Departure!

Setting off on a big journey is always a mix of excitement and anxiety....excitement for the adventure ahead and anxiety about the journey - there's so much that can go wrong: have I booked the right flights; for the right dates; for the right people; is my accommodation really booked; does that B&B really exist; will I be able to get through the check-in and security queues; the list is endless

Not only is this the furthest I have ever travelled for a holiday, it also has involved the coordination of so many diferent elements: flights, 4 B&Bs, RV (campervan, but get used to the term), 4 Provincial Park bookings, 3 rail journeys. Yes, so much to go wrong!

But, dear reader, the holiday has stopped before it has even started

Two and a half years into our pandemic, during which all three people in this household have stayed amazingly Covid-free, Vera becomes Covid positive 10 days before we are due to travel. At first she tests negative, and we assume it's simply a cold, but then the test line goes bright red. And stays bright red, day after day, refusing to clear as we count down the days to our departure. 

(Vera is doing OK. For a disease that two years ago she thought would kill her, my money is still on the woman. Some days are better than others, currently she is very tired and lacking energy)

I look at our travel insurance, which has Covid cover. It would appear that Vera can claim for the holiday based upon her being denied flight boarding. She would obviously have lots of administrative hoops to jump through to achieve this, but as the companion of someone denied boarding I can't claim. Insurance companies, don't ya just love them?

That's a digression, as we've put too much into this to cancel. So the decision is made to delay the start of the holiday by two weeks, during which time Vera will get rid of her virus and I will avoid getting it in a way that impacts the revised dates.

First off Air Canada, with their flights reasuringly amendable right up to departure. The website is next to impossible to work out. After lots of trial and error I find out how to request an amended date, but am then told no flights are available. Strange, because if I try to book that date as a new flight, it is available.

So onto Customer Services. I was expecting to have to spend ages in a queue as 'we are experiencing very high call volumes' or similar but, to be fair to Air Canada, I got through very quickly to a real person. And this person could make the change and talk me through and explain my various options. Basically I sell back the flights at the cheap price I paid for them 9 months ago, and purchase new flights at the more expensive rates found nearer to the departure time. Ouch! Airlines....don't you just love them?

Next thing to sort out is our RV. I knew that cancellation within 30 days went without a refund, but I could get a credit towards a future trip. What are the chances of being able to pick up a vehicle at short notice when everyone is holidaying at home? Next to nil, obviously. So perhaps that element of the holiday would be deferred until next yaer.

I phoned the wonderful people at Outdoor Travel in Beamsville, who were very sympathetic and understanding. Amazingly they could produce an RV that fitted our revised dates and fitted in with our existing Montreal and Quebec City itineraries. 

So we're not defeated yet....the outline of the revised holiday is:

• Fly into Toronto
• A few days kicking around the Hamilton, Stoney Creek, Niagara area
• Vesich Family Picnic
• Montreal and Quebec City
• 2 weeks in an RV exploring the Georgian Bay/ Algonquin/ Peterborough region
• Few days back in Hamilton
• Fly home

Stay tuned.....next report in 2 weeks!

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