The details about our Tours for the winter season 2005/2006 were published in December 2003. The tours and holidays featured are offered by Saharatravel.co.uk Ltd. which is a company registered in Ireland whose business adress is Abbey House, 15-17 Abbey St. Upr., Dublin 1 and whose registered office is at Macetown, Tara, Co. Meath, Ireland under company number 343724 ('the Company') in conjunction with various other parties, agents and suppliers as outlined in this document. The following conditions, together with the information set out in the brochures and factsheets, will form part of your contract with the Company. Saharatravel is a licensed and bonded tour operator in the Republic of Ireland, Licence number TO 185. 1. BOOKING YOUR TOUR The quickest way to book the tour of your choice is to telephone Saharatravel.co.uk´s reservations on +353 (0) 14968844, email info@saharatravel.co.uk or fax on +353 (0) 14968834. Our experienced reservations staff will check space directly on our computerised reservation system and immediately advise you of availability. The offer will then be made to take an option for 48 hours to consult with your family and friends or, alternatively, to make the booking firm at that time. All options will be released automatically in the event that you do not contact us again to confirm the reservation within the required period. Once you have decided to book, we will then request a cheque or bank draft to confirm the reservation with a non-returnable deposit of ten percent (twenty percent if the company books flights for you) of the total cost of the tour. You will be asked to post your Reservation Form directly to our office at the address above together with your deposit to confirm the reservation and accept our terms of booking. Upon receipt of this, your booking is firm and the cancellation policy applies. We will then send you a written acknowledgement and confirmation of booking setting out payment arrangements. You can also book your tour through one of our partner agencies, travel agents specialised on adventure travel. The reservation and booking procedure is similar to the one above but slight variations might apply due to the internal procedures of your travel agent. (a) Late bookings within eight weeks of travel. If you are booking within eight weeks of departure then the full amount is due at time of booking. It is also possible that any unsold allocations may have been released back to suppliers within this period. If this is the case then we may not be able to give on-line immediate confirmation of your Tour but may need to call you back after faxing our suppliers. (b) Special requests should be made at the time of booking and then indicated on the Reservation Form or made in writing. Every endeavour will be made for any special requests to be met, but we cannot guarantee that they will be, nor will the Company, be liable if special requests are not met. (c) If you arrange your Tour direct with the Reservations Office all correspondence and other communications will be sent direct to the person named on the Reservation Form unless you specify otherwise. If you request correspondence through a business address, a residential address will also be required for emergency and security reasons. If you book through a travel agent, all correspondence will be directed via the agent. (d) The balance (where relevant) is due eight weeks before departure. (e) Single supplement prices will be quoted on an individual basis, according to the programme chosen. (f) Child prices will be quoted on an individual basis, according to the programme chosen. Amendments and cancellations (a) Amendments by you. The Company will make every effort to assist you if you wish to alter your arrangements. Requests for an amendment must be in writing and sent to the company and, signed by the signatory of the Reservation Form. An administration charge of £25 per person is made to amend your reservation once booked, plus any additional costs incurred by the change. Cancellation charges may also apply if changes occur within the designated period. (See table below.) (b) Cancellation by you. All cancellations must be advised in writing, signed by the signatory of the Reservation Form and sent to the comapny. Cancellations are effective on the day they are received by the comapny. The following cancellation charges will be payable, depending on the number of days prior to departure when the company received your notice of cancellation.
(c) Amendments by the Company. Great care is taken to ensure that the descriptions, information and prices given in our brochures and any of the supplementary information are accurate at the time of publication. Changes can occur, though, and the Company reserves the right to advise you of a change, including a change of price, before accepting your booking. After a Booking Confirmation and Receipt has been issued, the Company shall make every effort to procure that the tours shall be operated as advertised. In very rare circumstances, the Company may have to modify an event or a holiday before you depart. If the modification is significant (that is, if it is a change of flight time by more than 12 hours, a change of destination or a change to a lower standard of accommodation), the Company will notify you as soon as practicably possible and offer you three choices. You may accept the modification, you may change your booking to another available departure date or you may cancel and receive a full and prompt refund. If you choose another departure which is more expensive you must pay the difference, but if it is cheaper, you will receive an appropriate refund. The above does not apply to cases of force majeur. Force Majeure means unusual and unforseeable circumstances beyond the Company's control, the consequences of which neither the Company nor its suppliers or agents could avoid, including, but not limited to, war, threat of war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity (actual or threatened), industrial dispute, technical problems with transport, machinery or equipment, power failure, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, flood, drought, adverse weather conditions and level of water in rivers. If there is a minor modification before you depart (that is, any change not included in the definition of a significant modification set out above), the Company will try to notify you, although it is not obliged to do so, nor is it obliged to pay any compensation.If the Company becomes unable to provide a significant proportion of your holiday after it has commenced, suitable alternative arrangements will be made for you at no extra charge to you or, alternatively, you will be returned to your point of departure and given a pro-rata refund for ground arrangements not received. (d) Cancellation by the Company. If you fail to pay the balance of price for your chosen event or holiday at least six weeks before departure, the Company will treat your booking as cancelled and levy the cancellation charges set out in paragraph 2(b) above.If the Company or any of its authorised representatives is obliged to cancel your holiday in any other circumstances before departure, for example if insufficient numbers book, the Company will use its best endeavours to ensure that you are offered alternative arrangements of a comparable standard or will ensure that you are given a full and prompt refund. 'Insufficient numbers' is defined as too few bookings being taken to make the operation financially viable in the advertised form. 2. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE COMPANY The Company applies all reasonable checks to ensure that those involved in the preparation and provision of your holiday maintain the appropriate standards.The description, information and opinions given in brochures and supplementary information by the Company in respect of the hotels, restaurants and other suppliers whose services are used are given in good faith, based on the latest information available at the time of going to print. (a) Subject to paragraphs (c), (d) and (f) below, the Company accepts responsibility if you suffer personal injury, illness or death as a result of an activity which forms parts of the holiday you book with the Company. (b) Subject to paragraphs (c), (d), and (f) below, in any case other than where you suffer personal injury, illness or death, the Event Organiser accepts responsibility if the arrangements which the Company has agreed to provide are not as described in the brochures and are not of a reasonable standard ('a deficiency'). If there is a deficiency, the Company will, in its absolute discretion pay you reasonable compensation taking into account your individual circumstances. (c) The Company's acceptance of liability in paragraph (a) and (b) above does not apply where there has been no fault on the part of the Company nor any if its suppliers because the cause of the deficiency or your personal injury, illness or death was your own fault, the action of one of the other holidaymakers in your party, the action of someone unconnected with the event or holiday booked with the Company or one which neither the Company nor its suppliers could anticipate or avoid even exercising all due care. (d) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this clause, the Company's liability and/or the amount of compensation payable by the Company is limited in accordance with relevant International Conventions as amended. (e) If you suffer personal injury, illness, death or a deficiency in circumstances where the Company has not been negligent, the Company will nevertheless, where appropriate and with reasonable discretion, afford initial general assistance to you if you are in difficulty and request such assistance within 90 days. Expenditure by the Company will not exceed £5,000 per Reservation Form and such expenditure shall be recovered by the Company by way of your personal travel insurance. Death or personal injury which is suffered due to the negligence of the Company is not subject to any limitations or restrictions. (f) The Company's acceptance of liability in this clause is conditional upon you assigning to the Company all rights you have against any third party in any way responsible for personal injury, illness, death, deficiency or difficulty in question and upon you giving your full co-operation to the Company and/or its insurers. 3. YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES Passports and Visas: (a) Where relevant, general information concerning passport, visa and health requirements will be sent to you with the Reservation Form. Please note, however, that such requirements are subject to change and you must check current requirements before departure. It is your responsibility to obtain all documents required for your holiday. The Company cannot be liable if you fail to do so and you will be responsible for meeting any further costs incurred as a result of such failure. No exception will be made from cancellation charges effected as a result of cancellations due to incorrect passport or visa documentation. Insurance: (b) You are responsible for arranging your own travel insurance which should be a comprehensive policy and cover all risks. If you do not already have your own policy, our Reservations Staff will be happy to assist you with obtaining suitable insurance cover.Details of your insurance cover must be detailed on the Reservation Form. We will require a photocopy of your insurance policy if you are not taking insurance with us. We will not accept reservations without suitable insurance cover that includes emergency air-rescue. (c) Travel to and from Dover and across France to Marseille is not included as part of our itineraries, nor included in the price on Own4x4 packages. On FlyDrive packages travel to and from your departure airport is not included. When you or your travel agent opt to arrange flights, those are not included in the package the company provides. Our experienced Reservations staff will be delighted to assist you. We offer a comprehensive booking service with on-line flight reservations offering immediate flight availability world-wide. Please ask our Reservations Staff to check routings and availability on your behalf. Other services provided include competitive car hire rates, hotel reservations, transfers where appropriate by taxi, minibus or limousine and comprehensive Travel Insurance. Whatever your travel requirement please ask our Reservations Staff for assistance and a quotation. A separate contract will cover these additional services, and, all rules and regulations of the airlines, carriers, hotels etc will apply. These items will be invoiced separately but any differences in the appropriate timescales and restrictions will be advised at time of booking. (d) Currency fluctuations and guide prices. All prices and the Supplementary Factsheets are quoted in Pounds Sterling and include VAT where applicable. For events taking place outside the UK, for which we may have paid local suppliers in their local currency, the Sterling equivalent will have been based on the one year forward rates of exchange as detailed in the Financial Times on 09.12..03. Prices are rounded to the nearest whole £. Rates of exchange may be subject to considerable fluctuation during the long validity of our programs. In the event that any such fluctuation causes us to increase any of the quoted prices, we will inform you of such increases at the time of booking. If any price increases become necessary between the time of booking and final payment then the following will occur: (e) If the price increase is 2% or less, we will absorb the increase and there will be no alteration to the price of your holiday. (f) If the price increase is more than 2% you will have the right to choose another holiday (subject to availability) which is at a more acceptable price or to accept a full refund, should you wish to do so. Clients booking outside the UK: The RO may, if requested, be able to provide you with an indication of a quoted guide price in your local currency, using the then prevailing exchange rate. Any such indication will be given as a guide only and will not be binding on the Company under any circumstance. The rates of exchange are outside our control and we do not accept responsibility or liability for them. (g) You are responsible for checking-in for flights and ferries at the correct time and for presenting yourself to take up all pre-booked components of your expedition. The Company cannot accept responsibility for customers missing flights or ferries as a result of late check-in or delayed flights or ferries and no refund or credit will be given. 4. AIRLINES AND OTHER SUPPLIERS (a) As between you and the suppliers of the transport, accommodation and other components making up your event or expedition, the conditions of the supplier will apply. These conditions may (where relevant) be subject to International Conventions which limit and/or restrict the suppliers' liability. (b) Transport timings are provided by the carrier concerned and are subject to such matters as weather conditions, maintenance requirements, the ability of passengers to check-in on time, and in the case of flights, to air traffic control restrictions. Accordingly, the times of flights and other modes of transport are estimates only and cannot be guaranteed. The Company is not liable for any delay and cannot itself make any special arrangement in the event of a delay. However, most international carriers use their best endeavours to arrange appropriate meals, accommodation etc. (c) Activities on some tours carry inherent risks and if you are participating in such activities you may be asked to sign an additional form. 5. IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM (a) All of the holidays are hosted by a representative from Saharatravel.co.uk Ltd.. If you are unhappy with any aspect of the arrangements while you are on a tour, you should address your complaint immediately in the First instance to the representative and to the management of the hotel or other supplier whose services are involved, so that Saharatravel will have an opportunity to correct the matter during your stay. If you fail to do so, any rights you may have will be reduced or even extinguished. (b) If the problem cannot be resolved locally and you wish to complain, full details must be sent to the Company in writing by Registered Post to arrive within 30 days of your return from your event or holiday. In the rare event of a dispute which cannot be settled amicably, it may (if you wish) be referred to arbitration under a special scheme which is administered quite independently by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. The scheme (details of which will be supplied on request) provides for a simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on documents alone, with restricted liability on holidaymakers in respect of costs. The scheme does not apply to claims for an amount greater than £4,000 per person or £16,000 per Reservation Form, neither does it apply to claims which are solely or mainly in respect of personal injury or illness. Applications for arbitration under this scheme must be made within nine months of the date of return from the holiday, but in special circumstances it may be offered outside this period. (c) This contract and any matters arising from it are governed by the laws of Ireland, which are almost identical to the laws of the UK and are subject to the jurisdiction of the Courts of Ireland. |
