PECULIAR, Mo. — A vacation that one Peculiar, Missouri, family had been looking forward to for months ultimately brought more stress than relaxation.
Just before the U.S. Department of State announced it was urging people not to travel by cruise ship over coronavirus concerns, Holly Buzzard and her family took a five-day cruise to the Bahamas.
"We just went ahead and went and just kind of had our fingers crossed," Buzzard said.
On Saturday, Buzzard, her husband and daughter returned home to Peculiar. While on their trip, Buzzard said she took the necessary precautions to protect her family from becoming ill.
"I did take Lysol and some Lysol wipes and on the plane ride out, I was that crazy germophobe that was wiping down armrests and chairs and everything on the plane ride out," Buzzard said.
Buzzard told 41 Action News that she thought about canceling the trip, but her travel insurance didn't cover it.
JoAnne Weeks, a travel agent with Acendas Travel in Mission, told 41 Action News there are different types of travel insurance with different coverage plans.
"Typically the cancel for any reason tends to be more expensive for that reason because it's giving you the flexibility, but it's also just giving you that flexibility that if you're just afraid to go then you get an out," Weeks said.
Weeks said the company is not encouraging people to either take their trips or cancel their plans, but providing the information they can.
"I've had a lot of people reaching out about travel insurance and questions with that, and that's to be expected," Weeks said.
While on board, Buzzard said she paid close attention to Royal Caribbean's efforts to protect travelers.
"I did notice them wiping down hand rails and stuff while we were on there, so, that was good, they are taking it serious and trying to make sure that their customers are protected," Buzzard said.
