Not so splendid at the moment
Splendid China is barely a shell of its former self. The theme park based around the cultural history of China is no more, and has been no more for a few years. The park has been stripped of anything that could sell and could be moved.
You have probably driven past the site but never realized what was once there.
Hopefully new life will be breathed into the site soon. Rumor is that the site is one of 3 being considered for a new sports complex in the county. I wait with anticipation on news of development on the site and hope that whatever ends up occupying the space will be of benefit to guests at Windsor Palms.
Free admission to Walt Disney World on your birthday in 2009
Disney announced their 2009 promotion recently based on celebrations. To celebrate your birthday they are offering free admission for anyone on their birthday. You have to provide proof of your birthday to take advantage of the free admission. More details can be found here.
If you have an annual pass or a multiday ticket, they are offering a choice of alternative birthday treats, including a birthday fasspass. These options are instead of the free admission.
You can register in advance here.
Happy birthday!
Hurricane Ike
Our thoughts and prayers go out to those affected by Hurricane Ike.
Trip Insurance - Do I need it?
In Europe you normally never take a vacation without purchasing trip insurance, but here in the USA it is often overlooked. Perhaps because most Americans take a vacation within their own country, they don’t believe that trip insurance is necessary. Perhaps Europeans are used to traveling to different countries and therefore having to deal with different health systems, travel issues and the unknown problems that may arise either leading up to your trip or during your trip.
If you are traveling to Orlando to visit Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, Seaworld or one of the many other attractions, you may wonder if you really need trip insurance. You may not even think about it.
The majority of time on vacation or in the run up to vacation, nothing goes wrong. You arrive in Orlando, stay at a hotel or a vacation home in the area and have a great time. Wonderful memories are made. Magical times are had.
But there are always the “What ifs….” What if Aunt Edna is sick and we can’t go? What if the airline goes bankrupt and we can’t fly? What if something happens and we have to go home early? What if weather delays our arrival? etc.
The list of “What ifs…” are endless - and get more if you are traveling to another country. What would happen to your vacation if something happened? How would you be able to manage? Would you be able to write of non refundable monies that you have already paid? Have you read the terms and conditions relating to your bookings? (Car, flights, accommodation).
Trip insurance is insurance to protect your trip from not being able to happen or if it gets cut short. Think about this. You have a vacation booked to Kissimmee, visiting Walt Disney World. It may be a regular trip for your family, it may be a trip of a lifetime. What would happen if you were unable to go? Lets work on the principle that you do not have trip insurance of any kind. What part of your trip is non-refundable? Can you afford to absorb those costs?
Most of us what good value for money. We may want the cheapest we can get or we may just want good value. Most of us would not pay full fare for flights unless we really had to! We may look for good deals on hotels via a website where we have to pay upfront for a good rate or We may look at renting a vacation rental for the extra space it offers. We may have pre-paid our rental car to save an extra 10% of the cost. Hey, we did good. We saved a lot of money. But this is where we could lose money if we were not able to go. Prepaid flights, car and accommodation may be non-refundable or may have a large penalty to change. Cruises are generally non-refundable after a certain date. For a small percentage of our costs, we can insure our trip against most of all of the “What if” scenarios.
Trip insurance runs approx 6% of the trip cost. A small price to pay for peace of mind. On a $6000 vacation, that would be an extra $360. Not bad value should you need it, but perhaps you are thinking “I can’t afford an extra $360″ at this time - but think how much it would cost if you didn’t have trip insurance and were not able to go.
There are various things that you can consider to reduce the cost of your trip insurance.
- If you have paid for your vacation using a credit card, sometimes that card will give you some protection for trip related things. Check the terms and conditions of your credit card and see what it offers you. Then you can decide if you can purchase a reduced form of trip insurance for less money as you don’t have to cover x, y and z.
- Shop around for insurance. There are many different policies and options. Depending on how much risk you are willing to assume yourself, you can get a cheaper policy without options. For example, there are policies that allow you to cancel for any reason but these are more expensive than policies that allow you to cancel for a limited set circumstances.
- If purchasing a travel package, don’t automatically take the package insurance. Take time and look for alternatives which may save you money. For example, if taking a Disney Cruise, they offer their own insurance. Its an easy option to just take it, but if you look around, you can get alternative insurance for a lot cheaper, with better coverage.
Some people will say “Lets just take the cheapest trip insurance option we can find.” That may not be the best option for you. Often cheaper insurance is lacking some benefits. The key is working out what you want or need to be covered for and then finding the policy that best suits those needs and gives you best value for money. On a recent trip I compared several policies and actually went for a policy that gave me more protection in certain areas - it may have cost a little more than the cheapest policy, but I felt I had the right coverage - just in case. Thankfully, we didn’t need to use it, but we were covered.
Pre-existing condition clauses can trip a lot of people up. If any of your family have any pre-existing conditions, book your vacation, then book your trip insurance. Pre-existing conditions are usually waived provided the insurance is purchased with 14 days of the first payment on your vacation. The time limit can vary from insurer to insurer, so check the policies carefully, otherwise you may not be covered for pre-existing conditions.
Hopefully you and your family will not need to use the trip insurance, but once you have purchased it you have the peace of mind knowing that you are covered for unforseen events that may cause you to cancel or alter your trip.
That reminds me, I must go and review insurance for our trip in 2009!
Happy insurance shopping.
