
Since the beginning of the current situation, Teqse Travel has been committed to being vigilant and open in our approach to travel, providing guests both flexibility and security.
Because of this, we have updated booking terms pertaining to the current situation, which will maximize flexibility as much as possible.
This set of terms will remain in place until such time as the World Health Organization has declared that the pandemic is over, or restrictions impacting travel to South America are lifted.
Our provisional terms apply to services provided by Teqse Travel. The terms and conditions of our partners and providers and how they are applied remain at the discretion of said partners and providers (for example, trains, flights, cruises, etc.).
In order to give our guests increased comfort and peace of mind, Teqse Travel will offer the following revised terms and conditions on all of our services reserved during 2022:
In order to accommodate varying travel restrictions, we have amended our standard terms to allow guests to postpone travel up to a year and carry forward 100% of the booking’s value. Should a guest elect to cancel the booking, our standard cancellation policy will apply.
We have communicated with all of our guests to keep them up to date on government restrictions on travel.
As flexible as Teqse Travel is being in relation to future travel, travel insurance is still essential for those traveling after the pandemic restrictions lifted.
Travel insurance has always been a good idea when planning a trip. You never know when something may happen – illness, a flight cancellation, crazy llamas, strikes – and it’s good to know that you will be covered. However, during the current situation, we are seeing just how important it is to get the right travel insurance to make sure you aren’t left high and dry. Nearly half of those who canceled their trip because of the pandemic ended up losing money, with airlines and hotels being the main culprits.
But what exactly should you look for when purchasing travel insurance?
There are two types of travel insurance – “cancel for any reason” and “named perils.” Pre-COVID, the “named perils” type of insurance, was the most common, as it was less expensive (about 7% – 9% of your trip cost). It seemed to cover everything a traveler needed to worry about. Post-COVID, however, this type of insurance is not likely to be enough, as ‘world-wide pandemic’ is not typically one of the perils that is named.
While ‘cancel for any reason’ insurance is the type you want to look at, you’ll still want to make sure you CAREFULLY read the fine print. Some ‘cancel for any reason policies’ have history limiting or even withdrawing coverage during epidemics or pandemics, having fine print that technically allows them to do so. So before biting the bullet on an insurance policy, make sure you get comfortable and go through the fine print, ensuring there is no policy language or exclusions allowing these kinds of sudden changes.
Therefore, the “cancel for any reason” will be the one you want to look at. This type of insurance is admittedly more expensive, usually between 10% and 12% of your trip cost. However, it is much more comprehensive and will refund part, if not all, of your travel costs if you decide/need to cancel. One place you can look is www.insuremytrip.com, which lets you easily compare different insurance companies and policies.
Along with the typical inclusions, such as flight cancellations or major illness, you’ll want to check for three specific items – medical issues while you are traveling, future pandemic, and quarantines. For medical issues, you’ll want to be sure you know which medical facilities will be covered should you fall ill, either with COVID-19 or other illnesses. Will any hospital be covered? Or are specific medical facilities named in the policy? Is medical evacuation covered, and if so, how far – to Lima? The US? Your hometown? And will future pandemics be included if, god forbid, another one should hit while traveling? And if you are traveling and the country you are in goes into lockdown again, will quarantine costs be covered, such as hotel, food, or repatriation?
While travel insurance is an added cost to what may already be an expensive trip, the peace of mind knowing that you’re covered is definitely worth the price. And when it comes to travel insurance, you definitely get what you pay for. So get the ‘cancel for any reason’ policy, do your homework, and be ready for the unexpected.
