Volcano Proof Travel

ROAD TRIP
Take the car by ferry to France (Cork to Roscoff or Rosslare to Cherbourg) and head for a destination in Europe that you are keen to explore. A family of four can travel with their car in a 4 berth cabin from €138.00 per person return, a total of €552.00. www.brittanyferries.com.

TRAIN JOURNEYS
For the train journeys below it is necessary to take a ferry first to France or the UK but at least you can rest easy that there will be little threat to your holiday plans by booking this type of holiday. Ferries to the UK from Ireland are price from €79 with www.irishferries.com.

Interrail is one of the cheapest and most accessible ways to journey through Europe. There are five types of global pass, and each one is slightly different. It offers good value too with prices from €399 for a months pass. A 20 day pass round trip from London to Thessaloniki in Greece includes a six day stop in Greece and three day mini breaks in Vienna, Budapest and Belgrade. There are also Spain/France packages which include Barcelona and Valencia, or a ten day mini adventure to Berlin and Prague.

BOAT, CRUISE OR FERRY
Boating: Keep the holiday costs low by embarking on a boating holiday on the Shannon with Emerald Star. The perk of this holiday is that no boating experience is needed and you can start your cruise from Carrick on Shannon, Portuma or Belturbet. Most will take a week on board and stop off in the many towns along the way to eat, drink and explore the sights. www.emeraldstar.ie.

To cruise the Shannon for seven nights in June prices varies from €771 for three people on board or for a larger boat that sleeps up to five people this is priced from €1,371 which works out at at approx €275 each.

Cruise: If you are adamant you want an exotic cruise, then take a ferry to the UK and join a cruise to the Mediterranean or other tempting destinations which regularly depart from Southampton or Dover.

MSC Cruises is offering a special deal until May 31st where you book a cruise and the second guests pays just €1. There are 100 Mediterranean sailings on offer with one interesting one being the MSC Fantasia from Barcelona to Tunisia, Malta, Italy and France from €1029 and the second guest paying €1. Visit www.msccruises.ie.

A ten-night Canary Islands cruise onboard Royal Caribbean International’s Independence of the Seas with Cruise specialists eTravel (www.e-travel.ie, 01 408 1999) from €1,536 per person. Price includes cruise departing from Southampton (UK) calling at Funchal (Madeira, Portugal), Tenerife (Canary Islands), Las Palmas (Gran Canaria, Canary Islands), Lanzarote (Canary Islands) and Vigo (Spain) before returning to Southampton; meals and entertainment onboard and all relevant cruise taxes/fees. Visit www.e-travel.ie

TRAVEL INSURANCE
An example is Blue Insurance which is offering ash cover from this week as part of its policy from approximately €17.It includes:
•Cancellation or Curtailment of up to €1,000 per person for unused travel and accommodation costs as a result of the Ash, or Travel Advice of Dept of Foreign Affairs i.e Bangkok, or World Health Organisation
•Delayed Departure as a result of the above for more than 12 hours = €20 for first 12 hours and €10 thereafter
•Irrecoverable unused accommodation and travel costs up to €1,000 because you could not travel or got delayed
•Extended Catastrophe Cover – This new cover will also extend to cover unused accommodation costs as a result of Fire, Flood, Earthquake, explosion, Tsunami, Landslide, volcanic eruption, hurricane, storm, outbreak of food poisoning or an infectious disease affecting your accommodation.
*Terms and conditions apply