Coachella is postponed. Here’s the latest on ticket, airline and Airbnb refunds

On Tuesday, concert promoter Goldenvoice announced that the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is being postponed due to the growing threat of coronavirus.

Coachella was expected to draw 250,000 fans over the weekends of April 10 and 17 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. The multiday concerts will be held instead on the weekends of Oct. 9 and 16. The dates for Stagecoach, Coachella’s country music counterpart also held at the Empire Polo Club, are being moved from April 24-26 to Oct. 23-25.

“All purchases for the April dates will be honored for the rescheduled October dates,” Goldenvoice said in its announcement. “Purchasers will be notified by Friday, March 13, on how to obtain a refund if they are unable to attend.”

But for attendees whose plans to attend to the concert included flights or lodging arrangements, changes or cancellations could become complicated.

Airbnb recommends that guests speak with their host to see if they are willing to alter the reservation to take place at a later date since the event has been postponed. Any cancellations would be determined by the host’s cancellation policy.

The move follows Riverside County declaring a public health emergency after confirming its first case of coronavirus this week. The current total of COVID-19 cases in the county is six.

Music

It’s official: Coachella has been postponed until October

Promoter Goldenvoice announced that the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival has been officially rescheduled for the weekends of Oct. 9 and Oct. 16.

March 10, 2020

Some airlines and hotels have begun waiving fees for changes and cancellations in some situations in response to the outbreak. Marriott and Wyndham are among hotel chains waiving fees for guests traveling to and from certain locations for stays through March 30.

Airbnb has also recently expended its extenuating circumstances policy to include some cancellations as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

Guests who are traveling to or from certain “severely impacted areas” — including mainland China, Italy and South Korea — could qualify for a full refund under the policy if reservations were made by a certain date (varies by location) for a check-in of April 1 or earlier.

Airbnb’s website also states that with documentation, the extenuating circumstances policy could also apply to cancellations made in order to comply with restrictions implemented by relevant authorities or if transportation has been canceled because of the outbreak. Anybody diagnosed with or suspected of having COVID-19 can also get a refund.

However, those seeking to cancel their Airbnb reservations because of the cancellation of SXSW have reportedly been told that their situation is not covered under the extenuating circumstances policy and that refunds would be issued only if travel restrictions were in place.