1.Your Holiday Contract

The contract is between the Company and the client, being any person travelling or intending to travel on a tour operated by the Company.The contract, including all matters arising from it, is subject to English law and the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts. No employee of the Company other than a director has authority to vary or omit any of these terms or promise any discount or refund.

2.To Secure Your Booking

(Please refer to Section 16 Late Bookings)

To secure a booking the Company or their agent requires a completed booking form and deposit (10% of the tour price or £50 per person whichever is greater. Full payment for travel within 60 days). Clients booking by telephone, on the website, by e-mail or facsimile will be deemed to have agreed to the following four conditions:

a) they have read and accepted our Booking Conditions and general information pages, contained on our website.
b) they appreciate, on behalf of all the people included in their booking, the risks involved in adventure travel.
c) they or anyone else on their booking does not suffer (or has ever suffered) from any pre-existing medical condition which may prevent them from actively participating in the tour.
d) the person signing, or being deemed to sign, the attached booking form (which incorporates these terms) warrants that he/she has full authority to do so on behalf of all persons whose names appear thereon, and confirms that all such persons are fully aware of and accept these conditions.

A booking is accepted and becomes definite only from the date when the Company sends a confirmation invoice. It is at this point that a contract between the Company and the client comes into existence. Before your booking is confirmed and a contract comes into force, the Company reserves the right to increase or decrease website prices. The Company or their agents reserve the right to decline any booking at their discretion. Where our allocation of air seats has been fully utilised or where it is not possible to offer an air seat from an allocation, we reserve the right to pass on any extra costs incurred.

3.Payment for Your Holiday

The balance of all monies due, including any surcharges applicable at that time, must be paid to the Company or their agent not later than 56 days before departure. In the case of non-payment of the balance by the due date the Company reserves the right to cancel your booking and cancellation charges will apply. Any monies paid by you to a travel agent for tours operated by the Company, are held by the agent on the Company's behalf.

4. If You Change Your Booking

a) An administration fee of £25 per booking plus any additional cost incurred will be charged if a confirmed booking is changed or transferred to a different departure date or tour, up to 56 days prior to departure.Thereafter all changes will be treated as cancellations and subject to the charges below. Changes are subject to availability. For an administration fee of £25 you can request a credit voucher.This must be redeemed within 3 months of issue and must be used against a new booking.The voucher is non transferable and cannot be exchanged for cash.
b) If a client is unable to travel, in certain circumstances which the Company considers reasonable, the booking may be transferred to another suitable person, however the tour arrangements must remain the same and will only be allowed if all suppliers (eg. airlines etc.) agree to accept the name change. If a transfer is allowed an administration charge of £40 per person will be made if the Company is advised up to 56 days before departure or £100 per person if less than 56 days before departure, plus any extra charges levied by suppliers.

5. If You Cancel Your Booking

Should the client wish to cancel, cancellation charges will be imposed.These are calculated from the day written notification is received by the Company or their agent as a percentage of the total tour price, including surcharges, as shown below:

a) 56 and more days before departure - retention of deposit
b) 55-42 days before departure - 30%
c) 41-28 days before departure - 60%
d) 27-14 days before departure - 90%
e) Less than 14 days - 100%

In addition to the above cancellation fees, the full insurance premium is also retained in the event of a cancellation. It is strongly recommended that full insurance is taken out, which includes cover, under certain circumstances, against the loss of deposit or cancellation charges. In the event of the cancellation of a booking and where the client is liable to pay to the company the cancellation charges set out above, the clientcannot transfer the cost of those to another booking.

6. If You Have a Complaint

Should the client have a complaint about any of the tour arrangements, the client must tell both the relevant supplier and the Company's representative at the time. It is only if the Company and the relevant supplier know about problems that there will be the opportunity to put things right. Failure to complain on the spot will result in the client's ability to claim compensation from the Company being extinguished or at least reduced. If the client has a dispute with the Company which the client is unable to resolve, the client may call upon the low cost AITO Independent Dispute Settlement Service (details on request). Claims which exceed £2,500 per person or £10,000 per booking or claims which apply principally or exclusively in respect of (or as a consequence of) illness or physical injury are not admissible for settlement under the service.

7.Passports, Visas and Vaccinations

Clients are responsible for arranging, and must be in possession of, a valid passport and any visas and vaccination certificates required for the whole of their journey. Information about these matters or related items (climate, clothing, baggage, personal gear etc) is given in good faith but without responsibility on the part of the Company.

8.Travel and Cancellation Insurance

Travel Insurance is mandatory for all clients whilst on a tour organised by the Company. Clients together with their personal property including baggage are at all times solely at their own risk. Clients are wholly responsible for arranging their own insurance. Clients not taking out the Company's specially arranged Travel/Cancellation insurance are responsible for ensuring that they are in possession of private Travel Insurance with protection for the full duration of the tour in respect of at least medical expenses, injury, death, repatriation, cancellation and curtailment, with adequate cover. Clients making their own arrangements should ensure that there are no exclusion clauses limiting protection for the type of activities included in their tour. Clients should satisfy themselves that any travel insurance arranged through the Company is what they require and should arrange supplementary insurance if need be. Clients will be deemed to have read our Insurance details entitled 'Insure with Explore'.

9. Your Financial Protection

When you buy an ATOL protected air package from us you will receive a confirmation invoice confirming your arrangements and your protection under our Air Travel Organiser's Licence number 2595. In the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and will arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking. For further information visit the ATOL website at www.atol.org.uk. The company is also fully bonded and licensed by AITO Trust Ltd (Association of Independent Tour Operators) in respect of all holidays in this brochure sold in the UK or Ireland, which do not include air travel. Under the terms of the bond, monies are secured by a bank guarantee.

10. Holiday Participation

Clients agree to accept the authority and decisions of the Company's employees, tour leaders and agents whilst on tour with the Company. If in the opinion of such persons the health, level of fitness or conduct of a client at any time before or after departure appears likely to endanger the safe, comfortable or happy progress of a tour the client may be excluded from all or part of the tour without refund or recompense. In the case of ill-health the Company may make such arrangements as it sees fit and recover the costs thereof from the client. If a client commits an illegal act the client may be excluded from the tour and the Company shall cease to have responsibility to/for them. If you are affected by a condition, medical or otherwise, that might affect you or affect other people's enjoyment or active participation of the tour, you must advise us at the time of booking. No refund will be given for any unused services.

11.Surcharges

Prices quoted in this programme are based on currency rates published in the Financial Times for 17 July 2007 (US$ 2.05/£; Euro 1.48/£).We reserve the right to vary the price of your holiday in relation to changes in transport costs, including the cost of fuel, dues, taxes or fees chargeable for services such as landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports or airports,government action such as increases in VAT or any other government imposed increase or the exchange rates applied to the particular package.We will not vary the price of your holiday less than 30 days before your departure date, but if variations occur before that time, we will absorb or retain an amount up to the first 2% (excluding insurance premiums and any amendment charges) of your invoiced holiday cost. For variations greater than 2%, we will still absorb the first 2% in the case of increases, but will not retain it from refunds. If we impose a surcharge which means paying more than 10% of your holiday price, you will be entitled to cancel your holiday with a full refund of all monies paid to us except for any premium paid for insurance and amendment charges. Should you decide to cancel because of this, you must exercise your right to do so within 14 days of the date of our surcharge invoice.

12. If We Change Your Holiday

While the Company will use its best endeavours to operate all tours as advertised, it reserves the right to change any of the facilities, services, prices or itineraries described on our website. If a major change is necessary or deemed advisable, the Company will inform the client as soon as reasonably possible, if there is time before departure. A major change does not apply to a change of carrier, transport or named accommodation, but is normally considered to be a major itinerary re-routing, a significant change in the duration of your holiday, a change of flight times of more than 12 hours for connecting group flights to/from London (not applicable to flights within a tour itinerary), or a change of departure airport (except between London airports). If advised of a major change before departure the client will have the choice of accepting the changes (at additional cost if applicable), purchasing another available tour from the Company, or cancelling the tour with a full refund. Provided that the major change is not as a result of situations outside the Company's control or consolidation (see below), compensation will be paid as follows:

Period of notification Compensation given to you per person
More than 42 days: Nil
41-28 days: £20
27-14 days: £30
13 days-date of travel: £40

The Company will not pay compensation if forced to cancel or change your tour because of situations outside the Company's control or consolidation, both as defined below. Compensation includes, but is not limited to, any penalty charges associated with 'non-flexible' type connecting rail or air fares. Events outside the Company's control include, but are not limited to, war, threat of war, riot, civil strife, industrial dispute, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear disaster, fire or adverse weather conditions, epidemics, or health risks, technical or maintenance problems with transport, closed or congested airports, ports or stations, changes imposed by re-scheduling or cancellation of transportation by the transport supplier, such as flights by airlines or main charterer, the alteration of airlines or aircraft types, or other similar events beyond the control of the Company.

Consolidation is the situation in which the minimum number of bookings required to run a holiday is not met.

13. If We Cancel Your Holiday

The Company reserves the right to cancel a tour in any circumstances but will not cancel a tour less than 8 weeks before departure except for force majeure, consolidation or the client's failure to pay the final balance. Unless the client fails to pay the final balance, the Company, upon cancellation, will return all monies paid not including visa, vaccination or associated costs, or offer an alternative tour of comparable standard and will pay compensation on the scale shown in clause 12 above save that no compensation will be paid if cancellation is because of force majeure or consolidation.

14. Our Responsibility Towards Your Holiday

Clients bookings are accepted on the understanding that they appreciate the possible risks inherent in adventure travel and that they undertake the tours, treks or expeditions featured in our programme at their own volition.

(i) Our obligations, and those of our suppliers providing any service or facility included in your holiday, are to take reasonable skill and care to arrange for the provision of such services and facilities and, where we or our supplier is actually providing the service or facility, to provide them and to do so with reasonable skill and care. You must show that reasonable skill and care has not been used if you wish to make any claim. Standards of, for example, safety, hygiene and quality vary throughout the transport and destinations that your holiday may involve. Sometimes these standards will be lower than those which would be expected to be found in the UK. The services and facilities included in your holiday will be deemed to be provided with reasonable skill and care if they comply with any local regulations which apply (such as, for example, those of the Civil Aviation Authority), or, if there are no applicable local regulations, if they are reasonable when compared to the local standards and customs.
(ii) Where the client does not suffer personal injury, the Company accepts liability should any part of the tour arrangements booked with the Company not be supplied as described on this website. In such a case, the Company will pay reasonable compensation if the clients enjoyment of the tour arrangements has been adversely affected but will pay no compensation if there has been no fault on the part of the Company or its suppliers and the reason for the failure in the tour arrangements was the client's fault, the actions of someone unconnected with the tour arrangements or could not have been foreseen or avoided by the Company or its suppliers even if all due care was exercised.
(iii) For claims which involve death or personal injury as a result of an activity forming part of your holiday, we accept, and will only have, liability subject to paragraphs (iv) and (v) below should we or our suppliers fail to satisfy the obligations detailed in paragraph (i) above. If we have liability, we will, subject to paragraphs (v) and (vi) below, pay you reasonable compensation.
(iv) We have liability in accordance with paragraphs (ii) and (iii) above and subject to paragraphs (v) and (vi) below except where the cause of the failure to provide, or failure in, your holiday or any death or personal injury you may suffer is not due to any fault on our part or that of our servants, agents or suppliers, because it is either attributable to you, or attributable to someone unconnected with your holiday and is unforeseeable or unavoidable, or is due to unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised, or an event which neither we, nor our servants, agents or suppliers could have foreseen or forestalled.
(v) If any international convention applies to or governs any of the services or facilities included in your holiday arranged or provided by us, or provided by any of our suppliers, and you make a claim against us of any nature
arising out of death, injury, loss or damage suffered during or as a result of the provision of those services or facilities, our liability to pay you compensation and/or the amount (if any) of compensation payable to you by us will be limited in accordance with and/or in an identical manner to that provided for by the international convention concerned (in each case including in respect of the conditions of liability, the time for bringing any claim and the type and amount of any damages that can be awarded). International Conventions which may apply include: in respect of international air travel, the Warsaw Convention 1929 (including as amended by the Hague Protocol of 1955 and by any of the additional Montreal Protocol of 1975) or the Montreal Convention 1999; in respect of rail travel, the Berne Convention 1961; in respect of carriage by sea, the Athens Convention 1974; in respect of carriage by road, the Geneva Convention 1973; and, in respect of hotels, the Paris Convention 1962. For the avoidance of doubt, this means that we are to be regarded as having all benefit of any limitations of compensation contained in any of these Conventions or any other international conventions applicable to your holiday. If your baggage is lost, damaged or destroyed in any circumstance not subject to an international convention the maximum amount of compensation we will pay you will be £500.This sum will be assessed with reference particularly to your loss and the extent to which this has required you to purchase replacements.
(vi) If you choose to issue court proceedings in respect of a claim against us, you must do so within 2 years of your return from holiday or within 2 years of first discovering the matters giving rise to the claim, if this is later. If you do not, then our liability to you will be limited in all cases to a sum of £100.
(vii) You must, if we are adjudged to have, or if we accept, liability for a claim that you make, assign to us any rights that you may have against any of our servants, agents or suppliers which is in any way responsible for the failure of your holiday or any death or personal injury you may suffer.You must also cooperate with us in any claim we choose to bring against any third party which we, in our discretion, deem to be so responsible.
(viii) Other than as set out above, and as is detailed elsewhere in these booking conditions, we shall have no legal liability whatsoever to you for any loss, damage, personal injury or death which you suffer arising directly or indirectly from any aspect of your holiday.
(ix) Where a flight ticket is downgraded or a flight cancelled, delayed, or boarding is denied by any carrier in circumstances which would entitle you to compensation under the Denied Boarding Regulations 2004, then you
are obliged to claim the appropriate sums pursuant to those Regulations from the carrier. Any sums received by you in this respect constitute the full amount of your entitlement to compensation for all matters flowing from the carrier's actions. If, for any reason, you do not claim against the carrier and make a claim for compensation from us, we will not consider your claim until such time as you have made a complete assignment to us of any rights you have against the carrier.

15. Flights/Delays

The timings of air, sea, road or rail departures are estimates only.We cannot accept any liability for any delay in your transportation from or to the UK whether the cancellation or delay is caused by adverse weather conditions, rescheduling by a transport supplier, airline, airport authority and/or action by air traffic controllers, mechanical breakdown or industrial action.Where long flight delays result in lost holiday time, no refunds are given by hotels or suppliers. Similarly, airlines do not offer compensation for flight delays. It is in recognition of the above that the Company's travel insurance policy offers some monetary compensation for flight delays over 12 hours to cover lost holiday time, or delayed return (not applicable to flights within a tour itinerary). However, at their discretion your carrier will endeavour to reduce the inconvenience of any delay by providing meals and accommodation, as appropriate for the time of day or night (dependent on local availability), if you are delayed for more than 12 hours. If you incur payments for such services in the event of a delay, the Company will not accept responsibility for payment unless we have given our prior consent.

16. Late Bookings

We emphasise the importance of making a booking at the earliest opportunity, because of the small group nature of our tours. For bookings received within 6 weeks of departure we reserve the right to pass on any extra costs incurred. For bookings received within 6 weeks of departure the Contract between the Company and the Client comes into existence once full payment has been made and received by Explore.

2009 Prices

Dates, prices (including travel insurance premiums) and itineraries shown for tours departing from January 2009 may be subject to change. Tour prices may alter up or down by a maximum of 10% due to unforeseen scheduled air or ground cost fluctuations. In the unlikely event that the tour price increases above 10% customers may cancel with full refund of monies paid to Explore. Tours and prices on this website supercede details published in any previous Explore brochures.