Terms and Conditions

Lesvos Birding holiday tour booking terms and conditions

1. Reservations
A reservation has been made when you have paid the required tour deposit. Booking requests with deposits will be considered in order of receipt. A telephone or email booking will be noted from the date of the telephone call or email provided it is followed by receipt of the appropriate booking form and deposit within seven days.

A booking is accepted from the date your booking is confirmed in writing. At this point, a contract between the applicant and Lesvos Birding is effective. All contracts and matters arising from it are subject to English law and the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.
Lesvos Birding reserves the right to decline any bookings.

2. Payments
The deposit for each tour is detailed in the charges section of each tour. Payment of the balance of the tour cost is due not later than eight weeks before departure date. No further reminder will be sent and if payment is not received by the due date. Failure to pay the balance by the required date will be treated as cancellation and a subject to a cancellation fee (the amount not to exceed the total cost of the holiday). You are therefore strongly recommended to take out travel insurance at an early stage to cover you in event of cancellation.

3. Refunds
Deposits are non-refundable but are transferable. Deposits are transferable to another specified tour, or replacement individual do the tour, but are subject to deductions for any expenses incurred. Balance payments are also non-refundable except under conditions 6 & 15, but are transferable in accordance with Transfer of Bookings. Insurance is therefore essential.

4. Transfer of bookings
Tour participants may transfer their booking to another person if they are prevented from proceeding with the tour due to sickness or accidents suffered by them or their close family or for other unavoidable reasons such as jury service. However, if there is a waiting list for the tour their place must first be offered to the people on that waiting list. If there is no waiting list and the participant can find another person to take up their place, any additional costs incurred by Lesvos Birding relating to the transfer have to be paid for by the transferee. Reasonable notice must be given to Lesvos Birding about such a transfer and cannot be made within 56 days of departure.

5. Consumer protection
All deposit and advance monies paid to Lesvos Birding in respect of my tours will be held in a trustee guarantee account until the completion of the tour. In the event of my insolvency all monies will be fully refunded. Details of the trustee account are available on request.

6. Tour cancellation
Lesvos Birding reserves the right to cancel any tour for which there are insufficient reservations not less than eight weeks before the departure date. In the event of my cancellation, all deposits and other payments made to Lesvos Birding will be refunded in full.

7. Cost increases
These may occur unexpectedly. When calculating tour prices in advance, rising costs of airfares, ground transportation and accommodation are factored in. Price changes may also occur because of fluctuating exchange rates. If unexpected cost rises do occur, Lesvos Birding may have to increase the tour cost. If it is necessary to increase the tour cost, you will be notified not less than twelve weeks before the departure date with an explanation of the amount. Should it be necessary to increase the tour cost by more than 10%, participants may withdraw without penalty. Tour cost rises of up to 5% will be absorbed within the original stated price.

8. What the tour price includes
The tour price includes all land travel, accommodation and meals as specified in the itinerary of each individual tour and the services of the tour leader(s) throughout.

The following items are not included in the cost: return airfare, travel insurance, passport and visa costs, vaccinations and medication, excess baggage charges, telephone calls, laundry, drinks and food (unless specified in the tour details), tips and items of a purely personal nature.

Please note that the flight prices quoted in the tour details are approximate and Lesvos Birding accepts no responsibility if the actual cost exceeds that quoted when you book your flight. You will be provided with plenty of notice of the release dates of the Airline so that you can arrange your own flights. Under no circumstances whatsoever will a refund be made if the actual cost of the flights are more than that quoted in the tour details.

9. Tour alterations
Changes in the itinerary may occur even though a tour has been carefully planned. Changes will be made to the stated itinerary if it is felt that they will benefit the tour by providing better birdwatching and wildlife opportunities. The itinerary detailed in any tour promotion, advertisement, brochure or webpages is therefore an illustration of the sites we may visit to gain the maximum birdwatching and wildlife benefit from a tour, and any birds or animals listed are an example of the species present and which may be possibly seen. As a courtesy to participants, any major changes to the itinerary will be advised in the final tour details sent on receipt of the final balance. A change in the order that locations are visited is not deemed to be a major change. Should a major change of itinerary or schedule be forced on us while the tour is in progress by, for example, strikes, weather delay or breakdown, any additional costs are the responsibility of the participants, so travel insurance is therefore essential.

10. Passport, visa and health requirements
All participants are responsible for, and must be in possession of, a full British passport, valid for at least six months beyond the end of the tour. In addition, participants must obtain any necessary visas and vaccination certificates required for the tour. Because of changing requirements, and the fact that the tour details are published so far in advance, specific requirements are not always stated. Participants will be advised of visa requirements in sufficient time. As Lesvos Birding leaders are not medically qualified, it is the participant’s absolute responsibility to seek medical advice regarding vaccinations and medication to ensure that they are prepared by the date of departure. Any medical information supplied to Lesvos Birding must be considered as a guide only. Lesvos Birding is not responsible for your medical care and you must take all necessary steps to ensure that you are fit enough to undertake the tour including bring with you any medication or medical care you may need during the duration of the tour.

Lesvos Birding recommends all EU citizens carry a European Health Insurance Card for tours.

11. Tour Information
General and more specific information will be made available to all tour participants. This may include details such as expected climate and clothing requirements, recommended reading, bird species we are likely to encounter, flight/ferry information, etc. Please note, however, that there is absolutely no guarantee whatsoever that specific bird o other wildlife species listed in any information will be seen. Events such as floods, storms, fires etc. may prevent the tour from visiting certain areas resulting in specific bird species being missed, Lesvos Birding will not accept responsibility for this. Any list provided is merely an indication of the species we may encounter on a tour.

12. Accommodation
Accommodation is in a medium-standard hotel with private facilities, unless specified in the tour details. If you are travelling singly, but want to share a room, every effort will be made to find someone of the same sex for you to share with; if this is not possible, however, you will be required to pay the single supplement charge imposed by the hotel. If you have reserved a single room on a tour and one is not available, you may expect a pro-rata refund for that day. On rare occasions the accommodation that has been reserved for the tour may not be available and in the circumstances the leader will endeavour to obtain alternative accommodation of a similar standard although it may be of a lesser standard.

13. Insurance
Travel insurance is essential and Lesvos Birding will insist that tour participants arrange suitable cover for all tours. This will ensure that the necessary protection is provided against loss of deposit, and medical costs, which can be enormous, should you fall ill during the tour. Please note that travel insurance rarely provides sufficient cover for expensive optical equipment; you are therefore recommended to add this to your home insurance policy under the 'All risks' section prior to departure. You will be required to provide Lesvos Birding with details of your insurance prior to departure.

14. Restrictions on participation
Lesvos Birding tours do not normally entail strenuous activity but, if this cannot be avoided, it will be made clear in the tour details. Nevertheless, participants must be able to complete moderate walks of several miles a day, sometimes on uneven or slippery surfaces, to meet the schedule of the tour. If you have any health problems or physical limitations, you are required to advise Lesvos Birding prior to booking.

To cater for the needs of all levels of birdwatcher, Lesvos Birding tours sometimes involve long days in the field including required distances for the schedule. Subject to the itinerary of the tour, however, Lesvos Birding can usually arrange for a half or a full day's rest for those who wish to opt out at any time.

Small groups do, of course, call for consideration from all to ensure that everybody enjoys the tour. Your co-operation in not participating in any antisocial behaviour is therefore expected.
Lesvos Birding operate a strict no-smoking policy. Tour participants will not be permitted to smoke whilst with the group.

Lesvos Birding reserves the right to send home any person, at their own expense, who will not conduct themselves in an acceptable manner, at my sole discretion.

15. Group size
Single leader groups will be restricted to 7 participants (excluding leaders). Larger groups will be provided with a second leader. Lesvos Birding reserves the right to change leaders without notice. The minimum size of a group is 4 participants, if the number of bookings does not reach this figure within 8 weeks of the commencement of the proposed tour, Lesvos Birding reserves the right to cancel the tour and refund the full amount paid by all participants.

16. Lesvos Birding responsibility
Lesvos Birding will take all reasonable steps to ensure that all services provided are of an acceptable standard.

Lesvos Birding cannot accept liability for physical injury, loss, damage or expense resulting from any event whatsoever beyond its control. Insurance is therefore absolutely essential.

17. Your responsibility
In addition to any medical information pertinent to the tour (see 10), you are required to inform Lesvos Birding about any other personal condition or need (e.g. dietary requirement) in advance of the tour. Unusual conditions and diets should be checked with Birding Lesvos prior to a booking being made.

18. Data Protection Act
Your records are maintained on a computer database and are used solely for the purpose of marketing by Wingspan and are not divulged to anyone else. If you wish your records to be amended or deleted please advise me.

19. Errors and Omissions
Whilst the greatest care is taken in the preparation of my tour details, mistakes can occur. Unless the error or omission has a major effect on the tour to the extent that the number of species seen is materially affected then no claim for compensation can be entertained.