Terms and Conditions
A BRIEF BIT ABOUT US
globeDOTTIngTravel, Inc. (“we”, “us” or “our”) is a company founded by a traveler for fellow travelers. By combining our experience, our quality itinerary design and our exceptional service, we hope to create a unique experience for you and each of our travelers. We make ourselves available to you throughout the entire process of planning and enjoying your Trip and, in so doing, we hope your Trip will be artfully executed by our team, which includes various independent suppliers selected by us.
GLOBAL TRAVEL TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Before booking a Small Group Tour or Custom Tour (sometimes either or both may be referred to as a “Tour”, “tour”, “Trip” or “trip”), with us, it is important that you read and understand the following Terms and Conditions. If you have any questions, please contact us by email or at the phone number listed on our Website.
SERVICES WE DO NOT PROVIDE
In designing your Trip, there are some aspects of your Trip that we do not arrange or provide. We do not arrange, provide or sell:
• Air or other transportation to and from your Trip destination;
• Visas or other documentation necessary to travel to your Trip destination; or
• Travel insurance for your Trip.
We will highlight these aspects in your Confirmation Letter and, in that same letter, we will reaffirm our commitment to you to make ourselves available to assist you in navigating these items and, further, in answering as best as we can any of your related questions.
PRICING
All of our Tours are priced according to single occupancy and the number of passengers participating in the Trip. Please inquire with us, as discounts may be available if you are interested in traveling based on double occupancy. Prices listed are subject to change because we may occasionally be faced with exceptional cost increases or currency fluctuations that we cannot absorb. We do everything we can to keep our prices the same as published.
INITIAL DEPOSIT & PAYMENT SCHEDULE*
Once you decide to proceed with a Trip, you will send us your Initial Deposit. In general, you will then make additional payments in accordance with the schedule below:
• Initial Deposit: $500 (Small Group Tour) or $1,000 (Custom Tour)
• 120 Days Prior to Departure or at Time Booking is Confirmed (whichever is earlier):
50% of Tour Cost
• 60 Days Prior to Departure: Balance of Tour Cost
*Payment schedules for Tours may vary due to payment requirements of suppliers. Visa fees are not included in the fixed pricing of any Tour and you are responsible for paying any such fees directly to the applicable consulate, embassy or other appropriate agency for your Trip. These exceptions will be clearly indicated in your Confirmation Letter.
Prices are quoted in US dollars and all payments must be made in US dollars whether made by check or credit card. We accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover Card. An additional fee of three percent (3%) of the Tour Cost will be charged when using a credit card.
CONFIRMATION LETTER & BINDING CONTRACT
Within five (5) business days of receiving your Initial Deposit, we will send you a Confirmation Letter outlining information regarding your Trip, including among other things, the following:
• Our name, business address and telephone number;
• The total cost of the Trip (the “Tour Cost”), the amount due, the date
payment(s) are required, the purpose of each payment and an itemized statement of
the balance due, if any;
• A description of the services we are providing, together with those that we are not
providing;
• Conditions and rights, if any, upon which you or we may cancel your Trip or our
agreement; and
• A description of our terms and conditions.
You may cancel your Trip without paying a Cancellation Fee if you email us a written notice of cancellation by midnight three (3) business days after receiving our Confirmation Letter. If you cancel your Trip within this time frame, we will refund all the monies you paid us within ten (10) days. If you do not cancel your Trip within this time frame, your Trip will be “booked” with us, which indicates you are in agreement with the terms and conditions outlined in our Confirmation Letter. The Confirmation Letter is a legally binding and enforceable contract.
IF YOU CANCEL: REFUNDS & CANCELLATION FEE SCHEDULE*
If you decide to cancel your Trip for any reason, we will refund to you as promptly as possible the payments we received from you, less the applicable Cancellation Fee. In general, Cancellation Fees will be as outlined below and will be computed as of the date we receive a written cancellation notice from you by email:
• 3 Business Days after Confirmation Letter: No Cancellation Fee
• 61 or More Days Prior to Departure: 100% of Initial Deposit
• 60 – 41 Days Prior to Departure: 50% of Tour Cost
• 40 Days or Less: 100% of Tour Cost
*Cancellation Fees for some Tours and certain special events may vary for a variety of reasons including, without limitation, the cancellation policies of our independent suppliers. These exceptions will be clearly indicated in your Confirmation Letter.
Cancellation Fees will continue to apply to Tours that require a medical certificate signed by a doctor and for which your doctor fails to sign the certificate; Tours that require a visa or other documentation and for which you fail or are unable to obtain such documents; or you fail or are unable to obtain (or to provide us with a copy of your) comprehensive travel insurance and we elect, in our sole discretion, to cancel your Trip.
OUR DEPARTURE COMMITMENT; IF WE CANCEL
Until two (2) or more individuals book a Trip with us, we reserve the right to cancel a Trip prior to departure for any reason whatsoever and no Cancellation Fee will apply. Once two (2) or more individuals book a Trip with us, we will proceed with departure for this Trip, subject to our right to cancel (in our sole discretion) due to Force Majeure.
A “Force Majeure” means any act, omission, occurrence or event over which we have no control including, without limitation, acts of God, terrorist activity, war, strikes, civil disturbance, riots, theft, supplier or other third party default, changes in government regulations or actions, overbooking, mechanical problems, airport or other transportation regulations or closures, technical or maintenance transportation or other problems, sickness, quarantines, epidemics, weather, natural disaster, fire, drought, tsunamis, land slides, trail conditions, earthquake, flooding or other similar acts, omissions, occurrences or events over which we have no control.
We normally make substantial payments to our suppliers for services we provide including, without limitation, hotel accommodations, restaurants, transportation, local handlers, certain guides and other services (each, a “Supplier” or a “supplier”) far in advance of the scheduled departure date of a Tour. If we cancel a Trip due to a Force Majeure, we will promptly refund the portion of the monies paid by you and received by us, including the Cancellation Fee, not already advanced to Suppliers
and use our commercially reasonable efforts to recover and refund the balance as promptly as possible. We do not, however, guarantee recovery of any or all of the advance payments made to our Suppliers. Our use of commercially reasonable efforts to recover these payments will not include the institution of any legal proceedings in foreign or local jurisdictions.
We are not responsible for costs and expenses (including, without limitation, nonrefundable advance purchase air tickets, visa fees, inoculations, equipment, medical expenses, additional arrangements should you have departed prior to the scheduled departure date, or travel insurance) incurred by you in preparing for a Trip that we cancel due to a Force Majeure.
RELEASE; LIMITATION OF LIABILITY & RESERVATIONS
PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY, as it defines our role and responsibility with respect to all of our Tours.
We do not own or operate entities that provide goods or services in connection with your Trip. Instead, the goods and services, as applicable, which we provide are purchased from various independent Suppliers who are not affiliated with us in any way. Although we endeavor to choose the best Suppliers available, we have no right to control these Suppliers’ respective operations. To the best of our knowledge, each of these Suppliers is subject to the laws of the state or country where the goods and services, as applicable, are provided.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, we make these travel arrangements for you upon the express condition that we (together with our officers, directors, agents, representatives and employees) shall not be liable for – and you hereby release us from any liability in connection with – any costs, expenses, fees, penalties, charges, damages (including, without limitation, direct, indirect, special, consequential, incidental or punitive damages) or losses of any kind or nature whatsoever (each a “Loss” and collectively, “Losses”) which are directly or indirectly arising from, relating to, incurred in or otherwise in connection with a Tour, including, without limitation:
• A Force Majeure;
• The actions or inactions (including, without limitation, defaults, insolvencies or
bankruptcies, breaches of contract or violations of law) of our Suppliers, other
travelers participating in the Tour or other third parties;
• Any delays, reschedulings, mishaps or inconveniences or other similar acts,
omissions, occurrences or events over which we have no control;
• Attacks by wild or domestic animals, attacks by individuals, lack of appropriate
medical care, criminal activity or other similar acts, omissions, occurrences or events
over which we have no control;
• Any injuries, death, accidents or mishaps or other similar acts, omissions, occurrences
or events over which we have no control;
• Your failure to provide us with accurate information regarding your full name,
birth date, passport information (including, without limitation, number, place of issue
and date of expiration), health and other pertinent information;
• Your failure to maintain a passport that will remain current for six (6) months after
the date your Tour is scheduled to be complete, or your inability to obtain a visa or
other documentation required to participate in any aspect of the Tour;
• Changes to your Trip itinerary or Confirmation Letter (including, without
limitation, booking additional hotel nights, meals or transportation not specified in
your itinerary, or modifying the arrangements outlined in your Trip itinerary);
• Your inability or failure to obtain (or to provide us with a copy of your)
comprehensive travel insurance;
• Your inability or failure to join the Trip independently and on time for any reason
whatsoever; or
• Recovering luggage lost by airlines or other parties, belongings left behind on a Trip,
or in shipping purchases or other goods home or elsewhere from the Trip abroad.
We reserve the right to make reasonable changes to your itinerary or the Confirmation Letter where deemed advisable for the smooth running of a Tour or for the comfort or well being of you and your fellow travelers. Such reasonable changes may include substituting a hotel from those listed on our Website or elsewhere, reversing the order of places to be visited or other similar changes. We will do our best to notify you of any changes as soon as possible.
We reserve the right to take photographic or film records of any of our Trips, and may use any such records for promotional and/or commercial purposes unless you notify us otherwise in writing.
We reserve the right to decline your participation or to remove you from further participation, in either case, in our sole discretion, in a Tour, at your sole cost and expense, if you are unable to obtain comprehensive travel insurance or we reasonably conclude that your conduct may impact the enjoyment or safety of others, including without limitation, other travelers participating in the Tour. These reasons may include the fact that you are incapable (physically, medically or mentally) of meeting the rigors and requirements of participating in the activities of the Tour, you are engaging in unsocial or unruly behavior, or you are in possession of prohibited or offensive substances and materials.
If your acts or omissions directly or indirectly cause a Loss, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless us (together with our officers, directors, agents, representatives and employees) and, further, to pay any and all Losses which are directly or indirectly arising from, relating to, incurred in or otherwise in connection with your acts or omissions.
TRAVEL INSURANCE
We require that you purchase comprehensive travel insurance from a reputable and creditworthy insurance company. Generally speaking, travel insurance can provide coverage for a variety of things including trip cancellations, interruptions and delays; emergency medical treatment, evacuation and repatriation of remains; baggage and personal effects lost; baggage delays; accidental death and dismemberment; or car rental collision.
We do not provide travel insurance of any kind including, without limitation, medical or trip cancellation, interruption or delay. As obtaining travel insurance is compulsory, we strongly recommend that you start working with your insurance agent at the same time that you deliver your Initial Deposit and book your Trip with us, as many insurers will only underwrite and issue this type of insurance if it is obtained shortly after (i.e., sometimes fourteen (14) or less days) the Initial Deposit is made.
The type and amount of coverage available to you and the creditworthiness of the insurer varies widely so be sure to read and understand what is actually covered under your policy. We will need a copy of your policy, which must show the policy number and the emergency hotline phone number of the insurer.
We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to cancel your Trip, subject to the applicable Cancellation Fee, if you fail or are unable to obtain the requisite travel insurance described above. Alternatively, we may permit you, in our sole discretion, to continue with your Trip if you agree to indemnify and hold harmless us (together with our officers, directors, agents, representatives and employees) and, further, to pay any and all Losses which are directly or indirectly arising from, relating to, incurred or otherwise in connection with your failure or inability to obtain the requisite travel insurance for your Tour.
RISKS & TRIP MEMBERS’ RESPONSIBILITY
Although most travel, including travel to international destinations, is completed without incident, travel may involve risk. By offering travel to particular international destinations, we do not represent or warrant that travel to these destinations is advisable or without risk, and, as described more fully above, we are not liable for Losses that may result from travel to such destinations. See “Release
& Limitation of Liability” above for more information.
In addition to our requirement that you purchase comprehensive travel insurance, we urge you to review various travel advisories, prohibitions, warnings and announcements issued by various U.S. agencies prior to booking your Trip with us. Information regarding conditions in various countries and the level of risk associated with travel to particular international destinations can be found at the following websites: www.state.gov, www.tsa.gov, www.dot.gov, www.faa.gov, www.cdc.gov, www.treas.gov/ofac and www.customs.gov.
You must maintain an up-to-date passport and the date of expiration of your passport must be at least six (6) months after the date your Tour is scheduled to be complete. You must also prepare the requisite visa application forms necessary for your Tour, if any, and we strongly recommend that you complete these documents as soon as possible for each of the countries being visited.
You are responsible for arranging your own independent air or other transportation arrangements to and from your destination. We will make ourselves available to discuss and coordinate your arrangements with our Trip; however, it is your responsibility to join the Trip independently and on time. If you are unable to join all or any portion of our Trip for any reason whatsoever, we will not refund any portion of the monies you paid to us and we will have no liability to you.
When you book a Trip with us, you accept responsibility to conduct yourself properly. You agree to follow all of our written and oral rules regarding your Trip, including without limitation, safety rules and our no smoking policy, all of which are outlined in our Confirmation Letter. You have the responsibility to select a Trip appropriate to your abilities and interests, and to be in sufficient good health to undertake the Trip. You are also responsible for preparing for the Trip by studying the itinerary and pre-departure information packets we supply you and for bringing the appropriate clothing and equipment as advised therein.
GOVERNING LAW; BINDING ARBITRATION; MISCELLANEOUS
Our relationship shall be governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflicts of law. Any dispute concerning our relationship, including, without limitation, the Confirmation Letter or this Website shall be resolved exclusively by binding arbitration in New York, New York, according to the then existing commercial rules of the American Arbitration Association or such other organization to which both parties shall agree in writing. If any portion of the Confirmation Letter or this Website is considered to be void or unenforceable, the remaining portions shall remain in full force and effect. To the extent a conflict exists between any of the terms and conditions outlined in your Confirmation Letter and this Website, the terms and conditions outlined in your Confirmation Letter shall govern.