"Don't cancel, postpone," Portugal urges tourists in voucher scheme

Portugal will give vouchers to tourists forced to cancel their holiday plans in Portugal because of the coronavirus pandemic, allowing them to reschedule trips until the end of 2021.

in News · 24 Apr 2020, 09:08 · 13 Comments

The new scheme comes into effect on today and applies to bookings through travel agencies or at accredited holiday accommodation, such as hotels or Airbnb properties, initially scheduled to take place between March 13 and Sept. 30 this year.

The vouchers are valid until Dec. 31, 2021, and eligible for refund in 2022 if the traveller is unable to make the trip during this time.

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Comments

We live in Canada.

We were forced to cancel our trip that we had booked through Air Transat. We were scheduled to fly to Lisbon
May 3 and return May 11.

How do we apply for the voucher?

By Bob Kyler from Other on 24 Apr 2020, 13:06

Hi, this is interesting, where can I find more information on this, as the host of an Airbnb we rented for a month in Lagos is refusing to refund our money, we booked direct with him, having rented his property the year before? Definately leaving a bad taste in our mouth....

By Sandra Laver from Other on 24 Apr 2020, 14:16

This is a good idea for accommodation providers and airlines, but might be NO good for the holiday makers, which might not be able to afford holidays in the near future. Keep in mind that many livelihoods have been destroyed. So this is a bit of a scam as it is avoiding giving back money to people who might really need it now.

By John Dough from Lisbon on 24 Apr 2020, 17:36

Are they saying Portuguese tourism industry will have to forfeit foreign tourists until end of September?
Many businesses will not survive this horror.

By DL from Other on 24 Apr 2020, 20:40

We are from Canada and we were booked to spend from 15 March to 15 may 2020. We had a car rented at Lisbon airport for a month and we had Airbnb booked. We are planning on returning in the fall of this year. Do we qualify for any of the incentives?

By Harry from Other on 25 Apr 2020, 18:05

Thanks for the news article
When you get more info on how we can get the hotel vouchers please let us know
We had to return early from Lisbon and cancel our hotel to the US on March 13
Thanks
Dan and Anne Govea
andgovea@gmail.com

By Dan and Anne Govea from USA on 25 Apr 2020, 20:07

I, too, had to leave Portugal March 16, and lost money with Venmo for two other reservations I had. I’d love to be able to return and not have to pay a second time for my stay. Please let me know when you get more information. Thank you!!

By Patricia Danner from USA on 26 Apr 2020, 16:13

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"Don't cancel, postpone," Portugal urges tourists in voucher scheme
in News · 24-04-2020 10:08:00 · 7 Comments
"Don't cancel, postpone," Portugal urges tourists in voucher scheme
Portugal will give vouchers to tourists forced to cancel their holiday plans in Portugal because of the coronavirus pandemic, allowing them to reschedule trips until the end of 2021.

The new scheme comes into effect on today and applies to bookings through travel agencies or at accredited holiday accommodation, such as hotels or Airbnb properties, initially scheduled to take place between March 13 and Sept. 30 this year.

The vouchers are valid until Dec. 31, 2021, and eligible for refund in 2022 if the traveller is unable to make the trip during this time.

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Comments:

I, too, had to leave Portugal March 16, and lost money with Venmo for two other reservations I had. I’d love to be able to return and not have to pay a second time for my stay. Please let me know when you get more information. Thank you!!

by Patricia Danner from USA on 26-04-2020 05:13:00

Thanks for the news article
When you get more info on how we can get the hotel vouchers please let us know
We had to return early from Lisbon and cancel our hotel to the US on March 13
Thanks
Dan and Anne Govea
andgovea@gmail.com

by Dan and Anne Govea from USA on 25-04-2020 09:07:00

We are from Canada and we were booked to spend from 15 March to 15 may 2020. We had a car rented at Lisbon airport for a month and we had Airbnb booked. We are planning on returning in the fall of this year. Do we qualify for any of the incentives?

by Harry from Other on 25-04-2020 07:05:00

Are they saying Portuguese tourism industry will have to forfeit foreign tourists until end of September?
Many businesses will not survive this horror.

by DL from Other on 24-04-2020 09:40:00

This is a good idea for accommodation providers and airlines, but might be NO good for the holiday makers, which might not be able to afford holidays in the near future. Keep in mind that many livelihoods have been destroyed. So this is a bit of a scam as it is avoiding giving back money to people who might really need it now.

by John Dough from Lisbon on 24-04-2020 06:36:00

Hi, this is interesting, where can I find more information on this, as the host of an Airbnb we rented for a month in Lagos is refusing to refund our money, we booked direct with him, having rented his property the year before? Definately leaving a bad taste in our mouth....

by Sandra Laver from Other on 24-04-2020 03:16:00

We live in Canada.

We will probably be forced to cancel our trip that we had booked through Air Transat. We were scheduled to fly to Lisbon July 7th to July 20th.
We want to go back in 2021.
How do we apply for the voucher.

By Ron Bartlett from Other on 27 Apr 2020, 17:45

By Ron Bartlett from Other on 27 Apr 2020, 17:46

Had booked an add on trip to my Canada UK trip but had to cancel my my Portugal trip scheduled March 31 to April 4th due to Covid-19. (Air fare, limo, hotel)

By Keith Dares from Other on 27 Apr 2020, 23:01

Hi,
Very interested in this article..We had a holiday booked 16th-20th March, to Lisbon. The airline was still operating at the time. We tried many times to contact both the Hotel and the travel company to see if the hotel was still open. They both ignored our emails, phone calls and messages. How do you apply for these vouchers?

By Shona Strang from UK on 28 Apr 2020, 19:23

Very interested in this voucher scheme. We have a trip to Porto next week and the owner insists he is open for us and won't consider a refund. He will offer us an alternative date for October if we want to cancel despite there being no flights available though he says there are. It's obvious the country is not open to the tourist, no flights in or out of the country and everyone being asked to adhere to social distancing. At times like these there should have been some compromise as we are all in the same boat. Sadly none from this man.

By Shona Smith from UK on 09 May 2020, 17:32

Please provide information about how one applies for the vouchers. We made reservations in January with Airbnb in Coimbra for the July 1-31 and we have reservations in Porto for August 1-31. Airbnb's COVID 19 current policy covers travelers who check-in by June 30th. Our reservation begins July 1st. We are not able to get a refund or a voucher for a later date with Airbnb. My wife and I are 78 years old and my wife has respiratory problems. We don't want to risk our health by traveling this summer. We would like to apply for the voucher program. Thank you.

Larry Omo
Cascais, Portugal

By Larry Omo from Other on 26 May 2020, 14:29