The Challenge of the Coronavirus (Covid-19)

BREAKING NEWS – the Passion Play is postponed until 2022. More details to follow in mid-April

Reformation Tours shares your concerns about the coronavirus and travel safety. Our biggest priority is the health and well-being of our travelers. We are monitoring news and travel updates for all the countries that we include on our tours. We have prepared some links to help you find information quickly. Here’s the latest news from our insurer, RoamRight.

We’re entering a busy travel time and we know that you are looking forward to traveling to Europe this summer. We will continue to operate tours if it’s safe to do so. We are prayerfully considering options for each tour based on recommendations from the US State Department, Center for Disease Control, and our suppliers. The final decision will be made no later than 30 days before departure. We’ve been able to postpone several tours to 2021 and 2022 and you’ll see the new dates listed as soon as can get the details finalized.

Many of our tours in 2020 included the Oberammergau Passion Play which has now been postponed until 2022. This has been an unforeseen event for all of us, but we’re trusting the Lord to take care of our clients, staff, suppliers, and that we’ll be able to continue serving you in the future. Remember the Lord’s promises, e.g. Isaiah 41:10, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand”. In these difficult days, do let us know if you have specific prayer requests, as we have a prayer board up in the office.

Will there be a tour refund?

Yes! We are committed to refunding as much as we possibly can if we postpone or cancel a tour. If you cancel a tour while it’s still an active tour, then the regular cancellation penalties apply.

We do ask for your patience with the refunds and we won’t be processing any Oberammergau refunds until mid-April. We need to find out the terms and conditions from the Passion Play committee, and wait to receive refunds from suppliers for the payments we have already sent to Europe. We will be offering a range of alternative tours for 2021 as well as Passion Play tours in 2022. We are not processing any final payments for Oberammergau tours and these will be voided and returned. We are currently discussing options with tour hosts and we appreciate your patience as we make these arrangements during this challenging season.

What’s excluded from the refund?

Travel insurance from RoamRight is non-refundable, but we can change the date, so it can be transferred to future trips within 12 months (with us or other companies)
Credit card fees
The Oberammergau Passion Play committee will be charging a small fee (amount unknown) if you cancel, rather than postpone, the tour
Possibly hotel charges. We are negotiating with hotels to provide a full refund, especially for postponed tours.
We take care of refunds for group air. We can also assist you if you booked individual air with us. The airline will give you full credit for your flight and if you were due to fly before the end of May you can rebook with no penalty. Our advice is to wait before cancelling flights, as they may offer that benefit in June soon. We have included links to airlines below so you can read their current policies.
If you are joining a future tour, we’ll transfer the deposit to the new trip
If you cancel the tour, then the regular cancellation penalties apply in addition to the above exclusions
No retroactive refunds are possible for anyone who withdrew before tours were postponed / cancelled.

Trustworthy information on Coronavirus

World Health Organization (WHO)
Centers for Disease and Prevention (CDC)
US State Department
Robert Koch Institute (Germany)
Gov.UK (United Kingdom)
Gouvernement (France)
Swiss Confederation (Switzerland)
US Embassy in Italy (Italy)
Irish Government (Ireland)
Austrian Tourist Board (Austria)
TSA page (NEW)
Map showing worldwide numbers

Links to Airline Updates

Airlines are currently offering no-change fees for flights departing before May 30. Please use these links to see the latest news from each airline:
American Airlines
British Airways
Delta
Lufthansa
United Airlines
Conde Nast report on all airlines

UK
March 14: Travel ban extended to the UK and Ireland from Monday, March 16.

USA
March 13: President Trump declared this a National Emergency. Schools and restaurants in most states are closed.
March 12: Most cruise companies postpone cruises for the next few weeks
March 11: 30-day travel ban for those flying in from Europe announced by President Trump (see main page for details)

ITALY
March 9: All of Italy is under “lockdown” conditions.
March 4: Enhanced screening is implemented and those with temperatures above 99.5 degrees are not allowed to board flights to the US.

GERMANY
March 19: Oberammergau is officially postponed until May 2022
March 16: The borders with Austria, Denmark, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland are closed
March 13: Bavarian castles are closed until further notice
March 11: The Oberammergau Passion Play sent an update saying that are continuing with individual rehearsals. They are still planning on having the premier on May 16th, but are discussing options in case the ban continues.
March 9: Some states including Bavaria and Thuringia, announced that all events (indoor and outdoor) with more than 1000 passengers will be forbidden until April 19^th.