Terms & conditions
SESG Travel Ltd t/a The Luxury Travel Society – Registered Address 32b Harwood Terrace, Fulham, London SW6 2AB – Company Number 11881251 incorporated 13th March 2019
Your Holiday Contract
When you make a booking with SESG Travel LTD t/a The Luxury Travel Society you are confirming that you are at least 21 years of age and guarantee that you have the authority to accept and do accept on behalf of your party the terms of these booking conditions. A contract will exist as soon as we take a deposit and issue a confirmation invoice. (In some cases, you will be asked for full payment, but you will be advised at the time of booking). 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.
Booking Confirmation / Travel Documentation
Important: Please carefully review your confirmation, eticket and all other documentation supplied in relation to your booking as it is your responsibility to check that the information on your confirmation invoice is correct and to inform us immediately of any discrepancy. We regret that we are unable to accept any liability if we are not promptly notified of any inaccuracy and although we will endeavour to assist and rectify any errors you will be responsible for any costs involved as detailed in section 7 of these terms.
Your Financial Protection
We provide full financial protection for our package holidays. When you buy a flight inclusive package from The Luxury Travel Society you will receive a confirmation Invoice from us detailing your arrangements with an ATOL certificate confirming your protection (ATOL 11696). We operate a trust account banking system under Protected Trust Services (MEMBER 5416). 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.
Your Holiday Price
(i) We reserve the right to alter the prices of any of the holidays on our website. You will be advised the current price at the time of the holiday that you wish to book before your contract is confirmed. (ii) When you make your booking, you must pay a 10% deposit. The balance must be paid 12 weeks before your departure date unless a ticketing time limit is implemented by the respective airline in which case our service team will contact you to advise of the revised payment date. If the deposit and/or balance is not paid in time, we can cancel your travel arrangements. If the balance is not paid in time, we shall retain your deposit. (iii) Changes in transportation costs, including the cost of fuel, landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports and airports and exchange rates mean that the price of your holiday may change after you have booked. However, there will be no charge within 20 days of your departure. We will absorb and you will not be charged for any increase equivalent to 2% of the price of your travel arrangements which excludes any amendment charges. You will be charged for the amount over and above that, plus an administration charge of £1 per person. If this means that you have to pay an increase of more than 8% of the price of your holiday, you will have the option of accepting a change to another package if we are able to offer one (if this is of equivalent or higher quality you will not have to pay more but if it is of a lower quality you will be refunded the difference in price), or cancelling and receiving a full refund of all monies paid except for any amendment charges. Should you decide to cancel for this reason, you must exercise your right to do so within 14 days from the issue date printed on your final invoice. Should the price of your holiday go down due to the changes mentioned above, by more than 2% of your holiday cost, then any refund due will be paid to you. However, please 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.
Balance
You must pay your balance 8 weeks prior to departure or by the due date shown on your confirmation invoice. It is very important that you pay the balance when due because failure to do so will lead to cancellation of your holiday and still leave you liable for cancellation charges. Payments can be made by credit or debit card without charge. If you are sending a cheque, please allow 7 working days for clearance. In some cases airline or hotel partners may request a balance sooner than 8 weeks prior to departure, in this instance you will be informed before you book.
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 is not always possible. Any request for changes to be made must be in writing from the person who made the booking. You will be asked to pay an administration fee of £50.00 per person and any further cost we incur in making the alteration. You should be aware that these costs could increase the closer to departure date that changes are made, and you should contact us as soon as possible. Note: Certain travel arrangements (e.g. flight tickets) may not be changeable after a reservation has been made and any request to alter could incur a cancellation charge of up to 100% of this part of the arrangements. You can transfer your booking to another person, who satisfies all the conditions that apply to this booking, by giving us notice in writing as soon as possible and no later than 7 days before departure. Both you and the new traveller are responsible for paying all costs we incur in making the transfer.
Pricing Errors
Whilst we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the pricing provided, regrettably errors may occasionally occur. When we become aware of any such error, we will endeavour to notify you, within 3 days of the time of booking or as soon as reasonably possible. If a booking is already in place, you will have the choice to continue with the chosen itinerary at the corrected price or amend to a different holiday. We reserve the right to cancel the booking if you do not wish to accept the price that applies to your holiday or any quoted alternatives.
If you Cancel Your Holiday
The lead passenger may cancel your travel arrangements at any time. Written notification from the person who made the booking 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 below:
More than 12 weeks prior to departure – Deposit can be transferred or rolled over.
84-57 days prior to departure – Loss of Deposit
56-32 days prior to departure – 50% Cancellation Charge
31-0 days prior to departure – 100% Cancellation Charge
In some circumstances our hotel or airline partners may charge in full at the time of booking, or be non refundable, or have stricter cancellation charges due to the travel period or other factors.
Any cancellation charges that differ to those above will be advised before you book and will be detailed on your confirmation invoice. If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance, you may be able to claim these charges.
If We Change or Cancel Your Holiday
It is unlikely that we will have to make any changes to your travel arrangements, but occasionally this may become necessary and we reserve the right to do so at any time. Most of these changes will be minor and we will advise you of them at the earliest possible opportunity. We also reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel your travel arrangements. However, we will not cancel your travel arrangements less than one week prior to 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 the monies paid to us or accept an offer of an alternative holiday of comparable standard, if available (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value). If it is necessary to cancel your travel arrangements, we will pay to your compensation as set out below. If we make a major change to your holiday, we will inform you as soon as reasonably possible if there is time before your departure. A major change is, for example, one that involves a change of UK airport (excluding Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton, Stansted), a change of your accommodation to a lower grade than booked or a change of resort location. You will have the choice to either accept an offer of an alternative holiday comparable in standard from us, if available (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value) or cancelling your holiday booking and refund all monies paid. In all cases, except where a major change arises due to reasons of force majeure, we will pay compensation as shown below.
Compensation per person
Over 12 weeks nil
84-55 days £30 per person
54-32 days £40 per person
31-0 days £50 per person
Force Majeure
We will not be liable to pay you compensation if we must cancel or change your travel arrangements in any way because of unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control. These include but are not limited to 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 and all similar events outside of the control of the party concerned.
If You Have A Complaint
We, and our overseas partners, will endeavour to deliver the highest standard of customer service but if you have any dissatisfaction regarding your travel whilst abroad, they should be reported to the hotel in resort or our local ground handlers. If they are unable to resolve your disappointment, then it is your responsibility to contact us on our Customer Service Department on 0208 538 5564 for assistance. If your complaint is not resolved locally by the supplier or The Luxury Travel Society whilst in resort, we require that you raise the issue within 28 days of your return home by writing to our Customer Relations Department at The Luxury Travel Society, Hoxton Hotel Southwark, 70 Colombo Street, South Bank, London SE1 8EE giving your booking reference and all other relevant information and supporting documentation. Failure to follow the procedures set out in this clause means we will have been deprived of the opportunity to investigate and rectify your complaint whilst you were in resort and this will affect your rights under this contract.
Our Liability to You
If the contract, we have with you is not performed or is improperly performed by us or our suppliers we will pay you appropriate compensation if this has affected the enjoyment of your travel arrangements. However, we will not be liable where any failure in the performance of the contract is due to you; or a third party unconnected with the provision of the travel arrangements and where the failure is unforeseeable or unavoidable; or unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been taken, or an event which we or our suppliers, even with all due care, could not have foreseen or forestall. Our liability, except in cases involving death, injury or illness, shall be limited to a maximum of 2 x times the cost of your travel arrangements. Our liability will also be limited in accordance with and/or in an identical manner to:
(a) The contractual terms of the companies that provide the transportation for your travel arrangements. These terms are incorporated in this contract; and
(b) 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.
(c) 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 at The Luxury Travel Society, Hoxton Hotel Southwark, 70 Colombo Street, South Bank, London SE1 8EE. Under EU law (Regulations 261/2004) you have the rights in some circumstances to refunds and/or compensation from your airline in cases of denied boarding, cancellations 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 from this amount. If your airline does not comply with these rules and you require further assistance you can contact the Civil Aviation Authority via their website – Civil Aviation Authority.
Protected Trust Services.
When you make a booking with The Luxury Travel Society the money you pay us sits in a Protected Trust Account securing the funds until such time as you travel.
PTS offers us a trust account and insurance model that ensures all consumer money is fully protected by all PTS member companies. PTS members are fully Package Travel Regulation Compliant. All consumers can check PTS membership pre-booking, contact PTS directly for peace of mind and our membership number is 5416. If a consumer has any concerns about the allocation of their monies and the holiday supplied by the members of PTS they can contact PTS directly. PTS is FCA registered to ensure trust and confidence when booking with any PTS member.
Passport, Visa and Immigration Requirements
Your specific passport and visa requirements, and other immigration requirements are your responsibility and you should confirm these with the relevant Embassies and/or Consulates. We do not accept responsibility if you cannot travel because you have not complied with any passport, visa or immigration requirements. Note: Clients not holding passports marked “British Citizen” must check the applicable requirements with the respective Embassy or Consulate of the countries they are visiting or the British Foreign Office. Please ensure that you comply with the applicable passport and visa requirements and that you allow enough time to obtain them. Machine readable passports are required for all travellers to or via the U.S. All children must have their own passports especially when travelling to the U.S. All passports must be valid for at least six (6) months by the end of your journey. Note: Clients travelling to the U.S. must apply for their visa prior to departure on the following website https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov (there will be a minor charge for this service). Although most travel, including travel to international destinations, is completed without incident, travel to certain destinations may involve greater risk than others. The Luxury Travel Society advises customers to review any travel prohibitions, warnings, announcements and advisories issued by The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Travel Advice Unit prior to booking travel to international destinations. Information on conditions in various countries and the level of risk associated with travel to international destinations can be found from the following sources: Foreign and Commonwealth Travel Advice
Recommended inoculations for travel may change at any time and you should consult with your doctor or the appropriate Embassy or Consulate for up to date information. It is your responsibility to ensure that you obtain all the necessary inoculations in relation to your trip.
Flights Details
Details of airlines, flight numbers and destination airport will be shown on your confirmation invoice. Please note that no airline can guarantee departure times, and these may change due to weather conditions, air traffic control restrictions or technical/operational problems. The Company is not liable for any change to a departure/arrival time previously shown on your confirmation. It is for this reason that you are required to reconfirm your flight departure time 72 hours before departure with the airline concerned and to complete online check in accordance with the applicable airline’s procedures. The Luxury Travel Society is also unable to make any special arrangements for passengers if the flight is delayed as this is the sole responsibility of the carrying airline &/or their ground handling agent. We regret that we are unable to guarantee specific aircraft types or seat allocation. Flights described as “direct” will not necessarily be non–stop. If you book a return journey and do not use the outward flight without contacting the carrier directly, the airline may cancel the return flight without refund. All flight tickets must be used in sequence.
No Shows
Where a confirmed booking has been made for any service including flights, car hire, accommodation and packages but this is not utilised and you fail to check in for your flight /accommodation or collect your rental vehicle a refund may not be available and cancellation charges of up to 100% may be applied by the relevant supplier.
Denied Boarding Compensation
The EU regulation 261/2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights requires airlines to offer affected passengers on cancelled flights compensation. If you have not chosen a ticket refund option you can claim back reasonable hotel accommodation and meal costs for the number of days that you were delayed between the original scheduled departures, up until the next available flight. In order to make a claim you should forward full details of expenses incurred along with receipts and travel itinerary information directly to the airline for their consideration.
Insurance
As the Company is not liable for flight delays, cancellations, lost or delayed luggage, industrial disputes, natural disasters etc it is an expressed term of this contract that you and all members of your party are adequately insured.
Excursions
Excursions or other tours that you may choose to book or pay for locally whilst you are on holiday are not part of your package holiday provided by us. For any excursion or other tour that you book locally your contract will be with the operator of the excursion and not with us and we will not be held responsible for anything that happens whilst on a locally purchased excursion.
Special Requests, Medical Conditions and Disability
If you have any special requests (e.g. low/high floor, specific dietary requirements etc) please advise us at the time of booking. Although we will forward any such requests to the relevant supplier (e.g. hotel, airline etc) we regret that we cannot guarantee this prior to departure and any failure to meet your special request will not be deemed as any breach of contract on our part. If you have any medical condition or disability which may affect your booking arrangements you must advise us, in writing, at the time of booking giving us full details. If we are unable to properly accommodate your needs, we will reserve the right to decline your booking but obviously every effort will be made to assist, wherever possible.
Ticket Dispatch
Your travel documents will be emailed to the lead passenger approximately 18 days prior to departure but will not be released until we have received full payment from you. For your flights you can now check in online up to 24 hours prior to your scheduled departure or in person at the airport with just your passport and airline reference. An eticket is a paperless electronic ticket, it is paperless because when you book the details are automatically stored in the airlines booking system so there is no need to send you a paper ticket.
Credit Cards
It is mandatory that you or a member of your party travel with a recognised credit card as this will be required when checking into hotels or collecting your hire car, for example.
Map/Distance Disclaimer
Please note that the information as to the distance from the city centre and the location of the hotel on the maps provided are for indicative purposes only. If you require the hotel to be within a certain distance from the city centre or near a specific location, we recommend that you check on the hotel’s own website.
Behaviour
It is the lead passengers responsibility to ensure that you and all members of your party do not behave in a way which causes offence to others or which risks damage to the property or belongings of others (including but not limited to drunkenness and air rage) In such circumstances, our suppliers (eg hotel, airlines, transfer agent etc) have the right to terminate any arrangement made on your behalf in which case our responsibility to you will cease immediately. Further, you will be liable to reimburse any expense we incur necessarily as a result of such termination.
Departure Taxes
It is not always possible to include all departure taxes on your ticket – in some cases departure taxes must be paid locally and these are payable to the Government of the country departed from and are non-refundable.
Telephone calls
We would like to inform our clients that we randomly record telephone calls. This helps us to ensure that customer service is constantly improved.
Hotel and Cruise Ship ratings
The ratings featured on The Luxury Travel Society web site are offered as a general guide and do not necessarily represent any official grading system. Actual standards may vary between hotels of the same grade in different countries and even in the same country.
Special Offers
Please note that where special offers are highlighted these are generally based on sharing existing beds in the room. If you do require a separate bed this must be requested at the point of booking, as additional charges may apply. For special offer meal plans “Kids Stay and Eat Free” this refers to the board basis of the overall reservation. Where a booking is for Half Board therefore the meal plan of the child will be half board.
Travel Documents
You should ensure that you have a copy of your travel document email with your booking confirmation, e tickets and any other travel documentation (including your passport and relevant visa, if always required) . We will not be liable should any Supplier not provide you with the booked product or service if you do not provide the appropriate documentation.
Information
The Luxury Travel Society relies on the information that you provide as being accurate and therefore cannot be held responsible if your e-tickets do not arrive due to an incorrect email address. You must inform us immediately of a change of address, telephone number, email address. It is highly recommended that you provide a mobile telephone number to us on booking as this will allow us to contact you more easily where a travel impacting event such as weather or civil unrest occurs.
Overview
The contract constituted by the Company’s acceptance of your booking subject to these Conditions shall constitute the entire agreement between you and the Company in relation to the relevant booking, shall exclude all other terms and conditions (except for the relevant suppliers’ conditions and any applicable international conventions) and shall supersede all prior or contemporaneous communication or information provided.