We try to ensure that the information contained on our website and in our promotional material is accurate and up to date. However, hotel and supplier information can change and errors can regrettably occur. We reserve the right to amend and/or give notice to any significant changes at the time of booking and recommend that you undertake a level of independent research or speak to us should you wish to clarify any information.
The Terms & Conditions below apply to all bookings made with Soul’s Escapes Ltd. We are registered in England and Wales under company number 9794151. Our registered office address is: Kemp House, 152 – 160 City Rd, London, England, EC1V 2NX
The following terms and conditions (“booking conditions”) form the basis of your contract with Soul’s Escapes Ltd. Please read them carefully as they set out our respective rights and obligations. By asking us to confirm your booking, we are entitled to assume that you have had the opportunity to read and have read these terms and conditions and agree to them.
Except where otherwise stated, these booking conditions only apply to travel arrangements that you book with us in the UK and which we agree to make, provide or perform (as applicable) as part of our contract with you. All references in these booking conditions to “travel experience”, “booking”, “contract”, “package”, “tour” or “arrangements” mean such travel arrangements unless otherwise stated.
In these booking conditions, “you” and “your” means all persons named on the booking (including anyone who is added or substituted at a later date) or any of them, as the context requires and “lead name” means the person who makes the booking. “We”, “us” and “our” means Soul’s Escapes.
We hope your Soul’s Escapes experience will live up to expectation, so it is very important that you choose the package most suited to your requirements. We are available to advise on destinations and hotels, should you need expert recommendation.
Where holiday products or services are booked with Soul’s Escapes as the principal provider, your contract will be with us and our full booking conditions apply. Further conditions may also be applied by our suppliers and together these make the ‘conditions of contract’ and constitute the entire agreement between you and Soul’s Escapes. We will make it clear to you at the point of sale if we are acting as an agent for another travel provider. In such instances, your contract will be with them as the principal provider, although the relevant terms of our own booking conditions will also apply.
Many of our supplier’s terms and conditions can be found on their websites and we can also provide you with a copy at the time of booking, upon request. By proceeding with a booking, you acknowledge that you have read and understood all of the Conditions of Contract and agree to be bound by them.
Soul’s Escapes focuses primarily on travel experiences for adults. Given the nature of our programs, our journeys are designed for adults 21+ only (some hotels are adults-only properties). We regret we won’t be able to confirm online bookings with children or guests younger than 21 years old. Should you be interested in travelling with children, we will be happy to design a tailor-made itinerary based on your needs.
Most of our experiences are not suitable if you have any disability or have reduced mobility (including being confined to a wheelchair). Therefore, in the interest of safety and comfort for all groups as a whole, you must be fit enough to participate. Please note that some of the featured itineraries may involve early starts and long days, with substantial travel between featured sites and destinations. As vehicle and road standards may not be comparable to that of the UK, please keep this in mind when considering any personal health concerns, as well as your general comfort.
Experiences which form part of your package: We are pleased to be able to offer various ‘experiences’ and activities. Some may require you to be in good health. By booking with us you confirm that you and your party are in good health and have no medical history that would make it dangerous for you to participate. You must observe safety instructions at all times. We will only accept responsibility for these experiences and activities in accordance with these booking conditions. Please note that they may be subject to minimum numbers and could be cancelled at short notice. In such circumstance, you will receive a full refund of monies paid for the excursion or activity in question.
Experiences which do not form part of your package: We are also able to offer assistance and reserve certain experiences and activities for you, for which you pay locally. In these circumstances, we only act as a booking agent for the operator or the excursion or activity concerned. Your contract will therefore be with the local operator which provides it and it does not form part of your contracted arrangements with us. The contract will be subject to the local operator’s terms and conditions, some of which may exclude or limit its liability to you, and will be governed by local law and jurisdiction. Soul’s Escapes accepts no liability for any breach of contract or negligent act or omission of any excursion/activity provider.
Virtually all countries have public holidays, religious or otherwise. The festivities may temporarily disrupt your trip and some religious holidays such as Ramadan, which affects many Muslim countries may result in a reduction of facilities and entertainment. Others are somewhat chaotic but great fun to be a part of. We suggest keeping an open mind and taking in all the aspects that make travelling such a life-changing experience.
Many hotels, especially in cities and major resorts, accommodate weddings, conventions and conferences. Also, at certain times of the year, some destinations have an influx of groups such as students, associations or clubs. The hotels we feature are shared with guests from many countries with different cultures and customs. We have no control over the acceptance of bookings at the hotels that we feature. We are therefore unable to accept responsibility for any inconvenience caused by such groups or their activities.
Meals, if included, are based on set menus unless specified otherwise in the text. Trips which include main meals generally commence with dinner on the day of arrival at your hotel and terminate with breakfast on the day of departure.
Special Vegetarian or Vegan diets may be catered for adequately within the constraints of a set menu, but cannot be guaranteed. We strongly recommend that anyone with special requirements contact us prior to booking a trip to verify if we can accommodate you.
Where a special request eg. diet, room location, twin or double bedded room, a particular facility at a hotel, is an important factor in your choice of trip, you must advise us when the booking is made. We are happy to pass your request to the supplier but cannot guarantee that it will be accommodated. The provision of any special request does not constitute a term of your contract with us. Unless and until specifically confirmed, all special requests are subject to availability. For your own protection, you should obtain confirmation in writing that a special request will be granted (where it is possible to give this) where it is important to you.
We cannot accept responsibility for any items you may purchase locally and the quality and value of such cannot be guaranteed. We recommend that you check whether or not any extra charges will be payable for import duty or freight and we are unable to assist with any costs you may incur in this respect.
Some of our journeys do not include transfers from airports/hotels and vice versa due to guests arriving on their own flights. Should you wish to reserve a private transfer (private car with driver) with us, we will be pleased to advise the cost and make the arrangements for you before your departure.
World weather is becoming more erratic and unpredictable and we cannot be held responsible for disruption to your trip due to bad or unusual weather conditions.
In many of the less sophisticated destinations we feature, the water and electricity services struggle to keep up with the increased demands from tourism. Limited rainfall can put further pressure on their provision. Hotels do everything possible to maintain full services. However, occasional power cuts and/or water restrictions may be experienced.
In many hotels, especially hotels in the jungle, “insects” in the rooms (e.g. mosquitoes etc.) are almost inevitable. It should by no means be taken as a sign of dirtiness, as it is simply a fact of life in these destinations. Views from some hotel rooms may be partly obscured by palm trees and other vegetation that can grow very quickly in tropical climates.
Many hotels offer watersports and other sporting activities, in some cases, these may be free of charge. Please note that in the interest of your personal safety, the operators of these activities may require that you demonstrate your competence (for example a swimming test) prior to commencement and reserve the right to refuse participation for any reason if they feel this may compromise your or another guest’s safety.
Most people go on our trip for rest and relaxation, so if in our reasonable opinion or in the opinion of any hotel manager, tour leader or another person in authority, your behaviour is causing or is likely to cause danger, upset or damage to property or is persistently affecting the enjoyment of others, we reserve the right to terminate your trip. Should this happen no refund or compensation would be paid and we will have no further responsibility for your trip arrangements including return travel.
Most of the hotels we use provide an in-room safe. Where not available, valuables should be kept to a minimum and packed in your hand luggage along with any medicines, camera, electrical or battery-operated appliances. Please ensure you are adequately covered by comprehensive insurance. If you lose any personal items whilst on a trip, please obtain a written report from a local representative, or police, to help with any insurance claim upon your return.
If you have cause for complaint whilst on holiday, you must bring it to the attention of your host or the hotel immediately and they will do their best to rectify the situation. It is unreasonable to take no action whilst on holiday, but then to write a letter of complaint upon your return. If you do not raise concerns immediately, this may affect our ability to investigate and take remedial action and it may impact the way your complaint is dealt with.
(b) We will not be responsible for any injury, illness, death, loss (for example loss of enjoyment), damage, expense, cost or other sum or claim of any description whatsoever which results from any of the following: –
– the act(s) and/or omission(s) of the person(s) affected or any member(s) of their party or
– the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable or
– the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable or
– ‘force majeure’ as defined in 4.4
(f) Please note, we cannot accept responsibility for any services which do not form part of our contract. This includes, for example, any additional services or facilities which your hotel or any other supplier agrees to provide for you where the services or facilities are not advertised by us and we have not agreed to arrange them as part of our contract and any excursion you purchase in resort. In addition, regardless of any wording used by us on our website, in any advertising material or elsewhere, we only promise to use reasonable skill and care as set out above and we do not have any greater or different liability to you.
(h) Our suppliers (such as airlines, accommodation or transport providers) have their own booking conditions or conditions of carriage, and these conditions are binding between you and the supplier. Some of these conditions may limit or remove the relevant transport provider’s or other supplier’s liability to you.
(j) Operational decisions may be taken by air carriers and airports resulting in delays, diversions, overbookings, downgrades or rescheduling. We have no control over such decisions, and are therefore unable to accept responsibility for them. Where, as a result of force majeure we are obliged to change or end your holiday after departure, but before the end of your holiday, we will not pay compensation or reimburse you for expenses incurred. You should have adequate travel insurance for your holiday and claim via your insurance company for any loss or damage to luggage and/or personal possessions.
In the event that any claim is made directly with us, our liability to pay compensation and/or the amount of compensation will be limited in accordance with these terms and conditions.
If you cut short your trip and return home early in circumstances where you have no reasonable cause for complaint about the standard of accommodation and services provided, we will not offer you any refund for the remainder of your holiday not completed, or assist with any associated costs you may incur. Depending on the circumstances, your travel insurance may offer cover for curtailment and we suggest that any claim is made directly with them.
When you or your Travel Agent wish to confirm a booking you must pay a deposit of 30% of the trip cost. The deposit will only be refundable as set out in these booking conditions. Please note some hotels have certain booking and cancellation conditions and these may affect any cancellation charges – please refer to 3.3 – Cancelling your holiday. When you make a booking, the lead name confirms that you understand and have accepted these booking conditions and our Important Trip Information which forms our booking conditions. We reserve the right in our absolute discretion to refuse to accept any booking without necessarily specifying a reason.
We accept various methods of payment, however, please note that if you choose to pay by PayPal, there will be an extra charge. You can of course opt for an alternative method of payment ie: bank wire, credit card or debit card.
We will arrange to provide you with the various services which form part of the trip you book with us. Before your booking is confirmed and a contract comes into existence, we reserve the right to increase or decrease, and correct errors in advertised prices and to change any of the information. Changes will be made known to you at the time of booking.
A booking is not accepted until we issue an invoice. The date shown on the invoice, which will be sent to you or your Travel Agent is the date of the booking. It is important to check the details on the invoice when you get it. If any details appear to be incorrect or incomplete, please contact us or your Travel Agent immediately as it may not be possible to make changes later. We regret we cannot accept any liability if we are not notified of any inaccuracy (for which we are responsible) in any document within 5 days of our sending it out. 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.
All rates advertised on our website are per person based on 2 people sharing a room.
Rates for single travellers are upon request.
We do not provide accommodation in triple/quad rooms.
Rates are available in USD, GBP and EUR and are subject to currency exchange rates.
After your booking is taken and a deposit received, a confirmation invoice will be sent to you detailing the total cost due. Full payment must be received not less than 60 days before departure. If we or your travel agent have not received full payment at least 60 days before departure, we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled by you and forfeit your deposit by way of cancellation charges. If we do not cancel straight away because you have promised to make payment, you must pay the cancellation charges shown in 3.3 depending on the date we reasonably treat your booking as cancelled. If you make a holiday booking within 60 days of your departure date, then you must pay the full cost of the holiday at the booking stage.
Whilst we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of the pricing information provided, regrettably errors may occasionally occur. When we become aware of any such error, we will endeavour to notify you at the time of booking (if we are then aware of the mistake), within 7 days of the time of booking or as soon as reasonably possible. If a booking is already in place, you will have the choice to continue with the chosen itinerary at the corrected price or amend to a different holiday. We reserve the right to cancel the booking if you do not wish to accept the price that applies to your holiday or any quoted alternatives.
As it is important that you have a travel insurance policy that is adequate and suitable for your particular needs, we’ve teamed up with one of the best insurance providers to offer you a travel policy that is available to all our customers, irrespective of their nationality. Click HERE for a personalized quote.
If you fail to take out insurance and have to cancel your booking, you will be charged in accordance with our normal terms and conditions – see 3.3 – Cancelling your holiday. Furthermore, if you require medical/any other form of assistance whilst on holiday you will not be covered and you, in turn, may incur significant costs. Please read your policy details carefully and take them with you on holiday.
After booking, you will receive an itinerary with important information relevant to your trip. We strongly recommend that you check the details carefully and read all of the information provided.
If you want to change any part of your travel arrangements after the invoice has been issued, we will do our best to make the change, but it may not be possible. Any request for changes must be made in writing by the person who made the original booking, or his or her travel agent. If it is possible to make the change, it will be subject to an administration charge of £50 per booking, and payment of any further costs incurred as a result of the change.
If any person named on a booking is prevented from travelling as a result of illness, the death of a close relative, jury service or other significant reason, we will agree to that person’s booking being transferred to another person (introduced by you) who satisfies all the conditions applicable to the package, subject to both persons accepting liability for full payment of the trip cost and all costs and charges incurred by us and/or incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers in order to make the transfer. We must be given at least 15 days’ notice of the transfer request. An administration charge will be made of £50 per person.
If you or anyone on your booking decides to cancel the trip, the lead name must notify us of the decision as soon as possible. Any notification by telephone must also be confirmed by e-mail within 24-hours by the lead name. Cancellation will take effect from the day we are notified provided that written confirmation is received by us within 24-hours of the original notification.
A cancellation invoice will be sent to you or your travel agent within 7 days, if you do not receive this please contact us immediately in order to prevent an increase in charges.
The following scale of charges will be payable depending on when the notification of cancellation is received. Insurance premiums and amendment charges are not refundable in the event of cancellation. References to the deposit include all sums paid or payable at the time of booking.
Cancellation charge per person cancelling:
Prior to 61 days: loss of deposit (30% of total trip cost)
60 – 45 days: 50% of total trip cost
44 – 33 days: 75% of total trip cost
32 – 15 days: 90% of total trip cost
14 days or less: 100% of total trip cost
NB: In some instances, hotels may charge a higher cancellation fee and you may therefore be charged a higher amount than detailed above. Amendment and cancellation charges for bookings containing cruising elements will be applied in line with the cruise provider’s own booking conditions. We would strongly recommend that you take out appropriate travel insurance which provides cover against loss of deposit or cancellation fees.
We rigorously check the information about accommodation, resorts, itineraries etc., to ensure it is correct to the best of our knowledge. Advertised web copy descriptions and facilities may change before and after you book. Please bear in mind that hoteliers, restaurateurs etc., may wish to maintain or improve their facilities, or even take a break themselves. Tour, excursion, cruise itineraries may change as a result of local conditions. Circumstances such as these, or weather conditions, time of year or other situations beyond our control etc., may cause some of the amenities we have described to be unavailable or different from those advertised. When we are told of any significant or long term changes we will always endeavour to advise you prior to your departure.
Many hotels and resorts are continuing to develop, sometimes rapidly and intensively and often with little or no advance warning. Whilst we have no control over such work, as a responsible travel company, it is important to us that you are aware of any significant building/refurbishment work that may be going on during your stay. General refurbishment at hotels is necessary to maintain standards but if we are informed of such work where this can reasonably be expected to have an effect on your holiday, we will endeavour to notify you of it as soon as possible, however near to your departure this may be.
We hope and expect to be able to provide you with all the services we have confirmed to you at the time of booking.
We plan arrangements a long time in advance of your holiday using independent suppliers such as hotels, restaurants etc., over whom we have no direct control. On occasions changes do have to be made, and we reserve the right to make these.
Similarly, we do our best to avoid cancelling trips but we must reserve the right to do so. However, we promise we will only cancel your confirmed booking after you have made full payment where we are forced to do so as a result of ‘force majeure’ as defined below or lack of minimum numbers. Please note, some of our holidays require a minimum number of participants to enable us to operate them. If the minimum number of bookings required for a particular trip has not been received, we are entitled to cancel it. We will notify you or your travel agent of cancellation for this reason no later than 40 days prior to departure.
If we have to make a significant change or cancel, we will tell you as soon as possible. If there is time to do so before departure, we will offer you the choice of the following options:-
1(a) (for significant changes) accepting the changed arrangements; or
2(b) purchasing an alternative trip from us, of a similar standard to that originally booked if available. If this trip is in fact cheaper than the original one, we will refund the price difference. If you do not wish to accept the trip we specifically offer you, you may choose any other available trip featured on our website. You must pay the applicable price of any such trip. This will mean paying more if it is more expensive or receiving a refund if it is cheaper; or
3(c) cancelling or accepting the cancellation in which case you will receive a full and quick refund of all monies you have paid to us.
Except where otherwise expressly stated in these booking conditions, we regret we cannot accept liability or pay any compensation where the performance or prompt performance of our obligations under our contract with you is prevented or affected by or you otherwise suffer any damage, loss or expense of any nature as a result of “force majeure”. In these booking conditions, “force majeure” means any event or circumstances which we or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. Such events may include, whether actual or threatened, war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, adverse weather conditions, epidemics, fire and other situations which are outside our control.
We do not control the day to day management of your accommodation, and in exceptional cases, it is possible that we may be advised that the reserved accommodation has been overbooked or your accommodation may have to be changed for other reasons. If this happens before your departure or on arrival in the resort we will endeavour to provide accommodation of at least the same standard in the same area. If only accommodation of a lower standard is available we will refund the difference between the accommodation booked and that available and will pay up to £30 per person for any inconvenience.
Very rarely, we may be forced by “force majeure” (see 4.4) to change or terminate your holiday after departure but before the scheduled end of your time away. This is extremely unlikely but if this situation does occur, we regret we will be unable to make any refunds (unless we obtain any refunds from our suppliers), pay you any compensation or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result. Please ensure you have adequate travel insurance in place to cover any such eventuality.
Trip description on relevant pages will indicate whether a particular trip is subject to a minimum number of participants for its operation. Please contact us at the time of booking should you require details regarding the number of people on your tour. We will advise you at least 40 days before departure if minimum numbers have not been reached and as a direct result your tour has to be cancelled.
You will then have the choice of booking an alternative date or trip with us, or having a refund of monies paid. No compensation will be payable and we are unable to offer refunds of any associated costs ie visas etc.
Whilst every effort is made to operate a tour as advertised, on occasion it may be necessary to make changes to the accommodation, the routing or order of an itinerary. Unless the change significantly alters the holiday, compensation will not be payable for minor alterations to the itinerary or nightly accommodation.
Your feedback is really important to us. At the end of your trip, you may be given a questionnaire to fill in as we would like to know if you have had a great time or if you think the hotel or service has not been up to scratch.
If a problem remains unresolved during your trip, you should make a complaint by email to Soul’s Escapes within 28 days of the completion of the holiday. Please remember to quote your holiday booking number and daytime telephone number. We will reply to you within 28 days of receipt of your letter.
In order to process your booking or respond to an enquiry, we need to collect personal data from you. Depending on what’s required, the personal data we collect may include names and contact details, credit/ debit card or other payment information and special requirements such as those relating to any disability or medical condition which may affect travel arrangements and any dietary restrictions which may disclose your religious beliefs (“sensitive personal data”). All references in this privacy policy to personal data include sensitive personal data unless otherwise stated. The person who makes the booking is responsible for ensuring that other members of your party are aware of our booking conditions and this privacy policy and that they consent to your acting on their behalf in your dealings with us.
In making your booking, you consent to personal data being passed on to the relevant suppliers and other third parties. We take appropriate technical and organisational measures which are intended to prevent unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data and accidental loss or destruction of, or damage to, personal data.
By making a booking with us, you agree to allow your insurers, their agents and medical staff to disclose relevant information to us in circumstances where we may need to act in your interests or in the interests of everyone in any group with whom you are travelling.
Most people go on holiday to spend time in the sunshine and although adverse weather conditions can be very frustrating, Soul’s Escapes cannot assume any responsibility nor accept liability to make refunds or pay compensation for alternative arrangements, damage to property or curtailed holidays as a result of such unexpected weather conditions.
We take the safety and security of our clients extremely seriously.
If the Foreign Office advises that people should not visit a particular country, then we would act on this and reserve the right to cancel your holiday. However, we are sure you appreciate from press and television coverage that the political, economic and social conditions in many of the countries we feature in this brochure are not as stable as we are used to in Europe. Sadly crimes against both people and their property are a fact of life the world over, and when in a foreign country it is very important to be extra vigilant and avoid drawing attention to yourself by wearing expensive jewellery, carrying expensive camera equipment etc. Travellers have the same responsibility for their personal safety and that of their possessions, as they do at home. Soul’s Escapes operate to many parts of the world, some of which do not conform to European health and safety standards. We request that all hotels comply with the local regulations applicable in their country for health and safety but we cannot guarantee that these meet European standards and therefore urge that you undertake reasonable precautions to protect yourself whilst on holiday.
To make the most of your trip abroad, check out the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website at www.fco.gov.uk/travel.
Packed with essential travel advice and tips, this website offers a wealth of country-specific information that only the FCO can provide.
Health facilities, hygiene and disease risk vary worldwide. You should take health advice about your specific needs as early as possible and ensure that vaccinations or preventative measures such as malaria tablets are taken early enough (which may be a month or more prior to departure) to be fully effective by the date of travel. It is your responsibility to ensure you are aware of all recommended and required vaccination and health precautions in good time before departure. Details are available from your GP surgery and from the National Travel Health Network and Centre www.nathnac.org
Please remember that every traveller will need a valid passport to travel. We are unable to advise on individual nationalities and visa requirements, therefore we recommend that you check with the relevant embassy what are the latest rules for your nationality.
As many countries require passport expiry dates to fall a considerable time beyond the dates of travel, we would recommend that all passports are valid for a minimum of 6 months after your scheduled return.
Visa information can change at short notice, so check your relevant embassy for the latest update.
It is your responsibility to ensure you are in possession of all necessary travel and health documents before departure. All costs incurred in obtaining such documentation must be paid by you. We regret we cannot accept any liability if you are refused entry onto any transport or into any country due to failure on your part to carry all required documentation. If failure to have any necessary travel or other documents results in fines, surcharges or other financial penalty or expenses being imposed on or incurred by us, you will be responsible for reimbursing us accordingly.
