Booking Terms

These Booking Conditions, together with our privacy policy and any other written information we brought to your attention before we confirmed your booking, apply to your booking with Bespoke Travel of Howes Farm Office, Doddinghurst, Brentwood, Essex, CM15 0SG ("we" or "us").

Please read them carefully as they set out our respective rights and obligations. In these booking conditions references to "you" and "your" include the first named person on the booking and all persons on whose behalf a booking is made or any other person to whom a booking is added or transferred. If you have any further questions after reading these booking conditions then please contact our customer service team who will be happy to help you.

We act only as an agent – usually as the agent of suppliers of travels services and sometimes as your agent in booking certain "no-frills" flights. When you make a booking your contract (or contracts) will always be with the supplier(s) of the travel services you have booked. Our obligations to you may vary depending upon which arrangements you book with us, and we set them out clearly below.

By making a booking, you agree on behalf of all persons detailed on the booking that you have read these terms and conditions and agree to be bound by them; you consent to our use of information in accordance with our Privacy Policy; and you are over 18 years of age.
When you make your booking you must pay the relevant deposit as specified at the time of booking. If you believe that any details on the booking (or any other document) are wrong you must advise us immediately as changes cannot be made later and it may harm your rights if we are not notified of any inaccuracies in any document immediately.
Please check that all names, dates and timings are correct on receipt of all documents and advise us of any errors immediately. As a company we will not charge for changes to documents, however you may have to pay any potential charges made by suppliers. Please ensure that the names given are the same as in your passport.

You will be required to pay a deposit or make full payment for your booking at the time of booking. Where you only pay a deposit you must pay the full balance by the balance due date notified to you at the time of booking. This is subject to change but we will endeavour to give you 2 weeks’ notice if this does. If full payment is not received by the balance due date, we will notify the supplier who may cancel your booking and charge the cancellation fees. Except where otherwise advised or stated in the booking conditions of the supplier concerned, all monies you pay to us for arrangements will be held on behalf of the supplier(s) concerned in out Travel Trust Association account.

We aim to provide your holiday as booked. But if, for example, there are not enough people booked on your holiday if it is a tour or you do not pay the balance of the holiday price on time, we may cancel it. We reserve the right to cancel your holiday in any circumstances but if we do cancel your holiday, except where this is because you have not paid, you can either have a refund or accept a replacement holiday from us of equivalent or similar standard and price (if we are able to offer you one). Should you choose a replacement the terms and conditions of your holiday will not change and these conditions will still apply to your booking.

When making your booking we will arrange for you to enter into a contract with the supplier (tour operator/airline or other supplier) named on your booking summary. For most bookings we act as agent for the supplier but we may act as your agent when making a booking with most no frills airlines such as EasyJet and Ryanair. This will be made clear to you at the time of booking. As an agent we accept no responsibility for the acts or omissions of the supplier or for the services provided by the supplier. The supplier's Terms & Conditions will apply to your booking and we advise you to read these carefully as they contain important information about your booking. Please ask us for copies of these if you do not have them.

If you have any special requests (for example dietary requirements, cots or room location), please let us know at the time of booking. We will pass on all such requests to the supplier but we do not guarantee that they will be met and we will have no liability to you if they are not.

Adequate travel insurance is a condition of your contract with either us or the supplier in question, as applicable. You must take out a policy of insurance in order to cover you and your party against the cost of cancellation by you; the cost of assistance (including repatriation) in the event of accident or illness; loss of baggage and money; and other expenses. If we have issued your policy please check it carefully to ensure that all the details are correct and that all relevant information has been provided by you (e.g. pre-existing medical conditions). Failure to disclose relevant information will affect your insurance. If you fail to travel with adequate insurance cover we will not be liable for any losses in respect of which insurance cover would otherwise have been available. Should you require any assistance with Travel Insurance please contact us and we will be more than happy to assist you through a third party.

Accommodation ratings are displayed as provided by the supplier. These are intended to give a guide to the services and facilities you should expect from your accommodation. Standards and ratings may vary between countries, as well as between suppliers. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of any ratings given and no warranty is given or implied.
Safety standards in some countries may differ from those applicable in the United Kingdom We strongly advise that all customers seek to minimise their exposure to injury by familiarising themselves with relevant safety information.

After registration, on arrival at your accommodation, you will be allocated a room. It is your responsibility to verify the check-in and check-out times directly with your accommodation supplier. Please note that any local taxes and expenses will be payable to your accommodation supplier in resort on check-out.

From time to time, renovation or refurbishment and its associated noise are unavoidable at a hotel. If we are notified of such works we will inform you before you make your booking or within a reasonable time of us being notified.

All documents (e.g. invoices/tickets/Insurance policies) will be sent to you by either post or email. Once documents leave our offices we will not be responsible for their loss unless such loss is due to our negligence. You must pay any charges made by suppliers if tickets or other documents need to be reissued.

We can provide general information about the passport and visa requirements for your trip, but this is for guidance only and it remains your responsibility to check the requirements before you travel. 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. Neither we nor the supplier accept any responsibility if you cannot travel because you have not complied with any passport, visa or immigration requirements. Most countries now require passports to be valid for at least 6 months after your return date. For more information on passports please visit www.gov.uk/browse/citizenship/passports
Please take special note that for all air travel within the British Isles, airlines require photographic identification of a specific type. Please ask us for full details. We can provide general information about any health formalities required for your trip but you should check with your own doctor for your specific circumstances. Up to date travel advice can be obtained from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, visit www.fco.gov.uk.

Please ensure that all your travel, passport, visa and insurance documents are in order and that you arrive in plenty of time for checking in at the airport.

Except where otherwise expressly stated in these booking conditions we will not be liable or pay you compensation if our contractual obligations to you are affected by any event which we or the supplier of the service in question could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. These events can include, but are not limited to war, threat of war, civil strife terrorist activity and its consequences or the threat of such activity, riot, the act of any government or other national or local authority, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, chemical or biological disaster and all similar events outside our control or the control of the supplier concerned.

Many of the services which make up your holiday are provided by independent suppliers. Those suppliers provide these services in accordance with their own terms and conditions. Some of these terms and conditions may limit or exclude the supplier's liability to you, usually in accordance with applicable International Conventions. Copies of the relevant parts of these terms and conditions are available on request from us or the supplier concerned.
Behaviour
Please be aware that the booking conditions of the supplier will normally state that your stay can be terminated, with no refund, if the behaviour of your party falls below an acceptable standard. Suppliers will also often require you to pay for any damage you cause to the accommodation in resort. We are under no obligation to you if any event such as this occurs. You agree to indemnify us for the full amount of any claim (including all legal costs) made against us by the supplier or any third party as a result of your conduct.

Any cancellation or amendment request must be sent to us in writing and will not take effect until received by us. If you cancel or amend your booking the supplier may charge the cancellation or amendment charge shown in their Terms and Conditions (which may be 100% of the cost of the travel arrangements). We may collect this on their behalf and you also must pay us any applicable administration charges.

We will inform you of any changes or cancellations as soon as reasonably possible. If the supplier offers alternative arrangements or a refund, you will need to let us know your choice within the time frame we stipulate. If you fail to do so the supplier is entitled to assume you wish to receive a full refund. We accept no liability for any changes or cancellations made to your arrangements by the supplier under your contract with them.

Your contract is with the supplier and its booking conditions apply. As agent, we accept no responsibility for the actual provision of the arrangements. Our responsibilities are limited to making the booking in accordance with your instructions. We accept no responsibility for any information about the arrangements that we pass on to you in good faith. However, in the event that we are found liable to you on any basis whatsoever, our maximum liability to you is limited to twice the cost of your booking (or the appropriate proportion of this if not everyone on the booking is affected). We do not exclude or limit any liability for death or personal injury that arises as a result of our negligence or that of any of our employees whilst acting in the course of their employment.

The contract for your arrangements is between you and the supplier and any queries or concerns should be addressed to them. If you have a problem whilst on holiday, this must be reported to the supplier or their local supplier or agent immediately. If you fail to follow this procedure there will be less opportunity to investigate and rectify your complaint. The amount of compensation you may be entitled to may be reduced or you may not receive any at all depending upon the circumstances.
If you wish to complain when you return home, write to the supplier as set out in your booking confirmation. We will of course assist you with this if you wish. If the matter cannot be resolved and it involves us or another ABTA member then it can be referred to the arbitration scheme arranged by ABTA, details of which are set out in these booking conditions.

Many of the travel arrangements that we sell are protected in the case of the financial failure of the travel company. Please ask us about the protection that applies to your booking. When you buy an ATOL protected flight or flight inclusive holiday from us you will receive an ATOL Certificate. This lists what is financially protected, where you can get information on what this means for you and who to contact if things go wrong. Please note that ATOL protection is not available for flights with low-cost carriers or where your payment is made direct to airlines unless they are part of a Flight-Plus. Where necessary, we will add supplier failure insurance to your booking automatically. This protects you by insuring us against the costs of refunding or replacing your booking if a supplier fails.

We, or the suppliers identified on your ATOL Certificate, will provide you with the services listed on the ATOL Certificate (or a suitable alternative). In some cases, where neither we nor the supplier are able to do so for reasons of insolvency, an alternative ATOL holder may provide you with the services you have bought or a suitable alternative (at no extra cost to you). You agree to accept that in those circumstances the alternative ATOL holder will perform those obligations and you agree to pay any money outstanding to be paid by you under your contract to that alternative ATOL holder. However, you also agree that in some cases it will not be possible to appoint an alternative ATOL holder, in which case you will be entitled to make a claim under the ATOL scheme (or your credit card issuer where applicable).

These terms of business are governed by English law and the parties agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.