Just make it a donation?

If you can afford it, yes, it would be a very generous gesture.

Are you asking for permission?

Just do it, and let them know so they release the money to use as appropriate.

Considering that about two thirds of the real ticket costs are paid by the Czech taxpayer this might be a no-brainer.

I guess mostly interested in what other people are ending up doing, what happened to them.

I also suggest you could donate if you can afford it. It would be a gracious gesture considering the pandemic.

Of course one size doesn't fit all. For some people $200 is no big deal; for others it may be a different matter especially if this is a trip of a lifetime and they need the money to reschedule later.

I bought a Scottish Explorer Pass that is valid for 2020 which I likely will not use. Since it's a non-profit I'm not going to bother to pursue to see if I have options.

Yes, donate it or dont ask for the refund. It is a generous thing to do and is an investment in the hope that those organizations will be there in the future.

I did that (donated) with our Last Supper ticket refund.

Yep, lots of good reasons to do so if you can.

It's the path of least resistance.
You can put your time and effort to use elsewhere.
The places the money goes surely need it.
It might make you feel good.

I've made "donations" like this in the past couple weeks to a small hotel or two, national cultural/arts/heritage organizations, and an airline. Not huge sums of money, but some that I might have been able to recover if I had put the effort into doing so. Sure, I could use the money but so could they. Sometimes it just makes more sense to let it go and move on.

In the midst of all the restaurant and small business people who are suffering, I hadn't even thought about arts organizations, especially symphonies who can't even perform virtually because you can't social distance while playing in an orchestra. People who are still getting a paycheck/retired and get the stimulus money should consider donating it to such organizations.

Excellent point, cala. My wife and I combined will likely-as it looks now-get $2400 from the US Gov. I am able to work still, and lots of people in our town are in/are going to be in dire straits. It's money we wouldn't have otherwise, and we are strongly considering donations locally.

We have ballet tickets in Moscow and St Petersburg. The Moscow Bolshoi site says, for cancelled performances, a 100% refund will automatically be issued back to the original method of payment, VISA in our case. We don't do anything, the refund will be automatic.

{However, as you comment, the value of the refund (Rubles) has decreased - nearly 20% from when we purchased our tickets. I would prefer they allow us to keep the credit and use it at another time, since we do hope to reschedule.)

The Czech Philharmonic has cancelled performances and also say they will issue refunds. I can't tell from their site whether that will be automatic. If it is, you may not have an option - or at least not an easy one - to donate. As an aside, they are holding a virtual benefit concert (details on their site) to which you could donate, if you were so inclined.

The sites both say refunds will be automatic, but I was emailed by both requesting SWIFT numbers, bank accounts and all that.

Domestically I am not getting refunds, but credits for future performances.

Yes, the same in San Francisco for the ballet. We have the option to donate or take a credit for next season, both options easily available online.

You know what your options are, it sounds like you've already made your decision based on your confirmation that you don't need the money so I'm not sure what the point of your post is.

I am an orchestral musician. The rest of our concert season has been cancelled but the organization still has costs to cover due to contractual obligations. We are extremely grateful that a large number of our patrons are generously donating their tickets rather than requesting refunds.

Tom
Let’s make it a 2fer. List the entity/organization and the amount your giving up in Euros. I have a stash of Euros (always keep Euros and Pounds on hand) and I will send that entity/organization a brief note and matching cash.

Not to put public pressure on you but.....they can use the money. Might as well have some fun during downtime. Besides the funds, maybe we can give them a positive emotional boost.

I smell a Rat! Those organizations should not be asking for SWIFT or bank info. They have your credit card or PayPal number and likely plan on automatic refunds as mentioned by CWsocial. Never give out bank info to overseas outfits. Or even to most in the USA.

Larry, I considered that but it doesn't pan out. I think there are fees in refunding the money via credit card that they don't want to pay.

Bob: So you're on, remember the CR doesn't use euros directly but I understand that they circulate there freely. All costs were for 2 tickets. It was actually quite a bit less than $200.

https://www.fok.cz/en This was a short concert, rather cheap, 600 CZk, 22 EUR

https://www.ceskafilharmonie.cz/en/, even the best seats were not really that much, 2400 CZk, 88 EUR

https://www.annefrank.org/en/ straightfoward since in euros, 22.

If bank transfer means giving a bank checking or savings account number, this would be a no brainer for us. We would just tell them to keep the money as a donation. Not worth the risk of giving out a bank account number.

Perhaps 80 million Americans "need" the stimulus check, but that's being generous imo. Most of us poor folks will receive $1200, which we don't really need. It is a time for altruistic folks to consider the needs of others.

Tim- got it. Yeah, only euros but will round up (not sending coins). I’ll print this part of the thread and write DONATION on the top to send with the Euros. Going out Monday- need International Stamps. Maybe we will get a new future overseas poster out of this.

Thanks for going along with this- hopefully we can put a smile on some faces.

Travel Safe/Stay Safe

One Fast Bob