Essential Information
You need to be aware of the following before you go ahead and book an Explore polar voyage. When you book you will be asked if you have read and understood these pages as well as the booking conditions. Please take the time to read the detail through.
Before You Book
Who travels on your voyages? Your fellow passengers could be from anywhere in the world. Voyages are conducted in English, so most passengers tend to be from the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada or the US. These polar ships are not operated by Explore and are not exclusive to Explore customers.
Age limits
The recommended minimum age on all of our expedition ships is 10 years old. Some ship operators will accept younger children, however 5 years old would be the absolute minimum and would depend on the individual ship operator. For our Churchill Bears tours, the age is limited to a minimum of 12 years old. Under 18 year olds, on all of our polar tours, must be accompanied by a parent or other adult. There is no maximum age, and you’ll be travelling with people of all ages.
Itineraries Polar voyage itineraries are best kept fl exible: the weather or the ice conditions may require the captain to make itinerary changes. Itineraries can also be adjusted to take advantage of opportunities such as wildlife sightings.
Maps
The maps in this brochure are indicative only; each ship tends to follow its own preferred route, which may vary from one voyage to the next depending on conditions.
Accommodation and fl ights You may require international fl ights or hotel accommodation before or after your voyage. This can be organised through Explore: when you make your enquiry your polar specialist will be happy to look at options with you.
Cabins and single cabin and room options
Most cabins are based on two people sharing, however triples and quads are also available; some ships have a limited number of single cabins (see individual ship details). Double beds are available in some cabins, while most other cabins have twin beds. If you are travelling on your own you can choose to share a cabin with another solo traveller of the same sex (except on M/S Fram) or pay a supplement for sole occupancy of a cabin, if single cabins are unavailable. Single rooms are available on our Churchill Bears tours, but due to the limited accommodation in Churchill, availability is also limited. We recommend booking early to avoid disappointment. Twin share occupancy applies otherwise.
Meals
All meals are included while on board and all the ships can cater for specifi c diets: please tell us about any dietary needs when you make your booking.
Joining a group adventure Everyone joining a polar voyage or tour, arrives with slightly different expectations. The crew aim to ensure everyone’s expectations are met. Voyage itineraries have to stick to a schedule to ensure that they work logistically so please be prompt; a little fl exibility always helps!
Travel insurance Valid travel insurance is mandatory for all voyages and tours and you should carry your original insurance policy documents with you on the trip. If you have arranged your own insurance, please ensure that your documentation specifi cally shows you as the named policy holder and that the cover is valid for the period of travel and also includes cover for visiting the polar regions. It must also indicate that you have cover for at least medical expenses (to a comparable level to the Explore policy) and emergency repatriation in the event of illness or injury. Please ensure that a 24-hour contact telephone number for your insurance company is stated on your documentation in case of an emergency. For details of Explore’s insurance policy, please visit
www.explore.co.uk/insurance
Pre-existing medical conditions
If you, others you are travelling with or anyone else upon whom travel depends (including anyone whose illness or death is likely to result in your wishing to cancel or curtail your holiday) have a pre-existing medical condition you must inform your travel insurance company of this when you purchase your policy, otherwise you may not have appropriate cover. A medical form must be completed by each passenger before the booking can be accepted by the ship operator.
Fitness and ability to participate Although high levels of fi tness are not necessary for most activities on our polar tours, some physical participation from passengers is required, for example climbing into and out of the Zodiacs and short walks ashore. If in doubt please discuss with one of our polar team: it is your responsibility to let us know if you have any concerns about your ability to participate. If you have any medical
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condition or disability which may affect your trip arrangements in any way, you must provide us with full details at the time of booking – please see booking condition 10 on p65
Proof of fi tness or experience For certain activities you may be asked to summarise your previous experience and confi rm your fi tness levels. If unsure we suggest you check the relevant Tour Notes or contact our polar team to discuss.
Peace of Mind
Explore is a fully bonded Tour Operator licensed by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and by ABTOT. We hold an Air Travel Organiser’s Licence issued by the Civil Aviation Authority (ATOL number 2595).
All the fl ights and fl ight-inclusive holidays* in this brochure or on our website are fi nancially protected by the ATOL scheme. When you pay, you will be supplied with an ATOL Certifi cate**. Please ask for it and check to ensure that everything you booked (fl ights, hotels and other services) is listed on it. Please see our booking conditions for further information or for more information about fi nancial protection and the ATOL Certifi cate go to
http://www.atol.org.uk/ATOLCertifi cate
*The fl ights and fl ight-inclusive holidays we arrange are ATOL protected providing they are made available in the UK.
As a member of the Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust Limited (ABTOT), Explore has provided a bond to meet the requirements of the Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992.
No. 5207
In the event of Explore’s insolvency, protection is provided for non-fl ight packages commencing in and returning to the UK and other non-fl ight packages excluding pre-arranged travel to and from your destination. Please note that packages booked outside the UK are only protected when purchased directly with Explore. In the above circumstances, if you have not yet travelled you may claim a refund, or if you have already travelled, you may claim repatriation to the starting point of your non-fl ight package. All of our Antarctic operators conform to the guidelines set by The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO)
Voyage and tour only
If you are planning to book only the voyage or tour itself through Explore, we strongly recommend you book fl ights that are fl exible and refundable. Due to the nature of our polar trips, days of operation and itineraries can change. It is important that you are able to amend your connecting travel arrangements should the need arise. Also, in the event of a voyage or tour being cancelled (for whatever reason), it is important that you are able to get your fl ight cost refunded. We regret we cannot accept liability for any connecting travel arrangements you make (including any cancellation or amendment charges) in the event of changes to or cancellation of our polar voyage or tour.
Flight schedule changes When you book a fl ight-inclusive tour with Explore, your holiday confi rmation will contain provisional fl ight details. The timings, fl ight numbers or route could change several times before departure. We will confi rm fi nal timings with your fi nal documents. We will notify you immediately of any signifi cant airline schedule change which occurs after your tickets have been issued. We recommend that you defer booking any connecting travel to the airport or arrangements such as car parking or overnight hotels until you have received your fi nal documents, with confi rmed travel times. Where Explore are arranging domestic regional fl ights, these will be automatically rebooked to connect with your international fl ights. We strongly recommend that you do not purchase non-fl exible, non-refundable connecting rail, air or bus tickets, as they usually incur cancellation or penalty charges in the event of a change to the departure time or date.
Banned airlines
In accordance with EU Directive (EC) No 2111/2005 Article 9, we are required to bring to your attention the existence of a “Community List” which contains details of air carriers which are subject to an operating ban within the EU. The Community List is available for inspection at
www.europa.eu. In accordance with EU Regulations we are required to advise you of the actual carrier(s) (or, if the actual carrier(s) is not known, the likely carrier(s)) that will operate your international fl ight(s) to and from an EU airport at the time of booking. Where we are only able to inform you of the likely carrier(s) at the time of booking, we shall inform you of the identity of the actual carrier(s) as soon as we become aware of this. Any change to the operating carrier(s) after your booking has been confi rmed will be notifi ed to you as soon as possible. If the carrier with whom you have a confi rmed reservation becomes subject to an operating ban and, as a result, we or the carrier are unable to offer you a suitable alternative, the provisions of our Booking Conditions “If we change your tour” will apply. Please note that we will not book our customers onto banned airlines whose fl ights may be available for general sale and accessible to the public.
For more details visit
www.explore.co.uk/polar
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