Travellers rethinking plans over Zika virus

At a time when a record 54.4% of Americans are planning a vacation over the next six months, the travel industry is growing concerned as to what effect the spread of the Zika virus throughout the greater part of Central and South America will have. While the majority of operators have witnessed minimal impact so far, several are already making contingency plans for passengers booked to countries currently affected by the virus.
American Airlines have confirmed they will refund ticket costs to travellers booked to travel to Guatemala, Panama, Honduras and El Salvador, while United Airlines will refund the cost of booked flights to any country affected by the Zika virus.
One travel agent in the US has confirmed that a number of clients booked to visit Latin America are rethinking their travel plans and Jennifer Michels, a spokeswoman for the American Society of Travel Agents, in Alexandria, Virginia indicated that “It’s the people who are going to travel in the next few weeks who are starting to ask more questions and rethink their plans.”
The mosquito-borne virus has been linked to brain damage in thousands of newly-born babies in Brazil where it is believed over 1.5 million people may be affected, including over 100,000 in Récife alone. The world Health Organisation has also expressed its concern over the spread of this virus, for which there is no known cure, and have scheduled a meeting for next week. The virus is expected to spread throughout the whole of the Americas, save for Chile and Canada.