REALMS OF GOLD TRAVEL LTD - BOOKING CONDITIONS

 

1. Booking, deposits and documentation

1.1. Bookings must be made on the booking Form supplied and accompanied by the relevant deposit (see below). On receipt of the Booking Form and deposit, we will issue confirmation of your booking (subject to availability).

1.2. The amount of deposit required at the time of booking is:
£100 per person for all holidays within the UK;
£200 per person for all European holidays;
£500 for USA

Where, however, the booking is made less than 10 weeks prior to the departure date, full payment is required at the time of booking.

1.3. The balance of any payment is due 10 weeks before departure; no reminders will be sent and Realms of Gold Travel Ltd reserve the right to cancel the holiday and forfeit any deposit paid if the balance is not received by the due date.

1.4. Where a discount is offered for early booking, this is deductible from the final payment due.

1.5. You will normally be sent your travel documents in advance of the departure date. It is your responsibility to check that these are accurate and that the details match those in your passport or travel document.

 

2. Cancellation by you

2.1. If you have to cancel your booking, you should notify us in writing of your decision and the reason for it.

2.2. If you cancel more than 70 days prior to the departure date, you will lose the deposit only. If you cancel between 70 and 42 days prior to the departure date, you will lose 60% of the cost of the tour. If you cancel less than 42 days prior to the departure date, you will lose 100% of the cost of the tour. You are strongly advised to take out appropriate insurance to cover such eventualities.

3. Cancellation by us
3.1. Very occasionally, we may have to cancel a tour. This could be because of an insufficient number of bookings to make the tour viable, or it might be due to matters outside our control e.g. civil unrest, industrial disputes, natural or man-made disasters or Foreign Office advice.
When a tour is cancelled because of insufficient numbers, we will make a full refund of any sums paid to us in respect of that tour. Where a tour has to be cancelled for reasons outside our control, we will make a refund of all sums paid other than those which are irrecoverable by us.

 

4. What is included and what is not included

4.1. Unless otherwise indicated, the cost of the tour includes travel from the specified departure point, transfers and accommodation on the basis described in the brochure. Entrance to the sites is included except where any particular visit is described as "optional". Taxes are included, except those taxes collected by foreign governments which are not levied in advance - such as visa fees payable on arriving at or leaving a foreign country. We aim to include in the price of the tour a standard gratuity for hotels and coach drivers. Other or additional gratuities are at your discretion.

4.2. In the event of an additional tax being levied by a government airport or airline after publication of the brochure, a supplemental charge will be made to reflect this.

4.3. We reserve the right to impose a surcharge if the costs of the tour increase significantly for any reason outside our control. However (other than in respect of the taxes referred to in Paragraph 4.2 above) we will not impose a surcharge if the increase in costs is less than 2.5% of the cost of the tour.
In the event that any surcharge amounts to more than 10% of the original cost of the tour, we will offer you the option of cancelling the booking and receiving a full refund. If you wish to opt for a full refund, you must notify us to this effect within 14 days of our notifying you of any such increase.

4.4. The following are not included in the cost of the tour:
Travel insurance; cost of passports, visas and travel documents; excess baggage charges; porterage; laundry; meals and drinks other than those specifically included; the cost of any additional items or changes to set menus not booked in advance; taxis; items of personal expenditure.

 

5. Changes to the itinerary

5.1. We will do our best to provide a tour which accurately reflects the description given in the brochure. However, occasionally, and usually due to matters outside our control, we may have to make alterations to the travel arrangements, accommodation or itineraries. We reserve the right to do this. We will do our best to keep any such alterations to a minimum. We will notify you in advance of any changes which in our opinion are significant. If the travel times are changed by more than 24 hours or different accommodation other than that specified has to be used we will (if we are aware of the change in advance) endeavour to offer you the option of a full refund, although we cannot guarantee to do so.

5.2. Occasionally, problems are encountered with travel arrangements. It is your responsibility to make yourself available at the appropriate time and location for the departure of the tour. If there are problems en route, we will do our best to minimize those which involve a change in the mode or timing of such travel. We regret that we cannot however be held responsible for any loss (including any consequential loss) due to matters outside our control.

 

6. Your responsibilities

6.1. Travel insurance. You must take out appropriate and adequate travel Insurance. We will ask you for details of the policy on your Booking Form. For trips within the EU you must also take (and carry with you at all times) a valid current EHIC card, which can be obtained from main Post Offices, by ‘phoning 020 7210 4850 or online via www.dh.gov.uk/travellers.

6.2. You must ensure that (where necessary) you have a valid passport or travel document and any appropriate visas.

6.3. You should ensure that (where necessary) you have any vaccinations appropriate to the tour destination.

6.4. We ask you to declare any health problems to us on a separate form; this is not compulsory but can be of assistance in a medical emergency. This information will not be disclosed to third parties (ie. people not directly connected with Realms of Gold Travel Ltd) except where necessary, in the opinion of the Tour Manager, in connection with a medical emergency eg. to a Doctor, Nurse, Paramedic, family member or other person or persons connected with your immediate care. You should ensure that you take with you sufficient regular medication for at least the duration of the tour.

6.5. You are responsible for your personal belongings throughout the tour. You are advised to make use of hotel safes and lockers where these are available.

6.6. Most of our tours involve some walking or outdoor activity, and this may involve steep or uneven surfaces and moderate distances. You can of course opt out of activities on any day if you wish to do so, but we ask you to notify the tour manager beforehand where this is your intention. If you are in any doubt as to your suitability for any particular tour, we will endeavour to advise you.

 

7. Special requests

7.1. We will endeavour to accommodate any reasonable special requests (eg. as to diet), but this may not be possible in every case. Personalized alterations to the group travel arrangements can sometimes be arranged, and we will do our best to assist; however we cannot guarantee to accommodate alternative travel arrangements and we would normally make an administrative charge for this.

 

8. Limitation of liability

8.1 Realms of Gold Travel Ltd accepts liability (subject to the above provisions) for the correct description of the tours offered. The company cannot, however, accept responsibility for loss due to matters outside its control, such as (but not limited to) loss of baggage, weather, natural disasters, illness, quarantine regulations, industrial action, civil unrest, terrorist activity, or war.

 

9. Financial Protection

9.1 ATOL protection for tours that include air travel: in the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA ensures that you are not stranded abroad and will arrange for any money paid to us for an advance booking to be refunded. Our ATOL licence number is 9731: for further information visit www.atol.org.uk

9.2 Tours with no element of air travel are not ATOL protected but comply with Regulation 20 of the Package Tour Regulations 1992.