Booking Conditions
In these Booking Conditions references to "you" and "your" include the first named person on the booking and all persons on whose behalf a booking is made.
Cruise & Maritime Voyages USA, LLC is a company registered in the State of Florida, with seller of travel license ST38232.
The responsibility of Cruise & Maritime Voyages USA, LLC is strictly limited to the sales of various services as follows:
The sale of tour programs consisting of travel services, such as surface, air, and water transportations, sightseeing excursion and cruise/hotel accommodations that are purchased or reserved from various suppliers not owned by Cruise & Maritime Voyages USA, LLC, who are acting as agents only for the various suppliers of these services.
By making a booking, the first named person on the booking you agree on behalf of all persons detailed on the booking that:-
a. He/she has read these terms and conditions and has the authority to and does agree to be bound by them;
b. He/she consents to our use of information in accordance with our Data Protection Policy (see clause 19);
c. He/she is over 18 years of age and where placing an order for services with age restrictions declares that he/she and all members of the party are of the appropriate age to purchase those services.
1. Booking & Insurance
Bookings can be made online, by calling our cruise reservations department or contacting your travel agent. We do accept MasterCard, Visa, Discover and American Express for Credit Card payments. Once we have received all the appropriate payments from you, a binding contract between us comes into existence. We will then dispatch our confirmation invoice to the party leader. Upon receipt, if you believe that any details on the confirmation (or any other document) are wrong you must advise us immediately as changes cannot be made later. Your balance payment is due no less than 12 weeks prior to departure, for which we will not issue a reminder. If we do not receive all payments due (including any surcharge where applicable) in full and on time, we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled by you. In this case the cancellation charges set out in clause 2 below will be payable.
It is a condition of booking with us that you take out appropriate travel insurance. You are not permitted to travel with us without having adequate travel and health insurance in place. Details of a policy offering comprehensive cover at reasonable rates is available on request. This policy includes cover for cancellation charges and the cost of assistance, including repatriation, in an emergency. If you do not purchase this insurance you must arrange alternative insurance of at least comparable standard (we will not check it, this is your responsibility) and you must provide details of your policy to us upon request. You must reimburse us fully for any costs or losses we incur as a result of your failure to comply with this clause.
2. Cancellation By You
Cancellation by you must be sent to us in writing and it will take effect when it is received by us. Since we incur costs in cancelling your arrangements, you will have to pay the applicable cancellation charges up to the maximum shown below (The cancellation charge detailed is calculated on the basis of the total cost payable by the person(s) cancelling excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges which are not refundable in the event of the person(s) to whom they apply cancelling):-
|
Date Cancellation received
|
Cancellation
$50.00 per person |
|
89 - 71 days before departure
70 - 43 days before departure
42 - 15 days before departure 14 days or less |
Deposit
50% of the price
75% of the price 100% of total price |
No refunds will be made for tickets or services booked but not used, or for insurance premiums or alteration charges.Note: Certain arrangements may not be amended after they have been confirmed and any alteration could incur a cancellation charge of up to 100% of that part of the arrangements in addition to the charges detailed above.
3. Changes and Cancellation By Us
We start planning the vacations we offer many months in advance. Occasionally, we have to make changes to and correct errors in brochure/website details both before and after bookings have been confirmed and cancel confirmed bookings. Whilst we always endeavor to avoid changes and cancellations, we must reserve the right to do so. Most changes are minor. Occasionally, we have to make a “significant change”. If we make a significant change before departure (for example, a change of accommodation to that of a lower official classification or standard for the whole or a major part of the time you are away, a change of scheduled outward departure time of twelve or more hours, a change of UK departure point to one which is significantly less convenient for you and, in the case of tours, a significant change of itinerary missing out one or more major destination substantially or altogether we will tell you as soon as possible. If there is time to do so before departure, we will offer you the choice of the following options:-
(a) (for significant changes) accepting the changed arrangements
(b)purchasing an alternative vacation from us, of a similar standard to that originally booked if available. If the chosen alternative is more expensive you may be asked to pay the difference, but if it is cheaper, you will receive a pro rata refund.
(c)cancelling or accepting the cancellation in which case you will receive a full refund of all monies you have paid to us.You must notify us of your choice within 7 days of our offer. If you fail to do so we will assume that you have chosen to accept the change or alternative booking arrangements. The above options are not available where any change made is a minor one. If we have to make a significant change or cancel, we will pay you reasonable compensation if appropriate, depending on the circumstances and when the significant change or cancellation is notified to you subject to the following exceptions. Compensation will not be payable and no liability beyond offering the above mentioned choices can be accepted where we are forced to make a change or cancel as a result of unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which we could not have avoided even with all due care or where we are forced to cancel due to an insufficient number of people having booked the vacation in question (in which case we will notify you no later than eight weeks prior to your date of departure). No compensation will be payable and the above options will not be available if we cancel as a result of your failure to comply with any requirement of these booking conditions entitling us to cancel (such as paying on time) or if the change made is a minor one or where the change(s) or cancellation by us arises out of alterations to the confirmed booking requested by you.
Please note: where arrangements with a higher price than the original ones are offered by us and accepted by you, the difference in price will be deducted from any compensation payable. In no case will we pay compensation if arrangements are offered by us and accepted by you with a higher price than that originally booked with the same cruise itinerary where no additional payment is made by you.
4. Force Majeure
Except where otherwise expressly stated in these booking conditions, we regret we cannot accept liability or pay any compensation where the performance or prompt performance of our contractual obligations is prevented or affected by or you otherwise suffer any damage or loss (as more fully described in clause 5 (1) below) as a result of “force majeure”. In these Booking Conditions, “force majeure” means any event which we or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. Such events may include war or threat of war, riot, civil strife, actual or threatened terrorist activity, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, adverse weather conditions, fire and all similar events outside our control.
5. Alteration By You
If you wish to change any part of your booking arrangements after our confirmation invoice has been issued, you must inform us in writing as soon as possible. This should be done by the person who made the booking. Whilst we will do our best to assist, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to meet your requested change. Where we can meet a request, all changes will be subject to an administration fee of $80 as well as any applicable rate changes or extra costs incurred as well as any costs incurred by ourselves and any costs or charges incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers.You should be aware that these costs could increase the closer to the departure date that changes are made and you should contact us as soon as possible.Where we are unable to assist you and you do not wish to proceed with the original booking we will treat this as a cancellation by you. A cancellation fee may be payable. If a customer is prevented from travelling it may be possible to transfer the booking to another suitable person provided that written notice is given. An administration fee will be charged, details available upon request.
Note: Certain arrangements may not be amended after they have been confirmed and any alteration could incur a cancellation charge of up to 100% of that part of the arrangements
6. Passports, Visas, Health Formalities & Travel Documents
It is your responsibility to check and fulfill the passport, visa, health and immigration requirements applicable to your itinerary. We can only provide general information about this. You must check requirements for your own specific circumstances with the relevant Embassies and/or Consulates and your Doctor as applicable. Requirements do change and you must check the up to date position in good time before departure. You must notify us regarding next of kin details and any other important information we request before you travel.
You must ensure you have the correct travel documents in your possession before departure, failing which you will be liable for any costs, which you or we may incur as a result. Please note that, very occasionally, a last minute change may entail entering an additional country. Please note children must now have their own passport. A 5-year valid passport with pages to spare is essential forall cruises. Many countries, including most of those visited during the winter cruise program; require visitors to hold passports that have at least six months validity beyond the return date of the cruise. For passengers holding US passports we suggest referring to http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/travel_1744.html for country specific entry/exit requirements. For passengers holding Canadian passports we suggest referring tohttp://www.voyage.gc.ca/preparation_information/passport_passeport-eng.asp for country specific entry/exit requirements. Any passenger arriving at the departure port without a passport, or with the incorrect documentation, will not be allowed to embark. Such circumstances are not covered by insurance and no refund claims will be entertained.
It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fit to travel and to take all necessary medication etc. with you. We do not accept any responsibility if you cannot travel, or incur any other loss because you have not complied with any passport, visa, immigration requirements or health formalities. You agree to reimburse us in relation to any fines or other losses which we incur as a result of your failure to comply with any passport, visa, immigration requirements or health formalities. Any cancellation that arises due to visa/passport requirement will be subject to the cancellation charges detailed above.
The remaining conditions in this document are the details of your contract of carriage with the carrier South Quay Travel & Leisure Limited trading as Cruise and Maritime Voyages. Where the terms “we” or “us” are used below reference is made to your carrier as defined above.
1. Responsibility
(1)We willnot be responsible or pay you compensation for any injury, illness, death, loss, damage, expense, cost or other claim of any descriptionif it results from:-
(a) the act(s) and/or omission(s) of the person(s) affected;
(b) the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party unconnected with the provision of the services contracted for and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable; or
(c) unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond ours or our supplier(s) control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised; or
(d) an event which either ourselves or suppliers could not, even with all due care, have foreseen or forestalled.
(2)As set out in these booking conditions we limit the maximum amount we may have to pay you for any claims you may make against us which do not involve personal injury, illness or death. Except where loss of and/or damage to luggage or personal possessions is concerned if we are found liable to you on any basis the maximum amount we will have to pay you is twice the price (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges) paid by or on behalf of the person(s) affected in total unless a lower limitation applies to your claim under clause 4, 5 below. This maximum amount will only be payable where everything has gone wrong and you have not received any benefit at all from your holiday.
(3)Where any claim or part of a claim (including those involving death or personal injury) concerns or is based on any travel arrangements (including the process of getting on and/or off the transport concerned) provided by any air, sea, rail or road carrier or any stay in a hotel, the maximum amount of compensation we will have to pay you will be limited. The most we will have to pay you for that claim or that part of a claim if we are found liable to you on any basis is the most the carrier or hotel keeper concerned would have to pay under the international convention or regulation which applies to the travel arrangements or hotel stay in question (for example, the Warsaw Convention as amended or unamended and the Montreal Convention for international travel by air and/or for airlines with an operating license granted by an EU country, the EC Regulation on Air Carrier Liability No 889/2002 for national and international travel by air, the Athens convention for international travel by sea). Please note: Where a carrier or hotel would not be obliged to make any payment to you under the applicable International Convention or Regulation in respect of a claim or part of a claim, we similarly are not obliged to make a payment to you for that claim or part of the claim. When making any payment, we are entitled to deduct any money which you have received or are entitled to receive from the transport provider or hotelier for the complaint or claim in question. Copies of the applicable International Conventions and Regulations are available from us on request. In any circumstances in which the carrier is liable to you by virtue of the Denied Boarding Regulation 2004, any liability we may have to you under our contract with you, arising out of the same facts, is limited to the remedies provided under the Regulation as if (for this purpose only) we were a carrier; any sums you receive from the carrier will be deducted from any amount due from ourselves.
(4) Please note, we cannot accept any liability for any damage, loss, expense or other sum(s) of any description (i) which on the basis of the information given to us by you concerning your booking prior to our accepting it, we could not have foreseen you would suffer or incur if we breached our contract with you or (ii) which did not result from any breach of contract or other fault by ourselves or our employees or, where we are responsible for them, our suppliers. Additionally we cannot accept liability for any business losses.
(5) You must provide ourselves and our insurers with all assistance we may reasonably require. You must also tell us and the supplier concerned about your claim or complaint as set out in clause 12 below. If asked to do so, you must transfer to us or our insurers any rights you have against the supplier or whoever else is responsible for your claim or complaint (if the person concerned is under 18, their parent or guardian must do so). You must also agree to cooperate fully with us and our insurers if we or our insurers want to enforce any rights which are transferred.
2. Suppliers’ Conditions
Many of the services which make up your holiday are provided by independent suppliers. Some of these terms and conditions may limit or exclude the supplier’s liability to you, usually in accordance with applicable International Conventions (see clause 1.3). Copies of the relevant parts of these terms and conditions and particularly the Terms and Conditions of Carriage at Sea of the carrier providing your Cruise are available on request from us or by going to www.cruiseandmaritime.com
3. Behavior
If in our opinion or in the opinion of any other person in authority, your behavior or that of any member of your party is causing or is likely to cause distress, danger or annoyance to any of our other guests or any third party or damage to property, or to cause a delay or diversion to transportation, we reserve the right to terminate your booking arrangements with us immediately. In the event of such termination our liability to you and/or your party will cease and you and/or your party will be required to leave your cruise or other service immediately. We will have no further obligations to you and/or your party. No refunds for lost services will be made and we will not pay any expenses or costs incurred as a result of termination. You and/or your party may also be required to pay for loss and/or damage caused by your actions and we will hold you and each member of your party jointly and individually liable for any damage or losses caused by you or any member of your party. Full payment for any such damage or losses must be paid directly to the applicable supplier prior to departure from the service in question. If you fail to make payment, you will be responsible for meeting any claims (including legal costs) subsequently made against us as a result of your actions together with all costs we incur in pursuing any claim against you. We cannot be held responsible for the actions or behavior of other guests or individuals who have no connection with your booking arrangements or with us.
4. Prices
Our current prices are calculated on exchange rates known on the 1st July 2011.
We reserve the right to make changes to and correct errors in advertised prices at any time before your holiday is confirmed, both on our website and in our brochures. We will advise you of any error of which we are aware and of the then applicable price at the time of booking. Please note that prices may go up and down at all times, and you will be notified of the final price of your chosen arrangements at the time of booking. Once the price of your chosen holiday has been confirmed by us, we will only increase or decrease it in the following circumstances. Price increases or decreases after booking will be passed on by way of a surcharge or refund. A surcharge or refund (as applicable) will be payable, subject to the conditions set out in this clause, if our costs increase or decrease as a result of transportation costs (e.g. fuel, scheduled airfares and any other airline surcharges which are part of the contract between airlines (and their agents) and the tour operator) or dues, taxes or fees payable for services such as landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports or airports increasing or decreasing or our costs increase or decrease as a result of any changes in the exchange rates which have been used to calculate the cost of your holiday. Even in the above cases, only if the amount of the increase in our costs exceeds 2% of the total cost of your holiday (excluding insurance premiums and any amendment charges), will we levy a surcharge. If any surcharge is greater than 10% of the cost of your holiday (excluding insurance premiums and any amendment charges), you will be entitled to cancel your booking and receive a full refund of all monies you have paid to us (except for any amendment charges) or alternatively purchase another holiday from us as referred to in “Changes and Cancellations by us”. Although insurance (where purchased through us) does not form part of your contract with us or of any “package”, we will consider an appropriate refund of any insurance premiums you have paid us if you can show you are unable to use/reuse or transfer your policy in the event of cancellation or purchase of an alternative holiday. Please note that travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of your travel due to contractual and other protection in place. A refund will only be payable if the decrease in our costs exceeds 2% as set out above. Where a refund is due, we will pay you the full amount of the decrease in our costs. You have 14 days from the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice to tell us if you want to cancel or purchase another holiday. If you do not tell us that you wish to do so within this period of time, we are entitled to assume that you will pay the surcharge. Any surcharge must be paid with the balance of the cost of the holiday or within 14 days of the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice, whichever is the later.
We promise not to levy a surcharge within 30 days of the start of your holiday. Please note, changes and errors occasionally occur. You must check the price of your chosen holiday at the time of booking.
5. Timings & Delays
Timings are estimates only and cannot be guaranteed, even if shown on tickets. They may be changed due to regulatory authority requirements, weather conditions, maintenance or technical reasons, and the ability of passengers to check in and board on time. Sometimes delays cannot be avoided but in such situations, in conjunction with our local agents or representatives, we will try to ensure your comfort during the course of any delay.
6. Complaints
If there is a problem during your holiday, you must report it onboard immediately or to the relevant airline, ground handler, hotelier or other supplier, so that prompt efforts can be made to resolve the problem. In the unlikely event that a problem cannot be resolved at the time and you wish to complain, you must send us full written details within 28 days of your return. Failure to take either or both of these steps will prejudice our ability to resolve your problem and / or investigate it fully. In consequence, any right to compensation you may have will be extinguished or, at the very least, substantially reduced.
7. Law & Jurisdiction
This contract and all matters arising out of it are governed by English law, in the Courts of England and Wales only. You may however, choose the law and jurisdiction of Scotland or Northern Ireland if you live there and wish to do so.
8. Flights
Cruise & Maritime Voyages does not operate, control or supervise any airlines and shall have no responsibility for carriers failing to meet schedules.
In accordance with EU Regulations we are required to advise you of the carrier(s) (or, if the carrier(s) is not known, the likely carrier(s)) that will operate your flight(s) at the time of booking. Where we are only able to inform you of the likely carrier(s) at the time of booking, we shall inform you of the identity of the actual carrier(s) as soon as we become aware of this. Any change to the operating carrier(s) after your booking has been confirmed will be notified to you as soon as possible. We are not always in a position at the time of booking to confirm the aircraft type and flight timings which will be used in connection with your flight. The flight timings and types of aircraft shown in this brochure and detailed on your confirmation invoice are for guidance only and are subject to alteration and confirmation. The latest timings will be shown on your tickets which will be dispatched to you approximately two weeks before departure. You must accordingly check your tickets very carefully immediately on receipt to ensure you have the correct flight times. It is possible that flight times may be changed even after tickets have been dispatched - we will contact you as soon as possible if this occurs. Any change in the identity of the carrier, flight timings, and/or aircraft type will not entitle you to cancel or change to other arrangements without paying our normal charges except where specified in these conditions.
Important note: the information and prices shown in this brochure may have changed by the time you come to book your arrangements. Although we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the brochure information and prices at the time of printing, regrettably errors do occasionally occur. You must therefore ensure you check the price and all other details of your chosen arrangements with us at the time of booking. Should we become aware of the need to revise information or prices, we may do so by informing you before we accept your booking. In this case the revised information or prices will be considered to form part of our contract with you as if they had originally been printed in our brochure.
9. Special requests
If you have any special request, you must advise us in writing at the time of booking. Although we will endeavor to pass any reasonable requests on to the relevant supplier, we regret we cannot guarantee any request will be met unless we have specifically confirmed this. For your own protection, you should obtain confirmation in writing from us that your request will be complied with (where it is possible for us to give this) if your request is important to you. Confirmation that a special request has been noted or passed on to the supplier or the inclusion of the special request on your confirmation invoice 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 of a particular request. All such bookings will be treated as “standard” bookings subject to the above provisions on special requests.
10. Disabilities, Illness and Medical Problems
We will do our utmost to cater for any special requirements you may have. If you or any member of your party has any medical problem or disability which may affect your stay, please provide us with full details before we confirm your booking so that we can advise as to the suitability of your chosen arrangements if possible. If we reasonably feel unable to properly accommodate the particular needs of the person(s) concerned, we will not confirm your booking or, if full details are not given at the time of booking, cancel (imposing applicable cancellation charges) when we become aware of these details.
We and the supplier concerned reserve the right to refuse boarding in the event that we reasonably feel that an individual is not fit to travel. We will deem that person unfit to travel if in the 48 hours or less before sailing they have suffered with any medical symptoms suggestive of a viral illness including but not limited to diarrhea, vomiting, high temperature or other flu-like symptoms.
11. Voyager Grade Category bookings
Voyager grade category bookings will always cost less than the cheapest advertised price. Your cabin type is not guaranteed and will be notified to you after your booking is made. See our brochure/website for full details. Bookings can be made by telephone or online via our website. Please note that this booking facility can be withdrawn and reinstated at any point, as this offer is only intermittently available.
12. Manage my booking facility
Your booking details should be live within the ‘Manage my booking’ area on our website approximately 24 hours after making your booking with us. It may take slightly longer in some cases for your booking to appear. Access to this facility is explained in the information which is sent to you after your booking is made. You must log on to update your important information, such as special requests and medical details.
13. Data Protection
Personal information provided to us will not be given or sold to third parties unless required by Governmental authorities for embarkation and disembarkation or suppliers requiring such information for tours not organized by Cruise & Maritime Voyages. Should a booking be made online or over the phone whereby credit card information is provided, such information will be protected in compliance with the PCI Security Standards Council ensuring secure payment procedures.
