Please take time to read these terms and conditions – it is important for both of us that you understand our contractual relationship. Your contract is with Ecospheres AB, a Swedish registered company with organizational number 556816-1029 and address; Havsvägen 20, 373 31 Nättraby Sweden. A binding contract is entered into when you have accepted a booking proposal, by email or phone.
By making a booking, the first named person on the booking agrees on behalf of all persons detailed on the booking that:
1. He/she has read these Booking Conditions and has the authority to and does agree to be bound by them;
2. He/she consents to our use of information personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy and is authorized on behalf of all persons named on the booking to disclose their personal details to us, including where applicable, special categories of data (such as information on health conditions or disabilities and dietary requirements);
3. He/she is over 18 years of age and where placing an order for services with age restrictions declares that he/she and all members of the party are of the appropriate age to purchase those services;
4. He/she accepts financial responsibility for payment of the booking on behalf of all persons detailed on the booking.
It is essential that you check the travel details on the confirmation invoice and inform us immediately of any errors. Your booking is also subject to the conditions of carriage of your chosen airline.
Trips booked through Ecospheres AB which is registered in Sweden with organisational number; 556816-1029 and adhere to the terms & conditions of The Swedish jurisdiction and The Association of Swedish Travel Agents.
1. Booking
The order can be booked via ecospheresaafrica.com, phone or email.
2. Deposit & payments
Every travel itinerary is customized, therefor different conditions may apply depending on the destination of the booking. The deposit must normally be paid within 7 days of confirmation. Final payment of the trip will be made on the same invoice 60 days prior to departure depending on destination, unless otherwise stated. If the booking is being made later than 60 days before departure, the full price of the trip will be paid on invoice within 5 days. The deposit is 25% of the total cost. In some cases, the hotel wishes a partial payment to secure the hotel booking. If that is the case, the deposit may be higher. When the deposit has arrived to us, the booking is legally binding for both parties. If any balance remains unpaid, travel documentation will not be issued and we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled and apply the cancellation charge set out below. Ecospheres reserves the right to adjust the price of the booking. This must be done no later than 20 days prior to agreed departure date. Increase in price may be due to increased transportation costs, security charges, government imposed increases and other costs imposed by third parties that we cannot possibly foresee. The price does not include cancellation insurance.
Important: Please note that the payment of your deposit signifies acceptance of our Terms & Conditions.
Payments can be made via bank transfer and major credit cards. Please note that if you fail to pay on time, your travel arrangements may be cancelled.
3. Travel insurance
An adequate insurance is essential. It is a condition of booking that the sole responsibility lies with you to ensure that you have the correct comprehensive travel and medical insurance to cover yourself, as well as any dependents and traveling companions for the duration of your tour. This insurance should include coverage in respect of, but not limited to, the following eventualities: cancellation or curtailment of the trip, emergency evacuation expenses, medical expenses, repatriation expenses, damage or loss of personal baggage, money and goods. Ecospheres AB will take no responsibility for any costs for losses incurred or suffered by you or your dependents or traveling companions, with regards to, but not limited to, any of the above mentioned eventualities. You will be charged directly by the relevant service providers for any emergency services you may require, and may find yourself in a position unable to access such services should you not be carrying the relevant insurance coverage.
4. Amendment of a confirmed booking
We will do our best to assist you in altering your arrangements after booking but cannot guarantee this will be possible. Any alteration of a trip must be made in writing (email). If alterations can be made you will be responsible for all extra charges and costs and we reserve the right to charge a 250 USD administration fee per person plus any applicable charges levied by our suppliers. Change of hotel, standard of room, departure date or destination will be treated as a new booking.
Please note that confirmed flights can NOT be canceled without cancellation insurance and medical certificate or similar (please consult your insurance company), as the airlines generally do not allow a refund of confirmed tickets. However, you can often cancel or change your ticket, but this is entirely up to the airline.
5. Cancellation of travel arrangements
The traveler is entitled to cancel the trip. The organizer reserves the right to request reimbursement from the traveler for the costs incurred by the organizer as a result of the cancellation. Ecospheres AB applies cancellation costs incurred by the subcontractor in connection with the cancellation. The deposit is non-refundable.
All cancellations must be made in writing by the person who made the booking and are effective on the day we receive it. The cancellation should be sent to info@ecospheresafrica.com. Cancellation made after the departure of the trip is not accepted. In case of cancellation, all travel documents must be returned immediately to Ecospheres AB. Refunds will only be made when the travel documents have been returned.
Please note that each hotel may have different cancellation policies and that these are applicable but in general the below conditions apply:
More than 60 days prior to departure – 25% deposit is lost
60-22 days prior to departure – 60%
21-15 days prior to departure – 80%
Less than 15 days prior to departure – 100%
If you have not paid the full amount you must pay the cancellation charges within 7 days of notification of the cancellation.
Your decision not to participate on the trip due to department warnings or advisories, fear of travel, or the like will be deemed a cancellation. If a flight or other delay for any reason prevents you from joining the trip on the start date, you will be considered a no-show, and we cannot provide a full or partial refund, however we will do our best to hold credit toward a future trip or may join the trip late if you wish.
6. Non- utilized booking
No refund will be made for non-utilized arrangements. This applies, for example, if the traveler decides to check out from the hotel earlier than planned.
7. Travel Documents
Hotel vouchers and other travel documents will be sent together with the program about 10 days before departure.
8. Traveler responsibility during the trip
The reader is responsible for understanding the current travel conditions prior to the purchase and must also agree to:
- Verify that the confirmation corresponds to the order.
- Check the travel documents as soon as they arrive. Any errors must be reported to us immediately for further action.
- Arrive on time for pre-booked hotels and round trips.
- Vaccinations. The traveler is responsible for contacting a vaccination center for exact recommendations during the trip.
- Passport and Visa is the responsibility of the traveler. Valid Passports are required at all destinations and must have a minimum of 5 consecutive, blank pages and be valid 6 months after the completion of the journey. The traveler is responsible for the visa application and you must contact the appropriate consular office for entry requirements to the countries that you are traveling to.
- Some countries may require birth certificates for children under 18 years old.
- Some countries may require proof of vaccinations.
- Travel Insurance. The traveler is responsible for his/her own insurance cover and type of insurance. The traveler is also responsible for ensuring that the insurance covers all activities that are organized during the trip, eg. horse back riding, diving, safari and more. These activities are listed for each trip. Documents that reinforce travel insurance must be carried on during trip, even in the wilderness.
- It is the responsibility of the traveler to behave in a manner that does not cause danger, damage to property, embarrassment,
harassment, or is persistently affecting the enjoyment of others,You are also responsible for respecting the authority of the tour leader. - You agree to indemnify and hold us harmless from and against any costs,
damages, losses, or liabilities arising out of your or your companions’ actions.
9. General Health and Safety Issues
When you make a booking with Ecospheres AB, you acknowledge that there is an element of risk in any adventure or activity in the outdoors. These risks include the risk of injury or illness in remote places without medical facilities including wild animals and the risk of accidents during travel. You must be fit enough to undertake the vacation and you must exercise reasonable care for your own safety and the safety of other members of your party.
When traveling to Africa and other developing countries the standard of hygien in hotels and camps are in general very high. Water is bottled and safe to drink as well as salads, fruits and desserts. Even so, you must also understand that you may be exposed to bacteria that you are not used to. The health and safety standards will not be under the same regulations as in Europe or the USA. For example staircases may lack railing or pools fences, there may be black outs due to power cuts and you may not be able to communicate at all times. You will still be very well taken care of, we just wanted you to know and understand this. It could also be important to notify us of any illnesses you may have if you think this may be a risk during your journey.
9.1 Special needs
Travelers needing special assistance for their personal needs must notify Ecospheres africa at the time of the booking for a determination of what assistance we can reasonably provide. In cases where we cannot accommodate a traveler’s special needs, persons requiring this assistance must be accompanied by a companion who will be responsible for independently providing the needed assistance. We regret that we cannot provide special individual assistance to travelers with special needs. In no instance will we or our Suppliers physically lift or assist participants on to or off transportation vehicles.
10. Luggage
If you trip includes traveling on smaller or light aircraft, the weight allowance is normally 15 kilos or 33 lbs per person in soft bags. Sometimes you can buy more weight depending on availability. We will notify you of the exact weight allowance when you are making the booking.
11. Force Major
Ecospheres can not be held responsible for situations such as strikes, storms, extreme rain, political instability or other force major situations we cannot influence. We will help you find a suitable solution but cannot take any financial responsibility with regard to changed flight times, airlines, transportations or overnight stays excluding your original travel program. Missed excursions, hotel bookings or transports are not refundable.
12. Organizer (Ecospheres AB) changes/cancellation of travel
In cases where Ecospheres AB with the site ecospheresafrica.com for any reasons must make changes regarding – for example – accommodation, transport or activity, Ecospheres AB must offer equivalent alternatives or other options as well as compensation for the difference.
In cases where Ecospheres AB with the site ecospheresafrica.com has to cancel a trip due to an obstacle beyond the organizer’s control where the organizer could not reasonably be expected to have counted upon when the agreement was concluded, and the consequences of which it could not reasonably have avoided or overcome, the organizer is not liable for damages.
Ecospheres Africa take no responsible for any typographical errors on the Ecospheres africa website.
13. Failure/complaint during the trip
If displeasure occurs during the journey, it is the traveler’s responsibility to contact the organizer immediately so that the organizer is given the opportunity to correct the error in place. In case of Complaint: If the traveler is not satisfied with his accommodation or anything else agreed in accordance with the travel agreement and the situation can not be resolved between Ecospheres AB and the traveler while at the destination, the traveler must promptly claim compensation after his/her return home (maximum 2 months) as soon as possible. It is important to save detailed information about people you have been involved with at the destination regarding this issue. It is also important to save receipt for any additional costs.
Ecospheres are agents for the hotels and other organizations where agreements have been entered.
We are not responsible for any defects that may be due to negligence on the part of the traveler, third person or circumstance that we could not predict, avoid or ward by force major.
14. Wishes during the trip
Please note that Ecospheres can not guarantee specific requests from the traveler such as location of rooms in the hotel as well as early check-in/late check-out at the hotel etcetera. A request is nothing that can be confirmed before departure but we will, of course, do everything we can to offer the best trip possible.
