VANCOUVER — After multiple delays to its 2020 season’s start, Rocky Mountaineer has made the move to postpone operations until 2021 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
According to Steve Sammut, president and chief executive, the remainder of the 2020 travel season has been suspended to include all departures through to Oct. 11, 2020. This means that Rocky Mountaineer will resume operations in 2021.
“Like so many in the tourism and hospitality industry, the pandemic has had an overwhelmingly negative impact on our business,” he said. “Despite the challenging environment, we remained hopeful we would be able to operate our trains at some point this season. However, given the continuing government travel and health restrictions, we have no choice but to postpone our rail tours until the scheduled start of our 2021 season.”
Guests on a suspended departure will receive a future travel credit of 110% value of monies paid, which is valid through to the end of the 2022 season. The rail prices for 2021 and 2022 are being held at the 2020 level so that guests will not experience an inflationary price increase for the rail portion of their itinerary.
For guests rebooking a similar package in 2021, within 14 days on either side of the original departure date anniversary, Rocky Mountaineer will guarantee they will not pay more for the new package, including third-party hotels, tours and attractions, due to the later travel date.
Guests on a suspended departure can contact their travel professional or Rocky Mountaineer before Nov. 30, 2021 to select their new travel date.
“We know this has been an exceptionally challenging time for our guests, partners and team members, and we thank them for their patience and continued support,” said Sammut. “In the coming months, we will work with our guests and travel partners to rebook their travels from this year, and then shift our focus to our 2021 season. When we do operate our trains, the health and safety of our guests and team members will be at the forefront, while still continuing to provide the superb service for which we are known.”
Rocky Mountaineer has made a number of modifications across its operations to align with government guidelines and industry best practices for the prevention of COVID-19 and other viruses and illnesses. These will include pre-travel health screening of guests, modifications to boarding and seating procedures to ensure space between travel groups, and enhanced sanitization of all rail cars using electrostatic disinfectant sprayers. In addition, the rail cars are equipped with air filtration systems that ensure a constant intake and circulation of fresh air, using filters that capture 99.9% of airborne particles.
For more information go to www.rockymountaineer.com/covid19-keeping-you-updated.
