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Terms & Conditions for The Society of International Railway Travelers' tours
How to Book: Call, e-mail or click here to to reserve your spot. Mail or fax your signed and completed booking form and deposit within 7 days of reservation. Phone 800-478-4881 or 502-454-0277; e-mail: tourdesk@irtsociety.com; fax: 502-458-2250.
Deposit: Deposits for most tours can be made by check, Mastercard, Visa, American Express or Discover. (Some European tours may only accept Mastercard and Visa; please inquire.) Fully complete and sign the credit card section on the booking form for credit card deposit.
Final payment: Final payment is due 90 days prior to departure by check. Tour prices are quoted in cash-discounted rates; final payment made by credit card is therefore subject to a 3-4% surcharge (rate depends on credit card type) and requires signed credit card form, and copies of credit card (front and back).
Cancellations: Notice must be received by IRT in writing. Cancellation penalties vary:
1. Deposits for Golden Eagle, Shangri-La Express, Deccan Odyssey and Danube Express are nonrefundable; within 90 days of tour, all tour costs and extra services are non-refundable.
2. Tours on the VSOE, E&O, Royal Scotsman, and in Peru are subject to the following cancellation penalties: if cancelled 56 days or more prior to departure: 15% of total tour cost; if cancelled 55-21 days prior to departure: 30% of tour cost; if cancelled 21-3 days prior to departure: 70% of tour cost; if cancelled within 2 days of departure or no show: 100% of tour cost. Stricter cancellation policies for VSOE Paris-Istanbul journey; please inquire.
3. Rovos Rail Cape to Dar: Cancellations more than 12 weeks prior to departure:10% of total tour price; if cancelled 8-12 weeks prior to departure: 25% of total tour price; if cancelled 4-8 weeks prior to departure: 50% of total tour price; within four weeks of departure/no shows: 100% cancellation fee. Payments for Cape to Cairo are in 25% increments and are all nonrefundable.
4. Cancellation fees for tours not listed here can be requested via e-mail. A printed version of your tour’s cancellation policy, if not listed here, will be mailed, faxed or e-mailed upon request. Please note that every effort has been made to ensure accuracy throughout our brochure and website. IRT reserves the right to correct errors and omissions. All programs are subject to any revised terms and conditions of the suppliers.
All tours: No refunds will be made in the event of “no-shows” or cancellations the day of tour. No refund will be given for unused portions of the tour. No refund for airline tickets once issued or for extra services once confirmed and paid.
Passport/visas: A passport valid for six months after your return is required for most trips. Some destinations require visas. If so, we will send instructions and forms. Passengers must ensure that they obtain all the necessary documentation and visas prior to departure and allow adequate time to do so. The Society of International Railway Travelers (IRT) assumes no responsibility for passengers refused entry into a country for incorrect documentation. Any repatriation charges will be the responsibility of the passenger. It is your responsibility to check your visas to ensure that they have been issued properly with your correct name and entry/exit dates. IRT takes no responsibility for a country’s refusal to admit passengers for any reason.
Insurance: We strongly recommend tour insurance to protect your travel investment. Some suppliers require full cancellation and/or evacuation insurance as soon as you book. We are required to document this shortly after your booking or it is subject to cancellation. Full cancellation and medical/evacuation insurance is required on the Danube Express, Pride of Africa and all steam journeys supplied by Railway Touring Co.; medical/evacuation coverage is required for journeys on the Golden Eagle, Shangri-La Express and Deccan Odyssey. After you book a trip, we will send a brochure about Travelex tour insurance. (Click here for a quote or to purchase Travelex Insurance.) We recommend purchasing full coverage in order to cover your pre-existing conditions. To get this coverage, you must cover your entire trip within 21 days of deposit. URGENT: It is your responsibility to notify your insurance company to increase your coverage if your trip cost or dates change in order to maintain this coverage.
Minimum Participants: Most tours must have a minimum number of passengers. If the number of passengers drops below the minimum number required, suppliers reserve the right to increase the cost of the tour or to postpone the tour until a future date, usually the latter. Air tickets should be fully refundable and/or changeable if you book them before we notify you the trip is a “go.” IRT cannot take responsibility for changes or cancellations in air ticketing for any reason.
Prices: While every effort is made to adhere to published prices, IRT and/or its suppliers reserve the right to adjust prices in the event of significant changes to currency rates and /or fuel prices at any time. For trips priced in foreign currency, the exact tour cost will depend upon the value of the U.S. dollar at time of final payment.
Price does not include: Airfare; passport/visa fees; laundry; phone calls; meals and alcoholic beverages not specifically listed; optional excursions; services other than those specifically listed; accident, sickness, trip cancellation/interruption and/or baggage insurance; and excess baggage charges. Price does not always include gratuities. Please inquire.
Extra charges/fees: In order to provide extraordinary personal service, we require requests for extra services be made in writing on our extra services form. No charge to order a pre- or post-tour night or transfers at the hotel(s) used by our tour if ordered 120 days or more prior to departure. Within 120 days, a fee of $30 per extra service will be charged. Non-tour hotel reservations and point-to-point tickets are subject to a $30 fee per reservation. An extensive, individualized itinerary requires a $600 nonrefundable fee. Bookings within 90 days of departure may be subject to a $100 late-booking fee and final payment in full. Air search and ticketing is $100 per person; mileage ticketing is $200 per ticket. After extra services are confirmed, we understand changes in your travel plans may occur. We will make the first amendment at no charge (unless charged by the supplier). All subsequent amendments to your land or air program will accrue a charge of $75 per amendment plus any fees charged by suppliers. Changes within 90 days of departure are subject to additional fees; all extra services after final payment are nonrefundable or changeable. Documents shipped outside the continental U.S. are subject to additional charges.
Baggage: Baggage is taken at owner's risk throughout the trip. Baggage insurance is strongly recommended (included in Travelex policy). Please note that baggage limitations vary from airline to airline. Luggage handling on our trips is limited to one larger bag and one carry-on. Check with your airline for weight and size limitations. Private transfers and baggage handling to/from the airport (when not included) can be arranged.
Photography: IRT reserves the right to take photographs or videos during any tour or part thereof, and use the resulting image for publication, including promotional purposes in any of our publications or website. By booking a tour with IRT, participants agree to allow their image to be used for such purposes; participants who prefer that their image not be used must inform our office, in writing, upon booking.
Medical: You must report in writing at the time of booking any physical or mental condition that may require special attention. All Society trips require walking on the trains/ships and during tours. You must let us know, for example, if you have asthma, use a cane or wheelchair. This allows us to plan for your needs if it is possible to do so. On some tours, it will not be possible. Most rail programs, many of them on antique trains with narrow corridors, are not wheelchair-accessible; some tours are not suitable for people with certain heart or lung conditions because of altitude. Please inquire. We will assist in finding a holiday suitable to your situation. Passengers should check with their doctors before departure as to which inoculations are considered necessary or recommended for your destination. Flexibility, a sense of humor and the ability to walk at least a mile a day unassisted will be essential. The tour leader, train or cruise manager has the right to disqualify any participant at any time during the tour if he/she feels the participant is physically incapable and/or if a participant’s continued participation will jeopardize the safety or enjoyment of either the individual involved or the other passengers or staff. There will be no refund given under these circumstances and return travel home will be at the participant’s expense. If your health changes after booking, and you do not inform us, or if you were not truthful about your fitness for a tour, you are subject to removal from the tour on your own arrangements. IRT will not accept your booking again. No refunds will be given under these circumstances.
Responsibility: The Society of International Railway Travelers (IRT) and Hardy Publishing Co., Inc. (HPC), parent company of The Society of International Railway Travelers, act only as agents for the passenger with respect to travel services. We choose fine suppliers and ground operators; however, IRT and HPC do not own or operate any of the services or accommodations for your trip. As a result, IRT and HPC are not responsible for any negligent or willful act or failure to act of any such supplier of any other third party over whom IRT and HPC has no control. Arrangements for the tours are made many months in advance and occasionally changes have to be made. We can assume no responsibility nor liability in whole or in part for any delays, delayed or changed departure or arrival, missed carrier connections, loss, damage, weather, strikes, acts of God, circumstances beyond our control, force majeure, war, terrorism, quarantine, criminal activity, expense, accident, sickness, injury or death to person or property, or mechanical defect, failure, or negligence of any nature howsoever caused in connection with any accommodations, restaurant, transportation or other services, for any substitution of hotels or of common carrier equipment beyond our control, with or without notice, or for any additional expenses occasioned thereby. If due to weather, flight schedules or other uncontrollable factors, you are required to spend an additional night, you will be responsible for your own hotel, transfers and meal costs. IRT highly recommends arriving into the first city one day before the tour begins in order to allow for any air delays. The trains will depart without you. IRT also recommends not arranging nonrefundable air until 60 days before departure. Further, double-check your tour arrival/departure date if doing your own ticketing. No refund will be made for any unused portion of the tour due to these causes or voluntary cancellations. Baggage is at the owner's risk entirely. No revisions of the printed itinerary or the “included” items are anticipated; however, IRT and HPC reserve the right to make changes at any time and for any reason, with or without notice, and IRT and HPC shall not be liable for any loss whatsoever to passengers by reason of such cancellation, substitution or changes. All fares as well as ship and train schedules, port calls, hours of arrival and departure, special programs, tour leader, and guest lecture series (if applicable), are subject to change without prior notice. IRT and HPC shall not be required to refund any portion of the fare or make any other compensation under these circumstances. IRT and HPC cannot be responsible for penalties assessed by air carriers that may result due to operational and/or itinerary changes, regardless if the passenger and/or IRT and HPC make the flight arrangements. Any additional expenses resulting from the above will be paid by the individual passenger. IRT and HPC reserve the right to substitute a similar category/hotel for those listed in this brochure. IRT and HPC reserve the right to increase the tour price in the event of cost increases due to changes in airfares or train fares, changes in the itinerary, currency fluctuations, fuel surcharges or unforeseen reduction of number of participants, and such increases are to be paid to IRT and HPC by the tour participant upon notice to the tour participant of such increases. When issued, the air tickets shall constitute the sole contract between the airline concerned and the purchaser of these tours and/or passenger. Please note that advertised airfares can change before ticketing. The airlines and other transportation companies concerned are not to be held responsible for any act, omission, or events during the time passengers are not on board their conveyances. By forwarding of deposit or final payment by either check or credit card, the passenger certifies that he/she does not have any mental, physical or other condition of disability that would create a hazard for him/herself or other passengers and accepts the terms of this contract. IRT and HPC and our suppliers reserve the right to decline to accept or retain any person as a tour member should such a person’s health, mental condition, physical infirmity or attitude jeopardize the operation of the tour or the rights, welfare or enjoyment of other participants, tour guides, IRT staff or train/cruise staff.
Behavior: Passengers are expected to behave courteously and graciously toward IRT staff, other passengers, train staff and any person with whom we have contact during our tour. Courtesy includes dressing appropriately throughout the tour and being on time for outings. If a passenger behaves, in the opinion of the tour leader or train manager, in a way likely to disrupt the enjoyment or endanger the safety of other passengers, the tour leader or train manager reserves the right to terminate said passenger’s holiday arrangements, without notice. The passenger will have to make his own arrangements to return home at his own expense. No refunds for the untraveled portion of the tour will be entertained. The right is retained to refuse any application for reservation(s), cancel any reservation(s) or decline to accept or retain any person as a member of the tour group at any time.
Acceptance of terms: Payment (deposit or final) by check or credit card indicates that participants have read and accepted all stated IRT and HPC terms and conditions, including all cancellation penalties and fees, and requirement for tour cancellation insurance on certain tours.
Optional Activities that may be Dangerous: Optional activities furnished by independent suppliers will be available on some itineraries. Some of these activities carry with them the inherent risk of serious personal injury. These activities include, but are not necessarily limited to: walking safaris; horseback/elephant back/camel safaris; canoe/boat trips, white-water rafting and river cruises; locomotive foot-plate rides, cab rides or photo run-bys; helicopter rides; hot-air balloon rides; scuba diving; shark diving. You should be aware that your safety cannot be guaranteed. Should you elect to participate in such activities while you are on tour, you are of course, free to do so. However, such participation will be at your own risk; IRT and HPC assume no responsibility for your safety.
Complaints: IRT’s mission is to offer the very best in rail travel around the globe. However, if you have a complaint during your journey, please tell your tour manager right away. Should the problem remain unresolved, please write to the Society of IRT at 2010 Edgeland Ave., #100, Louisville, KY 40204. We cannot accept liability for any claims not made to us in writing within two months of completion of your journey. We also cannot tender any refunds for any reason outside the terms set forth above. All claims will be settled by arbitration in Louisville, Kentucky.
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