Terms & Conditions
1. Financial
Protection
Your contract is with Cairngorm Travel. When you book a
holiday with us, which does not include a flight, the money you pay us for the
booking will be protected by Bonded Coach Holidays (BCH) and the Association of
Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT). This is a Government approved
consumer protection scheme. The scheme will also ensure your repatriation in
the event the company becomes insolvent. Our Trading Charter and Booking
Conditions set out clearly and simply the responsibility we have to you and in
turn, you have with us, when a contract is made.
Please see the Consumer Guarantee at www.bch-uk.org. There
is no financial protection if you purchase just transport or accommodation-only
from us. We fully comply with the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements
Regulations 2018. The combination of travel services offered to you is a
package holiday within the meaning of the Regulations. Therefore, you will
benefit from all rights applying to package holidays. Cairngorm Travel will be
fully responsible for the proper performance of the holiday and providing
assistance if you are in difficulty. Your key rights will be in the details of
the tour which will be provided prior to booking.
2. Booking and
Payment
When a booking is made, the 'lead name' on the booking
guarantees that he or she is 18 or over and has the authority and accepts on
behalf of the party the terms of these booking conditions and pays the deposit
indicated in the brochure and as confirmed in the pre-contract information. After
we receive your booking and all appropriate payments, if the arrangements you
wish to book are available, we will send you or your booking agent a confirmation invoice
within 14 days. This confirmation will include any special requests we have
agreed. All monies paid to your booking agent are held by them on your behalf
until we issue our confirmation invoice, thereafter your
booking agent holds the money on our behalf. A binding agreement will come into
existence between us when we dispatch this invoice to the 'lead name' or your booking agent. Please check the confirmation carefully
to ensure all the information is correct. This contract is governed by English
Law, and the jurisdiction of the English Courts.
Single occupancy of rooms, when available, may be subject to
a supplementary charge and these will be shown in the brochure. You can book by
paying a deposit for each person named on the booking, but our commitment is
always conditional upon the balance being paid as below.
Deposit: -
£50 per person (7 days or under)
£100 per person (Over 7 days)
Christmas & Hogmanay £100 per person
The balance of the holiday must be paid via mail, telephone
or in person at least 10 weeks before the holiday departure date. This date
will be clearly stated on your Booking Confirmation. Any booking received after
the balance due date will require payment in full at the time of booking. If
the balance is not paid by the due date we reserve the right to cancel the
holiday and levy cancellation charges on the same scale as stated in these
booking conditions.
Where optional items are purchased as part of the holiday,
these are payable on the balance due date except where items, such as
excursions, have been specifically booked for you. In this case the cost will
be payable at a separate date notified to you in the tour brochure and will not
normally be refunded unless we obtain a refund from the supplier we use.
3. Brochure Accuracy
Although Cairngorm Travel make every effort to ensure the
accuracy of the brochure information and pricing, regrettably errors do
sometimes occur. You must therefore ensure you check the price and all other
details of your holiday with us at the time of booking and when you receive our
confirmation invoice.
4. Our Pricing Policy
Cairngorm Travel endeavour to ensure that the most up to
date and correct prices are shown in our brochure. Occasionally, an incorrect
price may be shown, due to an error. When we become aware of any such error, we
will endeavour to notify you at the time of booking (if we are then aware of
the mistake) or as soon as reasonably possible. We reserve the right to cancel
the booking if you do not wish to accept the price which is applicable to the
holiday. Local Authorities in many towns and cities throughout Europe have introduced
new tourist taxes which must be paid directly to the hotel by all guests in
person. These taxes are not included in our prices, but we will notify you when
applicable.
Holiday prices include all travel, hotel accommodation and
meals as specified in the holiday description and VAT payable in the UK where
applicable. The price of the holiday will not be subjected to any surcharges
except those arising from exchange rate changes, transportation including the
price of fuel, air & ferry operator fares and tolls, embarkation or
disembarkation fees at terminals, duties and taxes (including the rate of VAT).
Even in these cases we will absorb the cost equivalent to cost of the first 2%
of the holiday price. Amounts more than this plus £1 administration fee and Travel
Agents commission will be surcharged to you. If this means the total cost of
the holiday increases by more than 8% then you are entitled to cancel your
holiday and receive a full refund of all monies paid except any insurance
premium and amendment charges. We will communicate the options with you either
through email or letter, with a reminder if necessary. If you exercise the
right to cancel, we must receive written notice within 20 days of the date of
the surcharge invoice. The currency exchange rate used in the holiday costings
are based on rates as at 1.2 euros to 1 pound sterling as at November 2021.
5. If you change your booking
If, after our confirmation has been issued, you wish to
change to another of our holidays or change departure date, we will do our
utmost to make the changes, but we cannot guarantee to do so. However,
notification must be received in writing at our offices from the lead person on
the booking, at least 10 weeks before departures. This must be accompanied by a
payment of £25 to cover our administrative costs, plus costs we incur in making
the amendment.
Alterations cannot be made within 10 weeks of departure and
any such request for an alteration will be treated as a cancellation of the
original booking and will be subject to the cancellation charges set out in the
paragraph below. Some arrangements cannot be changed without paying a
cancellation charge of up to 100% of the ticket cost.
Holiday changes will only be considered on holidays that
have satisfied the numbers / occupancy required to travel.
6. Transferring your
booking
You can transfer your booking to somebody else, but the
person must satisfy all the conditions of the holiday and you must inform us
either by letter or email no less than 7 days before departure. This transfer
will cost £25 plus reasonable costs to make the transfer. You will remain
responsible for ensuring payment before the balance due date. This is in
addition to (and does not affect) the separate liability of the transferee to
us.
7. If you need to
cancel your holiday
You or any member of your party, may cancel your holiday at
any time provided the cancellation is made by the lead person on the booking
form and is communicated to us in writing via the office who made your original
booking. You must pay cancellation charges to cover our administration costs
and to compensate for the risk of us not reselling the holiday. If the holiday
is resold by you a refund will be made. Your cancellation will take effect from
the date on which we or our agent receive your written confirmation of your
cancellation. You must also return any tickets or vouchers you have received. A
reduction in room occupancy may increase the charges for the remaining
passengers by the application of supplements for low occupancy of rooms. Where
bought in supplies, such as ferries, hotel accommodation etc
have been bought in on your behalf, and where the terms and conditions of the
supplier are non- refundable, these products will be charged to you at the full
retail rate. If this applies, the non-refundable items will be deducted from
your holiday costs and the following scale of charges will be applied to the
remainder:
More than 42 days Loss of deposit
28 - 42 days 30% of full cost or loss of deposit, whichever
is greater
14 - 27 days 45% of full cost or loss of deposit, whichever
is greater
7 - 13 days 60% of full cost or loss of deposit, whichever
is greater
1 - 6 days 100% of full cost
8. Alterations to
your holiday by us
We hope that we will not have to make any change to your
holiday but, because our holidays are planned many months in advance, we
sometimes do need to make minor changes. We reserve the right to do this at any
time. We will let you or your booking agent know about any important changes as
soon as possible, including the minimum number of passengers required on the
trip. If after booking, and before departure, we make a major change to your
holiday, you will have the option of withdrawing from the holiday without
penalty or transferring to another holiday without any charge. In either case,
we will pay you compensation, according to the scale set below. A major change
includes the time of your departure or return time by more than 12 hours, a
change in departure point, location of resort or type of hotel, a change in
cross channel travel, or specification of the coach. If we tell you about any
of these changes after we have confirmed your holiday booking (other than force
majeure), you may either:
accept the new arrangements offered
by us; or accept a replacement holiday from us of equivalent or similar
standard and price (at the date of the change), if we can offer you one; or
cancel your holiday with us and receive a full refund of all monies.
Either way, we will pay you compensation, using the Compensation
table shown,
Period before departure within Compensation Per
Person
which a significant change is Holiday of 7 day Holiday of 6 days
Notified to you duration
and over duration and under
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
More than 29 days NIL NIL
15 - 28 Days £15 £10
8 - 14 Days £20 £15
0 - 7 Days £25 £20
IMPORTANT NOTE Compensation will not be payable if the
holiday is cancelled because the number of persons booked is less than the
number required, or for events beyond our control, which include: war, threat
of war, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist activity and its consequences,
industrial disputes, natural and nuclear disasters, fire, epidemics, health
risks and pandemics, unavoidable and unforeseeable technical problems with
transport for reasons beyond our control or that of our suppliers; hurricanes
and other actual or potential severe weather conditions and any other similar events.
You are also advised to check with The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Advice
Unit regularly at www.fco.gov.uk/travel prior to travel.
All holidays operate if the minimum number of participants
is met. However, in no case will we cancel your holiday less than 2 weeks
before the scheduled departure date, except where you have failed to pay the
final balance or because of force majeure (force majeure means an event which
we or the suppliers of the services in question could not foresee or avoid and
is therefore beyond our control).
9. Our responsibility
to you
We accept responsibility for ensuring the holiday which you
book with us is supplied as described in our publicity material and the
services offered reach a reasonable standard and if you are in difficulty, we
will assist you. If any part of our holiday contract is not provided as
promised, you may terminate the contract without paying a termination fee and
we will pay you appropriate compensation if this has affected your enjoyment of
your holiday. We will, however, not be liable if there are any unforeseeable or
unavoidable actions of a third party not connected with our travel services, or
there were unavoidable or extraordinary circumstances, or the lack of
conformity is due to a traveller in the party. We accept responsibility for the
acts and/or omissions of our employees, agents and suppliers except where they
lead to death, injury or illness. Our liability in all cases shall be limited
to a maximum of twice the value of the original holiday cost (not including
insurance premiums and amendment charges). We accept responsibility for death,
injury, or illness caused by the negligent acts and/or omissions of our
employees or agents together with our suppliers and sub-contractors, servants
and/or agents of the same whilst acting within the scope of, or during their
employment in the provision of your holiday. We will accordingly pay to our
clients such damages as might have been awarded in such circumstances under
English Law. In respect of carriage by air, sea, tunnel and rail and the
provision of accommodation our liability in all cases will be limited in the
manner provided by the relevant international convention.
If we make any payment to you or any member of your party
for death or personal injury or illness, you will be asked to assign to us or
our insurers the rights you may have to act against the person or organisation
responsible for causing the death, personal injury or illness. This clause does
not apply to any separate contracts that you may enter for excursions or
activities during or outside of your holiday. If you or any member of your
party suffer death, illness or injury whilst overseas arising out of an
activity which does NOT form part of your holiday, we may offer guidance and where
legal action is contemplated and you want our assistance, you must obtain our
written consent prior to any proceedings (We limit the cost of our assistance
to you or your party to £5,000 per party)
10. If you have a complaint
If you have a problem during your holiday, please inform
your Tour Manager, your driver or the relevant supplier/resort representative
immediately who will endeavour to put things right. If your complaint cannot be
completely resolved locally, you must complete a Holiday Report Form which can
be obtained by your driver or local representative, which you should keep. Our
contact number, for unresolved complaints will be our office number on 01405
761334 (open in office hours) If you remain dissatisfied please follow this up
within 14 days of your return home by writing Cairngorm Travel, Unit H Opus 36,
New Potter Grange Road, Goole, E. Yorks, DN14 6BZ
giving your original booking reference number and all other relevant
information, including the reference of the Holiday Report Form. It is
therefore a condition of this contract that you communicate any problem to the
supplier of the services in question AND to our representative whilst in resort
and obtain a written report form. If you fail to follow this simple procedure,
we cannot accept responsibility as we have been deprived of the opportunity to
investigate and rectify the problem. Should you wish to pursue the complaint
further, BCH ABTOT have an Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme and full
details are available from them. Please contact them at ABTOT , 7th Floor, 69 Leadenhall St. London , EC3A 2BG. Telephone: 0207 065 5311.
11. Our Coaches
We will always use our reasonable endeavours to provide a
coach to the specification in our brochure or advert but reserve the right to
substitute an alternative vehicle should there be unforeseen circumstances.
There is a seating plan but, in some cases, operational reasons may require a
coach with a different configuration. We reserve the right to alter a coach
seating plan and allocate seats other than those booked. Single passengers may
be required to share a double seat with other single passengers. When your
booking is confirmed, you will be offered the best seats that are available at
that time. If you feel that you require two seats, then these must be booked
and paid for in advance, at the time of booking. If you fail to do this and it
transpires that the seat allocated to you is insufficient for your needs and
there is no alternative seating available, then you will be refused access to
the coach and any payments made will be liable to forfeiture. Specific seats
will not be allocated on coaches operating a feeder service between joining
points and main holiday departure points or on coaches that carry out transfers
between airports, seaports etc.
12. Joining points
Passengers may only be picked up at the joining points
stated in the brochure and it is your responsibility to ensure that you are
there by the time stated on your Travel Details, which will be sent to you
approximately one week prior to departure. The Company accepts no liability for
late arrivals who miss the coach, which must depart on time for the convenience
of the other passengers. Naturally where such a wide variety of pick up points
is served, feeder vehicles or taxis are sometimes involved to take you to the
nearest practical point to meet the main coach.
13. Hotel Facilities
Some hotel facilities and entertainment may be withdrawn for
routine maintenance or be subject to seasonal availability and provision of the
facilities cannot be guaranteed. Single occupancy of rooms may be subject to a
supplementary charge.
14. Ground floor
accommodation
There is usually a limited number of ground or low floor
rooms available, and requests for this accommodation must be made in the
“Special Requirements” section of the booking form, but this type of
accommodation cannot be guaranteed. Please enquire with our booking team if
lifts are available at a hotel.
15. Rooms
Rooms are specified at the time of booking, and a
confirmation is issued showing the type of room which has been reserved, ie double, twin, single, triple.
In the event of unavailability of double rooms it may be necessary to allocate
a twin. On continental holidays a twin room will often consist of a large base
with two separate mattresses, and a triple room will often consist of two beds
and a foldaway or bunk bed. Bookings for rooms with private facilities will be
deemed to be effected by the provision of either bath & WC or shower &
WC. Our liability for the provision of extra facilities for which a supplement
is paid shall be limited to the brochure price of that supplement. When a
single room is available it will be subject to a supplementary charge and this
will be shown on the brochure page.
16. Entertainment
Some hotels arrange additional entertainment which could
include music, dancing, film shows, bingo etc. Entertainment offered by hotels
is indicated in the hotel description on the holiday page. The nature and
frequency of the entertainment presented is at the discretion of the hotel and
therefore not guaranteed and could be withdrawn if there is a lack of demand or
insufficient numbers in the hotel. Should the normal location of the
entertainment be required by the hotel for an alternative function we reserve
the right to transfer clients to another hotel or location for any specific
entertainment.
17. Health and Safety
In some foreign countries, standards of infrastructure,
safety and hygiene may be lower than those to which we are accustomed in the
UK. You should therefore exercise greater care for your own protection. There
may be countries that we visit that have special medical requirements for
tourists. These regulations are subject to change and our clients are
responsible for complying with entry and current health requirements. If you
are not sure of the health requirements for the country you are visiting, you
are advised to check with your own GP before travelling. You are also advised
to refer to the Department of Health leaflet “Health Advice for Travellers”.
Some people may be at risk from discomfort or deep vein
thrombosis (DVT) if they remain immobile on a journey for a long period. If you
are planning to undertake a journey of more than three hours, you should
consult your doctor, if you have ever had DVT, pulmonary embolism, a family
history of clotting conditions, cancer or treatment for cancer, stroke, and heart or lung disease or If you
have had major surgery in the past three months.
We reserve the right to refuse any booking in the absence of
a doctor’s certificate confirming that you are fit to travel. Where we provide
comfort stops you are encouraged to walk around. Exercise reduces any
discomfort, which may be caused by periods of immobility.
NO SMOKING is allowed on our coaches (including
E-Cigarettes) and we do not allow pets or any other animals, although we
accommodate registered assistance dogs, but not on overseas holidays.
If you are unwell
If you have suffered from sickness or diarrhoea in the 48
hours prior to travelling please contact one of our reservations team, who will
assist you.
18. Travel documents,
itineraries, pick-up points and passports
For all Continental holidays, you will require a full 10-year British Passport (machine readable) valid for a further 6 months after your holiday. If you do not hold a full British Passport or have any doubts about your status as a resident British subject, you must check with the Embassies or Consulates of the Countries to be visited to confirm the Passport or visa requirements when you book. We cannot accept responsibility if passengers are not in possession of the correct travel documents. For full details on passport requirements, please contact ‘the identity and passport service’ on 0300 222 0000 https://www.gov.uk/browse/abroad/passports
In relation to holidays in the European Union or a requirement to travel through an EU Member State, you are responsible to ensure that you have any necessary entry documents as required by the EU including any required compliance with the EU’s ‘ETIAS’ system, for more information on which see www.etiasvisa.com . For more information on which see www.etiasvisa.com. For travel in the European Union or Schengen area a valid General Health Insurance Card (GHIC) is required. Available free of charge from the NHS and valid for 5 years https://www.nhs.uk
You are responsible for ensuring you are at the correct
departure point, at the correct time and with the correct documents. Cairngorm
Travel reserve the right to modify itineraries to conform with requests from
competent authorities both within the UK and abroad.
Excursions which are included in the cost of your booking
are detailed on the brochure page and refunds will not be made for excursions
not taken. Optional excursions booked and paid for in resort do not form part
of your booking. Admission fees to buildings may not be included in the price
of the holiday, please check.
19. Special Requests
All special needs and requests, if agreed, should be entered
on the booking form and be included in the confirmation of the holiday. These
cannot be guaranteed except where confirmed as part of our holiday commitment
to you and are detailed on your holiday booking confirmation. We are keen to ensure
that we plan the arrangements for your holiday so that special needs and
requests can be accommodated as far as possible. If you will need assistance or
may be unable to fully enjoy all aspects of your holiday you must tell us in
advance so that we can maximise your enjoyment of the holiday. We will need to
know if you will need special facilities in the hotel, taking part in the
excursions or have difficulty boarding and travelling on the coach or other
means of transport. Before booking your holiday, you should be sure that you
and your party are both physically and mentally capable of completing the
itinerary. If you need advice or further information either you or your booking
agent should contact 01405 761334. If you will require a special diet please
tell us at the time of booking, or as soon as you are medically advised,
together with a copy of the diet.
The holidays in this brochure have been carefully planned to
include as much of interest as possible. Inevitably some of the holidays
include lengthy periods of travel and some walking on sightseeing excursions.
Additionally, many of the hotels will have steps to contend with and may not
possess lifts, and although we will try our very best to look after disabled
passengers, it is important that you notify us of your disability, by entering
the word DISABLED in block letters in the special requirements section of the
Booking Form or by passing this information to our Reservations Office when
booking. A questionnaire will then be issued, which must be completed and
returned to us immediately. We will make every effort to minimise any
discomfort or inconvenience, but for obvious reasons are unable to make any
guarantees. Folding wheelchairs/motorised chairs can only be carried by prior
arrangement.
20. Special Diets
If you require a special diet you must inform us at the time
of booking with a copy of the diet. This will be notified to the hotel or
hotels on your holiday but on certain tours the hotels used are tourist class
and whilst offering value for money within the price range, they may not have
the full facilities to cope with special diets. Any extra costs incurred must
be paid to the hotel by yourself before departure from the hotel.
21. Passengers with
disabilities
We want everyone to enjoy our travel arrangements. We are
happy to advise and assist you in choosing a suitable holiday. But, as some of
the accommodation and resorts featured may not cater for even minor
disabilities, it is important that, when booking, you advise us of any disability,
specific need or complex need you may have and any special requirements that
will make sure the holiday is suitable. If a passenger requires personal
assistance (for example, assistance with feeding, dressing, toileting,
mobilising) then this passenger must travel with an able-bodied companion or
carer and written confirmation that such assistance will be provided for the
entirety of the holiday is required at the time of booking. Coach drivers/Tour
Managers are unable to provide such assistance.
Important
You must tell us if you have an existing medical condition,
disability or complex need that may affect your holiday or other group members’
enjoyment of it before you book your holiday. We reserve the right to request a
doctor’s certificate confirming the passenger is fit to travel. If, in our
reasonable opinion, your chosen holiday is not suitable for your medical
condition or disability, we reserve the right to refuse your booking. You are
responsible for bringing with you the proper clothing and equipment, which we
advise you about in our printed trip information. We want you to enjoy your
holiday and will help you select an appropriate trip.
22. Severe winter
weather conditions
If the tour itinerary cannot be fulfilled as planned due to
inclement weather conditions we will endeavour to provide a suitable
alternative, and regret that under such circumstances, no refunds can be made.
The decision to change the itinerary in this case will be at the
Company’s/Drivers discretion and their judgement will be final.
23. Passenger
Behaviour
We want all our customers to have a happy and carefree
holiday. You are responsible for your behaviour and hygiene and the effect it
may have on others. If you or any other member of your party is abusive,
disruptive or behaves in a way that could cause damage or injury to others or
affect their enjoyment of their holiday or which could damage property, we have
the right to terminate your contract with us and we will have no further
liability or obligation to you. The coach driver/representative, ship's
captain, or authorised official is entitled to refuse you boarding if in their
reasonable opinion you are unacceptably under the influence of drink or drugs
or you are being violent or disruptive. If you are refused boarding on the
outward journey, we will regard it as a cancellation by you and we will apply
cancellation charges. If on your return journey, we have the right to terminate
the contract with you. We also request that mobile telephones are not used on
the coach.
24. Illegal objects
and substances
The attempt by any person to carry any illegal objects and
substance will do so entirely at their own risk and they shall be held
personally responsible for doing so with local police, customs and immigration.
25. Travel Insurance
We strongly advise that you take out personal travel
insurance for the trip. We have arranged travel insurance with
PJ Hayman & Company Ltd which is outlined below.
Call: 02392 419 843 quoting Cairngorm Travel
Visit website: https://ukstaycationplan.justtravelcover.com
You may use an
alternative insurer, but you must advise us. The insurance should cover medical
and repatriation costs, personal injury, loss of baggage and cancellation
charges. If you do not have adequate insurance and require our assistance
during your holiday, we reserve the right to reclaim from you any medical
repatriation or other expenses which we may incur on your behalf which would
otherwise have been met by insurers. You must advise us if you use an
alternative insurer, the policy number and 24-hour contact number.
26 Luggage
Please restrict your luggage to a suitcase weighing no more
than 18kgs per person. We cannot accept responsibility for loss or damage to
luggage unless through our negligence. Please do not leave valuable items in
your suitcase when left on the coach. Please contact us for our policy on
mobility scooters.
27. General Data
Protection Regulations
We comply with the GDPR 2018 Regulations, our data
controller is the data controller officer and our data protection policy can be
found at https://www.cairngorm-travel.co.uk/privacy or you can request a copy
from Cairngorm Travel, Unit H Opus 36, New Potter Grange Road, Goole, E. Yorks, DN14 6BZ
28. Emergency Contact
Our emergency contact details are Tel: 01540 661302 Email:
info@cairngorm-travel.co.uk