HOW TO BOOK
The person confirming the booking is known as “the Party Leader”. He or she must have the authority to contract on behalf of all the other people going on the holiday and is stating that all people named on the booking have accepted these booking conditions. We will send all documents and other information regarding the holiday to the Party Leader, who is then responsible to pass this information on to the remainder of the party. All bookings are subject to the following conditions.
PASSENGER DETAILS
The Party Leader must submit a completed passenger list complete with a breakdown of the travellers age groups & genders within 30 days of receiving their booking confirmation.
INSURANCE
Snowstyle Travel Ltd does not provide travel insurance, and asks you to arrange adequate insurance with a minimum cover for winter sports including medical costs and travel back to the U.K in the event of any injury which prohibits travel by coach. Conformation of this insurance is the sole responsibility of the party leader.
CONFIRMATION AND PAYMENTS
Our contract with you commences when you pay your deposit, which is non-refundable; a single deposit of £250 per person is required to secure your group’s booking. All deposits are non-refundable. If we accept your booking we will reserve your holiday and send you a confirmation invoice. Please check that the holiday on the invoice is the one that you require. We are responsible for providing the holiday we have confirmed to you. If you cancel or alter your booking, you may be charged an amendment fee. We reserve the right to refuse your booking; if we do this we will refund any money already paid to us. Payments may be made at any time, but the schedule mentioned in the confirmation invoice must be adhered to, and the balance must be paid in full 8 weeks prior to departure. Failure to adhere to the schedule and final balance deadline will represent a breach of contract and may result in the imposition of financial penalties or the cancelling of your holiday with no refund of monies paid.
PRICING POLICY
Prices and all details are correct at the time of going to print. The price of your travel arrangements was calculated using the exchange rate of £1.00 to €1.15. Changes in transportation costs (including the cost of fuel) and exchange rates mean that the price of your travel arrangements may change after you have booked. However, there will be no change within 14 days of your departure. If this means that you have to pay an increase of more than 10% of the price of your travel arrangements, you will have the option of accepting a change to another holiday of equivalent quality if we are able to offer one.
YOUR FINANCIAL SECURITY
The Package Travel & Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 require us to provide security for the monies that you pay for your holiday in the event of our insolvency. This cover is provided by us, either through a bond or trust account and both are recognised facilities under the terms of the package travel regulations, evidence of these facilities can be provided upon request.
OUR RESPONSIBILITY AND LIMITED LIABILITY
We accept responsibility for the proper performance of our obligations under this contract. They will be carried out with reasonable skill and care. We are not responsible for any failure that is:
• attributable to you or a member of your party;
• attributable to a third party unconnected with the provision of the services to you, and is unforeseeable or unavoidable;
• due to Force Majeure (see the section entitled “Definitions” in these Booking Conditions).
Our liability to you for any loss or damage which you may suffer is limited to the price of your holiday. This excludes personal injury resulting from the non-performance or improper performance of the services provided in the holiday, and is subject to the limitation of liability described below. Health and safety standards relevant to the services provided by us should meet the local standards applicable to your holiday destination. However, you should be aware that these may well not match those standards of the UK. Any compensation payable by Snowstyle Travel Ltd will be limited in accordance with the lowest limit allowed under applicable International Conventions governing the services, or the amount you can recover under the laws of the UK or the country in which they operate. Transport operators have their own conditions of carriage, which form part of your contract with us. These conditions, and the provisions of the International Conventions, generally limit the liability of transport operators.
COMPLAINTS
If you have a complaint you must inform your Snowstyle Travel Ltd representative immediately. If we cannot resolve the problem at the resort, you must notify us of your complaint in writing within 30 days of your return. If we are not informed within this time scale, our investigation will be seriously hindered and therefore we will not pursue any claim resulting from a complaint after this time- frame has expired. You can, of course, pursue your claim elsewhere.
Disputes about your holiday that we cannot settle can be referred to arbitration under a special scheme administered by the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
Details of any such complaints should be sent to: Snowstyle Travel, 8-10 Montagu Pavilion, Queensway, Gibraltar, GX11 1AA
CHANGES TO YOUR BOOKING
CHANGES MADE BY YOU
In the case you wish to alter the confirmed booking, any increase in the cost of the holiday due to change of date or hotel will be charged in addition. No other charges will be levied. For bookings with a coach or without transport, passenger name changes may be accepted at the companies discretion and in any case must be notified to the company not less than 30 days before departure, otherwise additional charges may be levied. Certain other travel arrangements such as flights may not be changeable after a reservation has been made and any alteration requests including name changes may incur a cancellation charge of up to 100% of that part of the arrangement.
IF WE CHANGE OR CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY
We may have to make changes to your holiday, or cancel it, after we accept your booking. Most changes are minor and we will always tell you as soon as possible before your departure. Occasionally we may need to make a Major Change (see the Definitions section). If we do, you must tell us as soon as possible if you wish to accept the change or cancel the holiday with a full refund. If we cancel your holiday, and it is not your fault, or if you cancel because you decline a Major Change, you have the following options:
1. Accept our offer of a replacement holiday of equivalent or higher quality (if available) or
2. Ask for a refund of the money you have paid.
N.B. In all scenarios no compensation would be liable to be paid.
CANCELLATION POLICY
IF YOU CANCEL
To cancel the entire holiday, the party leader must write to us at the address on your confirmation invoice. Cancellation takes effect on the date you receive our letter confirming acknowledgement of the cancellation. If you cancel any place 12 weeks or more prior to departure, we will reimburse all monies minus your deposit. The closer your cancellation is to the departure date, the less likely we are to recover the costs by re-selling the holiday; our cancellation charges therefore increase as the departure date approaches. If you cancel less than 12 weeks before departure 50% of the total cost will be refunded. If you cancel less than 8 weeks before departure, no monies will be refunded. If you cancel for a reason covered by your insurance policy, you may be able to recover your cancellation charges, through your insurance company.
MINIMUM NUMBERS
All packages require a minimum number of 40 passengers to operate; in the event where this minimum number is not met you will be told as soon as possible, and no later than 6 weeks prior to departure. In the event of us cancelling your holiday for this reason you will be given the options stated in the paragraph “If we change or cancel your holiday”, but will not be entitled to compensation. All prices are based on 40 paying people; if the party is below 40 paying people, please be aware that we do reserve the right to implement a surcharge for the coach.
For groups whose numbers exceed 50 passengers, the minimum number of passengers required for the booking is 80. This is due to our prices being based on a standard coach size of 53 seats, meaning that any booking with over 50 passengers will require two coaches to operate, each with a minimum number of 40 paying passengers. in the event where this minimum number is not met you will be told as soon as possible, and no later than 7 days prior to departure. In the event of us cancelling your holiday for this reason you will be given the options stated in the paragraph “If we change or cancel your holiday”, but will not be entitled to compensation. All prices are based on 80 paying people; if the party is below 80 paying people, please be aware that we do reserve the right to implement a surcharge for the coach.
TERMINATION OF YOUR HOLIDAY
You and your party must behave reasonably while on holiday. We reserve the right, at our reasonable discretion, to terminate the holidays of people who indulge in serious misconduct. If we do so, we will have no further responsibility or liability to you. If you or any member of your party wilfully, recklessly, or negligently damages any accommodation, property or person, or causes delay to or diversion of any means of transport, you agree to compensate us for any loss we may suffer, including legal costs. Guests who participate in activities unsupervised by Snowstyle Travel Ltd staff do so at their own risk.
ADDITIONAL PAYING ADULTS (School/College groups)
If clients are planning to take additional paying adults within their party, it is important that they make them aware that they are travelling on a school/college ski course. They should be made fully aware of the package inclusions and that no special arrangements can be made on their behalf.
ROOM CHECK IN / CHECK OUT TIMES
We do not normally provide single rooms for staff members. If this is a necessity, please call us to discuss possibilities. Check in times are usually around 14:00 & check out times around 10:00 on the day of departure. Your hotel will provide storage facilities for your luggage on departure day and make adequate provision of showering facilities.
COVID-19
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic we have published specific advice entitled ” Our COVID-Guarantee”, this serves as a variation to our standard booking conditions, other than the points stated in this Guarantee, our standard booking conditions will apply.
DEFINITIONS
Force Majeure
means unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control or the control of our contractors, such as (but are not limited to) war or threat of war, riot, civil strife, industrial dispute, unavoidable technical problems with transport, closure or congestion of ports or roads, terrorist activity, natural or nuclear disaster, fire and adverse weather conditions (including heavy / insufficient snowfalls or non-freezing conditions), pandemic, epidemic or infectious diseases as defined by the World Health Organisation.
Major Change
includes (but is not limited to) the following:
• A significant change of resort or ski area
• A change of more than 12 hours to your scheduled time of departure or return
• A significant increase in the price of your holiday
Any change to the coach company or to a hotel of a comparable standard does not constitute a Major Change.
Serious Misconduct
Includes but is not limited to: Theft or fraud, physical violence or bullying, damage to property, deliberately accessing internet sites that contain pornographic or other offensive material, misuse of confidential information, discrimination or harassment, a serious breach of health & safety regulations, a serious breach of confidence, causing loss, damage, or injury through serious negligence, misuse of alcohol or illegal drugs.
Peak Time
A proposed time of travel, which promotes excessive interest due to its association with national holidays or popular events; the dates of which may alter annually.
Appendix
Coaches: We will supply an executive coach which is suitable for the group numbers booked with us. If the group has any requirements for a larger vehicle, this can be met through the payment of a supplement to cover the cost of the empty seats. We may wish to transport representatives on the coach to and/or from Austria; if we do so, then there will be no additional supplement for a larger vehicle.
Hotel: We will provide a three-star hotel within 30 minutes drive of the slopes, unless previously requested by the group to offer a budget facility, which will be reflected in a lower price. If, for any reason we are forced to change the hotel, we will endeavour to do so, retaining the minimum requirement, although this cannot be guaranteed in relation to the distance from the slopes.
Instruction: We will provide qualified English speaking instructors (or guides when appropriate, and agreed in advance with the Party Leader), on an overall ratio of approximately 1:10-1:12. As a result of the nature of each group (numbers of Beginner/Intermediate/Advanced skiers), this may occasionally result in some groups being larger or smaller than this ratio. Occasionally, it may prove beneficial for group ratios to join with other parties; this option will always be offered to the Party Leader where feasible. If your group has additional needs that will necessitate a lower ratio, it is imperative that you notify us at the time of making the booking. A lower ratio will incur a supplementary charge – please discuss this with the company prior to making the booking. Failure to provide this information at the time of booking may result in there being inadequate staffing levels and, if required, a lack of specialist equipment to properly cater for your group, which we will not be able to rectify once you have arrived in resort. This may result in your group being unable to participate in ski lessons. Should this situation arise, Snowstyle Travel Ltd will not be held responsible.
Snowboarding: Any students who wish to take snowboarding tuition can do so by paying a supplement, payable at the same time as deposits (speak to the company for current supplement costs). Students may be mixed with students from other schools of a similar ability level.
A minimum of 8 students are required for a viable snowboarding group size. If we are unable to achieve the required group size, it will be necessary to:
i) Pay a further supplement to make the group viable. The supplement payable is on a sliding scale and will depend on the number of available snowboarders, per group. Ask the company for more details.
ii) Convert to skiing in which case any supplements paid will be refunded.
Ferry Schedule: We will book ferry crossings based on the group’s requirements but during ‘peak-times‘ it may be necessary for the group to accept a ferry booking some hours earlier or later than their preferred time. We reserve the right to make a booking up to 8 hours either earlier or later without consultation however shall always endeavour to remain as close to the group’s original request as possible.