SOLO ADVENTURE HOLIDAYS – TERMS AND CONDITIONS
These are the terms of business (the “Terms”) on which we SOLO ADVENTURE HOLIDAYS LIMITED, a company registered in England and Wales under company no. 14308667 (“Solo Adventure Holidays”; “we”; “us”; “our”), process a booking for your travel requirements.
By completing a booking with us you are accepting the Terms including our booking conditions.
The contract formed is between Solo Adventure Holidays and you, who are any private person travelling or intending to travel on a trip operated by us including any person who is added or substituted after booking. We agree that English law will apply to our contractual relationship and to any dispute, claim or other legal matter which arises between us (except as set out below). We also agree that any dispute, claim or other legal matter which arises between us must be dealt with by the Courts of England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland dependent on where you live.
If we are assisting you with the ordering and/or processing of items, which are not included in the travel package that we are selling to you; e.g., airplane travel, additional activities you will be entered into a contract directly with the providers of the travel related services; including, among others, airlines, hotels, other accommodation providers and transfer providers (“Your Service Providers”). In addition, all optional activities/excursions that are booked by you outside of the pre-booked and paid for itinerary are undertaken at your own risk.
The information appearing in our on our website www.soloadventureholidays.com (the “Website”) and Meetup, together with our Privacy Policy will also form the basis of your contract with us. All references in the Terms to “trip”, “booking”, “contract” or “arrangements” mean such trip arrangements you have ordered via us unless otherwise stated. References in the Terms to “send” and “in writing” or similar include communication by e-mail.
HOW TO MAKE A BOOKING
Bookings can be made via the Website or Meetup. We emphasise the importance of making a booking at the earliest opportunity, because of the small group nature of our trips.
To secure your booking we must receive a deposit per person of the fixed amount advertised on the trip details page on the Website or Meetup at time of booking, or full payment if booking is within 8 weeks days of the start of your trip or at an earlier stage for some trips.
A higher deposit will be payable if any of Your Service Providers requires additional payment at the time of booking or prior to balance due date. On occasions, full payment for a service such as your flights may be required at the time of booking. The applicable deposit will be confirmed at the time of booking.
All travellers (including anyone who is added or substituted at a later date) will be deemed to have agreed to the following conditions:
- They have read and accepted the Terms and information pages contained on the Website.
- They do not suffer from any pre-existing medical condition or disability which may prevent them from participating in the trip. If you suffer from any medical condition or disability which will or may affect the trip arrangements, please contact us before making your booking to discuss your requirements.
- The person making the booking confirms that he/she is 18 years old or thereover and has full authority to enter a contract. The person will be the single point of communication relating to the full booking and confirms that all persons covered by the booking are fully aware of and accept the Terms. That person also consents to the use of personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy and is authorised on behalf of all persons named on the booking to disclose their personal details to us, including where applicable, special categories of data (such as information on health conditions or disabilities and dietary requirements).
BOOKING DETAILS
Reservations are made on the understanding that you will check all details on your invoice/booking form immediately and advise us of any discrepancies. Each traveller’s first and last name should be spelt exactly as they appear in their passport. As it is not usually possible in most instances to change names or spellings in airline reservations, if names are spelt incorrectly, the sooner we are advised of this, the better the chances are of us being able to make a fresh reservation at the same fare with the correct spellings. If airline tickets are issued with incorrect name spellings or middle names instead of first names, airlines may still impose standard cancellation charges and insist that a new reservation be made and paid for. We will not be responsible for any costs incurred to correct them, please note this could be up to 100%. Please also check that your address and post-code are correct.
The booking information that you provide to us will be passed on only to the relevant suppliers of your travel arrangements or other persons necessary for the provision of your travel arrangements. The information may therefore be provided to public authorities such as customs or immigration if required by them, or as required by law. This applies to any sensitive information that you give to us such as details of any disabilities, or dietary and religious requirements.
BOOKING CONFIRMATION
We will send a booking confirmation by automated e-mail. Please check it carefully and contact us immediately if it is incorrect, as it may not be possible to make changes later.
A booking is accepted and becomes definite only from the date when we issue a booking confirmation to you. It is at this point that a contract between us comes into existence. If you book online, any acknowledgement of your booking request we send to you in the meantime is not a confirmation of your booking. Before your booking is confirmed and a contract comes into force, we reserve the right to increase or decrease the prices. We reserve the right to decline any booking at our discretion. We will communicate with you by e-mail. You must therefore check your e-mails on a regular basis. We may also contact you by telephone if we cannot, for whatever reason, contact you by e-mail. It is your responsibility to ensure we have always up to date contact information for you. You should contact us by e-mail if you need to do so for any of the reasons mentioned in the Terms.
YOUR FINANCIAL PROTECTION
You can book your flights, accommodation, and transfers with confidence, because Solo Adventure Holidays is licenced by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) as an Air Travel Organiser (ATOL 12293). This financial protection scheme ensures that in the very unlikely event of our insolvency you will be refunded in full if travel has not already commenced or that you will be able to continue your travel arrangements using a suitable alternative.
We are also member of the Travel Trust Association (TTA) that provides 100% financial protection for our customers regardless of what service they have booked or how much they have paid. Every single penny is secured in the trust account and guaranteed by the TTA. Our TTA membership number is X8285
OUR RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR TRIP
We accept responsibility for the arrangements we agree to provide or arrange for you under the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018, as set out below and as such, we are responsible for the proper provision of all travel services included in your package, as set out in your booking confirmation.
Subject to the Terms we will pay you reasonable compensation, if we or our suppliers negligently perform or arrange those services and we do not remedy or resolve your complaint within a reasonable period of time. Please note, it is your responsibility to show that reasonable skill and care has not been used if you wish to make a claim against us.
In addition, we will only be responsible for what our employees, agents and possibly also suppliers do or do not do if they were at the time acting within the course of their employment or carrying out work we had asked them to do.
The promises we make to you about the services we have agreed to provide or arrange as part of our contract – and the laws and regulations of the country in which your claim or complaint occurred – will be used as the basis for deciding whether the services in question had been properly provided. If the particular services which gave rise to the claim or complaint complied with local laws and regulations applicable to those services at the time, the services will be treated as having been properly provided. This will be the case even if the services did not comply with the laws and regulations of the UK which would have applied had those services been provided in the UK.
As set out in these conditions, we limit the maximum amount we may have to pay you for any claims you may make against us. Where we are found liable for loss of and/or damage to any luggage or personal possessions (including money), the maximum amount we will have to pay you is £50 per person affected. You must ensure you have appropriate travel insurance to protect your personal belongings.
We cannot guarantee accuracy at all times of information given in relation to such activities or excursions or about the area you are visiting generally or that any particular excursion or activity which does not form part of our contract will take place as these services are not under our control. If you feel that any of the activities or excursions referred to on our website and in our other advertising material are vital to the enjoyment of your holiday, write to us immediately and we will tell you the latest known situation. If we become aware of any material alterations to area information and/or such outside activities or excursions which can reasonably be expected to affect your decision to book a holiday with us, we will pass on this information at the time of booking.
FORCE MAJEURE
We do not accept responsibility for any expenses or costs incurred by you as a result of changes or cancellations that are due to unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control (“Force Majeure”). These can include war or threat of war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions, governmental action or accommodation ceasing to be available.
SINGLE SUPPLEMENT
You can pay a single supplement at the time of the booking to secure your own room. Should you wish to take the sharing option we will wherever possible arrange for room sharing of the same sex where requested. If, however, there are uneven numbers, you may be asked to pay the single supplement.
DEPOSITS AND PAYMENTS
The requested deposit must be paid at the time of booking (this amount varies from trip to trip) and full monies are due 8 weeks before departure date for travel. Deposits are non-transferable and non-refundable. However, we have implemented a Covid-19 Refund policy and in the unlikely event that we need to cancel a holiday, due to countries denying entry, borders closing or the Government advising against all but essential travel, then all monies paid will be refunded in full or you will offered an option to transfer your monies to another trip.
Final payment is normally due 8 weeks before the start of your trip / departure date, though for certain trips, full payment must be received sooner. On many flight bookings payment is due within 10 days or less of booking. The date by which the balance is due is shown on the booking confirmation which we email to you. You are also free to pay the balance before the final payment date shown on your booking confirmation if you wish.
If the balance is not paid on time, reservations cannot be guaranteed and we reserve the right to cancel your booking, retain your deposit and apply the applicable cancellation charges.
TRAVEL INSURANCE
Travel insurance is mandatory on all our trips and we recommend you purchase this at the time of your booking. If you are no longer able to travel due to contracting Covid or any other illness, then you must have travel insurance to cover you for you for trip cancellation costs. In addition to peace of mind, this may provide cancellation cover prior to your departure and practical and financial assistance should things go wrong whist you are travelling. We cannot accept responsibility for any persons who fail to take out adequate travel insurance.
CANCELLATIONS BY YOU
If you cancel your booking, you must immediately advise us in writing by email. Cancellations charges are as follows:
Deposits or full fares paid for all bookings with flights on low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and EasyJet will be non-refundable at any time. Other airlines will be referred directly to the airline and the airline cancellation fees and ticket rules will apply as described herein.
You may cancel your booking at any time providing that we receive written notification. You must receive and retain written acknowledgement from Solo Adventure Holidays as proof of receipt by us of your notification to cancel. Cancellation charges apply from the date we receive written notification from the person/people cancelling.
If you cancel your trip in full prior to paying your balance, all applicable deposits will be forfeited. Once you have paid for your travel arrangements, cancellation charges (which may be up to 100% of the cost of cancelled arrangements) will be payable depending on the nature of the booking.
The following general cancellation policy is applicable to all travel arrangements:
Cancellations:
a ) 90 or more days before trip start / departure date = loss of deposit plus any flight costs
- b) 90-60 days before trip start / departure date = loss of 50% of trip costs plus any flight costs; and
- c) 60-0 days before trip start / departure date = 100% of trip cost plus any flight costs.
Cancellation of a portion of your travel arrangements means that the deposit allocated to that portion will be forfeited.
CHANGES OR CANCELLATIONS BY US
We always do our best to deliver all trips as advertised; however, we reserve the right to change any of the facilities, services or itineraries described on the Website or Meetup at any time before or after your booking is confirmed. If a significant change has to be made, we will inform you as soon as reasonably possible, if there is time before departure
Most of our group trips require minimum numbers and if these are not achieved, we have the right to cancel the trip and refund your deposit and other monies paid.
You will have the choice of either accepting the change of arrangements of comparable standard from us, or cancelling your booked arrangements and receiving a full refund.
AIRLINE SCHEDULE CHANGES AND FLIGHT DELAYS
We have no control over airline schedule changes and accept no liability for costs or for providing a refund on unused services which may arise as a result of such changes. Please note that for flights on any carrier departing from an EU member state or travelling to an EU member state on an airline based in an EU member state, that you will be entitled to protection under EU regulation 261/2004.
SPECIAL REQUESTS
If you have a special request, (e.g. dietary, seating, disability, entry of frequent flyer numbers into your reservation) please let us know when you make the booking. We will do our best to ensure that your request is met by passing it on to the providers of air transportation or Your Service Providers. It is understood however that all requests cannot be guaranteed. Failure to meet any special requests will not be a breach of contract on our part. Confirmation that a special request has been noted or passed on to Your Service Providers or the inclusion of the special request on your confirmation or any other documentation is not confirmation that the request will be met. Unless and until specifically confirmed, all special requests are subject to availability.
We regret we cannot accept any conditional bookings, i.e. any booking which is specified to be conditional on the fulfilment of a particular request. All such bookings will be treated as “standard” bookings subject to the above provisions on special requests.
If you have any medical condition or disability which may affect your holiday or have any special requirements as a result of any medical condition or disability (including any which affect the booking process), please tell us before making your booking so that we can assist you in considering the suitability of the arrangements and/or making the booking. In any event, you must give us full details in writing at the time of booking and whenever any change in the condition or disability occurs. You must also promptly advise us if any medical condition or disability which may affect your holiday develops after your booking has been confirmed. If we reasonably feel unable to properly accommodate the particular needs of the person concerned, we must reserve the right to decline their reservation or, if full details are not given at the time of booking, cancel when we become aware of these details.
PASSPORT AND VISA REQUIREMENTS
Please ensure that you are fully aware of all passport and visa requirements and that you allow sufficient time to obtain them. The specific passport and visa requirements, and any other immigration requirements, are your own responsibility and you should confirm these with the relevant embassies and/or consulates. Neither we nor our Service Providers accept any responsibility if you cannot travel due to you not having complied with all passport, visa and immigration requirements.
It is essential that you travel with a passport that has a minimum validity of 6 months remaining at all times. Please also ensure there are sufficient blank pages in your passport to allow for any visas which may need to be obtained en-route. Passports should be Machine Readable for travel to/via the USA.
VACCINATION AND HEALTH REQUIREMENTS
You should consult with your own GP or Practice Nurse for any existing health conditions that may affect your travel. Such health advice on your specific needs should be obtained as early as possible and it is your responsibility to ensure that you have fully complied with all health and immunisation requirements of the countries you may be visiting. If you fail to do so, Solo Adventure Holidays has no liability for any cost, loss or damage which you suffer as a result and nor will we refund the cost of any unused portion of your travel arrangements.
You can find the National Health Service website with destination specific health and vaccination requirements here: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/travel-vaccinations/
TRAVEL ADVICE
You are advised to check up to date travel advice about your destinations on the UK Government website. This site provides the latest travel advice including safety, security, and terrorism threat levels, health issues and travel warnings. Where conditions change within different areas of a country, this information is broken down into relevant regions.
You can find the relevant websites here: https://travelaware.campaign.gov.uk and https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice
TRIP PARTICIPATION AND CLIENT RESPONSIBILITY
You agree to accept the authority and decisions of our employees and agents whilst on trip with us. If in the opinion of any such person(s) or any other person in a position of authority that your health, level of fitness or conduct at any time before or during a trip is endangering or appears likely to endanger your health or wellbeing or that of any third party or the safe, comfortable or happy progress of the trip, you may be excluded from all or part of the trip without refund. Where you are excluded, we will have no further responsibility towards you (including any return travel arrangements) and we will not meet any expenses or costs incurred as a result of the exclusion. In the case of ill health, we may make such arrangements we see fit and recover the costs thereof from you. If you commit an illegal act (including, for example, causing any damage) you may be excluded from the trip and we shall cease to have responsibility to/for you as above. No refund will be given for any unused services. When you book with us, you accept responsibility for any damage or loss caused by you . Full payment for any such damage or loss (reasonably estimated if not precisely known) must be made direct to the accommodation owner or manager or other supplier or to us as soon as possible, if the costs incurred by us as a result of your actions. You should ensure you have appropriate travel insurance to protect you if this situation arises. If you have any medical condition or disability which may affect your active participation in your trip or the trip arrangements of any other person or have any special requirements as a result of any medical condition or disability (including any which affect the booking process), please tell us before you confirm your booking so that we can assist you in considering the suitability of the proposed trip and/or making the booking. In any event, you must give us full details at the time of booking and whenever any change in the condition or disability occurs.
You must also promptly advise us if any medical condition or disability which may affect your active participation in your trip or the trip arrangements of any other person in your party develops after your booking has been confirmed.
COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE
We pride ourselves on delivering the highest standard of customer service, but in the unlikely event that you have a problem or complaint during your holiday please make the host or tour representative aware so that it can be resolved immediately. If you feel that this has not been dealt with to your satisfaction, please get in touch via email on your return and we will follow up. You should let us know in writing within one month of the arrangements in question. If you fail to follow this procedure, your right to claim any compensation you may otherwise have been entitled to may be affected or even lost as a result.
WEBSITE AND ADVERTISING ACCURACY
We endeavour to ensure that the details of all products, including prices, pictures, etc. displayed on the Website are accurate. However, given the high volume of trips offered it is inevitable that, in exceptional cases, mistakes will arise. We cannot accept liability for these errors.
All information provided on the Website is checked by us and our travel partners and is believed to be correct at time of being published. However, please bear in mind that property owners, hoteliers, activity operators and organisers etc. may wish to maintain or improve their facilities at any given time. Circumstances such as these, or weather conditions, time of year etc. may cause some of the amenities we have described to be unavailable or different from those shown on the Website. When we are told of any significant change that may affect your trip, we will always endeavour to advise you.