Collette is canceling tours to Israel through the first half of 2024 and will issue refunds to travelers while allowing travel advisors to keep the advance commissions paid from those bookings.
Travelers who paid for Israel tours that were scheduled to depart by June 30 but were canceled due to the Israel-Hamas war, will receive full refunds for the price paid for tours, along with airfare and insurance.
Allowing advisors to keep their commissions is part of the company's Advanced Commission Program, which Collette rolled out in 2020. The program enables advisors to earn up to $200 per booking, which they receive the month after booking but before travel.
"These commissions are never recalled, even in the event of a cancellation of departure, as is the case with Israel today," said Jeff Roy, Collette's executive vice president of revenue management, pricing and worldwide operations. "The world is always changing, and we wanted to recognize the work that travel advisors do, well before the client travels."
Roy said there are a number of affected travelers who have opted to simply push the dates back for their Israel tours to late 2024 and early 2025, as they are committed to traveling to Israel when it becomes safe to do so again.
Of the travelers choosing to rebook other destinations, Greece has been the most popular, with Roy adding that Collette has also seen a lot of activity for Italy, Spain, and Portugal.
Still, for many travelers, cash is king.
"Ultimately, when presented with the option, most travelers will take their money back and decide later on where they will choose to travel," Roy said.
After war broke out in early October, Collette canceled its tours to Israel through March 31 and said it would reevaluate the situation by April 1.
The company offers a few incentives for when departures are canceled, including cash back, which Roy said is usually the first option offered to travelers.
Collette clients also have the option to buy cancel-for-any-reason travel insurance, which allows the traveler to cancel up to the day prior to departure for a full money back refund, minus the cost of travel protection itself.
"This has been our standard policy for decades and has served travelers well, so that when the world changes our travelers have the freedom to change their mind and receive all of their money back, no questions asked," Roy said, adding that the company is "always willing to work with travelers if they want to transfer their money & insurance to other trips & departures under these circumstances."