Terms & Conditions

These Booking Conditions, together with our privacy policy and where your cruise excursion arrangements (‘arrangements’) are booked via our website, our website terms and conditions of use,together with any other written information we brought to your attention before we confirmed your booking, form the basis of your contract with Cruising Excursions Limited (“we” or “us”). Please read them carefully as they set out our respective rights and obligations. 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 or any other person to whom a booking is added or transferred.

By making a booking, the first named person on the booking agrees on behalf of all persons detailed on the booking that:-

1. He/she has read these terms and conditions and has the authority to and does agree to be bound by them;
2. He/she consents to our use of information in accordance with our Privacy Policy;
3. 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 and Paying For Your Arrangements

Subject to availability, a booking is made with us when you tell us that you would like to accept our written or verbal quotation; and we issue you with a booking confirmation following receipt of your full payment for the arrangements you have chosen. A binding contract will come into existence between you and us as soon as we have issued you with a booking confirmation that will confirm the details of your booking and will be sent to you or your travel agent. Upon receipt, if you believe that any details on the confirmation (or any other document) are wrong you must advise us immediately as changes can not be made later and it may harm your rights if we are not notified of any inaccuracies in any document within ten days of our sending it out.

2 Accuracy

We endeavour to ensure that all the information and prices on our website are accurate, however occasionally changes and errors occur and we reserve the right to correct prices and other details in such circumstances. You must check the current price and all other details relating to the arrangements that you wish to book before your booking is confirmed.

3 Insurance

Adequate travel insurance is vital. If you choose to partake in arrangements without adequate insurance cover, we will not be liable for any losses howsoever arising, in respect of which insurance cover would otherwise have been available.

4 Pricing

We reserve the right to amend the price of unsold arrangements at any time and correct errors in the prices of confirmed arrangements. The price of your confirmed arrangements is subject at all times to changes in the currency exchange used to calculate your arrangements and to changes in taxes, rates or fees imposed by any government or local authority: both all of which may result in a variation of the confirmed price of your arrangements. We will pass this price increase on to you in full, however, if this means that you have to pay an increase of more than 10% of the price of your confirmed arrangements (excluding any amendment charges and/or additional services or arrangements), you will have the option of accepting a change to another excursion if we are able to offer one (if this is of equivalent or higher quality you will not have to pay more but if it is of lower quality you will be refunded the difference in price), or cancelling and receiving a full refund of all monies paid to us, except for any insurance premiums and any amendment charges and/or additional services or travel arrangements.

5 Jurisdiction and applicable law

These Booking Conditions and any agreement to which they apply are governed in all respects by English law. We both agree that any dispute, claim or other matter which arises between us out of or in connection with your contract or booking will be dealt with by the Courts of England and Wales only. You may however, choose the law and jurisdiction of Scotland or Northern Ireland if you live in those places and if you wish to do so.

6 Changes by You

If you wish to change any part of your confirmed arrangements, you must inform us in writing as soon as possible. This should be done by the first named person on 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 requested 14 days or less before your chosen excursion is due to commence, will be subject to payment of an administration fee of £10 per person per change 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 date that the arrangements are due to commence and so 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 (see below).

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. (Details are given in the descriptions of the arrangements in question.)

 

7 If you Cancel

If you or any other member of your party decides to cancel your confirmed arrangements or any part of them you must notify us in writing or by email to admin@cruisingexcursions.com Your notice of cancellation will only take effect when it is received in writing by us at our offices. Since we incur costs in cancelling your arrangements, you will not be entitled to any refund of the cost of your arrangements unless you notify us 10 weeks or more prior to the date that they are due to commence.  If the cancellation notice has been received prior to 10 weeks to departure a loss of deposit will be incurred, if the cancellation notice is received under 8 weeks prior to departure, a 100% cancellation policy will apply.  If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges. Refunds will be issued by Cheque. 

NOTE: Pre-Bookable Entrance Tickets to sites and museums are non refundable.

 

8 If We Change or Cancel

It is unlikely that we will have to make any changes to your arrangements, but occasionally, we may have to make changes and we reserve the right to do so at any time. Most of these changes will be minor and we will advise you or your travel agent of them at the earliest possible date. We also reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel your arrangements. For example, if the minimum number of clients required for a particular excursion is not reached, we may have to cancel it. ( Examples of a “major change” would be a significant change to your itinerary, missing out one or more destination entirely, or where a cruise ship arrives late at the destination where your excursion is to take place and consequently you are unable to join the excursion for all or a significant proportion of it.)

If we have to make a major change or cancel, we will tell you or your travel agent as soon as possible and if there is time to do so before the arrangements are due to commence, we will offer you the choice of i) (for major changes) accepting the changed arrangements ii) having a refund of all monies paid or iii) accepting an offer of alternative excursion arrangements of comparable standard from us, if available (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value). 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 arrangements. The above sets out the maximum extent of our liability for changes and cancellations and we regret we cannot meet any expenses or losses you may incur as a result of change or cancellation. Very rarely, we may be forced by "force majeure" (see clause 9) to change or terminate your arrangements after departure. If this situation does occur, we regret we will be unable to make any refunds (unless we obtain any from our suppliers), pay you compensation or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result.

9 Force Majeure

Except where otherwise expressly stated in these booking conditions we will not be liable or pay you compensation if our contractual obligations to you are affected by any event which we or the supplier(s) of the service(s) in question could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. These events can include, but are not limited to war, threat of war, civil strife terrorist activity and its consequences or the threat of such activity, riot, the act of any government or other national or local authority including port or river authorities, industrial dispute, lock closure, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, chemical or biological disaster and adverse weather, sea, ice and river conditions and all similar events outside our or the supplier(s) concerned’s control. Advice from the Foreign Office to avoid or leave a particular country may constitute Force Majeure.

10 Special Requests

Any special requests must be advised to us at the time of booking. You should then confirm your requests in writing. Whilst every effort will be made by us to try and arrange your reasonable special requests, we cannot guarantee that they will be fulfilled. The fact that a special request has been noted on your confirmation invoice or any other documentation or that it has been passed on to the supplier is not confirmation that the request will be met. Failure to meet any special request will not be a breach of contract on our part unless the request has been specifically confirmed. We do not accept bookings that are conditional upon any special request being met.

11 Disabilities and Medical Problems

We are not a specialist disabled excursion provider, but 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 excursion, please provide us with full details before we confirm your booking so that we can try to advise you as to the suitability of your chosen arrangements. Acting reasonably, if we are unable to properly accommodate the needs of the person(s) concerned, we will not confirm your booking or if you did not give us full details at the time of booking, we will cancel it and impose applicable cancellation charges when we become aware of these details.

12 Complaints

We make every effort to ensure that your excursion arrangements run smoothly but if you do have a problem during the excursion, please inform the relevant supplier as shown on your excursion voucher immediately who will endeavour to put things right. If your complaint is not resolved locally, please contact us by emailing or writing to admin@cruisingexcursions.com as soon as possible. Failure to do so will affect ours and the applicable supplier’s ability to investigate your complaint, and will affect your rights under this contract. If the problem still cannot be resolved and you wish to complain further, you must send formal written notice of your complaint to us at admin@cruisingexcursions.com within 28 days of the end of your stay, giving your booking reference and all other relevant information. Please keep your letter concise and to the point. This will assist us to quickly identify your concerns and speed up our response to you. If the matter cannot be resolved and it involves us or another ABTA member then it can be referred to the arbitration scheme arranged by ABTA. See clause 18.

13 Your behaviour

All people taking part in our excursions are expected to conduct themselves in an orderly and acceptable manner and not to disrupt the enjoyment of other participants. If in our opinion or in the opinion of any person in authority, your behaviour 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 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 the excursion 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 supplier prior to the conclusion of the excursion. 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 behaviour of other guests or individuals who have no connection with your arrangements or with us.

14 Our Responsibilities:

(1) We have a duty to select the suppliers of the services making up your booking with us with reasonable skill and care. We have no liability to you for the actual provision of the services, except in cases where it is proved that we have breached that duty and damage to you has been caused. Therefore, providing we have selected the suppliers with reasonable care and skill, we will have no liability to you for anything that happens during the service in question or any acts or omissions of the supplier, its employees or agents.

(2) Subject to (1) above, our only obligations to you in relation to bookings we make for tickets or vouchers to enable you to gain entrance/access to particular attractions (other than those which are expressly set out in these conditions) are to take your booking in accordance with your instructions and provide you with a ticket or voucher to enable you to gain entry/access to the arrangement(s) in question. We cannot accept any liability for the provision of the arrangements themselves which are provided by the suppliers of those arrangements or for the acts or omissions of the supplier(s) concerned or any of its employees, agents, suppliers or subcontractors. The terms and conditions of the supplier concerned will apply to the arrangement(s) in question. Copies of those terms and conditions are available on request.

(3) We will not be responsible or pay you compensation for any injury, illness, death, loss, damage, expense, cost or other claim of any description if 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.

(4) We limit the amount of compensation we may have to pay you if we are found liable under this clause:

(a) loss of and/or damage to any luggage or personal possessions and money,

The maximum amount we will have to pay you in respect of these claims is an amount equivalent to the applicable excess on your travel insurance policy because you are assumed to have adequate insurance in place to cover any losses of this kind.

(b) Claims not falling under (a) above that do not involve injury, illness or death

The maximum amount we will have to pay you in respect of these claims is twice the price paid by or on behalf of the person(s) affected in total.

(c) Claims in respect of international travel by air, sea and rail

i) The extent of our liability will in all cases be limited as if we were carriers under the appropriate Conventions, which include The Warsaw/Montreal Convention (international travel by air); The Athens Convention (with respect to sea travel); The Berne/Cotif Convention (with respect to rail travel) and The Paris Convention (with respect to hotel arrangements). You can ask for copies of these Conventions from our offices. Please contact us. In addition, you agree that the operating carrier or transport company's own 'Conditions of Carriage' will apply to you on that journey. When arranging transportation for you, we rely on the terms and conditions contained within these international conventions and those 'Conditions of Carriage'. You acknowledge that all of the terms and conditions contained in those 'Conditions of Carriage' form part of your contract with us, as well as with the transport company and that those 'Conditions of Carriage' shall be deemed to be included by reference into this contract.

ii) In any circumstances in which a 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.

iii) When making any payment, we are entitled to deduct any money which you have received or are entitled to receive from the excursion activity provider for the complaint or claim in question.

(4) It is a condition of our acceptance of liability under this clause that you notify any claim to ourselves and our supplier(s) strictly in accordance with the complaints procedure set out in these conditions.

(5) Where any payment is made, the person(s) receiving it (and their parent or guardian if under 18 years) must also assign to ourselves or our insurers any rights they may have to pursue any third party and must provide ourselves and our insurers with all assistance we may reasonably require.

(6) Please note, we cannot accept any liability for any damage, loss or expense or other sum(s) of any description 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 (b) any business losses.

(7) We will not accept responsibility for services or facilities which do not form part of our agreement or where they are not advertised on our website.

(8) We guarantee to get you back to your ship in plenty of time for your cruise ships departure.  If for reasons beyond our control, for example road accidents etc we will take you to your next port of call at no extra cost to you (customer). However failure to follow our representives instructions in resort will void this guarantee, ie if you are told to be at a meeting point at an agreed time.

(9) We will offer you a full refund of your tour if your ship does not port (due to weather, force majeure etc...) at the scheduled destination or arrange for an alternative excursion at the same cost.  If you have reserved a shore excursion Package of tours a refund of 10% (to a maximum of 100%) of the total package will be refunded should your cruise ship not port at one of the ports within your package.

15 Passport, Visa and Immigration Requirements and Health Formalities

It is your responsibility to check and fulfill the passport, visa, health and immigration requirements applicable to your itinerary. 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.

16 Conditions of Suppliers

Many of the services which make up your holiday are provided by independent suppliers.  Those suppliers provide these services in accordance with their own terms and conditions which will form part of your contract with us. Some of these terms and conditions may limit or exclude the supplier's liability to you, usually in accordance with applicable International Conventions. Copies of the relevant parts of these terms and conditions are available on request from ourselves or the supplier concerned.

17 ABTA

We are a Member of ABTA, membership number Y343X (Principle). We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct. We can also offer you an arbitration scheme for the resolution of disputes arising out of, or in connection with this contract. The arbitration scheme is arranged by ABTA and administered independently by CEDR, the Centre for Dispute Resolution. It provides for a simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on documents alone with restricted liability on you in respect of costs. The scheme does not apply to claims for an amount greater than £5,000 per person. There is also a limit of £25,000 per booking form. Neither does it apply to claims which are solely in respect of physical injury or illness or their consequences. The scheme can however deal with compensation claims which include an element of minor injury or illness subject to a limit of £1,000 on the amount the arbitrator can award per person in respect of this element. Your request for arbitration must be received by ABTA within twelve months of the date of return from 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 can request the ABTA/IDRS Mediation