Home Holidays List All Tours Groups Pick ups General Info Agents  Introduction to Gain   Terms and Conditions   Holiday Insurance   Book On-line & Save £££'s   SPECIAL OFFERS   Request Brochure   Useful Links   Data Protection   Our Coaches   Contact Us   Your Door to Our Tour  Booking Terms & Conditions FAIR TRADING AGREEMENT & IMPORTANT HOLIDAY INFORMATION 1, YOU PAY A DEPOSIT When you confirm your booking you accept on behalf of all your party the terms of this fair trading agreement, and enclose with the appropriate deposit and insurance premium (if required). PLEASE NOTE YOUR DEPOSIT AND INSURANCE PREMIUM IS NON REFUNDABLE. Some tours on this website are payable in full, deposits will not be accepted. Our fair trading agreement and important holiday information sets out clearly and simply the responsibilities which we at Gain Travel have to you and which you in turn have to us when a contract is made between us. The contract is made when you make a booking and we accept it by written confirmation on the terms set out in our brochure and on this website. When confirming your holiday, you will agree on behalf of yourself and the others named in your party that you have read, understood and accepted this fair trading agreement and important holiday information. Your obligation is to pay the price of the holiday and recognise your liabilities if you wish to alter the holiday or have to make a cancellation. On our part, we have an obligation to provide you with the holiday you have booked. Our specification of that holiday and our terms are clearly stated in our brochure and on this website. Your contract is entered into with Gain Travel Experience Ltd. This fair trading agreement applies to all holidays sold from our brochures and this web site. YOUR CONTRACT WITH US AND OUR PROMISE TO YOU 2, YOU PAY THE BALANCE The balance of your holiday must be paid at least 8 weeks before the holiday departure date. If you book within the 8 week period before the tour departs you must pay the full holiday cost at the time of booking. If the balance is not paid in time we reserve the right to cancel your holiday, retain your deposit and apply cancellation charges set out in paragraph 4 ‘If you cancel your holiday’. 3, IF YOU CHANGE YOUR BOOKING If after our confirmation has been issued, you wish to change to a different holiday or departure date in our brochure or on this website we will do our utmost to make the changes, provided that written notification is received at our office from the person who is the lead name on the booking, or their travel agent, not later than the date on which the balance of the original holiday cost was due for payment. This must be accompanied by a payment of £10 to cover administration costs. With regard to theatre tickets, once these have been purchased on your behalf no alteration can be made whatsoever unless you pay the full amount of the unused tickets as these are not refundable or exchangeable. Any alteration later than the original balance due date will be treated as a cancellation of the original booking and will be subject to the cancellation charges set out in paragraph 4. Other alterations such as the addition of requests or change of pick up point that require a new confirmation to be issued must be notified and accompanied by a payment of £10 to cover administrative costs.   4, IF YOU CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY Your booking can be cancelled by any member of your party, but must be confirmed to us in writing by the person making the booking. As this incurs administrative costs, we will retain your deposit and in addition apply cancellation charges upto the maximum shown below: Period of departure within Amount of cancellation charge which written cancellation shown as % of holiday price is received Departure date & upto 14 days you forfeit 100% 15 to 29 days you forfeit 60% 30 to 45 days you forfeit 45% More than 45 days you forfeit your deposit and insurance premium (if applicable). You will also forfeit the full amount of any theatre tickets purchased on your behalf as these are not refundable or exchangeable. NOTE: If the reason for cancellation is covered under the terms of an insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges. 5, IF YOU HAVE A COMPLAINT If you have cause to complain during your holiday you must inform our representative who will do his/her utmost to resolve the problem immediately. If the matter cannot be put right on the spot you must put your complaint in writing and ask our representative to sign it, then forward your complaint within 28 days of the completion of your holiday and this must be sent to our office. Please quote your booking reference number and departure date. ANY CORRESPONDENCE REGARDING COMPLAINTS NOT FOLLOWING THIS PROCEDURE WILL NOT BE ENTERED INTO. 6, WHAT HAPPENS TO COMPLAINTS All complaints that are received are thoroughly investigated and customers are kept informed at each stage of the investigation. Sometimes the investigations can take time when awaiting a response from hoteliers. We can normally agree an amicable settlement of the few serious complaints we receive, if the complaint is found to be genuine. If a complaint cannot be resolved amicably between us, the matter will be referred to arbitration. 7, STATUTORY AUTHORITIES This brochure is issued subject to applicable acts of parliament and government regulations and the company reserves the right to modify itineraries to conform with requests from the competent authorities in the United Kingdom and any other state/country through which the tours run.   8, CONDITIONS OF CARRIAGE When you travel on an aircraft, train or ship the conditions of carriage of that carrier apply and are subject to national and international conditions which may limit or exclude liability. Your contract made under the terms of this fair trading agreement is subject to English law and jurisdiction. Some coach journeys are operated by vehicles other than those owned by Gain Travel and the specification may be different to that detailed in this brochure. The Public Service Vehicle (conduct of drivers, conductors and passengers) regulations as amended 1990, apply to all coaches throughout any holiday in the UK. 9, OTHER TERMS On a holiday you may not: a) bring a pet or any other animal (other than guide dogs in the UK and EIRE only by prior arrangement) b) Play a radio/cassette player on a coach Gain Travel reserve the unconditional right to refuse a booking or terminate a clients’ holiday in the event of unreasonable conduct which in our opinion is likely to cause damage, destruction, distress, danger or annoyance to other clients, employees, property or to any third party. If you are prevented from travelling or continuing your holiday by such a termination, Gain Travels’ responsibility for your holiday there upon ceases. Full cancellation charges will apply and Gain Travel will be under no obligation for any refund, compensation or loss which may occur. You are responsible for ensuring that you are at the correct departure point at the correct time, and we cannot be liable for any loss or expense suffered by passengers because of their late arrival at any departure point. N.B. If your booking is made through an agent, you must ensure that YOU telephone our office direct, to arrange departure times. Some excursions are included in the price of most holidays and refunds cannot be made for passengers not wishing to go on these excursions. Admission fees to buildings, grounds, museums etc are not included in the price of your holiday unless otherwise stated in this brochure.   10, HOLIDAY INSURANCE It is a condition of your contract with Gain Travel that you should take out insurance to cover you in the event of illness, personal injury or death during the course of your holiday. 11, PASSPORTS For all holidays abroad you will require a full 10 year passport. Please note some countries also require passports to be valid upto 6 months AFTER your return to the UK. If you have any doubts about your status as a resident British subject or you do not hold a full British passport, you must check with the embassies or consulates of the countries to be visited to confirm the passport or visa requirements needed in your particular circumstances. We cannot accept no responsibility if passengers are not in possession of the correct travel documents. 12, HEALTH Under normal circumstances most Western European countries do not require visitors to be vaccinated. However we will indicate any known vaccination or other health requirements where possible for each country to be visited. If you are not sure of health requirements of the country you are visiting you are advised to check with your own doctor well in advance of travelling. OUR PROMISE TO YOU 1, WE RESERVE YOUR HOLIDAY When we have confirmed that we have available space on the holiday of your choice, a confirmation/invoice will be sent to your nominated e-mail address after receipt of your payment, then the contract is made when you receive this confirmation. In the event that the holiday was sold through any travel agent who defaulted, we guarantee your holiday on production of adequate documentation to establish the sale. 2, YOUR HOLIDAY PRICE UK HOLIDAYS The price of your holiday is guaranteed and will not be subject to any surcharges except for those resulting from fuel costs, government action, including additional bonding or licensing requirements and VAT. In all cases we reserve the right to pass these amounts on in full. Holiday prices include all coach travel, hotel accommodation and meals as specified in the holiday description and VAT at the current rate where applicable. Morning coffee, afternoon tea and other refreshments are not included unless otherwise stated. Some hotels may make a small additional charge for any porterage and tea or coffee served after a meal. Gratuities to the hotel staff and driver/courier are discretionary. EUROPEAN HOLIDAYS Partial price guarantee- we guarantee that the price of your holiday will not be subject to any surcharges except for those resulting from governmental action, including VAT. Even in this case, we will absorb an amount equivalent to 2% of the holiday price which excludes insurance premium and any amendment charges. Only amounts in excess of the 2% will be surcharged, but where a surcharge is payable there will be an administration charge of £2 per person together with an amount to cover agents commission. If this means paying more than 10% of the holiday price, you will be entitled to cancel your holiday with a full refund of all money paid except for any premium paid to us for the holiday insurance and amendment charges. Should you decide to cancel because of this, you must exercise your right to do so within 14 days from the issue date printed on the new price. Whatever happens to the value of the £, the price of your holiday will not be subject to any currency surcharges except for government devaluation. The price of your holiday is however subject to surcharges on the following items: governmental action, devaluation, VAT and fuel charges. Surcharges will not be imposed within 30 days of departure. If you pay for your holiday using a credit card there will be a 2% surcharge added to your bill. Payments by debit card do not have any surcharges added. 3, IF WE CHANGE YOUR HOLIDAY The arrangements for holidays in our brochure and on this website are made many months in advance and changes are sometimes unavoidable. Most of these changes maybe very minor such as a small alteration in the itinerary and these will be notified to you as soon as is reasonably possible, but where they are significant we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible before your departure date. A significant change would be regarded as a change in the departure date, a change in departure/return time OVER 12 hours, a change in departure point or resort area, reducing the quality of your main hotel (not single overnight hotels on touring holidays) or a change of tour itinerary which involves a destination being completely eliminated from the revised itinerary or reducing the specification of the coach. In the event of a significant change you may decide to: a) continue with the holiday as amended OR b) accept an alternative holiday which we may offer you OR c) cancel your booking If you choose a) or b) we will pay you compensation on the scale below. If you choose c) we will refund all monies paid by you, plus compensation on the scale below, no other claims for compensation or expenses will be considered. Date notified Compensation per person More than 28 days - NIL 15-28 days - £10 8-14 days - £15 0-7 days - £20 Please note: we reserve the right to provide alternative means of transport if a vehicles route or crossing is cancelled or altered due to unforeseen circumstances such as breakdown, fire or collision. 4, IF WE CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY It is necessary for there to be a minimum of 30 passengers in order to operate a tour. In certain circumstances, therefore, we may have to cancel your holiday, and if this should occur we will return to you all the money you have paid to us, or offer you a suitable alternative. However we will not normally cancel your holiday: a) Immediately prior to the departure date unless you have not paid for your holiday in full. b) After the balance due date, except as a result of hostilities, political unrest or other circumstances amounting to force majeure, also including strike action. If we have to cancel your holiday at any time, Gain Travel is liable only for any monies you may have paid to us at the time of cancellation and for the compensation payments as detailed in paragraph 3. 5, OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO YOU We accept responsibility for ensuring that all component parts of your holiday as described on this website are supplied to you to a reasonable standard and this includes optional excursions purchased through our employees or agents. If any such part is not provided in the advertised manner, we will pay you reasonable compensation unless the non-provision was due to circumstances which we could not predict and which were beyond our control such as adverse weather, road or traffic conditions or the matters referred to in paragraph 4b). Please remember that some amenities (e.g. hotel lifts, swimming pools, etc.) require servicing and cleaning and may not therefore be available at all times. Some services may be affected by weather conditions and their availability is entirely at the discretion of the provider of the service. Entertainment provided by hotels is frequently subject to demand and its nature and/or frequency may be varied if there is a lack of demand or insufficient numbers staying at the hotel. The published running times of services are estimates only and we will not be liable for any loss (howsoever caused) arising from delay or failure to operate services in accordance with published timings. 6A, PERSONAL INJURY (Whilst participating in arrangements made by us). Gain Travel has taken all reasonable and proper steps to ensure that proper arrangements have been made for all the holidays which are advertised in this brochure, including optional excursions offered by our employees or agents, and that the suppliers of all the services are efficient, safe and reputable and that they comply with the local and national laws and regulations of the country in which they provide those services. Whilst we have no direct control over the provision of services to you by suppliers, we will pay to our clients the equivalent of such damages as they would be entitled to receive under English law in an English court for any personal injury to the client, including illness or death, caused by the failure to perform or the improper performance of such services by the servants or agents of ourselves or any of our suppliers contracted or sub-contracted by us to provide any part of the arrangements for your holiday as described in this brochure where such failure or improper performance is due to the fault of such person and not an event which such person could foresee or forestall even if they had taken all due care. NOTE: We will make payments as stated above provided: a) that claims for personal injury are notified to us within 3 months of the return from holiday. b) the injured client(s) assign to Gain Travel any rights against a supplier or other person or party they may have relating to the claim. c) they agree to co-operate fully with us should we or our insurers wish to enforce those rights which have been assigned to us or to which we are subrogated. d) such payment is limited in the case of transport by water or air to a maximum of such sums as would be obtained under the provisions of the appropriate international conventions. This assignment is necessary to enable us to try and recover from suppliers any compensation we have paid to clients caused by the fault of those suppliers. If we recover more than such compensation and costs, any excess will be paid to the injured client(s). 6B, PERSONAL INJURY (Unconnected with arrangements made by us) Where appropriate and subject to our reasonable discretion, we will afford general assistance to clients who through misadventure suffer illness, personal injury or death whilst travelling on a Gain Travel holiday arising out of an activity which does not form part of the advertised itinerary nor part of an excursion offered through the company, and which is the responsibility of a third party.   HOLIDAY INFORMATION 1, CHILD REDUCTIONS On most holidays, reductions are available for children aged between 2 and 14 providing the child shares a room with 2 full fare paying passengers, although there are some variations. Please enquire at the time of booking. 2, LUGGAGE We ask you to keep luggage down to one medium sized suitcase per person, but a small holdall can also be taken on board the coach. Luggage is the responsibility of the passenger at all times and you must ensure that your luggage is put on/taken off of any vehicles at all times. PLEASE NOTE: All medication must be packed in hand luggage, we cannot be held responsible for circumstances arising from passengers not adhering to this policy. 3, SEAT ALLOCATION AND SPECIFICATION Requests for particular seats can be made on most holidays when booking, but since allocations are made on a first come, first served basis, early booking is adviseable. When bookings are made with us you will be offered the best seats that are available on the coach at that time. Therefore, if you do have anyone who wishes to join you at a later date, do enquire at our office to check availability. There is a seating plan of the coach for each holiday, but it is possible that, on occasions, for operational reasons, a coach of different configuration may be used and we must therefore reserve the right to amend a seating plan and allocate seats other than those you have booked, although this will be avoided as far as possible. We shall have no liability in relation to any such change of specification. Specific seats will not be allocated on coaches or other vehicles which operate on feeder services between joining points and main holiday departure points, or on coaches which carry out transfers to and from air and sea ports or on Gain Travel connecting services. On some tours it may be unavoidable to sub-contract coaches which are not operated by Gain Travel and we reserve the right to do this. 4, SMOKING All our tours are non smoking. Frequent comfort stops will be made on route.   5, TRAVEL DOCUMENTS When you have paid the balance we will either send to you or the travel office through which the booking was made, all the necessary labels, so that you receive them in good time before the holiday departure date. Certain documents, for example air, theatre or boat tickets, may have to be retained and your driver will then issue them to you. 6, SPECIAL CARE FOR THE DISABLED The holidays on this website have been carefully planned to include as much of interest as possible. Inevitably some of the holidays include lengthy periods of travel and some walking or sightseeing excursions. Additionally many of the hotels will have steps to contend with and may not possess lifts, and although we will try our best to look after disabled passengers, it is important that you enter the word DISABLED in block capitals in the special requirements section of the booking form, together with a brief description of the disability. We will make every endeavour to minimise the discomfort and inconvenience, but for obvious reasons are unable to make any guarantees. 7, SPECIAL DIETS If you require a special diet you must inform us at the time of booking in the special requests section. This will be notified to the hotel(s) on your holiday, but on certain holidays the hotels used are tourist class and whilst offering value for money within the price range, they may not have the full facilities to cope with special diets. Any extra costs incurred must be paid to the hotel by yourself before departure from the hotel.   8, GROUND FLOOR ACCOMMODATION There is usually a limited number of ground or low floor rooms available and requests for this accommodation must be made in the special requests section of the booking form, but this type of accommodation cannot be guaranteed. If lifts are available at a hotel the facility will generally be shown on the holiday page. 9, PRIVATE FACILITIES AND SINGLE ROOMS All of our holidays include within the price, accommodation with private facilities. On any holiday there are only a limited number of single rooms. When a single room is available, it may be subject to a supplementary charge and this will be advised at the time of booking. 10, JOINING POINTS When multiple coaches are operated on the same day/tour we cannot guarantee that all passengers will be travelling together if boarding at different joining points. It is firm company policy that passengers are set down at their original joining points only. The driver of a feeder vehicle may (at his/her discretion) agree to drop off passengers at a different point on their return journey but there will be a minimum charge for this of £5 per person which must be paid to the driver before the start of the journey. 11, DRIVERS AND COURIERS Gratuities are not included for your driver/courier. We feel that you would rather deal with this personally, but for good service we would suggest £1.50 per day from each passenger.   12, CUSTOMS REGULATIONS Duty paid/free allowances are available to passengers over the age of 17 years (where applicable). It is the passengers responsibility to understand the current allowances. If a passenger is detained by customs officials due to overexceeding the current allowances or disobeying the rules, the company will have no choice but to continue the journey and will accept no responsibility for travel or any other expenses incurred. 13, CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES Gain Travels’ conditions of carriage require that no person may be permitted to drink alcoholic beverages at any time aboard the coach unless served by a member of staff. Failure to comply with this may result in the clients holiday being terminated. 14, WEBSITE ACCURACY N.B. The information contained within our website was accurate at the time of going on sale, however, we would point out that the company is not responsible for unavoidable changes made by our agents, shipping companies, hotels, restaurants or theatres which may affect your tour itinerary. However, we will endeavour to amend such a situation should it arise.   Holiday Insurance Insurance Terms & Conditions HOLIDAY INSURANCE We have arranged a travel insurance scheme through Towergate Chase Parkinson, which is available only to clients booking holidays detailed in our brochures and on our websites. If insurance cover is required but not included in your particular holiday, we ask you to forward the premium along with your deposit, this will ensure that you will be protected by the coverage under the holiday cancellation scheme of the insurance. PLEASE NOTE: YOU ARE NOT COVERED BY INSURANCE UNTIL THE PREMIUM HAS BEEN PAID. DEMANDS & NEEDS This travel insurance policy will suit the Demands and Needs of an individual, or group (where applicable) who have no excluded pre-existing medical conditions, are travelling to countries included within the policy terms and who wish to insure themselves against the unforeseen events detailed in the cover section below. Subject to terms and conditions and maximum specified claim limits. IMPORTANT- You may already possess alternative insurance(s) for some or all of the features and benefits provided by this product; it is your responsibility to investigate this. We will not provide you with advice about the suitability of this product for your individual needs but we will be happy to provide you with factual information to assist you in making an informed buying decision. The full terms, conditions and exclusion clauses are incorporated within the insurance document which alone constitutes the contract of insurance between you and the insurers, in the event of a dispute as to the interpretation of the terms and conditions of this insurance, the terms and conditions of the insurance document alone shall prevail. Shown below are only brief details. The insurance document will be sent to you with your confirmation invoice on receipt of the premium. You can of course inspect the document at our office before acceptance. The full terms, conditions and exclusion clauses are incorporated within the insurance document which alone constitutes the contract of insurance between you and the insurers, in the event of a dispute as to the interpretation of the terms and conditions of this insurance, the terms and conditions of the insurance document alone shall prevail. Shown below are only brief details. The insurance document will be sent to you with your confirmation invoice on receipt of the premium. You can of course inspect the document at our office before acceptance. 24 HOUR EMERGENCY SERVICE For the benefit of insured persons, an independent 24 hour emergency service is operated. In the event of a medical emergency covered by the insurance, professional help and advice will be given. The relevant telephone number can be found on the ticket holders’ insurance policy. Remember this number is strictly for emergencies only. COOLING OFF PERIOD: Your insurance cover offers a cooling off period of 14 days from the date of purchase. If you are not satisfied with the amount of cover within this period a full refund of the insurance premium will be given back to you unless the insurance is included in the package price of your holiday. This insurance carries Health Conditions so you should inform Towergate Chase Parkinson of any medical conditions or any other facts that may affect the Underwriters acceptance of your cover. Please therefore telephone Towergate Chase Parkinson on 0870 906 3142 to inform them if anyone to be covered by this policy or any person upon whose health the trip depends: (a) Has a pre-existing or on-going medical condition (b) Is taking any prescribed medication (c) Has or has had any condition still requiring periodic review (d) Is awaiting any tests, treatment, investigation, referral or results of same. Failure to notify them may cause your circumstances to fall within a policy exclusion. N.B. If any member of the party suffers from any serious or reoccuring medical condition requiring treatment it is essential they contact the medical helpline on 0870 906 3142 to see if the policy can be extended to include the condition, all declarations will be confirmed in writing. The limits of coverage are: Cancellation - £2,500 Medical Expenses/Repatriation- £1,000,000 Curtailment & hospital benefit- £2,500 Luggage & personal money- £1,500 Luggage delay - £150 Personal liability - £1,000,000 Personal accident - £5,000 Loss of passport - £100 Delayed Departure (air holidays only) £100 There are limits, exclusions and excesses applicable to all parts of the amounts. We recommend you inspect the document before acceptance. Please note that a £40 (£20 in respect of deposits) excess for each insured person will apply in respect of holiday cancellation. All claims should be made direct to: Towergate Chase Parkinson Ltd P.O. Box 416 West Byfleet, Surrey KT14 7YE TEL: 0844 892 1697, FAX: 0844 892 1699, e-mail:chaseparkinson@towergate.co.uk Gain Travel is an Appointed Representative of ITC Compliance Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). The travel insurance for 2010 is underwritten by AXA Insurance (UK) plc. The travel insurance for 2011 is administered by FirstAssist Insurance Limited and underwritten by Great Lakes Reinsurance (UK) plc.