ASIA Inspirations Booking Conditions
Your contract is with Wendy Wu Tours Ltd. Please read these booking conditions carefully, in conjunction with information in the brochure, as you will be bound by them.
Your holiday contract
When you book a holiday or flight with us the contract between us comes into effect as soon as we issue our confirmation invoice. We then become responsible to provide you with the holiday or flight you have booked and you become responsible to pay for it, in each case subject to these terms and conditions. This contract is made on the terms of these Booking Conditions, which are governed by English Law, and the jurisdiction of the English Courts. You may choose the law and jurisdiction of Scotland or Northern Ireland if you wish. When you make a booking you guarantee that you have authority to accept and do accept on behalf of your party these Conditions and accept responsibility for making all payments to us for all members of the party. We will send all relevant documentation to you or your chosen agent and you will be responsible for ensuring that all other members of the party are kept fully informed. No verbal amendments may be made by either party to these written Booking Conditions. If you book your holiday through an agent all communication must be through that agent. All money which you pay to the agent before we have sent you the confirmation of your booking will be held by the travel agent on our behalf. It is important you check the written confirmation when you receive it, or if booking within 60 days of travel, that all details are as you require them within 24 hours. If you wish to change or cancel any arrangements later you may have to pay an amendment or cancellation charge and additional costs (see below) which may be as much as the whole of the original price of your arrangements. If you had not seen these Conditions when you booked, and are not happy to proceed now that you have seen them, please return all documentation to us or to your travel agent within 7 days of receipt. Your booking will be cancelled and monies returned in full, provided you have not commenced your travel. This clause does not apply if you booked within 10 weeks of travel.
Your financial protection
We provide full financial protection for our package holidays. For flight-based holidays this is through our Air Travel Organiser’s Licence number 6639. In the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and will arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking. For further information visit the ATOL website at www.atol.org.uk. From 1 October 2012, when you buy an ATOL protected flight or flight inclusive holiday from us you will receive an ATOL Certificate (prior to this a Booking Confirmation & Itinerary will be issued). This lists the flight, accommodation, car hire and/or other services that are financially protected, where you can get information on what this means for you and who to contact if things go wrong. We will provide you with the services listed on the ATOL Certificate (or Booking Confirmation & Itinerary). In some cases, where we aren’t able to do so for reasons of insolvency, an alternative ATOL holder may provide you with the services you have bought or a suitable alternative (at no extra cost to you). You agree to accept that in those circumstances the alternative ATOL holder will perform those obligations and you agree to pay any money outstanding to be paid by you under your contract to that alternative ATOL holder. However, you also agree that in some cases it will not be possible to appoint an alternative ATOL holder, in which case you will be entitled to make a claim under the ATOL scheme (or your credit card issuer where applicable). We are ABTA Members (W7994). When you buy a package holiday that doesn’t include a flight, protection is provided by way of a bond held by ABTA (www.abta.com).
Your holiday price
All prices shown in your specific quote are per person in pounds sterling unless otherwise stated. We reserve the right to change any of the prices quoted at any time before you book. If we do you will be notified of any such change before you commit yourself. After you book, we reserve the right to increase or decrease prices in line with any change in VAT, local and UK taxes, currency fluctuations, fuel surcharges, security charges or any fees chargeable for the services included in the cost of your holiday. Should it be necessary to make any surcharges, we will notify you of the relevant adjustments by issuing a new invoice. In any event we will absorb all such increases where they form less than 2% of the total cost of your holiday (excluding any cancellation or amendment charges). However there will be no change within 30 days of your departure. Only amounts in excess of 2% will be invoiced to you. In the event that any surcharge means you paying in excess of 10% more on the original cost of your holiday, you will be entitled to cancel your trip with a full refund of all monies paid (except amendment fees). Should you wish to cancel under these circumstances you must exercise your right to do so within 14 days from the date of the invoice we send you showing the increase. Should the price of your holiday go down due to the above, by more than 2% of your holiday cost, then any refund due will be paid to you. 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. When you buy a flight-based holiday, all monies you pay to the travel agent are held by him on behalf and for the benefit of the Trustees of the Air Travel Trust. This is subject to the agent’s obligation to pay it to us for so long as we do not fail. If we fail, any money held at that time by the agent, or subsequently accepted from you by him, is and continues to be held on behalf of and for the benefit of the Trustees of the Air Travel Trust without any obligation to pay that money to us. When you buy a holiday not including a flight, all monies you pay to the travel agent are held by him on our behalf at all times.
The price of your travel arrangements was calculated using exchange rates applicable on the quotation date.
Prices quoted in the ASIA Inspirations brochure are guide prices only and do not relate to any specific customer. Your price is that shown in your specific quote.
Payment
Once you have asked us to confirm your booking the total price of the arrangements you have booked is due and is payable as follows:
• If you book more than 60 days before your scheduled departure date, a non-refundable deposit of £250 per person is payable at the time of booking and the full remaining balance payable 60 days before your scheduled departure date.
• If you book less than 60 days before your scheduled departure date the full price is payable when you book.
In some circumstances it may be necessary to pay a higher non-refundable deposit, for example when we are required to make early payment for services you have booked. In this case you will be advised at the time of booking.
Our preferred method of deposit payment is by bank debit card or credit card. Balance payment may be made by cash, bank debit card, credit card or cheque (providing there is time to clear it to meet the payment schedule shown above (allow 5 working days to clear from once received). No charge will be made for deposits and balances paid by Debit Card. There is a 2% charge for deposits and balances paid by credit card. Your booking may be cancelled if you do not make payment on time (we do not send reminders) and Cancellation Charges will apply as below.
Travel documents & visas
A Passport with a minimum of six months validity from the intended date of Travel and at least two blank pages is required for travel for all countries in our programme. Please check your holiday inclusions to determine if visas are included in the cost of your holiday and ask us if you would like us to undertake this service for you, for which we will make a charge. Failure to forward passports to Wendy Wu Tours by a specified date may incur Fees to cover urgent visa processing. Unless otherwise requested your passport will be returned approximately 4 weeks after receipt by Royal Mail Special Delivery. A charge will be made for faster processing. Responsibility for documentation accuracy, passport validity and dispatch of documents rests with you & Wendy Wu Tours accepts no responsibility. It is the responsibility of each passenger to ensure they meet necessary visa application criteria laid down by the relevant country and to ensure the visa issued is correct. Any additional charges incurred will be passed on to you. Should your visa application be refused, you will be liable for the loss of the booking deposit. We do not accept any responsibility if you cannot travel because you have not complied with any passport, visa or immigration requirements.
Travel insurance, Health & Safety
It is a Condition that you take out suitable travel insurance covering at least circumstances leading to cancellation and providing sufficient medical cover for illness, injury and repatriation while overseas. You must provide us with details of your insurers name and emergency contact number when you book or as soon as possible thereafter. Wendy Wu Tours will not be liable for costs incurred by you due to your failure to take out suitable insurance from the date of booking.
The destinations, accommodation and transport we offer are not always suitable for people with certain conditions and disabilities. By making your booking, you declare all travellers are of a good level of health & fitness, with no medical conditions (mental or physical) that may limit the ability to fully participate in, or affect the operation of, your holiday. It is your responsibility to contact us before booking if there are any doubts. If, in the light of the information you provide, we reasonably feel unable to properly accommodate the particular needs of the person(s) concerned, we will not confirm your booking. If you do subsequently advise us, or we become aware of any issue which may affect the suitability of your chosen holiday, we may cancel it. Please note that this does not replace the need to disclose any medical conditions to your travel insurers. We will not chase you for any of the information referred to above and cannot be held responsible for your failure to notify us, or your travel insurers, of any relevant conditions prior to travel. A doctor's note may sometimes be required to confirm your fitness to travel.
If you Change or Cancel your booking
If after receiving our confirmation you wish to change your travel arrangements we will do our best to accommodate these, but it may not be possible. Please contact us in writing as soon as possible if you do wish do so. Requests must be made by the person who made the booking or by your Agent. There will be an administration charge for the costs we incur in making the change, as well as any additional costs of the new arrangements. The administration costs per person are:
| Minor amendments | £20 |
| Minor amendments made within 30 days of departure | £30 |
| Changing departure date | £50 |
Changing departure date within 60 days of departure is not permitted and cancellation fees will apply.
| Reissue of airline tickets | £50 |
Plus any non-refundable costs of the cancelled ticket and of the new ticket.
Once a booking is confirmed no name transfers are permitted. Cancellation fees will apply.
Some arrangements such as certain types of air tickets cannot be changed after a booking has been made as they are sold as part of your fixed package and any change will incur a 100% cancellation charge. Any change by you to your confirmed arrangements after departure is subject to availability and any extra costs must be paid by you.
We start to incur costs in relation to your arrangements from the time we confirm your booking. If you cancel we have to make a charge. The nearer to your departure date you cancel, the higher the charge will be. If you wish to cancel a confirmed booking you must do so by writing to our head office. We recommend 'Guaranteed Special Delivery'. Cancellation takes effect from the day we receive your letter. Cancellation charges are shown in the table below (which also applies if we cancel because you fail to make payments on time) together with the cost of any airfares we have had to pay at the time of booking, and will be payable immediately on cancellation. When the cancellation letter is received by us before departure Charges are:
| 61 or more days | Retention of deposit |
| 60 – 42 days | 50% of the total holiday cost including deposit |
| 41 – 33 days | 60% of the total holiday cost including deposit |
| 32 – 15 days | 90% of the total holiday cost including deposit |
14 days or less 100% of the total holiday cost including deposit
If you cancel for a reason covered by your insurance, you should follow your insurer’s procedure as you may be able to reclaim these charges.
If we Change or Cancel your holiday
We plan the arrangements many months in advance. While it is unlikely, we reserve the right to change any of the details at any time, including during the tour. If such changes are made before you book, we will advise you before we confirm your booking. The right is also reserved to change airline, aircraft and vessels scheduled for any specific departure. Most such alterations will be minor and of little effect on your overall arrangements. While we will do our best to notify you of any such minor change before your departure, we will have no other liability to you.
Occasionally we may have to make a significant change to your confirmed arrangements. Significant changes include: Change of UK departure airport (a change from one London airport to another is not considered a major change. London airports are Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton and London City); Change of your time of departure or return by more than 12 hours; Change of resort; Change of holiday accommodation to accommodation of a lower official rating.
We reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel your travel arrangements. For example, if the minimum numbers required are not reached. We will not cancel your arrangements less than 60 days before your departure date, except for reasons of force majeure or failure by you to pay the final balance.
If we are unable to provide the booked travel arrangements, we will inform you or your agent as soon as possible. You will have the choice of either accepting the change of arrangements; accepting an offer of alternative travel arrangements of comparable standard from us if available (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value, if it is more expensive you will pay the difference); or cancelling your holiday and receiving a full refund of all monies paid. In all cases, except where the major change arises due to reasons of force majeure, we will pay compensation as detailed below:
Period before departure date notification given by us Credit/Compensation per fare paying passenger (excluding children)*
| 61 or more days | Retention of deposit |
| 15 – 27 days | £40 |
| 28 – 41 days | £30 |
| 42 – 60 days | £20 |
| More than 60 days | NIL |
* Children or others travelling at concessionary rates will receive compensation pro rata based on the concessionary price against the full adult price as shown on the confirmation.
The compensation that we offer does not exclude you from claiming more if you are entitled to do so.
Force Majeure: We will not pay you compensation if we have to cancel or change your travel arrangements in any way because of unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control. These can include, for example, war, riot, industrial dispute, terrorist activity and its consequences, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions, epidemics and pandemics, unavoidable technical problems with transport, changes to entry regulations and similar events outside our control.
If you, or your agent, have made independent travel arrangements you accept responsibility for joining your tour or arrangements in good time, regardless of any change to the time or date, or to the itinerary. We will not refund monies paid to us, or any third party acting on our or your behalf, or make compensation or other payments where, for whatever reason, you fail to join your tour or any arrangements made by us.
Our liability to you
We accept liability for any damage caused to you or any person in your party by the failure to perform, or the improper performance of, the contract made when your booking is confirmed (subject to any changes subsequently agreed between us) unless the failures which occur in the performance of the contract are attributable to you or some other person in your party; such failures in performance are attributable to a third party unconnected with the provision of the services contracted for and are unforeseeable and unavoidable; or such failures are due to unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised; or an event which we, or the supplier of the services (if not us) could not foresee or forestall even with all due care. Our liability, except in cases of death, injury or illness, shall be limited to the lesser of:
a) the maximum of twice the cost of your travel arrangements.
b) the minimum amount payable in accordance with and/or in an identical manner to:
i. the contractual terms of the companies that provide the transportation for your travel arrangements, which are expressly incorporated into the contract and also form the terms and Conditions of separate contracts between you and the carrier.
ii. any relevant international convention, for example the Montreal Convention in respect of travel by air, the Athens Convention in respect of travel by sea, the Berne Convention in respect of travel by rail and the Paris Convention in respect of the provision of accommodation, which limit the amount of compensation that you can claim for death, injury, delay to passengers and loss, damage and delay to luggage. We are to be regarded as having all benefit of any limitation of compensation contained in these or any conventions.
You can ask for copies of the transport companies' contractual terms, or the international conventions, from our offices. Under EU law (Regulation 261/2004) 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. Your right to a refund and/or compensation from us is set out in clause 9. If any payments to you are due from us, any payment made to you by the airline will be deducted. NB this clause does not apply to any separate contracts that you may enter into for excursions or activities whilst on holiday.
Excursions
Excursions or other tours that you may choose to book or pay for whilst you are on holiday are not part of your package holiday provided by us. For any excursion or other tour that you book, your contract will be with the operator of the excursion or tour and not with us. We are not responsible for the provision of the excursion or tour or for anything that happens during the course of its provision by the operator.
Complaint procedure
If you have a problem during your holiday concerning any service provided as part of the arrangements we have confirmed, you must inform your Local Guide (or, if none available, with our local agent or hotel manager) immediately to enable them to try to resolve the matter. Our emergency number is also available. If this cannot be achieved it is essential that you notify our head office in writing, quoting the booking reference number, at the earliest opportunity and no later than 28 days after your return to enable any complaint to be investigated. In the unlikely event that any complaint cannot be settled between us you may if you wish be referred to Arbitration. This special scheme devised by arrangement with the ABTA is administered quite independently. It is a simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on documents alone with restricted liability on you for costs. The upper limit on claims is £5,000 per person and £25,000 per booking form. The scheme doesn’t apply to claims which are solely in respect of physical injury or illness or their consequences. It can however deal with claims which include an element of minor injury or illness subject to a limit of £1,500 on the amount the arbitrator can award per person in respect of this element. For injury and illness claims, you can request the ABTA Mediation Procedure and we have the option to agree to mediation. Your request for arbitration must be received by ABTA within eighteen months of the date of return from holiday. Further information on the Code and ABTA’s assistance in resolving disputes can be found on www.abta.com.
Indemnity
When you book arrangements with us you accept responsibility for the proper conduct of yourself and your party. If your actions or omissions cause damage to any property in the provision of the contracted arrangements, or cause delay or diversion to any flight or other means of transportation, you agree to fully indemnify us against any claim (including professional fees and legal costs) made against us by or on behalf of the owner of such property or the operator of the flight or other means of transportation. The Captain of an aircraft or Master of a vessel and local representative have authority over the aircraft/vessel/tour and other passengers at all times when travelling. They may prevent you from travelling if, for example, it is considered you are unfit to travel or pose a danger to, or threaten the good order of the aircraft/vessel/tour and other passengers. In these circumstances your holiday will be considered terminated and there will be no liability on our part, or that of any supplier, for any refund, compensation, or costs you may incur. Additionally, we will have the right to recover full costs resulting from the incident from the passenger.
Data Protection
In order to process your booking and to ensure that your travel arrangements run smoothly and meet your requirements we, Wendy Wu Tours Ltd, need to use the information you provide such as name, address, any special needs/dietary requirements etc. We take responsibility for ensuring that proper security measures are in place to protect your information. We must pass the information on to the relevant suppliers of your travel arrangements such as transport providers, hotels, your travel agent etc. The information may also be provided to security or credit checking companies, public authorities such as customs/immigration if required, or as required by law. Additionally, where your holiday is outside the European Economic Area, controls on data protection in your destination may not be as strong as the legal requirements in the UK. We will not pass any information to any person not responsible for your travel arrangements. This applies to any sensitive information that you give to us such as details of any disabilities, or dietary/religious requirements. If we cannot pass this information to the relevant suppliers we cannot provide your booking. In making a booking you consent to this information being passed on to the relevant persons. Note that where information is also held by your chosen agent, this is subject to their own data protection policy.
Wendy Wu Tours Ltd. may wish to contact you by post, e-mail and/or telephone with news, information and offers on holidays we may have available and for market research purposes. If you prefer not to be contacted for the purposes set out above then please contact the Consumer Data Controller, Marketing Department, Wendy Wu Tours Ltd, 6 - 10 Borough High Street, London, SE1 9QQ.
If you wish to obtain a copy of the personal information held about you, please apply in writing. Wendy Wu Tours Ltd may make a small charge for supplying this information as permitted by law.
