ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — Many people who were excited to take trips in the next several months may be left empty-handed.
More and more people are starting to cancel their vacation plans because of the coronavirus.
One couple in St. Charles was no different, until a story from 5 On Your Side.
For the Rosens, they'd been planning a once in a lifetime cruise and vacation since April.
By July, everything was booked to fly out of St. Louis to Barcelona. From there, they'd go on a Carnival Cruise and go down the Italian coast.
It's not only a way to celebrate their birthdays but also to celebrate their love.
"We spent $8,500 on tickets," Alan Rosen said, "because we wanted to go first-class. This is a trip of a lifetime, we are going to do everything right."
It would also be a way to salute Alan. His wife Linda was excited to see where her husband battled for his life when he served in the Army.
"I lived there three years for the military, I was Army in northern Italy," Alan says.
Unfortunately, that trip was over before it even began. The Rosens canceled their vacation because of coronavirus concerns.
"I’m not worried about the virus, I’m worried about the unknown. I don’t want to be quarantined. Also, we don't want to get there and everything be shut down. If we can't do anything like shop, then why go?" Linda said.
Carnival gave them a full refund. But Delta didn't, at the time.
"Delta said, 'We can give you credit from July of last year to July of this year.' July 20 this year? There's no way I'm going to use that," they said.
And their insurance? No help either.
"The insurance company goes, 'Oh no, we don't cover epidemics.'" Alan said.
The two understand the no-refund policy but were hoping for an extension from Delta.
"Give us 18 months from today or the time we cancel, versus 90 days to use $8,500," Alan tells us.
The retired couple said it's tough to see their trip and hard-earned money go down the drain.
"We worked all of our lives," Linda said. "We built this up for a year and a half and now it's nothing."
The Rosen's said the insurance company told them they weren't the only ones calling about this issue with Delta.
But Thursday night, after we reached out to Delta, the Rosens said Delta will give them a full refund.
