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Terms & Conditions:
These booking conditions were published in
December 2008 and apply to all bookings made thereafter. They
form the basis of your contract and you should therefore read
them carefully. For bookings of tours and vacations (please see
below), your contract will be with CM.Travelonline.com and Elite
Travel Consulting. For all other bookings your contract will be
with the supplier of the vacation, tour, or service rendered
(e.g. the airline) for whom we act as an agent only. Where your
contract is with the supplier of the vacation, tour, or
service(s) rendered, we cannot accept any liability in relation
to those vacations, tours, or services which rest solely with
the supplier concerned. The booking conditions of the
supplier(s) we use will apply to your booking and these will be
provided to you. Where we refer to packages, we are referring to
a combination of at least two of the following types of services
when booked at the same time providing the accommodation lasts
at least 24 hours or includes overnight accommodation.
(a) Transport
(b) Accommodation
(c) Other tourist services forming a
significant part of the booking.
1. Securing your reservation:
Bookings can be made in person, by phone,
letter, fax, mail or over the internet.
When securing your reservation, you must
complete the reservation form which must be signed by the lead
passenger on behalf of your whole party accepting these terms
and conditions. The lead passenger will be responsible for all
payments in respect of the booking to include initial consulting
fee. When reservation is made, a deposit of 15% or $200.00 per
person which ever is the greater is payable or full payment if
within forty five (45) days of departure, in addition all
applicable insurance policies must be paid at the time of
booking. If we are in a position to do so we will confirm
arrangements immediately upon receipt of the signed reservation
form and the appropriate deposit/payment so that your holiday is
secured. Once your consulting fee and deposit payment has been
received by Elite Travel Consulting.com, you have entered into a
booking contract irrespective of whether a booking form has been
received or not. If you have booked a package and your contract
is with Elite Travel Consulting.com, the contract does not come
into existence until we have issued our confirmation invoice.
Your contract and all matters arising out of it are governed by
laws established in the United States, and its respective
states. However, we shall consider and respect the laws of your
respective country if you do not reside in the United States.
When you have secured your package through one of our suppliers,
we will issue a receipt to you once we have received the
confirmation invoice from the supplier. There will be occasions
where we are unable to confirm certain arrangements immediately
(e.g. when a hotel is only available on request). In this case,
a contract for the vacation, tour, or services concerned will
only come into existence once we have specifically confirmed
those services which has been reserved even if we have issued a
temporary confirmation invoice to you. Please ensure you check
all the details of your confirmation invoice and inform us
immediately of any discrepancies (e.g. mis-spelled names).
2.Your retainer fees:
After our first conversation or e-mail
exchange we will require an initial non-refundable fee of
$250.00. You may elect to pay by check or major credit card.
For private consulting for individuals, we
will apply $150.00 towards the deposit of the first booking you
secure with us. Your $250.00 retainer fee is nonrefundable. The
annual fee for businesses and associations are also
nonrefundable.
3. Payments:
Your final payment must be paid at least
forty five (45) days prior to departure, if the balance is not
paid in time we reserve the right to cancel your travel
arrangements and retain your deposit.
4. The cost of your travel
arrangements:
Elite Travel Consulting.com and its
preferred suppliers have the right to increase or decrease the
prices of unsold holiday and travel arrangements at any time.
The current price will be confirmed at the time if booking,
although we reserve the right to correct errors thereafter.
After confirmation, the following provisions apply.
(A) Packages:
The price of your travel arrangements may
vary due to changes in transportation costs such as fuel,
scheduled airfares and any other airline cost changes which are
part of the contract between airlines (and their agents), travel
suppliers, and the tour operator. Also government action such as
changes in passenger facility charges, airport taxes, 9/11
security charges, VAT (For European destinations), or any other
government imposed changes. In the case of any small variation,
an amount equivalent to 2% of the price of your travel
arrangements, which excludes insurance premiums and any
amendment charges, will be absorbed or retained. For larger
variations this 2% will still be absorbed for increases but not
retained from refunds. In either case there will be an
administration charge of $4.00 per person together with an
amount to cover agents’ commission. If this means that you have
to pay an increase of more than 10% of the price of your travel
arrangements, you may elect to cancel your travel arrangements
and receive a full refund of all monies paid, except for any
cancellation fees or amendment charges. Should you decide to
cancel for these reasons, you must exercise your right to do so
within 14 days from the issue date printed on your final
confirmation invoice. Whether you cancel or not you will also be
entitled, on the terms set out in respect of major changes in
paragraph 7 below, to accept an offer of alternative travel
arrangements from us if we are able to do so and compensation as
set out below. 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.
(B) All other
arrangements:
Prices can be increased by our preferred
suppliers. We will notify you of any increases as soon as we
become aware of them. You may then have the option to pay in
full immediately to secure the rate applicable at the time of
booking or pay the increased fare by making payments on the
original balance due date. Where any surcharge has to be paid,
it will be payable with the balance of the cost of the
arrangements in question or specified on the surcharge invoice,
whichever is the later. Please note, if your travel arrangement
is paid in full at time of booking we will not pass on any
increase in cost to you due to currency surcharges.
(C) Airline
Ticket Deadlines:
Many airlines now enforce ticket payment
deadlines of 2 to 7 days after booking. Check with your
consultant for relevant ticketing and payment deadlines.
5. Amendments by you:
If after booking you wish to make changes
to your travel arrangements we will do our best to meet your new
requirements. You will need to confirm your request in writing
from the person who signed the booking from. There will be a
$100.00 per person administration fee and you will also be asked
to pay any costs we incur in making the changes. Please note
that no credit or refund will be due for any unused services
provided in the cost of your travel arrangements. While abroad;
if you make any alterations to your confirmed holiday
arrangements for example weather changes, illness or
disinclination to travel, we regret that no credit or refund is
possible. If you decide to alter your travel arrangements while
abroad, this is your own responsibility and Elite Travel
Consulting.com or its preferred suppliers are not responsible
for any extras or difficulties that may arise with onward travel
as result of such alterations. Elite Travel Consulting.com and
its preferred suppliers recommend the purchase of a viable
travel protection plan to help protect your travel arrangements.
6. Cancellation by you:
You, or a member of your party, may cancel
your travel arrangements at any time. A written notification
from the person who signed the reservation form must be received
at our office prior to us canceling your travel arrangement.
Applicable cancellation charges up to the maximum amount is
assessed as follows:
Period before departure within which
written cancellation is received Amount of cancellation charge
shown as a % of holiday price:
More than 90 Days -
$100.00 plus other applicable fees
Between 46- 89 Days - The
amount of the deposit
Between 30-45 Days - 25%
of the total cost of the travel arrangement
Between 15-29 Days - 50%
of the total cost of the travel arrangement
Less than 14 Days - 100%
of the total cost of the travel arrangement
For certain hotels, flights, cruises and
tours etc., the cancellation may be higher, please contact us
for details. Depending on the reason for cancellation, you may
be able to reclaim these cancellation fees less any excesses
under the terms of your insurance policy. Cancellation charges
must however be paid before they can be claimed from insurers.
Please note that some airline tickets have a 100% nonrefundable
fee.
7. Changes made by Elite Travel
Consulting.com or its preferred suppliers:
(A) Packages, customized travel, and other bookings where Elite
Travel Consulting.com is the principal to the contract.
On occasion changes may be made to your
travel arrangement. In these cases, we reserve the right to do
so at any time. Most of these changes are minor and we will
advise you at the earliest possible date. Flight schedules and
carriers that we prefer to use are also subject to change due to
airline procedures. These details are given as guidance only
final details will be shown on your tickets.
If a major change becomes necessary, we
will inform you as soon as possible provided that there is ample
time available before your departure. Changes to aircraft type
or airline are deemed to be minor changes. When a major change
occurs such as the alteration on your outward/return flights by
more than 12 hours, or your departure airport to one which is
more inconvenient to you, a change of accommodation area or
reduction in the standard of accommodation, in case of tours a
significant change of itinerary, you will have the choice of
either:
(1) Accepting the change of arrangements as notified to you or
(2)
Purchasing alternative arrangements of a comparable standard if
available and paying or receiving a
price refund in respect of any price difference.
(3) Canceling your travel arrangements and receiving a full and
prompt refund of all monies paid to us. In all cases, except
where the changes arise due to reasons of force majeure.
(B) All other arrangements including where Elite Travel
Consulting.com acts as an agent.
Our generally reserve the right to change
arrangements both before and after a booking has been confirmed.
We will notify you of any changes as soon as we are notified of
them but we cannot accept any liability in relation to any
change.
8. Cancellation by us / Service
Provider:
(A) Packages and other
bookings where Elite Travel Consulting.com acts as a principal
to the contract. Occasionally it may be necessary to cancel
confirmed arrangements. We must reserve the right to do so.
However, we will not cancel less than six weeks before departure
unless you have failed to make payment in full or we are forced
to as a result of circumstances beyond our control. If we are
unable to provide the booked travel arrangements, you can either
have a refund of all monies paid or accept an offer of
alternative travel arrangements of comparable standard from us,
if available. If it is necessary to cancel your travel
arrangements, compensation will be payable in accordance with
clause 7. Force Majeure: Compensation will not be payable if we
are forced to cancel or change your travel arrangements in any
way for reasons of war, threat of war, riot, civil strike,
industrial dispute, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear
disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions or other
circumstances amounting to force majeure.
(B) All other
arrangements including where Elite Travelonline.com act as an
agent. our preferred suppliers generally reserve the right to
cancel arrangements at any time. We will notify you of any
cancellation as soon as we are notified of it but we cannot
accept any liability in relation to any cancellation. We will
not be held responsible if the rare occasion should arise, where
a service provider goes into liquidation and/or receivership.
9. Complaints:
If you have a problem during your holiday,
please inform the relevant supplier (e.g. your hotelier) or our
representative/agent (where there is one) within 24 hours to put
things right. If your complaint cannot be completely resolved
locally, you must fax your complaint to Elite Travel
Consulting.com at 757-596-2774, or submit your complaint by
E-mail to assistance@elitetravelconsulting.com for a quick
response to your complaint. It is imperative that you, or
another member of your party contact us within 24 hours in order
for us to be able to assist in rectifying the matter. Failure to
notify us and our preferred suppliers of any difficulties may
seriously affect your legal rights. It may even result loss in
any refunds or compensation to which you may be entitled to. If
the problem cannot be resolved in the above manner, please
contact us in writing at the registered address within 28 days
of your return, quoting your booking reference and all other
relevant information and documentation.
10. Our liability to you:
(please note sub-clause (1) and (2) below
only apply to packages)
(1) We accept
responsibility for ensuring that the Travel arrangements which
you book with us are supplied as described in your itinerary. If
any part of your travel arrangements is not provided as
promised, due to the fault of our employees, agents or
suppliers, we will pay you appropriate compensation if this has
affected the enjoyment of your holiday. We accept responsibility
for the acts and/or omissions of our employees, agents However,
we do not accept liability for the acts and/or omissions on the
part of our preferred suppliers and their agents/representatives
acting in the scope of, or in the course of, their employment in
the provision of your travel arrangements. Our liability in all
cases shall be limited to a maximum of the price of the travel
arrangement (excluding insurance policy’s and amendment charges)
of the person (s) affected in total. This clause is also subject
to force majeure and other terms of these booking conditions.
(2) The amount of
compensation to which you are entitled will be limited by the
contractual terms of the companies that provide the
transportation for your travel arrangements. These terms are
incorporated into this contract.
11. Personal injury unconnected
with your Booked Travel Arrangements:
If you, or any member of your party suffer
personal illness, injury or death by accident arising out of an
activity which does not form part of your package travel
arrangements nor an excursion arranged through us, we shall at
our discretion, offer advice, guidance and assistance to help
you in resolving any claim you may have against a third party,
provided we are advised of the incident within 30 days of its
occurrence. Where legal action is contemplated our written
consent must be obtained prior to commencement of proceedings
and our consent is subject to your undertaking to assign any
costs received or any benefits received under any relevant
insurance policy to ourselves.
12. Flights and other transport services:
(A) Please note that
all scheduled flight, cruise and rail departures provided to you
in your proposals are estimates only and are subject to change.
All schedules will be shown on your confirmation/invoice. All
schedules may be effected by operational difficulties, weather
conditions, passengers failing to check in on time, and other
factors outside of our control. The actual flight times will be
shown on your final itinerary. You must check your tickets
carefully to ensure you have the latest schedules. In addition,
you must read and observe the instructions sent with your
tickets for reconfirming your return flight at least 3 days
prior to your departure where possible.
(B) Conditions of
Service Providers - When you travel with a carrier, the
conditions of that carrier will apply, some of which may limit
liability. The conditions of that carrier is incorporated in
your travel confirmation invoice. You may ask for copies of the
relevant conditions of carriage from our offices.
13. Insurance:
We strongly recommend that you purchase a
comprehensive travel protection plan both for protection against
emergencies which may occur, and for your own peace of mind. We
can offer excellent travel protection plans, details of which
are available on request.
14. Tickets and Travel Documents:
Tickets and Travel documents unless
collected from us are normally shipped to you via second-day
air, priority mail, or next day air within 3 to 4 weeks prior to
your departure. You will be required to sign for the travel
documents upon arrival unless you notify us of alternate
arrangements.
15. Passports, visas and health
requirements:
Details of the passport, visa and health
requirements as applicable to United States Citizens are shown
on the confirmation/invoice. Non U.S. citizens, Canadian
citizens, and British citizens not holding a full passport must
consult their respective Embassy for assistance.
Requirements may change and you should
check the up to date position in good time before departure, it
is your responsibility to obtain proper and detailed medical
advice and to ensure you have the correct visa and passport
requirements to gain access or pass through any country or
region included in the travel arrangements which you have
purchased. If you fail to do either we have no liability to you,
for any cost, loss or damage which you suffer as a result and
nor we will refund the cost of any unused portion of your travel
arrangements. Please note that your Elite Travel Consultant will
assist you in every step of the way. Please click here to obtain
additional passport information.
16. Refunds:
If you return any unused flight ticket(s)
to us for refund, we will submit them to the relevant airline
for refund. If we receive the refund from the airline we will
forward it to you less any applicable cancellation or
administration charges in accordance with our cancellation
booking conditions. Refunds usually take between 8 and 12 weeks
but in some cases may take longer.
17. Special Requests and medical
problems:
(A) Special requests -
If you have any special requests, please inform us as soon as
possible in writing, and preferably at the time of booking.
Although we will make every effort to meet any such request, we
regret that we cannot guarantee our preferred suppliers will
honor the request. Failure to meet such special requests will
not be a breach of contract on our part.
(B) Medical Problems -
If you have any medical problem or disability which may effect
your chosen travel arrangements you must provide us with full
details at the time of booking. We will pass those details on to
the relevant suppliers/service providers. However, if we or the
service provider feels unable to properly accommodate your
particular needs, we/the relevant supplier reserve the right to
decline/cancel the booking.
18. Hotels prices and ratings:
All prices quoted are in United States
dollars, and are per person per night unless otherwise stated
based on 2 people sharing a room. The hotel ratings shown in our
web site/s are not necessarily the official ratings, but have
been set by us to offer you a guideline of the standard only.
19. Accommodation:
(A) Accommodation in
the tropics. In many hotels, especially beach resorts, ‘insects’
in the rooms are almost inevitable. It should by no means be
taken as a sign of dirtiness, simply as a fact of life at this
destination.
(B) Triple/Quad Rooms.
A third or fourth person in the room either shares existing beds
or has extra beds placed in a double/twin room, and conditions
may be cramped.
20. Data Protection Act:
Please be aware that we must pass the
information you provide such as name, address, any special
needs/dietary requirements etc. on to the relevant suppliers of
your arrangements such as airlines, hotels etc. The information
may also be provided to public authorities such as cruise lines
for customs or immigration purposes if required by them, or as
required by law.
We thank you for considering Elite Travel
Consulting and CM.Travelonline.com for your travel needs.
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