Vital InfoBooking Conditions

Booking Conditions

1. General
   (a) These conditions apply to all Holidays All prices quoted are in Pounds Sterling. These conditions govern your relationship with Virgin Holidays and set out details of Virgin Holidays' obligations in relation to any Holiday which you book or is booked on your behalf. Please read these conditions carefully before making a booking.
   (b) Please be aware that these terms include limitations on the liability of Virgin Holidays and its' obligations relating to any Holiday and certain exclusions of Virgin Holidays' responsibility. These conditions do not govern your rights and/or duties in relation to any other person or company whose services may be used on any Holiday.
2. Your Holiday Contract
   (a) When a booking is made, the 'lead name' on the booking guarantees that he or she has the authority to accept and does accept on behalf of the party the terms of these booking conditions. A contract will exist as soon as we issue our confirmation invoice. 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 however, choose the law and jurisdiction of Scotland or Northern Ireland if you wish to do so.
   (b) On receipt by Virgin Holidays or the relevant Travel Agent of your completed booking form and deposit(s) we will reserve your Holiday in respect of all persons travelling. It is important to check the details on the invoice when you get it, or if booking late at the time of booking, that all the details are exactly as you requested. In the event of any discrepancy, please contact us or your travel agent immediately.
   (c) If you want to cancel or change your booking later you may have to pay amendment or cancellation costs (described below) which may be as much as the whole Holiday cost.
   (d) All brochure/website descriptions are made in good faith and every care is taken to ensure their accuracy. However, in view of the detail contained therein and the fact that brochures/websites are necessarily prepared/created some time in advance of distribution and of the Holidays; advertised facilities, amenities, entertainment and schedules may, on occasion, be restricted, curtailed, changed or cancelled. Therefore, changes may be made to the particulars you have seen at any time before the contract with you is made. In these circumstances, we will notify you of such changes prior to confirmation of your booking.
3. Travel Documents
   All passport, visa, travel insurance and health certificate requirements are your responsibility and Virgin Holidays accept no responsibility for any delay or expense incurred through any irregularity in your documents. You are advised to consult your Travel Agent for exact details. . In the event we are asked to re-issue tickets that have been lost, destroyed or stolen and we agree to do so, any charges incurred as a result of this will be payable by you.
4. Your Financial Protection
   The air holidays in this brochure are ATOL protected since we hold ATOL No. 2358 issued by the Civil Aviation Authority. This means that you are protected in the unlikely event of our insolvency in that the CAA will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and arrangements will be made to refund any money you have paid to us for an advance booking. We are also a member of ABTA - membership number V2043.
5. Your Holiday Price
   (a) When you make your booking you must pay a deposit per person. The balance of the price of your travel arrangements must be paid at least 8 weeks before your departure date. If you book within 8 weeks of departure you must pay the total price of the Holiday at the time of booking. If the deposit and/or balance is not paid in time, we shall cancel your travel arrangements. If the balance is not paid in time we shall cancel your booking and retain your deposit. All monies you pay to the Travel Agents are held by them on our behalf at all times. Direct payments to Virgin Holidays by credit card will incur a charge of 1.5% of the total value of your holiday. Late bookings made within 10 days prior to departure may require ticket pick-up at the airport. An administration charge of £15 per ticket will apply to this.
   (b) The price of your travel arrangements was calculated using exchange rates quoted in the 'Financial Times Guide to World Currencies'
   (c) Virgin Holidays reserve the right to raise or lower its prices at any time. Before you make a booking we will give you the up-to-date price of your chosen holiday, including the cost of any peak season supplements, upgrades or additional facilities which you have requested. Any increase in price may appear as a flight supplement. Once you hav accepted this price and a booking has been made, that price is fully guaranteed and will not be subject to any surcharges. When you make a booking on our website you will be shown prices that relate to the holiday being booked. We will make every effort to ensure that these prices are accurate. It is possible that these prices may be incorrect due to a technical fault or circumstances beyond our control. If this happens we will endeavour to contact you as soon as possible to advise you of the correct price. When you receive this information you will have the option to proceed with your booking with the corrected price or cancel at no charge.
6. 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 to be made must be from the person who made the booking. You will be asked to pay an administration charge per person and any further cost we incur in making this alteration. You should be aware that these costs could increase the closer to the departure date that changes are made and you should contact us as soon as possible. For cruise bookings also see Clause 19. Only one change of departure date, per booking may be permitted. Further changes may be classed as Major Changes, which may result in cancellation charges being applied.
   Please Note: Certain travel arrangements (e.g. Apex Tickets) cannot be changed after a reservation has been made and any alteration request will incur a 100% cancellation charge.
   Important Note: Name changes or departure changes are not always permitted by the carrier. Where possible we will make the necessary arrangements, although some carriers treat name changes as cancellations and charge accordingly. If airline tickets have been issued, any changes made to a booking may mean you having to pay for the cancelled ticket and purchasing a new ticket at full cost.
7. If You Cancel Your Holiday
   You, or any member of your party, may cancel your travel arrangements at any time. Written notification by mail or fax (not e-mail) from the 'lead name' on the booking or your Travel Agent on your behalf, must be received at our offices. Since we incur costs in cancelling your travel arrangements, you will have to pay the applicable cancellation charges up to the maximum shown in Clause 8. For cruise bookings also see Clause 7 (b).
   (b) Please note that, in the case of cancellation after receipt of documents, no refund will be given unless unused tickets are returned to Virgin Holidays. We suggest you return your unused travel tickets by recorded delivery. Insurance premiums are not refundable. Please note that in the case of part cancellation, for example if members of your party cancel, in addition to incurring the applicable cancellation charges, we will recalculate the holiday cost for the remaining travellers. You may have to pay the extra room charges such as single-room supplements. One person who occupies a twin room will probably have to pay a significant extra charge.
   Note: Cancellation charges made by our suppliers may be higher than the cost of the deposit and we reserve the right to pass such fees on to you. Virgin Holidays will advise of such fees before cancellation.
8. If We Change or Cancel Your Holiday
   (a) It is unlikely that we will have to make any changes to your travel arrangements but we do plan the arrangements many months in advance. 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 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 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 equivalent or superior standard from us, if available, or a choice of specified travel arrangements of a lower standard to the travel arrangements booked together with a refund of the difference in price. If it is necessary to cancel your travel arrangements, except where cancellation is due to non payment by you of your final balance, we will pay to you minimum compensation as set out below.
   (b) Please note that carriers such as airlines used in the brochure/website may be subject to change. Some flights may have to stop en route for technical reasons. Where this is known in advance details are given in the flight timetables, otherwise details will be forwarded to your Travel Agent. Planned flight times given in this brochure/website and on subsequent customer invoices are for guidance only. Alterations may be made by the various UK and overseas airport scheduling committees or for other reasons. Actual flight times will be shown on your tickets. All bookings are accepted subject to the Civil Aviation Authority granting Licences. Such changes are deemed to be a minor change. 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.
   (c) 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 equivalent or superior quality alternative travel arrangements from us if available, accepting alternative travel arrangements from us of a lower standard to the travel arrangements booked together with a refund of the difference in price if available or cancelling your booking and receiving a full refund of all monies paid . You will have 10 days in which to accept a refund, after which, it will be deemed that the refund has been accepted. Such refunds will be made to the Travel Agent or if booking direct to the person who made the booking. In all cases, except where the Major Change arises due to reasons of Force Majeure, we will pay minimum compensation as detailed below.
   
   

   Period before departure within which notice of cancellation or major change is received by us in writing or notified to you	If we make a major change to your holiday	If we cancel your holiday - Amount you receive from us	If you cancel your holiday - Amount of cancellation charge plus deposit
   More than 56 days	£0.00	Deposit only	Deposit only
   29-56 days	£25.00	100% of holiday + £25.00	50%
   15-28 days	£35.00	100% of holiday + £35.00	60%
   7-14 days	£40.00	100% of holiday + £40.00	90%
   Less than 7 days	£50.00	100% of holiday + £50.00	100%

   Please note that the above payments are per full fare-paying passenger (excluding infants). For children invoiced at reduced rates, compensation will be paid on a pro-rate basis of the adult rate.

   Compensation will not be payable and we will not otherwise be liable to you if we are forced to cancel, delay or curtail or in any way change your holiday as a result of Force Majeure as detailed previously.

9. Flight Delay
   If you are delayed for more than 3 hours for a reason other than Force majeure and in respect of the main flights included in your holiday (e.g Transatlantic) we have adopted the ABTA recommended practice on flight delays which state:-
   (a) Operators should seek to ensure that in the event of a delay exceeding 3 hours, customers should receive light refreshments.
   (b) In the event of a delay exceeding 6 hours, customers should receive a main meal.
   (c) In the event of a longer delay, wherever possible, customer should receive meals and accommodation appropriate for the time of day.
   In addition to the above, if you take out Virgin Holidays holiday insurance you will receive a benefit of £25 for the first 8 hours delay and £25 for each 8 hours thereafter up to a maximum of £100 per insured person. If your outbound journey is delayed by over 24 hour you have the choice of cancelling the Holiday and receiving reimbursement of the cancellation charges up to £5,000 per insured person, less any applicable excess charge.
10. Flights and Other Services
    (a) You are reminded that Captains of aircraft have absolute authority over the aircraft and its' passengers whilst boarding or in flight. The Captain or other authorised representative of an airline can refuse to carry anyone if they are unruly or are otherwise unfit to travel or are a danger to the flight or other passengers. If you are refused carriage in these circumstances your Holiday will terminate immediate as will the contract between you and Virgin Holidays and Virgin Holidays will have no further responsibility or liability to you.
    (b) This brochure/website is our responsibility, as your tour operator. It is not issued on behalf of, and does not commit the airlines mentioned herein or any airline whose services are used in the course of your travel arrangements. Please note that, in accordance with Air Navigation Orders, in order to qualify for infant status, a child must be under 2 years of age on the day of its return flight.
    (c) When you book a Holiday with Virgin Holidays you accept responsibility for the proper conduct for yourself and your party whilst on Holiday. Virgin Holidays reserves the right in its reasonable discretion to terminate your Holiday or that of any member of your party due to misconduct and Virgin Holidays will have no further responsibility or liability to you. If your actions or those of any member of your party cause damage to the accommodation in which you are staying, or cause delay or diversion to any flight or other means of transportation, you agree to fully indemnify (i.e. compensate or reimburse) Virgin Holidays against any claim (including legal costs) made against Virgin Holidays by or on behalf of the owners of such accommodation or the operator of such flights or other means of transportation.
    For those who participate in sports, water-sports and winter sports whilst on Holiday that have been organised and arranged completely independently of Virgin Holidays, it should be understood that participation is at the individual's own risk and it is your own responsibility to obtain the relevant insurance.
11. If You Have A Complaint
    If you have a problem during your Holiday, you must inform the relevant supplier (e.g. your hotelier) and our resort representative immediately who will endeavour to put things right. If your complaint is not resolved locally, please follow this up within a reasonable period of time of your return home. Your complaint should be in writing, to our Customer Services Department at
    Virgin Holidays Limited, The Galleria, Station Road, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 1WW
    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.
    It is strongly suggested that you communicate any complaint to the supplier of the services in question as well as to our representative without delay and complete a report form whilst in resort.
    If you fail to follow this simple procedure we will have been deprived of the opportunity to investigate and rectify your complaint whilst you were in resort and this may affect your rights under this contract.
12. What Happens To Complaints
    It is unlikely that you will have a complaint that cannot be settled amicably between us. However, disputes to do with this contract which cannot be settled amicably, may (if you wish) be referred to arbitration under a special scheme which is arranged by the Association of British Travel Agents but is administered quite independently by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators. The scheme 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 any amount greater than £5,000 per person or £25,000 per booking form. Also it does not apply to claims which relate solely to physical injury or illness. 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. If you choose to proceed to arbitration under this scheme, you must send a written notice of your decision to ABTA within 9 months of your scheduled date of return. Full details of the scheme are available from the Association of British Travel Agents at 68-71 Newman Street, London, W1P 4AH.
13. Our Liability To You
    (a) Subject to clauses 13(b) and 14 below, we accept responsibility for ensuring that your travel arrangements, which you book with us, are supplied as described in this brochure/website. If, after departure, any part of your travel arrangements are 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 travel arrangements. However, our liability in all cases shall be limited to a maximum of three times the cost of your travel arrangements.
    (b) Subject to Clause 14 below, we accept responsibility for what our employees, agents, and suppliers do or do not do providing that they were at all times acting within the scope of, or in the course of, their employment in the provision of your travel arrangements. We will accordingly pay to you such damages as might have been awarded in such circumstances under English Law or the law you have chosen under Clause 2(a) above.
    Please note that we will not be liable for any injury, illness, or death or consequent losses suffered by you or any member of your party unless you are able to prove that such injury or illness was caused by lack of reasonable care and skill on the part of ourselves or our supplietrs in the performance of our obligations under our contract with you.

    And in all claims of whatever nature we will not be liable where the alleged loss or damage results from any of the following:

    1. the fault of the person(s) affected or any members(s) of their party or
    2. the fault of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday which we could not have predicted or avoided or
    3. an event or circumstances which we or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not have predicted or avoided even after taking all reasonable care.
    4. the fault of anyone who was not carrying out work for us (generally or in particular) at the time.
    
    
    
14. Important Notice on Limitations of Liability
    In respect of international travel by air, sea and rail, the exent 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 Cpnvention (with respect to accomodation arrangements). You can ask for copies of these Conventions from our offices, The Galleria, Station Rd, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 1WW.
15. Personal Injury Unconnected with your Booked Travel Arrangements
    If you, or any member of your party, suffer death, illness or injury whilst overseas arising out of an activity which does not form part of your package travel arrangements or any excursions arranged through us, we shall, at our discretion, offer advice, guidance and assistance. Where legal action is contemplated and you want our assistance, you must obtain our written consent prior to commencement of proceedings. Our consent will be given subject to you undertaking to assign any costs, benefits received under any relevant insurance policy to ourselves. We limit the cost of our assistance to you or any member of your party to £5,000.
16. Conditions of Carriage
    Virgin Holidays accept responsibility for the proper provision of elements of your Virgin Holiday. However, Virgin Holidays is recognised as an organiser for travel and holidays only and, as such, does not control or operate any airline, shipping company or rail company.
    When you travel by air, sea or rail, your journey may be subject to certain international Conventions such as the Warsaw Convention and Montreal Convention (in respect of International Carriage by Air), the Athens Convention (in respect of International Carriage by Sea) or COTIF (The Convention Concerning International Carriage by Rail), as such conventions are amended or re-enacted from time to time. You agree that the operating carrier or transport company's own 'Conditions of Carriage' will apply to you on that journey. When arranging this 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 the transport company and that those 'Conditions of Carriage' shall be deemed to be included by reference into this contract. You can ask for copies of these international conventions from our offices at The Galleria, Station Road, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 1WW.
17. Data Protection
    Except where expressly permitted by the Data Protection Act, we will only deal with the personal details you give us in respect of your holiday arrangements, unless you agree otherwise. For example, if we wish to use any of your personal details for marketing purposes, we will tell you this when we ask for your details and give you the opportunity to say no if you do not want us to do so.
18. Disabled Clients
    We are not a specialist disabled holiday company, but we will do our utmost to cater for any special requirements you may have. We do have a specialist department who will be able to provide assistcance to you. For furher information, call our Customer Care team on 0870 990 8350 to discuss your holiday requirements further.
19. Cruise Cancellations by you
    In respect of any cancellations/amendments incurred by you, the following charges shall apply:

    Carnival:

    • 0-7 days - 100%
    • 8-29 days - 50%
    • 30-75 days - $250 per person

    Royal Caribbean Cruise Line :

    • 0-3 days - 100%
    • 4-28 days - 75%
    • 29-56 days - 45%
    • +57 days - loss of deposit

    Disney Cruise Line :

    • 0-7 days - 100%
    • 8-29 days - 50%
    • 30-59 days - $250 per person

    Windstar:

    • 0-29 days - 100%
    • 30-59 days - 50%
    • 60-90 days - $750 per person