Booking Terms & Conditions
The following booking conditions (‘Booking Conditions’) form the basis of your contract with ARK TOURING CO. These Booking Conditions set out the terms on which you contract with us for the arrangement and delivery of travel arrangements for your trip and which we agree to make, provide, or perform (as applicable) as part of our contract with you. By making a booking request, you acknowledge that you have read and understood the Booking Conditions and agree to be bound by them. Please note that we reserve the right to change these Booking Conditions at any time prior to you placing a booking request. The latest version of our Booking Conditions is published at https://ark-touring.com. It is your obligation to review the latest version of our Booking Conditions prior to making a booking request. All references in these booking conditions to “holiday”, “booking”, “contract”, “package”, “tour” or “arrangements” mean such holiday arrangements unless otherwise stated. In these booking conditions, “you”, “your”, “customer” or “passenger” means each person named on a booking request (including anyone who is added or substituted at a later date) or any of them as the context requires. “We”, “us” and “our” means ARK TOURING CO.
YOUR HOLIDAY CONTRACT
The first named person on a booking request (“Lead Traveler”) promises that s/he is authorized to request a booking subject to these Booking Conditions by all persons named in the booking request and by the parents or guardians for any party member who is under 18 when the booking request is made. The Lead Traveler is responsible for making all payments due under a booking by all party members. The Lead Traveler must be at least 18 when the booking is requested. After we receive your booking request and all appropriate payments (see “Payments” below), if the arrangements you wish to book are available, we will issue a confirmation invoice. A binding agreement will come into existence between us when we email your confirmation invoice to the ‘Lead Traveler’ or the travel agent through whom the booking was requested. We reserve the right to decline any booking at our discretion.
YOUR DETAILS
Passenger names must be provided exactly as per passport, including middle names, at the time of booking. A copy of your passport is required at the time of booking. Any spelling corrections made after a deposit is paid must be sent in writing. If you do not advise the correct information and we have to reissue airline tickets or other documentation, then you will be responsible for any fees charged (such as airline cancellation charges or re-issue fees) in addition to our own reasonable administration fees.
YOUR OBLIGATION TO CHECK DETAILS
Please check your confirmation invoice carefully as soon as you receive it. Contact us immediately if any information which appears on the confirmation invoice or any other document appears to be incorrect or incomplete as it may not be possible to make changes later. We regret we cannot accept any liability if we are not notified of any inaccuracies (for which we are responsible) in any document within ten days of our sending it out (five days for tickets). We will do our best to rectify any mistake notified to us outside these time limits. but you must meet any costs involved in doing so. If you wish to change or cancel any arrangements later, you may have to pay an amendment or cancellation charge (See “Amendments by You” & “Cancellations by You” below).
PRICES
General: Prices and services are subject to availability of tour, airline, and specific economy airfare. Prices may differ once a preferred booking class is sold out. Prices stated are in American Dollars ($USD) and are current at the time of publication. The most up to date pricing is available on our website. The price includes accommodation, transportation and other inclusions as per the published itinerary. ARK TOURING CO reserves the right to correct any obvious errors in rates quoted or calculated, or any omissions made at any time during your booking. Any verbal quote given is an indication only of the final price and is subject to confirmation in writing. Costs associated with passports, vaccinations, insurance, meals (other than those stipulated), emergency evacuation costs, gratuities, and all items of a personal nature are not included.
Itinerary Deviations: All fully inclusive Classic Tour or Go Beyond Tour prices indicated in the brochure are based on group travel and any deviation requested by you from the set itinerary may incur additional airline ticket costs. Arrangements such as transfers, accommodation, etc. outside the set group arrangements/dates are at an additional cost.
Other Variations: We reserve the right to surcharge the cost of your booked travel arrangements prior to commencement for circumstances beyond our control such as the imposition of fuel surcharges, or new or amended Government charges, or if minimum passenger’s requirements aren’t satisfied (see below). We also reserve the right to vary the cost of your travel arrangements due to currency fluctuations. However, we will not vary the cost for currency fluctuations once full payment has been received by us and we will absorb the first 2% of any negative currency fluctuation.
PAYMENTS
Deposit: You are required to pay a 20% non-refundable deposit per person (or full payment if booking within 75 days of commencement of your travel arrangements) to ARK TOURING CO or your travel agent within three days of you making your booking request. Please note that we may not hold any services for you until we receive payment of your deposit, meaning that services may become unavailable or prices may increase, in which case you will be responsible for paying the increased price, and we will not be responsible if services become unavailable. In some cases, the amount of the deposit may be higher where for example, we need to pre-purchase flight tickets, cruise or rail cabins accommodation, hotels may require pre-payment in peak seasons or other services. This will be advised at the time of quotation and these services are deemed non-refundable.
Balance Payment: The final balance of the travel arrangements is due no later than 75 days prior to the confirmed tour commencement date. Final payment for Cruise & Tour packages and other special collections may be required earlier than the standard due date. Any such earlier payment deadline will be specified in your booking invoice.
Late Payment: If you fail to make payment by the due date, we will remind you to make payment. In addition to the payment, you will also be responsible for any costs imposed on us by suppliers resulting from late payment. If we do not receive payment within 7 days after the reminder, you will be deemed to have cancelled your booking and cancellation fees will apply (see below).
Card Processing Fees: Please note that any payments made by credit or debit card are subject to a 1.2% processing fee (1.8% for Amex), which represents the cost charged to us to process the payment.
Customized Itinerary Deposits: For Customized itineraries tour, you will be required to pay non-refundable deposit of $300 per person. This will be deducted from your required deposit amount at the time of confirmation.
AMENDMENTS BY YOU
We will endeavor to accommodate amendments and additional requests. You acknowledge that these may not be possible to fulfil, and for group departures a transfer of a booking to a different departure is deemed a cancellation. An amendment fee of $100 per change will be levied to cover communication and administration costs for any changes to bookings. You will also be required to pay any additional costs charged by suppliers. Please note that airfares are subject to strict airline policies and booking fare rules. Special airfares that require early ticketing may be non-refundable and non-changeable. Once a booking is confirmed, any name change, or passenger change will incur additional charges and/or may be deemed a cancellation of the airfare.
AMENDMENTS BY US
Due to the dynamic nature of the travel industry, we may occasionally need to make amendments or modifications to the itinerary and its inclusions and you acknowledge our right to do this. Most changes will not be significant. If we become aware of any significant changes to your itinerary or its inclusions that materially detract from the overall value of the trip (where we determine it can still proceed), then we will notify you within a reasonable time and refund you an amount attributable to any reduction in value determined by us acting reasonably.
We reserve the right to substitute hotels, and other forms of accommodation with properties of a substantially comparable or higher standard. We will endeavor to minimize substitutions. You acknowledge our right to do so and agree that these substitutions will not be considered a significant change.
During travel
You acknowledge that the itinerary, modes of transport, accommodation and/or the trip’s inclusions may need to change during your trip due to local circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including road conditions, poor weather, changes in transport schedules, and/or vehicle breakdowns. Where such changes are necessary, you agree that we may pass on any additional costs we reasonably incur in making alternative arrangements for your benefit.
General
To the fullest extent permitted by law:
AIRLINE SCHEDULE CHANGES
We are not responsible for any schedule changes imposed by airlines. While we will make reasonable efforts to adjust your touring and accommodation arrangements to accommodate such changes, we are not responsible for any services missed as a result. You agree that we may pass on any reasonable additional costs we incur in making alternative arrangements necessitated by an airline-imposed schedule change.
CANCELLATION BY YOU
Group Tours: Cancellations must be made in writing to ARK TOURING CO and are subject to the following cancellation charges (Cancellations are also dependent upon other additional charges imposed for air/rail/cruise tickets as referred to below) from the date the written cancellation is received:
Airfare, Cruise & Rail Tickets: If airline, cruise and rail tickets have been issued, the rules of the fare will determine cancellation and/or amendment charges. It is often the case that air, cruise and rail tickets are non-refundable.
Unused Services: Following the commencement of your tour, no refunds will be made for any services which you choose not to use or which you cannot use for any reason other than a reason within our control.
No waiver: Regrettably, cancellation charges and fees cannot be waived. There can be no exceptions. Please note that employees of any overseas or domestic company or staff of ARK TOURING CO outside Saudi Arabia are not authorized to give any guarantees or agreements to customers in respect of refunds or any other matters. Please note Special Groups, Short Stays, Extensions & Tailor-made tours may have differing cancellation fees, these will be communicated in writing at time of booking.
Force Majeure – Prior to travel:
If:
then we may:
If we cancel your travel arrangements, neither of us will have any claim for damages against the other for the cancelled arrangements. However, we will either:
Please note that our ability to issue you with a credit may be dependent on our suppliers issuing corresponding credits to us. We cannot guarantee that our suppliers will issue corresponding credits and so in such circumstances we may opt to pay you a limited cash refund as outlined.
Force Majeure – General
Where a limited cash refund is to be paid by us, we will use reasonable endeavors to recover payments from third parties attributable to your booking, but we make no guarantee that we will be able to recover these payments either partially or at all. If after we have paid you a limited cash refund (or after we determine that no cash refund is currently payable) we recover payments from third parties attributable to your booking, then we will pass on this payment to you.
We will not be responsible for any other loss or costs you incur in connection with your booking (for example, airfares, insurance and visa expenses) if your tour or particular travel arrangements are cancelled due to an event of Force Majeure.
If we provide you with any alternative services or assistance where travel arrangements are cancelled or rescheduled due to Force Majeure which you accept, then you agree the amount to be refunded to you will be reduced by the value of these services and assistance.
You acknowledge that the terms in this section are reasonably necessary to protect our legitimate business interests. We strongly encourage you to purchase travel insurance that adequately responds to cancellation and rescheduling risks associated with Force Majeure events as soon as you have paid a deposit.
Other cancellations
If we cancel your travel arrangements for reasons other than Force Majeure or a failure to satisfy minimum numbers (see below), you will be offered (at your election) a refund of all funds paid, or the offer of travel arrangements of substantially equal quality if appropriate. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we will not be responsible to you for any other expenses or loss you incur resulting from our cancellation.
Government-Imposed Quarantine or Travel Restrictions
If, within 75 days of your scheduled departure, you are subject to a mandatory quarantine or other travel restriction imposed by a government or public health authority (whether due to illness, close contact, or any other reason) and as a result you are reasonably unable to make use of the travel services booked with us, we will not be liable for any third-party costs, cancellation fees or prepaid arrangements, including (but not limited to) airfares, cruise bookings, or accommodation.
Similarly, if you are directed by a government or public health authority to quarantine or return home early during your tour, we will not be responsible for any additional costs you incur as a result, including extra accommodation, transport changes, or other amendments to your travel plans.
We will, however, make reasonable efforts to recover any refundable amounts on your behalf or to negotiate credits or deferrals with third-party providers, where possible.
MINIMUM NUMBERS
Some trips are based on a minimum number of passengers travelling. We will advise you prior to confirming your booking if this is the case. If a trip fails to satisfy minimum numbers, the trip may be cancelled or re-costed. We will give you notice no later than 60 days prior to the trip’s commencement. If the trip is re-costed, you will have the option to either accept the new cost or to cancel your booking. You must make this election within 14 days of receiving notice from us. If the trip is cancelled or if you cancel your booking in these circumstances, we will at your election refund all payments made or credit payments towards alternative arrangements. We will not be responsible for any other travel arrangements affected by, or any additional costs incurred, as a result of cancellation in these circumstances.
JOINING YOUR TOUR
Airline schedules from different cities vary so travelers from some cities may need to make their own way to another capital city to join the tour or may require pre or post-tour accommodation, a stopover or have a lengthy transit en-route to their destination. Any cost for accommodation, transportation (including but not limited to airport transfers) or meals incurred will be at the passengers’ own expense. Our reservations team can assist with any of these additional services.
HOTELS
Hotel descriptions featured on our website are based on current hotel guides provided by suppliers. Any facilities described are subject to change at any time. Maps and photographs are included for general information only and may not necessarily reflect actual routings, location or services. ARK TOURING CO has made reasonable enquiries to verify that the descriptions and details are accurate but does not warrant that they are. We reserve the right to substitute hotels, vessels and other forms of accommodation with properties or vessels of a comparable or higher standard.
TRAVEL INSURANCE
It is a condition of your booking that you are insured for the duration of your trip. We recommend comprehensive travel insurance to cover cancellation, medical requirements, luggage, repatriations and additional expenses. At a minimum, the policy is required to cover medical requirements including medical evacuations / repatriations. The choice of insurer is yours. We strongly suggest you purchase insurance at the time you pay your deposit. This is because cancellation fees and charges are payable from that time.
We may request you to provide evidence that you have taken out and paid for a policy to comply with this condition. If you fail to provide a certificate of currency of insurance within a reasonable time after our request, then this will be deemed a cancellation by you and standard cancellation fees will apply (see ‘Cancellation by You’ above).
HEALTH REQUIREMENTS
It is your responsibility to ensure that you have a suitable level of health and fitness to undertake the trip of your choice. If you have doubts about your ability to undertake the trip, please contact us to discuss your circumstances prior to making a booking request.
Existing Medical Conditions
If you have a medical condition which may reasonably be expected to increase your risk of needing medical attention, or which may materially affect the usual conduct of the trip, then you must advise us prior to or at the time you make your booking request.
We may request you to provide an assessment of your medical condition from a qualified medical practitioner. If the assessment indicates that you are not fit to travel or will require special assistance which we cannot reasonably provide, then we may cancel your booking. Provided you notified us of your medical condition prior to or at the time you made your booking request, we will provide you with a full refund of payments made.
If you fail to provide a medical assessment within a reasonable time, then this will be considered a cancellation by you and cancellation fees and charges will apply (See ‘Cancellation By You’ section above).
Changes to Medical Conditions After Booking
You must notify us as soon as possible of any new or changed medical or mobility condition that may reasonably be expected to increase your risk of needing medical attention or special assistance, or that may unreasonably affect the usual conduct of the trip. The provisions above will apply, including our right to cancel and apply relevant cancellation fees.
Undisclosed or Emerging Medical Conditions During the Tour
If, during the tour, we reasonably identify that you have a medical or mobility condition (including but not limited to cognitive impairment or behavioral issues) that was not disclosed prior to booking, and:
we may cancel your continued participation in the tour.
In such cases:
Dietary Requirements
Special dietary requests are required to be notified to us at the time of booking. We will endeavor to communicate your requirements to relevant suppliers. However, we cannot guarantee requests will be met by suppliers. It is your responsibility to check that meals and beverages do not contain any allergens. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we expressly disclaim any liability for meals or beverages that contain allergens.
PASSPORTS, VISAS
It is a requirement that you hold a valid passport with sufficient validity and any required visas for your trip. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are in possession of the necessary documentation to comply with the laws and regulations of the countries to be visited. Your passport name must match your airline ticket name, or you may be denied boarding. Responsibility for documentation accuracy, passport validity and dispatch of documents rests with you. We accept no responsibility for any failure in this respect. Please ensure you review and comply with any visa requirements for the country you are travelling to. You should contact your local embassy or consulate for the most up to date and accurate visa requirements.
VACCINATIONS
It is your responsibility to obtain vaccinations and preventative medicines as may be required for the duration of the trip. Any information provided by us is given in good faith and you must independently verify it. If suppliers refuse to provide you with travel arrangements due to any vaccination deficiency, then you agree you will not be entitled to any refund for those arrangements. We will not be responsible to you for any loss or expenses you incur (including loss of enjoyment or the costs of alternative arrangements) if you are denied services in these circumstances.
SINGLE TRAVELLERS (SOLO)
We offer several options for single travelers joining our tours. The first is to book onto one of our Solo tours, which are reserved exclusively for solo travelers and have single occupancy of a double room built into the tour price or, if you prefer, you can pay the single room supplement on a regular tours and have a private room reserved for you. Another possibility is to choose our ‘Happy to Share’ option at time of booking where, if we can find you a share partner of the same gender, your Single Supplement will be removed from your booking. We regret that Happy to Share requests cannot be accepted within 75 days of departure. Please note that ‘Happy to Share’ requests received at time of booking may not be confirmed until after your final payment due date. Our Customer Services Team will contact you around 60 days prior to departure to let you know if a share partner has been found. If a share partner is found, the Single Supplement will be removed from your booking and refunded. If a share partner is not found, the Single Supplement will remain on your booking. ARK TOURING CO reserves the right to change or withdraw this arrangement at any time. If the booking originated as a twin share booking and one traveler cancels, the remaining traveler will be charged the applicable single supplement. If the cancellation occurs more than 75 days prior to the tour departure date, the option to select ‘Happy to Share’ will apply if it is available on the selected tour. Our dedicated solo departures are guaranteed a single room with no additional supplement and do not have a ‘Happy to Share’ option.
DURING TRAVEL
Remote Areas
You acknowledge that some tours visit and include overnight accommodation in remote areas which are located considerable distances from hospitals, medical centers or other forms of medical facilities. It may take many hours before you receive any professional medical attention.
You acknowledge that there may be occasions where you require first aid due to an accident, illness, injury or other health condition. You consent to our (and our suppliers’) personnel providing you with first aid on the basis that: (a) they are not qualified medical professionals; (b) we make no warranties and expressly disclaim all warranties regarding the standard of care that may be provided; and (c) to the fullest extent permitted by law we will not be liable (and neither will our personnel) for any care given or omitted. If you are unable to do so yourself, you consent to us seeking and securing any medical treatment that we reasonably consider you require. This may include attendance or evacuation by air. You agree to reimburse us for any costs we incur in seeking medical treatment or evacuation on your behalf.
Refusal of Carriage
We reserve the right to reasonably remove you from a group tour if, in our or our suppliers’ opinion, your condition, conduct, or circumstances pose a material risk to your own safety or wellbeing, or to the safety, comfort, or enjoyment of others. This includes, but is not limited to, situations where you are physically, medically, or mentally unable to participate in the tour as planned, engage in disruptive or antisocial behavior, or are found in possession of prohibited substances or materials. In such cases, you will not be entitled to any refund for unused services, and you will be responsible for any additional costs incurred as a result of your removal.
Seatbelts
Please note that seatbelts are not compulsory by law in all destinations featured in this brochure and therefore the local people largely choose not to wear them. For this reason, local operators may or may not have seatbelts in vehicles or they may be hidden underneath protective seat covers. It is recommended that where seatbelts are available customers must use them and remain seated at all times while the vehicle is moving. As such, customers acknowledge that seatbelts may not be available and therefore travel at their own risk. Customers warrant that to the fullest extent permitted by law they shall not make any claim howsoever arising from injury or damage in respect of, arising from or contributed to by the absence of seatbelts and hereby release ARK TOURING CO from all such claims.
Independent Services
We are not responsible for any additional activities or excursions which are not included in the booked itinerary or which we sell as agent for the principal operator. Any advice or recommendation made by a guide or local representative does not make us responsible for delivery. Leisure activities and services undertaken during free time is at the customer’s own discretion.
Shopping & Other Services
Shopping can be fun and entertaining, especially in local markets. However, ARK TOURING CO, its staff and employees are neither qualified nor permitted to ensure or guarantee the quality or value of any goods purchased or the suitability of any retail outlets visited and the security of using a credit card to purchase such goods. In all cases the purchasing of goods and the use of a credit card for those transactions is entirely at the customer’s own risk and at all times the customer must use their own discretion.
ACCEPTANCE OF RISK
You acknowledge that travel involves personal risks which may be greater than those present in your everyday life. This could be as a result of the adventurous nature of your trip or the visiting of destinations which present geographical, political or cultural risks and dangers. You should consult guidance issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) applicable to the destinations within your itinerary. You acknowledge that your choice to travel is made having had the benefit of DFAT guidance, and you accept any additional personal risks associated with your travel. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim any liability for these risks.
RESPONSIBILITY
Services supplied by independent suppliers
Where a third party over whom we have no direct control (Independent Supplier) is the supplier of travel arrangements that form part of your trip, you acknowledge that our obligations to you are limited to taking reasonable steps to select a reputable Independent Supplier and arranging for them to provide those travel arrangements to you. Independent Suppliers over whom we have no direct control could include but are not limited to airlines, railway and cruise operators, hoteliers, independent transport companies (i.e., vehicles not operated by us), attraction and venue operators and common carriers.
To the fullest extent permitted by law, we will not be responsible to you for any loss, damage, personal injury or delay attributable to the actions or omissions of an Independent Supplier and not caused by our negligence. Any claims you have in this regard must be made against the Independent Supplier.
Services we directly supply
To the extent only that we are the principal supplier to you of travel arrangements or other services which we own, operate or control, then we will provide those travel arrangements and services with reasonable skill and care.
We will only be responsible for our employees in the course of their employment, and for our agents and contractors (where we have direct control over them) if they were carrying out the work we had asked them to do.
We will not be responsible for any loss, damage, claim or expense caused by the acts or omissions of yourself, of any other third party not connected with the provision of the travel arrangements or services, or due to an event of Force Majeure.
General liability limitation
We do not guarantee our schedule. We will not be responsible for any loss or additional expenses you incur for any missed connections/services attributable to delays.
You acknowledge that travel arrangements or services which comply with local laws and regulations will be deemed to have been properly performed. These Booking Conditions do not exclude or limit the application of the Consumer Guarantees other than to the extent they can be excluded or limited, in which case we limit or exclude the Consumer Guarantees to the fullest extent possible. Other than the Consumer Guarantees, we disclaim all warranties and guarantees.
To the fullest extent permitted by law, our maximum liability to you under these Booking Conditions, in tort (including negligence) or at law is limited to arranging for the travel arrangements to be resupplied or payment of the cost of having them resupplied.
PRIVACY
We are collecting your personal information so that we can process your booking. We will also keep you up to date with other ARK TOURING CO ‘offers and product information that may be of interest to you if you have consented to this. You can opt out of receiving information at any time if you choose to do so. Any personal information you provide will be managed in accordance with ARK TOURING CO ‘ privacy policy.
IMAGE RELEASE
When on tour, we may take photographs or make recordings of you and your activities that identify you. We reserve the right to use any images and/or recordings for promotional and marketing purposes. You consent to this use and acknowledge you will not be entitled to any payment or other compensation. If you do not consent to the use of your image or likeness, please advise us as least 21 days prior to the commencement of your tour.
GENERAL
This contract is governed by the laws of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and any legal action arising therefrom shall be litigated only in the appropriate court in that state having jurisdiction in that claim.
If any provision of these Booking Conditions is found to be unenforceable, then to the extent possible it will be severed without affecting the remaining provisions.
You may not transfer your booking or any rights under these Booking Conditions to another person without our prior written consent.
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