INFORMATION ABOUT OUR TOURS


Please read carefully through the following information about booking an Explore Adventure. When you book you will be asked if you have read and understood these pages, as well as our Booking Conditions.


BEFORE YOU BOOK Tour Prices


affect the enjoyment of your holiday and will be outlined clearly in the individual Trip Notes. All Tour Leaders are carefully selected and have undergone thorough training in the UK and/or overseas – this is generally accepted to be some of the best in the industry. Tour Leaders are chosen for their travel experience, their people skills and their ability in working with groups.


The prices shown in this brochure are for guidance only. They represent the basic per-person cost of the tour at the time of publication of this brochure. The price at the time of booking may be different. The latest guide prices for each tour departure can be found on our website : www.explore.co.uk


Brochure and website accuracy The information contained in our brochure, website and other advertising material is believed to be correct at the time of printing or publication. However, this information may subsequently change. Please ensure that you check all the details of your chosen holiday (including the price) with us at the time of booking.


CO2 offsetting


As part of our Responsible Tourism Policy, we offset carbon emissions from all the flights that we book for you and for our staff. Our CO2


arrangements to join one of our tours, we encourage you to offset your CO2


Care, or a similar offsetting scheme. For more details please see our website: www.explore.co.uk/explore-formula/responsible-travel/carbon/offsetting


What’s included in our tour prices? n Transport, bikes, meals and accommodation: all details are outlined in the individual tour itinerary. n Tour Leader: the services of a Tour Leader are included on nearly all tours. In most cases the Tour Leader will accompany you for the full duration of the tour. On some tours a local representative may accompany you instead (this will be outlined in the individual Trip Notes.)


n Local crew: as well as drivers and local guides, interpreters, cooks, helpers and porters may be provided on some tours (details will be outlined in the individual Trip Notes.)


n Activities, equipment, sightseeing and visits: please see individual trip notes for details


Are flights included? You can choose to book any tour either ‘Flight Inclusive’ or ‘Land Only’ – the current prices for both options are on our website. On some tours in Europe we offer an international train connection from the UK instead of a flight.


Are airport transfers included? We can arrange airport transfers for you. We will discuss your requirements with you at the time of booking.


Explore’s price guarantee Once we have confirmed your booking we guarantee the price won’t change: we will not pass on surcharges of any kind. Unlike most other tour operators we will not pass on unexpected additional costs like fuel surcharges and tax increases.


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offset partner is Climate Care. If you are making independent flight emissions through Climate


Itineraries


Explore itineraries offer a wide variety of experiences and activities which allow you to really get to know an area and to see beyond the normal tourist facade. Whilst we automatically include the better-known sights, several excursions and activities are optional. This gives everyone enough flexibility to do his or her own thing. We also build in free time for you to explore independently - an important part of any Explore tour.


Accommodation Wherever possible, we try to include accommodation which best reflects the local area in which we are travelling. Where we use hotels, we aim for mid-range properties, with the key requirements being cleanliness, safety, comfort and a good location. (The type of room provided and the level of facilities may vary from place to place.) In exceptional circumstances, we may use simple hotels with more basic amenities. Several tours include camping. We provide all the necessary equipment (for example two person tents). You are likely to need your own sleeping mats and sleeping bags for these trips. You will not have to cook. Many tours are fully staffed, but on some you may be asked to help with the camp chores. Please see the individual Trip Notes for details. All our accommodation is given a rating to describe standards and facilities. You can find this in the individual Trip Notes.


Rooming and Single room option


Most tours are based on customers sharing twin-bedded rooms. If you book as an individual, you will share a room with someone of the same sex. However, on many tours we offer the opportunity to pay a supplement to pre-book a single room. On some of these tours a single room will be provided every night, on others it will be provided on some nights, but for logistical reasons not all. Individual Trip Notes clarify this.


Meals


Most trips include breakfast, but other meals are often not included. This allows you to try the cuisine in local restaurants and also to choose what and where to eat and how much to spend. We try to keep all- inclusive accommodation to a minimum. Where there is no option, such as when camping, on safari or on some boat-based tours, meals tend to be included. We try to cater for you if you have special dietary requirements but we do ask you to have realistic expectations. In some countries there is a limited choice of food and it may be difficult to cater for all special meal requirements. Please check the Trip Notes carefully before booking if you have any specific requirements.


What’s not included in the tour price? The price of the tour does not include: visa fees, vaccinations, passport costs, international departure taxes, insurance premiums of any kind, excess baggage charges, optional tours and excursions, hotel porterage or meals (other than those we list as included). We also do not include items of a personal nature; such as laundry, room service charges, drinks or phone calls. Tips for personal service are not included and are usually expected. If you book on a ‘Land Only’ basis we do not include flights or trains from the UK, departure taxes or transfers.


On your tour Your travel companions come from a wide range of locations and backgrounds. However, because we only offer English-speaking tours, the majority will be from the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the US.


Group size Group size ranges from between 10 to 16 people, depending on the type of tour, the transport and accommodation used and activities included. We rarely have groups that are smaller than six or seven people and the average is 12 people and a Tour Leader.


Age limits The minimum age on all tours featured in this brochure is 14. A parent or adult must accompany people under the age of 18. The maximum age is usually 79 (at the time of travel) unless you are travelling with a companion who is younger than 79 years of age. Most of our travellers are aged between 25 and 55.


Life on tour Everyone who travels with us has slightly different expectations when they arrive on tour. A vital part of the Tour Leader’s role is to try to understand these individual expectations, and to run the tour in such a way that everyone gets the most out of their holiday.


Explore Tour Leaders The Tour Leader’s main responsibility is to make sure that all members of the group are well looked after and return home having had a wonderful holiday with some fantastic memories. It is the Tour Leader’s responsibility to ensure that the tour runs smoothly and that all the logistics are in place; also to oversee the health and safety aspects of the tour. Our Tour Leaders will be as flexible as possible - within the confines of the itinerary. For example, they can arrange group meals for those that would like to eat with their travel companions. Alternatively if you would prefer to make your own plans they will offer suggestions for local restaurants. They may offer some optional excursions that are not mentioned on the Trip Notes. They will also try to make sure that everyone has as much free time during the tour as they wish. In order to keep the tour running effectively, Tour Leaders give regular briefings to talk about what is happening in the next few days, to remind you of timings and what you need to bring for excursions, sightseeing and activities. Often this will be reiterated on notices put up in hotel receptions or other appropriate places. Tour Leaders will also brief the group on safety and general health issues. Please note that a small number of tours are accompanied by local representatives. This will not


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Protection and Suitability Travel insurance You must have valid travel insurance. You will need to confirm to your Tour Leader that you are covered by a travel insurance policy at the start of the tour. Your original insurance policy must be carried with you on tour. If you have arranged your own insurance please ensure that your documentation shows you as the named policyholder and that the cover is valid for the entire period of travel. It must also indicate that you have cover for (at least) Medical Expenses and Emergency Repatriation in the event of illness or injury. Please ensure that a 24 hour contact telephone number for your Insurance Company is written on your documentation in case of an emergency. If you are unable to provide this information at the start of the trip you will not be able to continue unless you purchase a suitable Insurance Policy. If you have purchased Explore Insurance you should carry the policy document and a copy of your Confirmation Invoice (your proof of purchase) with you. For details of Explore’s insurance policy, which is specially tailored to the needs of the adventure traveller, please see p52 in this brochure.


Pre-existing medical conditions If you, your travelling companions, or anyone upon whom your travel depends (such as a friend or family member whose illness or death would result in you wishing to cancel or curtail your tour) have a pre- existing medical condition you must inform your travel insurance company of this when you purchase your policy. Please ensure that you receive written confirmation from them that the condition is covered. You must take this written confirmation with you on tour, in addition to the insurance policy itself. If you don’t, you may not have appropriate cover.


Your fitness and ability to participate All Explore Adventures require some level of active participation. This could be on a cultural tour, trek, safari, expedition or voyage. It is in the interests of all members of the group that everyone should be capable of fully participating in the activities of their chosen tour. With this in mind, please be aware that (as further discussed in our Booking Conditions, Clause 10, p.50) if it is felt that any customer is not able to participate in a tour without endangering the health or safety of themselves or any other person (including other group members), or that the presence of the customer on the tour means we will be unable to provide the tour, in whole or part, to other members of the group as advertised and contracted, the Tour Leader at any stage has the right to require them to leave the tour. To ensure that this is never necessary, please make sure that you have fully understood the level of fitness and ability required to complete the tour on which you are booking. Tour Trip Notes are quite specific about the level of fitness and ability required on any given tour. It is your responsibility to let us know if you have any concerns related to this subject. If you have any medical condition or disability that may affect your tour arrangements in any way, you must provide us with full details at the time of booking.


High altitude


One of our tours features elevations of 2500 metres or more. We allow time for acclimatisation and usually the body acclimatises well to spending extended periods of time above this altitude. It is difficult to predict who is at risk from altitude sickness but if you have a heart or respiratory problem we advise you not to risk extended travel or trekking at high altitudes and to check with your doctor.


For more information and to book, go online at www.explore.co.uk


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