Terms & Conditions

We hope that your Kuoni holiday will live up to your expectations so it is very important that you choose the right holiday for you. Space in our brochures to give detailed information is limited but there is more information online at www.kuoni.co.uk and our staff are always happy to advise and give you their professional opinion.

When you decide to confirm your holiday with us, please ensure that you cancel any other flights which may have been held for the same dates/airlines, by other Tour Operators/Travel Agents. Failure to do so, may result in the airline subsequently cancelling the flights we have booked, and additional costs being incurred to re-book.

Choosing the right hotel can be a dilemma, especially when travelling to long haul destinations and whilst most hotels have official star ratings locally, in some cases official ratings cannot always be relied on. Subsequently we have categorised all hotels throughout the brochure as three, four or five star to give a general guide. However, standards can vary between hotels of the same class in different countries, and even in the same country. For example city hotels which often cater for business as well as leisure travellers may well have generally higher standards than a beach resort hotel where the whole atmosphere will tend to be more relaxed. It is important to read carefully the individual hotel descriptions. A comparison of the extra night cost shown in the price box against each hotel will also give some idea of how hotels in the same resort/country are likely to compare in terms of general standards.

It is an unfair fact of life that single travellers often have to pay over the odds for a room, often up to twice the price each person in a twin room might have to pay. So we have negotiated some super deals and are delighted to offer you the widest choice of single saver offers available on the UK longhaul market today. Please check in the Kuoni Plus box on each page for these very special offers. However note that the standard and location of single rooms is not always as good as that of twin/double rooms even when you pay the single supplement.

On safari, excursions and touring holidays single rooms cannot always be guaranteed. Supplements paid will be refunded if a single room previously confirmed is not available.

I)
WHY ARE SINGLE TRAVELLERS ASKED TO PAY MORE FOR THEIR ROOM?
If a single person occupies a double room they will usually be asked to pay extra (a single supplement). Hotels price their rooms, as doubles or family rooms and they do not reduce the rates if it is occupied by a single person. The costs to the hotel of providing the room – heating, lighting, cleaning etc are the same regardless of how many people occupy that room. This also applies to self-catering units where, for example, three people may choose to occupy accommodation priced for four.

II)
WHY ARE SINGLE ROOMS SOMETIMES SMALLER THAN DOUBLES OR FAMILY ROOMS?
Hotel design may mean that single rooms are smaller and sometimes less well appointed. While there is normally a supplement for these rooms, the overall cost will usually be less than when a single person occupies a double room. We do not make additional or excessive profits from these supplements. The prices we charge reflect the costs of under occupancy of the rooms contracted to us by the hotel.

Accommodation in all hotels, regardless of the rating, is in standard rooms (sometimes named superior/deluxe) based on twins or doubles unless otherwise stated.

A third or fourth person sharing a room either shares existing beds or has an extra bed (which may be of camp-bed style) placed in a double/twin room. As conditions may be cramped you may wish to consider booking two rooms.
Where we offer 'free child accommodation stays' at many of our hotels, these are generally based on sharing existing beds in the room.  If you require a separate bed, you must advise us at the time of booking, as there may well be a charge added to your booking, or this charge may be payable locally.  Any meal plan charges will still apply.

1.6 Travelling with Children
If you are travelling with young children, it is important to note that child seats are not provided for transfers and the legislation varies from country to country.  If you specifically require a car seat, we advise you to either take your own with you, or call our Sales team, and we will do our utmost to try and arrange this for you - there may well be an additional charge for this.

1.7 Free child accommodation stays
Where we offer 'free child accommodation stays' at many of our hotels, these are generally based on sharing existing beds in the room. If you require a separate bed, you must advise us at the time of booking, as there may well be a charge added to your booking, or this charge may be payable locally. Any meal plan charges will still apply.

Minimum stays are required at certain hotels for certain periods. Where applicable these will be advised at time of booking.

Generally hotel rooms will be available between approximately noon and 3pm, and are to be vacated between 10 am and noon, irrespective of your arrival or departure times, unless we have stated otherwise. Should you wish your room to be ready prior to noon on your day of arrival or available after 10 am for an afternoon or evening departure, it is possible to reserve the room at the time of booking at a cost no greater than the extra night price quoted on the brochure page.

When the offer of a room upgrade is mentioned in Kuoni Plus, it is not necessarily an upgrade to the next category featured in our brochure, but usually an upgrade to the next category of room (not suite) available within the hotel. We will of course do everything possible to arrange the provision of a double bed for honeymoon couples but it is not always possible to guarantee this and the provision of a double bed does not constitute a term of your contract with us. Anniversary offers only apply if you’re celebrating your Silver (25th) or Golden (50th) wedding anniversary while on holiday.
Remember to advise us if it your honeymoon or Silver/Golden anniversary and to take a copy of your marriage certificate with you on holiday. In order to qualify for a Kuoni Plus offer, your stay and/or holiday must be started and completed within the date band specified, under the individual offers as stated. For hotel sale discounts and free night offers, where there is a minimum stay requirement, the nights spent at the hotel must be consecutive. The Kuoni Plus offers shown are correct at the time of printing this brochure, but they may change at short notice, and not all offers can be combined. These offers are frequently updated so for the most up to date and available offers, please contact your travel agent and/or our sales team, or check on-line to check which offers apply to your holiday.

1.11 Tours - General health requirements
Most of our tours are not suitable if you have any disability or have reduced mobility (including being confined to a wheelchair). Therefore, in the interst of safety and comfort for all groups as a whole, you must be fit enough to participate or alternatively you must have an able bodied carer to assist you in the tour.

At certain hotels we offer a free lunch, dinner, or hotel bar credit and at other hotels we may offer up to a 20% discount on food and/or beverage extras usually payable at the end of your stay. This offer is not available if you pay by credit card, nor is a cash alternative available.

Some hotels specified ‘for couples’ cater for mixed sex couples only. We reccommend that if you are a 'same sex' couple, you thoroughly research your chosen hotel/destination before you book, to ensure it is suitable. Hotels often place restrictions on restaurants and meal arrangements. All Inclusive does not necessarily mean that unlimited food and beverages are available 24-hours a day. Individual hotels operate different policies and full details will be provided locally.

You will need a full 10 year passport to travel to the destinations we feature in this brochure. Some destinations also require visas. You should contact your GP or a specialist vaccination centre for details of the measures you will need to take prior to departure. Please read page xxx for more details prior to booking your holiday. Many countries including USA now require children to hold their own passports and additional countries are adopting this policy on an ongoing basis. We therefore recommend that all children travel on full passports.

1.15 Experiences (last updated: 20 Oct 2010) 
We are pleased to be able to offer various "experiences" and activties, such as diving, which you can pre-book with us as part of your holiday arrangements.  Some of these experiences and activities may require you to be in good physical and mental health and, by booking with us, you confirm that you and your party are in good health with no medical history that would make it dangerous for you to participate.  You must observe safety instructions at all times.  We will only accept responsibility if it is caused by our negligence or the negligence of our suppliers.  The experiences and activities are subject to minimum numbers, and may be cancelled at short notice.  In such circumstance, you will receive a full refund of monies paid for the excursion or activity in question

On occasion we may advertise details of local excursions which cannot be booked through us, however, such excursions are subject to supply and demand and may not always be available locally.

Offers are subject to availability of triple or quad rooms. Infants under the age of 2 years on the date of return flight pay from £45 for European flights and £199 for longhaul flights and £249 for Australia/New Zealand flights when travelling in economy. Please note meals are not provided for infants. Infant charges are based on an infant sitting on an adults lap and additional charges will apply for infants requiring their own seat. Any charge for a baby cot in the room and food are paid by the guest direct to the hotel and there is no entitlement to a separate seat on the aircraft if the flight is full.  International airline regulations allow only one infant per adult. We do not allow holidays for children under 10 on escorted tours, coach tours or on safari (unless in private minibus). Some destinations, owing to their lack of special child or medical facilities are also not suitable for very young children but we would be happy to advise which hotels or resorts we think suit your requirements best. See the relevant price box where any specific minimum age restrictions are given.

Virtually all countries have public holidays, religious or otherwise. The festivities may temporarily disrupt your holiday and some religious holidays such as Ramadan, which affects many Muslim countries may result in a reduction of facilities and entertainment. Others are somewhat chaotic but great fun to be a part of. We suggest that you take this into consideration when selecting your departure date. The dates known to us at the time of going to press, are:

Ramadan: 01 August 2011 (approx. for one month)
Chinese New Year: 03 February 2011
Hindu Holi Dye throwing feast (India & Nepal): 20 March 2011
Sinhala + Tamil New Year (Sri Lanka): 14 April 2011
Diwali (India): 05 November 2010 / 26 October 2011 
King’s birthday (Thailand): 05 December

The appropriate Tourist Offices are happy to supply more detailed information or you may wish to refer to the internet.

Various events are organised in most towns throughout the season, and we therefore suggest that you thoroughly research your chosen area before booking.

Many hotels, especially in cities and major resorts, accommodate conventions and conferences. Also, at certain times of the year, some destinations have an influx of groups such as students, associations or clubs. The hotels we feature are shared with guests from many countries with different cultures and customs. We have no control over the acceptance of bookings at the hotels we feature other than our own. We are therefore unable to accept any responsibility for any inconvenience caused by such groups or their activities.

1.20 Holiday Seasons
Most of the destinations we feature are available all year round. Some do have quieter 'off peak' periods when you can take advantage of uncrowded beaches and a more personal attention from hotel staff at excellent prices. At this time it may be necessary for hotels to scale down the size of some of their facilities, such as restaurants, to match demand. Similarly, during peak periods hotels experience full occupancy which may result in a livelier atmosphere and slower service in busier facilities.

Meals if included are based on table d’hôte menus, or a meal voucher system unless specified otherwise in the text. Holidays which include main meals generally commence with dinner on the day of arrival at your hotel and terminate with breakfast (on half board) or lunch (on full board) on the day of departure. All Inclusive packages generally finish at check-out time on your day of departure between 10 am and noon.  After this time, payment for any additional meals must be made direct to the hotel. No refunds on meals not taken can be given. Special diets of any kind (including vegetarian) can seldom be catered for adequately within the constraints of a table d’hôte menu and cannot be guaranteed.
We would therefore strongly recommend that anyone with special requirements takes a holiday where no meals (or only breakfast) are included and simply buys the most acceptable dishes from the à la carte menu available locally.
Where breakfast is included this will more commonly be continental breakfast, although full breakfasts are provided at certain hotels. Please ask at the time of booking if this is important to you.
Supplements shown in our brochures for optional meal plans offer you the opportunity of being able to budget for extra costs before you go. In some cases you may find the cost of the meal cheaper locally, however we regret that it will not be possible to refund the difference either during or after your holiday. Pre booked meals may be subject to dining in the main restaurant only and on occasion it may be necessary to be seated with other hotel guests. If you have paid a half board supplement it may be possible in some hotels to ask for a credit from the table d’hôte dinner to be used against a meal in an à la carte restaurant. However the value of the voucher will generally be considerably less than the half board supplement included in your holiday price.

A longhaul flight is generally not a joyride when flying in economy class on scheduled or charter flights. Flights are often full, your choice of seats may not be available, and it may not be possible to obtain seats together. In many cases a choice of upgrade options may be available, to give you a more comfortable journey at a reasonable supplement.

The flight routings used in connection with our holidays may be used on special fares which do not necessarily take the most direct route. Some itineraries require a change of aircraft en route. A flight that is described as direct is one where there is no need to change aircraft during the journey. However stops may be made en route for refuelling or to let passengers on and/ or off. Details of any stops will be given on your itinerary wherever possible. However, should you require this information at an earlier stage, please check with your Travel Agent and/or our Sales staff at the time of booking, or our HelpDesk once the booking has been invoiced.

It is a common practice for scheduled airlines to use a code share system, which may include you flying with a partner airline. Where this situation arises, it is not classed as a major change.

1.26 'No Frills' Carriers
We provide a choice of scheduled and 'no frills' carriers to take advantage of the flexibility and pricing available. You should note that 'no frills' flights do not include in flight meals. The deposit at the time of booking is £175 per person or 10% of the total holiday cost, whichever is the greater plust the cost of the airfare. However, it may occasionally be necessary to charge a higher deposit due to a fluctuation in airfares, details of which would be advised to you at the time of booking. Any changes to destination / routing will be subject to availability and will incur the loss of the original deposit collected. Date and name changes are permitted, subject to availability and the relevant charges imposed as per the individual airlines own policies (details available on request). Any changes made may also result in additional charges due to an increase in airfare or charges imposed.

We provide these to destinations where there are usually no direct scheduled flights, and/or insufficient capacity on these services to meet demand. A charter flight is usually the cheapest and quickest way of reaching the particular destination. However, it should be noted that leg room is slightly less than in economy on some scheduled flights.

The majority of airlines have introduced a total smoking ban on most or all of their flights and many hotels also now have a non-smoking policy in hotel rooms and public areas. Please ask at the time of booking if this information is important to you.

Where a special request eg. diet, room location, twin or double bedded room, a particular facility at a hotel, flight seat requests and/or particular meals etc. is an important factor in your choice of holiday, you must advise us when the booking is made. We are happy to pass your request on to the hotel, airline or other supplier but cannot guarantee that it will be accommodated. We will also pass on any dietary requests to airlines but we recommend that you check directly with the airline once your tickets have been issued. The provision of any special request does not constitute a term of your contract with us. 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. For your own protection, you should obtain confirmation in writing that a special request will be complied (where it is possible to give this) where it is important to you. 

Kuoni complies fully with Regulation (EC) No 1107/2006 concerning the rights of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility when travelling by air and is delighted to offer assistance to disabled persons or persons with reduced mobility provided that we are given full information about your specific requirements at the time of booking.

Our holidays include Group Transfers from airports/hotels and vice versa unless otherwise stated on the appropriate pages or your documentation. A group transfer is generally a shared transfer and the type of vehicle used will normally be dependent upon the size of the group, with stops being made en route to drop off/pick up other clients and therefore, the actual duration of your transfer will be dependent upon this. Alternatively, in many destinations, you have the choice of upgrading to your own private transfer at the appropriate cost, details on request.

World weather is becoming more erratic and unpredictable and we cannot be held responsible for disruption to your holiday due to bad or unusual weather conditions.

We pride ourselves on the quality and friendly professionalism of our staff. In our search to continually try and improve our level of service, we are committed to on-going training, part of which involves the recording of phone calls.

Please note that many of the hotels and tours included in our late bookings and/or special offers are also featured in our other main brochures/website.
Any offers/facilities detailed therein are not applicable to late bookings or special offers unless otherwise stated.
 

When you or your Travel Agent wish to confirm a holiday booking you must pay a deposit of either £175 per person or 10% of the holiday cost, whichever is the greater, or any higher deposit which applies to your holiday. The deposit will only be refundable as set out in these  booking conditions. Please note some airlines have certain ticketing deadlines and some hotels have certain booking and cancellation conditions and these may affect any cancellation charges – please refer to 3.3  - Cancelling your holiday. When you make a booking, the lead name  confirms that you understand and have accepted these booking conditions and our Important Holiday Information which forms our booking conditions. We reserve the right in our absolute discretion to refuse to accept any booking without necessarily specifying a reason. Many airlines now require the full name of all passengers travelling. We will therefore ask you at the time of booking to provide us with your first forename (as shown in your passport) as well as your title and surname. When booking your holiday, if you wish to make a modification to a holiday shown in the brochure we will try to assist. Should you wish to change to an alternative featured hotel, this will be charged at the difference in published price, as long as Kuoni holds the space required. If we have to make a special request for alternative or extra space, an administration fee of £10 per booking will be charged. Additional services will be quoted for upon request. Should you wish to extend your holiday by making your own private arrangements, this can usually be done subject to an administrative charge of £3 per person per night. Prices for accommodation only bookings can be quoted on request. We accept various methods of payment, however please note that if you choose to pay by credit card, there will be a charge levied. You can of course opt for an alternative method of payment ie: cheque or by debit card.

2.2 Our Commitment To You

We will arrange to provide you with the various services which form part of the holiday you book with us. Before your booking is confirmed and a contract comes into existence, we reserve the right to increase or decrease, and correct errors in, advertised prices (see Kuoni’s Price Guarantee opposite) and to change any of the information contained in this brochure. Changes will be made known to you at the time of booking. The prices we advertise are based on specially negotiated airfares to be booked in a specific airline booking class.

At the time of booking, if there is a lack of availability in the specified class on any particular flight, we will endeavour to secure seats for you in an alternative economy class and you will be told the amount of the applicable flight supplement / higher deposit before you book. A booking is not accepted until we issue an invoice. The date shown on the invoice, which will be sent to you or your Travel Agent is the date of booking. It is important to check the details on the invoice when you get it.

If any details appear to be incorrect or incomplete, please contact us or your Travel Agent immediately as it may not be possible to make changes later. We regret we cannot accept any liability if we are not notified of any inaccuracy (for which we are responsible) in any document within 10 days of our sending it out (5 days for tickets).  We will do our best to rectify any mistake notified to us outside these time limits but you must meet any costs involved in doing so. Once your booking is confirmed, you will be given a reference number. Your booking reference is also used as your unique password. It is important that you do not give your reference number to anyone or it will allow access to view, amend or cancel your booking via our website.

The Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 require us to provide security for the monies that you pay for the package holidays booked from this brochure and for your repatriation in the event of our insolvency. We hold an Air Travel Organiser's Licence issued by the Civil Aviation Authority (ATOL number 0132). When you buy an ATOL protected air inclusive holiday or flight* from us you will receive a confirmation invoice from us (or via our authorised agent) confirming your arrangements and your protection under our ATOL.  In the unlikely event of our insolvency the CAA will ensure that you are not left stranded abroad and will arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking.  Please note: Not all holiday or travel services offered and sold by us will be protected by the ATOL scheme * The air inclusive holidays and flights we arrange are ATOL protected providing either the person who pays for the booking is present in the UK when the booking is made or the first leg of any flight or flights we arrange for you commences in the UK.  For further information, visit the ATOL website at www.atol.org.uk. 

We are a member of ABTA (ABTA number V258X). If your package holiday does not include flights, ABTA will financially protect your holiday in the same way except that, if already abroad, you will be returned to the point where your contracted arrangements with us commenced.  Please go to www.abta.com for a copy of the guide to ABTA’s scheme of Financial Protection.

If you book arrangements other than a package holiday from this brochure (e.g. accommodation only), the financial protection referred to above does not apply.

Our brochures are prepared well in advance and scheduled airlines will generally not have loaded their seats to sell until approximately 10 months before the departure. Should this apply we will inform you at the time of booking and calculate the price in anticipation that seats will be available in the specific airline booking class to which our specially negotiated airfares apply. We will issue an invoice recording the arrangements reserved for you and will take a deposit. A contract between us will then come into existence on the basis that the price payable will be that applicable when the airline releases the seats and the timings and other flight details will be those confirmed at that time which may be different to those advised at the time of booking.. When the airline seats become available to book we will tell you the price and other flight details and give you 7 days to tell us whether you wish to continue with the booking on the basis of the confirmed price and other details or cancel and receive a full refund. If you wish to continue with the booking, we will issue a revised invoice. In the event that flight seats do not become available, you will receive a full refund of your deposit. We will have no other liability and will not be responsible for refunding the cost of any services booked in conjunction with the flights.

During peak periods such as Christmas and Easter when demand outstrips the supply of airline seats and accommodation, you may find that supplements are added to the cost of your holiday. The supplements may be for certain holiday departures and/or accommodation on specific dates. They do not necessarily indicate that additional services such as Gala dinners will be provided. The cost of these supplements will be quoted to you at the time of booking.

Kuoni offers you the flexibility to create your own holiday from the range of accommodation and services available. Because of the wide choice, it is not possible to list every price on every date. A ‘from’ price is indicative of the lowest price available for the hotel or itinerary featured but this may vary depending on a number of factors such as your date of travel and choice of accommodation. To help you in choosing a holiday which is tailor made by us to your requirements, please call our Sales team, or visit your travel agent or our website for further information about services and prices. We will be happy to provide you with an up to date quote.

After your booking is taken and a deposit received, a confirmation invoice will be sent to you detailing the total cost due. Full payment must be received not less than 61 days before departure. If we or your travel agent have not received full payment at least 61 days before departure, we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled by you and forfeit your deposit by way of cancellation charges. If we do not cancel straight away because you have promised to make payment, you must pay the cancellation charges shown in 3.3 depending on the date we reasonably treat your booking as cancelled. If you make a holiday booking within 61 days of your departure date then you must pay the full cost of the holiday at the booking stage. All money paid by you to one of our authorised travel agents for your holiday will be held by the agent on our behalf until paid to us.

2.7 Pricing Errors
Whilst we endeavour to ensure that the most up to date and correct prices are shown on our website and in our brochures, there may on occasion be an incorrect price shown, due to an unfortunate 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 within 7 days of the time of booking, or as soon as reasonably possible. We must reserve the right to cancel the booking if you do not wish to accept the price which is actually applicable to the holiday in which case, you will be given the choice to amend your booking to an alternative holiday, at the correct price.

2.8 Overlapping Price Panels
Holidays which do not fall completely within the date bands specified in the price box may be subject to a reduction or increase. The exact cost of your holiday will be confirmed to you at the time of booking.

It is important that you have insurance cover and that it is adequate and suitable for your particular needs. If you fail to take out insurance and have to cancel your booking, you will be charged in accordance with our normal terms and conditions – see 3.3 – Cancelling your holiday. Furthermore, if you require medical/any other form of assistance whilst on holiday you will not be covered and you in turn may incur significant costs. Please read your policy details carefully and take them with you on holiday.

You should receive with your invoice a copy of our destination information covering the area/s you are visiting and general information. We strongly recommend that you read these. Approximately 7 days before departure you will receive your flight/ e-ticket together with an itinerary. However, in the case of late payment and/or late bookings, tickets may be handed to you at the airport on departure. Please ensure that you check the flight timings on your tickets carefully. The correct timings, using the 24-hour clock system, may have been adjusted since we published the brochure and since you received your invoice.

If you want to change any part of your holiday arrangements after the invoice has been issued, we will do our best to make the change, but it may not be possible. Any request for changes must be made in writing by the person who made the original booking, or his or her travel agent. If it is possible to make the change, it will be subject to an administration charge of £50 per booking, and payment of any further costs incurred as a result of the change. If we agree that you may change your booking to a holiday of lower value, and then you cancel that holiday, we reserve the right to levy cancellation charges on the value of the original booking. Scheduled airlines normally regard name changes as a cancellation and rebooking, and any alteration may incur a 100% cancellation charge in respect of the air fare. Please note that save for the transfer of a booking (see below), or the addition of any offers made by Kuoni in the brochure which were not requested at the time of booking, it will not be possible to make changes within 28 days of your scheduled departure date.

If any person named on a booking is prevented from travelling as a result of illness, the death of a close relative, jury service or other significant reason, we will agree to that person’s booking being transferred to another person (introduced by you) who satisfies all the conditions applicable to the package, subject to both persons accepting liability for full payment of the holiday cost and all costs and charges incurred by us and/or incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers in order to make the transfer. We must be given at least 14 days notice of the transfer request. An administration charge will be made of £50 per person for requests made more than 61 days before departure, and £100 per person within 61 days before departure. For flight inclusive bookings, you must pay the charges levied by the airline concerned.  As most airlines do not permit name changes after tickets have been issued for any reason, these charges are likely to be the full cost of the flight. If you request to change all names on a booking, this will be considered as a cancellation and new booking and full cancellation charges will apply’.

A cancellation invoice will be sent to you or your travel agent within 7 days, if you do not receive this please contact us immediately in order to prevent an increase in charges. You may also check your booking has been cancelled on our web-site, www.kuoni.co.uk. Should you already be in receipt of your airline tickets please also return these to us along with your cancellation request. The following scale of charges will be payable depending on when the notification of cancellation is received. Insurance premiums and amendment charges are not refundable in the event of cancellation.  References to the deposit include all sums paid or payable at the time of booking.

Period prior to departure notice         Cancellation charge per person cancelling
of cancellation is received by us
or your travel agent
            Prior to 61 days                     loss of deposit          

            60 – 42 days:                        50% of total holiday cost

            41 – 33 days:                        60% of total holiday cost

            32 – 15 days:                        90% of total holiday cost

            14 days or less:                    100% of total holiday cost

NB In certain cases the airline may have applied certain ticketing deadlines to your booking and this may result in higher cancellation charges, so please enquire for details at the time of booking.

We would strongly recommend that you take out appropriate travel insurance which provides cover against loss of deposit or cancellation fees. If you have taken advantage of an airline offer as detailed on the relevant page and paid a higher deposit, the cancellation charge payable by you will be the higher of this deposit or the appropriate cancellation charge detailed above.

We rigorously check the information given in our brochure about accommodation, resorts, itineraries etc., to ensure it is correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of going to press. However, as brochures are prepared well in advance, advertised descriptions and facilities may change before and after you book. Please check the up to date position at the time of booking. Please bear in mind that hoteliers, restaurateurs, night club owners etc., may wish to maintain or improve their facilities, or even take a break themselves. Flight times, carriers and routes in the brochure are given for guidance only as there may be changes. Final details will be shown on your tickets. Tour, excursion, cruise or safari itineraries may change as a result of local conditions. 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 advertised in our brochure. When we are told of any significant or long term changes we will always endeavour to advise you prior to your departure.

Many hotels and resorts are continuing to develop, sometimes rapidly and intensively and often with little or no advance warning. Whilst we have no control over such work, as a responsible tour operator, it is important to us that you are aware of any significant building/refurbishment work that may be going on during your stay. General refurbishment at hotels is necessary to maintain standards but if we are informed of such work where this can reasonably be expected to have an effect on your holiday, we will endeavour to notify you of it as soon as possible, however near to your departure this may be.

The flight timings shown in our brochure, on our website and/or detailed on your confirmation invoice are for guidance only and are subject to alteration and confirmation.  Flight timings are outside our control. They are set by airlines and are subject to various factors including air traffic control restrictions, weather conditions, potential technical problems and the ability of passengers to check in on time.

Airlines occasionally may change the type of aircraft used on a particular flight without advance warning. Scheduled and charter flight timings, and days of operation are subject to change. We will advise you of any significant change as soon as we ourselves are informed by the airline. Minor timing changes will be shown on the flight tickets, which you should check carefully when received. Should the changes involve a reduction in the duration of your holiday, we will offer you a refund of any applicable costs. Any change in the identity of the airline, flight timings and/or aircraft type (if advised) will not entitle you to cancel or change to other arrangements without paying our normal charges except where specified in these conditions. 

We hope and expect to be able to provide you with all the services we have confirmed to you at the time of booking.

We plan arrangements a long time in advance of your holiday using independent suppliers such as airlines, hotels etc., over whom we have no direct control. On occasions changes do have to be made, and we reserve the right to make these. Most of these changes are minor. However, occasionally, changes are significant.

A significant change includes a change of accommodation to that of a lower category and/or price for the whole or a major part of your time away, a change of flight time of more than 12 hours, a change of UK departure airport (except between London airports), or a significant change of resort area. Similarly, we do our best to avoid cancelling holidays but we must reserve the right to do so. However, we promise we will only cancel your confirmed booking after you have made full payment where we are forced to do so as a result of “force majeure” as defined below or lack of minimum numbers.  We will not cancel after this date for any other reason. Please note, some of our holidays require a minimum number of participants to enable us to operate them. If the minimum number of bookings required for a particular holiday has not been received, we are entitled to cancel it. We will notify you or your travel agent of cancellation for this reason no later than 70 days prior to departure.  

If we have to make a significant change or cancel, 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; or
(b)            purchasing an alternative holiday from us, of a similar standard to that originally booked if available. We will offer you at least one alternative holiday of equivalent or higher standard for which you will not be asked to pay any more than the price of the original holiday. If this holiday is in fact cheaper than the original one, we will refund the price difference. If you do not wish to accept the holiday we specifically offer you, you may choose any of our other then available holidays. You must pay the applicable price of any such holiday. This will mean your paying more if it is more expensive or receiving a refund if it is cheaper; or
(c)           cancelling or accepting the cancellation in which case you will receive a full and quick refund of all monies you have paid to us.

If we have to make a significant change or cancel we will, where compensation is appropriate, pay you the compensation payments set out in the table below 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 (1) 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 (2) we have to cancel because the minimum number of bookings necessary for us to operate your holiday has not been reached (see above). 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 where a change is a minor one.  A change of flight time of less than 12 hours, airline (except where otherwise stated), type of aircraft (if advised) or destination airport will all be treated as minor changes.

Period before departure within which a significant                            Compensation           
change or cancellation is notified to you or your travel agent            Per Person

                More than 60 days:                                                             NIL

                60 – 42 days:                                                                    £20

                41 – 28 days:                                                                    £30

                27 – 15 days:                                                                    £40

                14 – 0 days:                                                                      £50

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 obligations under our contract with you is prevented or affected by or you otherwise suffer any damage, loss or expense of any nature as a result of "force majeure".  In these booking conditions, "force majeure" means any event or circumstances 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, whether actual or threatened, war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, adverse weather conditions, epidemics, fire and other situations which are outside our control.

We do not control the day to day management of your accommodation, and in exceptional cases it is possible that we may be advised that the reserved accommodation has been overbooked or your accommodation may have to be changed for other reasons. If this happens before your departure or on arrival in resort we will endeavour to provide accommodation of at least the same standard in the same resort area. If only accommodation of a lower standard is available we will refund the difference of the brochure price between the accommodation booked and that available, and will pay up to £50 per person for any inconvenience.

Very rarely, we may be forced by "force majeure" (see 4.6) to change or terminate your holiday after departure but before the scheduled end of your time away. This is extremely unlikely but if this situation does occur, we regret we will be unable to make any refunds (unless we obtain any refunds from our suppliers), pay you any compensation or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result.

Price boxes on relevant pages will indicate whether a particular holiday is subject to a minimum number of participants for its operation. We will advise you at least 61 days before departure if minimum numbers have not been reached. You will then have the choice of booking an alternative holiday with us, changing your departure date at the appropriate additional cost, or having a refund of monies paid. No compensation will be payable and we are unable to offer refunds of any associated costs ie visas etc.

Whilst every effort is made to operate a tour as advertised, on occasion it may be necessary to make changes to the accommodation, the routing or order of an itinerary. Unless the change significantly alters the holiday, compensation will not be payable for minor alterations to the itinerary or nightly accommodation.

In the event of a flight being delayed, we will arrange for the following to be provided, whenever practical, and subject to the airport being able to cater for this:- over 4 hours, an appropriate meal, and for delays of at least 8 hours extending beyond midnight, overnight accommodation will be provided wherever possible. However, this will depend on such factors as the expected length of delay, local availability of accommodation, immigration rulings etc. Where long flight delays result in lost holiday time, no refunds are given by hotels for unused accommodation, as rooms are held for delayed arrivals, not re-let. Our travel insurance policy offers compensation for certain flight delays.

In many of the less sophisticated destinations we feature, the water and electricity services struggle to keep up with the increased demands from tourism. Limited rainfall can put further pressure on their provision. Hotels do everything possible to maintain full services. However, occasional power cuts and/or water restrictions may be experienced.

In many hotels, especially beach resorts ‘insects’ in the rooms (eg. cockroaches etc) are almost inevitable. It should by no means be taken as a sign of dirtiness, simply a fact of life in these destinations. Views from some hotel rooms may be partly obscured by palm trees and other vegetation that can grow very quickly in tropical climates.

Many hotels offer watersports and other sporting activities, in some cases these may be free of charge. Please note that in the interest of your personal safety, the operators of these activities may require that you demonstrate your competence (for example a swimming test) prior to commencement and reserve the right to refuse participation for any reason if they feel this may compromise your or another guest’s safety.

Most people go on holiday for rest and relaxation, so if in our reasonable opinion or in the opinion of any airline pilot, hotel manager, tour leader or other person in authority, your behaviour is causing or is likely to cause danger, upset or damage to property or is persistently affecting the enjoyment of others, we reserve the right to terminate your holiday. Should this happen no refund or compensation would be paid and we will have no further responsibility for your holiday arrangements (including any return travel).

For security reasons valuables should be kept to a minimum and packed in your hand luggage along with your medicines, camera, film, electrical or battery-operated appliances, as well as basic essentials such as a change of clothing and toileteries. It can be easy to lose items but it is your responsibility to look after your property at all times and end you must ensure you are adequately covered by comprehensive insurance. If you lose any personal items whilst on holiday, please obtain a written report from a local representative, or police, to help with any insurance claim upon your return.

If you have cause for complaint whilst on holiday, you must bring it to the attention of our local representative or agent and the hotel immediately. They will do their best to rectify the situation. It is unreasonable to take no action whilst on holiday, but then to write a letter of complaint upon return. If you do not raise concerns immediately, this may affect our ability to investigate and take remedial action and it may impact on the way your complaint is dealt with.

Kuoni operates a 24-hour emergency duty officer system, and the contact number for this will be provided with your itinerary.

It is becoming ever more important to conserve the world’s natural resources, its landscapes, flora and fauna. Someone coined the phrase ‘Take only photographs; leave only footprints’ and a number of countries now use this to promote conservation. It would be hard to improve on this statement.

(b) We will not be responsible for any injury, illness, death, loss (for example loss of enjoyment), damage, expense, cost or other sum or claim of any description whatsoever which results from any of the following: -

- the act(s) and/or omission(s) of the person(s) affected or any member(s) of their party or
- the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable or
- 'force majeure' as defined in 4.5

(c) For claims which do not involve personal injury, illness or death, the most we will have to pay if we are liable to you is twice the price, the person affected, paid for their holiday (not including insurance premiums and amendment charges). We will only have to pay this maximum amount if everything has gone wrong and you have received no benefit from your holiday. Where enjoyment of only some days has been affected, we will refund reasonable related expenses and pay a daily sum of compensation up to £50 per day per person affected.  

(d) Subject to (b) above, if you are killed, injured or becomes ill during or as a result of, carriage (including the process of getting on and/or off the transport concerned) by aircraft, ship or train forming part of the holiday arrangements booked before departure from the UK and to which any international convention or regulation applies, our liability to pay compensation and/or the amount of compensation we will pay is 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 concerned would have to pay under the international convention or regulation which applies to the travel arrangements 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 licence 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 and COTIF, the Convention on International Travel by Rail).  Where a carrier 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 carrier for the claim in question. Copies of the applicable international conventions and regulations are available from us on request.

(e) Under EU law you have rights in some circumstances to refunds and/or compensation from your airline in cases of denied boarding, cancellation or delay to flights. Full details of these rights will be publicised at EU airports and will also be available from airlines. However reimbursement in such cases will not automatically entitle you to a refund of your holiday cost from us. If any payments to you are due from us, any payment made to you by the airline will be deducted from this amount. If your airline does not comply with these rules you should complain to the CAA on 020 7240 6061 www.auc.org.uk

(f) Please note, we cannot accept responsibility for any services which do not form part of our contract.  This includes, for example, any additional services or facilities which your hotel or any other supplier agrees to provide for you where the services or facilities are not advertised by us and we have not agreed to arrange them as part of our contract and any excursion you purchase in resort. In addition, regardless of any wording used by us on our website, in any advertising material or elsewhere, we only promise to use reasonable skill and care as set out above and we do not have any greater or different liability to you.

(g) 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. The exception to this is where the claim or complaint concerns the absence of a safety feature which might lead a reasonable holiday maker to refuse to take the arrangements in question. Please note, however, our obligation is to exercise reasonable skill and care as referred to (a). We do not make any representation or commitment that all services will comply with applicable local laws and regulations and failure to comply does not automatically mean we have not exercised reasonable skill and care.

(h) Our suppliers (such as airlines, accommodation or transport providers) have their own booking conditions or conditions of carriage, and these conditions are binding between you and the supplier. Some of these conditions may limit or remove the relevant transport provider’s or other supplier’s liability to you. You can get copies of such conditions from our offices, or the offices of the relevant supplier.

(i) If we make any payment to you or any member of your party for death, personal injury or illness, you must give us or our insurers the rights you may have to take action against the person or organisation responsible for causing the death, personal injury or illness and you must co-operate fully with us in seeking recovery of any payment we make.

(j) Operational decisions may be taken by air carriers and airports resulting in delays, diversions or rescheduling. Kuoni has no control over such decisions, and is therefore unable to accept responsibility for them. Where, as a result of force majeure we are obliged to change or end your holiday after departure, but before the end of your holiday, we will not pay compensation or reimburse you for expenses incurred. You should have adequate travel insurance for your holiday and claim via your insurance company for any loss or damage to luggage and/or personal possessions.

In the event that any claim is made directly with us, our liability to pay compensation and/or the amount of compensation will be limited in accordance with the conventions referred to in (d) where applicable.

(k) Locally Booked Excursions/Activities Whilst you are away on holiday you may be offered the opportunity to buy optional excursions and activities. These are provided by independent local companies, which are neither owned nor controlled by Kuoni, and for whom Kuoni acts only as an agent (if we make a booking for you). If you decide to buy an excursion or activity, your contract will be made with the local company which provides it and it will not from part of your contracted holiday arrangements with us. The contract will be subject to the excursion/activity provider’s terms and conditions, some of which may exclude or limit its liability to you, and will be governed by local law and jurisdiction. Kuoni accepts no liability for any breach of contract or  act or omission of any excursion/activity provider. Some excursions/activities may contain an element of risk or require a good level of physical fitness, and, if in doubt, you should make direct enquiries with the local provider, before deciding to buy and check that you are covered by your travel insurance policy.

Please note we do not have representative services available in all the destinations we feature and therefore you will not necessarily be met on arrival. Please ensure you refer to your itinerary which will provide the appropriate contact details should you need assistance whilst on holiday.

If you cut short your holiday and return home early in circumstances where you have no reasonable cause for complaint about the standard of accommodation and services provided, we will not offer you any refund for the remainder of your holiday not completed, or assist with any associated costs you may incur. Depending on the circumstances, your travel insurance may offer cover for curtailment and we suggest that any claim is made directly with them.

5.13 Volunteering Holidays
The volunteering element of your holiday involves working and, where applicable, staying in locations which tourists do not usually visit. These locations are often remote and the conditions for the people who live there are generally basic. Volunteering is not a conventional holiday activity and the organisations with whom we work do not provide services for tourists. Whilst we will endeavour to carry out certain health and safety checks on any accommodation you are intended to stay in, these checks will be limited. We do not carry out health and safety checks on the other elements of your volunteering experience as it is not practical for us to do so. We make no representations or promises as to the conditions you will encounter during your volunteering experience or that there will be compliance with any minimum standards of health, safety or hygiene. You must therefore exercise caution and take all appropriate steps to protect yourself against the risks involved.

Whilst volunteering, you are likely to come into contact with both wild and domestic animals. All animals, including domesticated ones, are unpredictable and capable of causing injury and even death. They may also carry disease or parasites which may be passed on by close contact with the animal or its faeces. You must therefore exercise a great deal of caution and take responsibility for your own safety in any situation where animals are, may be or have been present. All instructions and guidance provided in relation to any animal, whether in advance or by anyone accompanying you, must be followed at all times and no animal must be touched or approached unless you are specifically invited to do so. As we cannot control any animal nor predict its behaviour, we cannot accept any liability for any injury, illness, death, loss, damage or other claim of any nature which you suffer in connection with any animal.

Your feedback is really important to us. At the end of your holiday, you will be given a questionnaire fill in. We would like to know if you have had a great time or if you think the hotel or service has not been up to scratch. If you forget to fill in the paper version, you can always complete the questionnaire online when you get home.  As a gesture of thanks you will be entered into our prize draw to win a luxurious 7 night holiday for two – please visit: www.kuoni.co.uk/survey.

6.2 If You Had A Problem

If a problem remains unresolved during your holiday, you should make a complaint in writing to Kuoni within 28 days of the completion of the holiday. Please remember to quote your holiday booking number and daytime telephone number. We will reply to you within 28 days of receipt of your letter, as laid down by the ABTA Tour Operator’s Code of Conduct.

We are a member of ABTA, membership number V258X. We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct. We certainly hope that we can settle any holiday complaints amicably, however, should this prove not to be the case you may refer any dispute relating to this contract to arbitration under a special scheme arranged by ABTA. The scheme provides for a simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on documents alone with restricted liability for you in respect of costs. The scheme does not apply to claims for an amount greater than £5,000 per person or £25,000 per booking form. Neither does it apply to claims which are solely in respect of physical injury or illness or their consequences, although claims which include an element of minor injury or illness can be considered subject to a limit of £1,000 on the amount the arbitrator can award per person, in respect of this element. The application for arbitration and Statement of Claim must be received by ABTA within 1 year of the date of return from the holiday. Outside this time limit arbitration under the scheme may still be available if we agree, but the ABTA Code does not require such agreement. For injury and illness claims, you may like to use the ABTA mediation procedure. This is a voluntary scheme and requires us to agree for mediation to go ahead. The aim is to help you resolve your dispute in a quick and cost effective way. Details of the arbitration and mediation schemes are available from us on request or from www.abta.com. We both agree that English Law (and no other) will apply to your contract and to any dispute, claim or other matter of any description which arises between us (“claim”) (except as set out below). We both also agree that any claim (and whether or not involving any personal injury) must be dealt with under the ABTA arbitration scheme (if the scheme is available for the claim in question and you wish to use it – see above) or by the Courts of England and Wales only unless, in the case of Court proceedings, you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland. In this case, proceedings must either be brought in the Courts of your home country or those of England and Wales. If proceedings are brought in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you may choose to have your contract and claim governed by the law of Scotland/Northern Ireland as applicable (but if you do not so choose, English law will apply). 

We both agree that English Law (and no other) will apply to your contract and to any dispute, claim or other matter of any description which arises between us (“claim”) (except as set out below). We both also agree that any claim (and whether or not involving any personal injury) must be dealt with under the ABTA arbitration scheme (if the scheme is available for the claim in question and you wish to use it – see above) or by the Courts of England and Wales only unless, in the case of Court proceedings, you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland. In this case, proceedings must either be brought in the Courts of your home country or those of England and Wales. If proceedings are brought in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you may choose to have your contract and claim governed by the law of Scotland/Northern Ireland as applicable (but if you do not so choose, English law will apply). 

For the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1998, we are a data controller. In order to process your booking, send you a brochure or respond to an enquiry, we need to collect personal data from you. Depending on what’s required, the personal data we collect may include names and contact details, credit/ debit card or other payment information and special requirements such as those relating to any disability or medical condition which may affect holiday arrangements and any dietary restrictions which may disclose your religious beliefs (“sensitive personal data”). All references in this privacy policy to personal data include sensitive personal data unless otherwise stated.  The person who makes the booking is responsible for ensuring that other members of your party are aware of our booking conditions and this privacy policy and that they consent to your acting on their behalf in your dealings with us.

Appropriate personal data will be passed on to the relevant suppliers of your arrangements and any other third party (including banks and/or credit card issuers) who need to know it so that your holiday can be provided. The information may also be provided to government / public authorities such as customs, immigration and the security services if required by them, or as required by law.  Certain information may also be passed on to security or credit checking companies. We may disclose personal data to companies in the Kuoni Group for business purposes and to companies who act as data processors on our behalf. On occasions, we may use other companies to provide services on our behalf, such as mailing brochures and marketing material.  We only provide third parties with the personal data they require in order to deliver their services. Other than in relation to government / public authorities (over whom we have no control), we will take appropriate steps which are intended to ensure that anyone to whom we pass your personal data for any reason agrees to keep it secure and only uses it for the purposes of providing their services. If we cannot pass personal data to the relevant suppliers or any other third party as applicable, whether in the EEA or not, we will be unable to fulfil your booking.  In making your booking, you consent to personal data being passed on to the relevant suppliers and other third parties. We take appropriate technical and organisational measures which are intended to prevent unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data and accidental loss or destruction of, or damage to, personal data.

Your personal data may be stored, used and otherwise processed within the UK and/or any other country(ies) of the European Economic Area (EEA). EEA countries are all member states of the European Union together with Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. We may also store, use or otherwise process personal data outside the EEA. Data protection laws may not be as strong outside the EEA as they are in the EEA. Personal data will not be transferred to a country outside the EEA unless (1) the country to which it is transferred is one which the European Commission considers to provide an adequate level of data protection or (2) the personal data is transferred to a United States company which has signed up to the Safe Harbour scheme or (3) the personal data is transferred to a company which is required by our contract with them only to deal with the data in accordance with our instructions and to maintain appropriate security to protect the personal data which we are satisfied they have or (4) we are obliged to provide the personal data to a government / public authority in order to provide your holiday.

By making a booking with us, you agree to allow your insurers, their agents and medical staff to disclose relevant information to us in circumstances where we may need to act in your interests or in the interests of everyone in any group with whom you are travelling. For example, if you contract an infectious illness whilst on holiday, we may need to make special arrangements for you and ensure that you do not return with the group immediately.

We would also like to store and use your personal data for future marketing purposes (for example, sending you a brochure, special offers or other marketing material) unless you have told us that you do not wish us to do so. All personal data you give us (including sensitive personal data) will be kept but we will use only names and contact details for marketing purposes. If you do not wish to receive future marketing material, please notify us by writing to the address below or by e-mail to webmaster@kuoni.co.uk.

The Company Secretary, Kuoni Travel Limited, Kuoni House, Dorking, Surrey, RH5 4AZ.