INFORMATION ON THE PACKAGE TRAVEL DIRECTIVE IN CONNECTION WITH THE COVID-19
(last updated 22nd July 2021)
1. To fight against the further spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, national governments have introduced different measures, including travel restrictions and border controls. This has led to mass cancellations of already booked holidays. If you have booked a package tour (i.e. a combination of at least two travel services, e.g. transport and accommodation) and you have not yet left for your trip, consult the travel advice of your national authorities and contact your tour operator or travel agency. Travel advice is a national competence that is being updated as the situation changes
2. The list of EU Member States’ travel advice is available at: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/traveladvice-list.pdf According to the Directive on Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements
3. The organiser of a package can cancel the trip without penalty if he is prevented from performing the contract because of “Unavoidable and Extraordinary Circumstances”. The organiser must inform the traveller without undue delay about the cancellation.
4. The traveller can cancel the trip without penalty if there are “unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances occurring at the place of destination or its immediate vicinity and significantly affecting the performance of the package, or which significantly affect the carriage of passengers to the destination”.
‘Unavoidable and Extraordinary Circumstances’ means a situation beyond the control of the party who invokes such a situation and the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken. Significant risks to human health, such as the outbreak of a serious disease like the COVID-19 at the travel destination or its immediate vicinity usually qualify as such unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances.
The assessment of whether those circumstances significantly affect the performance of the package must be made on a case-by-case basis.
An official travel warning of national authorities is an important indicator that the package travel contract can be cancelled due to unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances impacting the performance of the trip. This also applies where public authorities prohibit certain travels or ban the movement of persons in a manner that excludes, de facto, the package travel contract to be performed.
Terms & Conditions of payment
On confirmation of the booking we will require a 30% deposit of the total package.
30 days before arrival the remaining 70% is to be paid.
If restrictions have come into place prior to the final payment this will not need to be paid and we will prepare to refund the first payment or funds can be moved to suitable future dates.
If the total has been paid & then ‘Unavoidable and Extraordinary Circumstances’ come into place we will refund the full 100% of the payment or again offer suitable future dates.