Tourists struggle to change travel bookings in response to B.C.'s wildfire restrictions

Josh Rutherford booked a flight to visit his girlfriend in Kelowna, B.C., back in May, long before wildfires began ravaging the province's southern Interior.

Now, the Big Flats, N.Y., resident is instead hoping to fly to Calgary, where his girlfriend is taking refuge from fires that have led to thousands of evacuations.

But when Rutherford contacted Delta Airlines to cancel and rebook, he was told it would cost more than $2,000.

Although the company operating the Canadian leg of his trip is WestJet, he purchased the tickets through Delta, which means the latter is responsible for making changes to his itinerary.

"A company that could make things easier for us, potentially, is saying, 'We can do that, but you have to pay this exorbitant fee,'" Rutherford said.

He's one of several people saddled with travel planning woes due to the wildfires burning across British Columbia, where Premier David Eby has announced a travel ban to the southern Interior and the province remains in a state of emergency.

More than 30,000 people across the province have been forced to flee their homes and a further 36,000 have been told to get ready to leave at a moment's notice.

Rutherford was frustrated at the fee requested by Delta and longs to see his girlfriend, who still doesn't know if she'll have a home to return to in Kelowna. He says he wants to do the right thing by the travel ban.

"She's going through one of the worst seasons of her life right now because of this disaster. And I would love to be there for her and help her out. But I want to do that in a way that is responsible and is respectful of what's been asked," he said.

"The province has made it very clear that I, as a tourist, should not be going in there," he added.

After CBC News contacted Delta Airlines to inquire about Rutherford's situation, the company said it had got in touch with him to apologize and "make this right."

Rutherford "was given initial information inconsistent with our approach to handle travel changes for customers with extenuating circumstances," the company said in an email.

Airbnb cancellation issues

Ashley Coumont, who is from Camrose, Alta., paid $6,500 for a four-night stay at the end of the month at a large Airbnb rental home in West Kelowna, B.C., large areas of which are currently under evacuation orders due to the nearby McDougall Creek fire.

She attempted to cancel the trip under Airbnb's extenuating circumstances policies, but the company said she had missed the cutoff date to make the claim.

So far, both the host and company are refusing to provide a full refund. 

CBC News reviewed screenshots of Coumont's online chats with both the host and Airbnb. In the conversation, the host tells her the home and area are safe and that everything will be "under control" when the time of her vacation comes around.

Her trip is scheduled to start and end before Sept. 4, the date B.C.'s travel restrictions are currently scheduled to lift. 

In Coumont's chats with Airbnb support, the representative tells her that if the situation in Kelowna persists, she will be fully refunded closer to her reservation date. 

For now, the host has given her a 50 per cent refund. 

"They are being very greedy," said Coumont.

CBC News contacted Airbnb about Coumont's booking. In an email reply, the company said it was monitoring the situation in Kelowna and that some reservations may "become eligible [for a refund] … depending on the situation on the ground at the time."

Coumont said rather than putting up roadblocks to cancelling her stay, she wishes both the host and Airbnb were asking her not to come. She added that she'd like them to make the home available to evacuees and first responders, some of whom have been sleeping in cars due to a lack of available accommodation.

Tourists like her have "no business" travelling to the city, she says.

"I don't even understand why this has to be a conversation," she added.

In a statement, the B.C. Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, said it encourages businesses, including airlines, to work with customers to support them in following the travel order.