Booking Conditions
When planning your voyages it is easy to be swept away by the holiday spirit and overlook ‘mundane’ details, which are not part of your holiday dream. Nevertheless, the information on the following pages is very important as it forms the basis of your agreement with Beacon Safaris and we ask you to read it carefully. In particular, the Booking Conditions detail our responsibilities to you and yours to us and provide guidelines to cover circumstances, which may arise.
All holidays booked through Beacon Safaris are subject to the following Booking Conditions
Your holiday contract:
When you make a booking you undertake that you have the authority to accept and do accept these booking conditions on behalf of yourself and your party. A contract will exist upon the issue of our Confirmation Invoice. These conditions in conjunction with the information set out in our brochure form the entire agreement between Beacon Safaris and yourself. Any advice/information given to you by your travel agent, which is inconsistent with our brochure and these conditions, will not form part of your contract with ourselves.
Your holiday price:
When you or your travel agent request a booking with Beacon Safaris, if we are able to accept the booking, you must immediately pay a deposit of 40% of the tour price. This is so that we can secure hotels, flights or products on your behalf that must be paid for by Beacon Safaris at the time we book them for you. The balance of the price of your travel arrangements must be paid at least 2 weeks before your departure date. If your booking is made within 2 weeks of departure, full payment is required at the time of booking. If the deposit is not paid on time, we reserve the right to cancel your travel arrangements. If the balance is not paid on time we shall retain your deposit and reserve the right to cancel your travel arrangements and levy the cancellation charges set out in clause 4 below. All monies you pay to the travel agent are held by them on our behalf at all times. All prices in our brochures or on our website are in US Dollars, per person (based on 2 people sharing). We reserve the right to change our prices at any time before you book, including any special offers which we may have from time-to-time, and which may or may not be the same as set out in our publicity material.
If you change your booking:
If, after our confirmation invoice has been issued, you wish to change your travel arrangements in any way, for example, your chosen departure date or accommodation, we will do our utmost to make these changes but it may not always be possible. Any request for changes MUST be in writing from the person who made the booking or your travel agent. You will be asked to pay an administration charge of $ 20 per person per change, together with any further charges and/or supplements and/or costs we incur in making this change. You should be aware that these costs will increase the closer to the departure date that changes are made and may include the cost of replacement air tickets; you should therefore contact us as soon as possible. We may not be able to make changes to your holiday arrangements within 21 days of departure without you incurring cancellation charges.
If you cancel your holiday:
You, or any member of your party, may cancel your travel arrangements at any time. WRITTEN notification from the person who made the booking or your travel agent must be received at our offices. The following scale of cancellation will be payable depending on when the notification of cancellation is received:
- 56 days or more Deposit only
- 55 – 43 days 30% of total holiday price
- 42 – 29 days 50% of total holiday price
- 28 – 15 days 75% of total holiday price
- Less than 14 days 100% of total holiday price
At the time of cancellation, if the deposit paid is greater than any of the cancellation bands above, the higher amount will apply as a cancellation charge. If some, but not all, party members cancel, additional charges may be payable by the remaining members (e.g. under occupancy charges)
If we change or cancel your holiday:
It is unlikely that we will have to make any changes to your travel arrangements. However, we do plan the arrangements many months in advance and occasionally, therefore, it may be necessary 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 if practicable and time permitting. Please note that carriers, timings and routings given in the brochure are for guidance only and may be subject to change. Such changes are deemed to be minor changes. Other examples of minor changes include alteration of your outward/return flights by less than 12 hours, changes to aircraft type, change of accommodation to another of the same standard, or change of airstrips within the parks. We also reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel your travel arrangements. For example, if the minimum number of clients required for a particular travel arrangement is not reached, we may have to cancel it. However, we will not cancel your travel arrangements less than 8 weeks before your departure date, except for reasons of force majeure or failure by you to pay the final balance. If it is necessary for us to cancel your travel arrangements for reasons other than force majeure and non-payment of the final balance, we will pay compensation to you as set out in this clause. If we make a major change to your holiday, we will inform you or your travel agent as soon as reasonably possible if there is time before your departure. You will have the choice of either accepting the change of arrangements, accepting an offer of alternative travel arrangements from us, if available (with no amendment fee although subject to any difference in brochure price), or cancelling your booked holiday and receiving a full refund of all monies paid except for insurance premiums and/or amendment charges. In all cases, except where the major change arises due to reasons of force majeure. We will pay compensation as detailed below for the period before your departure within which the notice of cancellation or major change is notified to you.
- 56 days or more
- Nil55 – 43 days $10
- 42 – 29 days $20
- 28 – 15 days $30
- Less than 15 days $50
‘Force Majeure’:
This means any situation outside our control such as war or threat of war, riot, industrial dispute, technical or maintenance problems with means of transportation, re-scheduling or cancellation of flights by an airline or main charterer, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances that amount to force majeure. As we do not control the day-to-day management of your accommodation, it is possible that the reserved accommodation may not be suitable or available to you once you have arrived in resort. If this happens, we will endeavor to provide accommodation of at least the same standard in the same resort area. If only accommodation of a lower standard is available then we will refund the difference of the brochure price between the accommodation booked and that available.
If you have a complaint:
If you have a problem during your holiday, you must, whilst in resort, inform the relevant supplier (e.g. your hotelier) and your resort representative as soon as possible and they will endeavour to put things right. You must also complete a Customer Report Form whilst in resort. If you fail to report any problems whilst in resort we will have been deprived of the opportunity to investigate and rectify your complaint whilst you were there, and this may affect any rights you may otherwise have had under this contract.
Our liability to you:
We are responsible for ensuring that your package holiday is of a reasonable standard and as described to you. If any part fails to reach this standard and affects the enjoyment of your holiday, we will offer reasonable compensation providing it is not due to events outside our control. Our liability in all these cases is limited to a maximum of twice the value of the services affected.
Behaviour:
Please note that your holiday arrangements will be terminated by ourselves or the suppliers concerned (e.g. airlines, hotels, tour leaders etc.) if you are behaving in such a way as to cause, or be likely to cause, danger or distress to others or damage to property. In this situation, Beacon Safaris will not be liable to make any refund, pay any compensation, or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result of your behaviour. Please note that you are at all times subject to the laws of the country you are visiting and must respect local cultures and customs.
