1.    Why should I read this page?

This is very important.  This Charter along with the Important Tour Information forms the basis of a legally binding contract between you (as the person making the booking), anyone else in your party and us.

When you make this booking as the lead name you confirm that you have authority to accept and do accept on behalf of your party, the terms of these booking conditions.

The contract is made subject to the terms of these booking conditions which are governed by the law of Northern Ireland.

Please ensure that you take a few moments to study them as they set out what responsibility we each have under the contract.  Reading it now may help you avoid problems later.

2.    How and when I do I make this contract with you?

You can make a contract in a number of ways.  You can call into our office, write to us, phone or email.

Whichever way you contact us the contract between us is made when your booking is entered on our booking system and a booking reference number is produced.  At that moment the contract between us begins.

We will send you a confirmation booking within 2 weeks.  Please check it carefully to ensure all the details are correct.

3.    How is my tour money protected?

Ulsterbus is a household name in Northern Ireland, a name associated with reliability and security.  It is now one of the very few government owned bus and coach companies in the UK.  Our ownership provides you with the peace of mind to know that your money is safe and secure.

In addition Ulsterbus Tours is a member of the Confederation of Passenger Transport and adheres strictly to the requirements of the EU on Package Tours.

4.    Can you change the price of my tour after you have issued the booking confirmation?

The price of your tour is based on the numbers travelling and is therefore only guaranteed against this.

5.    Can I change my tour arrangements?

After we have issued our booking confirmation we will do our best to accommodate any changes you may wish to make but we cannot guarantee to do so.

Some changes are so significant that we will treat them as cancellations and you must pay the cancellation charges set out in paragraph 9.  Significant changes include transfer to a different tour or departure date within the balance due date period or a change in the number of people travelling.
6.    How can I cancel my tour?

You cancel at any time provided that the cancellation is made in writing by the person who signed the booking form and through this office.

You will have to pay cancellation charges set out in the scale below to cover our administration costs and estimated loss resulting from the cancellation.

If you are insured against cancellation you may be able to recover the charges from your insurers.

Your cancellation will take effect from the date upon when we receive written confirmation of your cancellation. You must also immediately return any tickets or vouchers which you have received at that time.

You should be aware that any reduction in the number of people occupying a room may increase the charges for the remaining passengers as supplements may be added for the low occupancy of rooms.

7.    Scale of cancellation charges

8.    What happens if you change my tour?

The arrangements for your tour have usually been made months in advance.  Sometimes changes are unavoidable and we reserve the right to make them.  Most of these changes are likely to be minor but where they are significant we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible before your departure date.

A significant change includes a change in departure date or return time of more than 12 hours, a change of location, or reducing the quality of your main hotel (excluding single overnight hotels on touring tours where the quality of the hotel is comparable) or a change of tour itinerary which involves a destination being completely eliminated from the revised itinerary.

In the event of a significant change you may decide to:-

    (a)    continue with the tour as amended or

    (b)    accept an alternative tour which we may offer to you or

    (c)    cancel your booking.

If you choose (a) or (b) we will pay you compensation on the scale below.  If you choose (c) we will refund all monies paid by you plus compensation on the scale below.  No other claims for compensation or expenses will be considered.

When we have notified you of the changes and options available you must tell us of your decision as soon as possible and within any timescale we may need to set bearing in mind the need to safeguard the tour arrangements of other customers.

9.    Scale of compensation

We will pay you compensation for significant changes made by us on the following scale:-

    Period before departure within which            Compensation per person
    significant change is notified to you

10.    Are there other reasons why you will cancel a tour?

A tour may be changed or cancelled by reason of unusual and unforeseen circumstances beyond our control the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all due care had been exercised.  These circumstances include but are not limited to war, or the threat of war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial disputes, fire, quarantine, epidemic or health risks, natural or nuclear disasters, port and terminal closures and adverse weather conditions.

If we do cancel your tour at any time we are only liable for any monies which you have paid to us at the time of cancellation and the compensation payments set out in paragraph 11 above.

11.    What is the extent of your liability?

We accept responsibility if you or any member of your party is killed or injured as a result of an activity forming part of your tour arrangements which you booked with us before your departure; or if any part of your tour arrangements, booked with us in the UK, is not as described in the brochure or not of a reasonable standard; if the failure in your tour arrangements or any death or personal injury is due to any fault on our part or that of our agents or suppliers whilst acting in the course of their employment.  We do not accept responsibility if the failure, death or personal injury is not caused by any fault of ours or of our agents or suppliers or is caused by you or someone not connected with your tour arrangements; or if the failure, death or personal injury is due to unusual or unforeseen circumstances which, even with all due care, we, or our agents or suppliers, could not have anticipated or avoided.  For claims which do not involve personal injury, illness or death, the most we will have to pay if we are liable to you is twice the price the person affected paid for their tour (not including insurance premiums and amendment charges).  We will only have to pay this maximum amount if everything has gone wrong and you have received no benefit from your tour.  If you or any member of your party is killed, injured or becomes ill as a result of transport by ship, train or coach, any liability which we may have to pay compensation is limited in line with the Athens Convention (applies to transport by ship), the Berne Convention (applies to transport by rail), the Warsaw Convention (applies to travel by air) and the Geneva Convention (applies to transport by road).  You can get copies of the relevant conventions which may limit or remove the carrier's liability to you and the amount which the carrier has to pay to you.  If we make any payment to you or any member of your party for death, personal injury or illness, you will be asked to assign to us or our insurers the rights you may have to take action against the person or organisation responsible for causing the death, personal injury or illness.  Our suppliers (such as accommodation or transport providers) have their own booking conditions or conditions or 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.  You can get copies of such conditions from our offices, or the offices of the relevant supplier.

Please remember that some amenities (e.g. hotel lifts, swimming pools, etc) require servicing and cleaning and may not therefore be available at all times.  Some services may be affected by weather conditions and their availability is entirely at the discretion of the provider of the service.  Entertainment (particularly live entertainment) provided by hotels is frequently subject to demand and its nature and/or frequency may be varied if there is lack of demand or insufficient numbers staying in the hotel.

Some excursion itineraries include the use of ferries and other forms of transport which can be affected by inclement weather, and may have to be cancelled or arrangements changed.  Whenever possible a suitable alternative excursion will be offered.

The published running times of services are estimates only and we will not be liable for any loss (however caused) arising from delay or failure to operate services in accordance with published timings.

12.    What do I need to do if I have to complain?

If you have a complaint during your tour you should tell the driver / courier / representative at the earliest opportunity so that they can do their utmost to resolve the problem immediately.

If they are unable to resolve the matter to your satisfaction you must notify us in writing within 28 days after the end of the tour.  Please address your letter to The Manager, Ulsterbus Tours, The Travel Centre, Europa Buscentre, Belfast, BT12 5AH and give the tour title and departure date.

If you do not tell us at the earliest opportunity about a problem giving rise to your complaint we cannot take steps to investigate and rectify it.

In deciding how to respond to your complaint we will take into account the date upon which you first drew the problem to our attention or that of our representative.

13.    Conditions of carriage

When you are travelling on an Ulsterbus Coach you are carried under the Ulsterbus Limited Conditions of Carriage a copy of which can be provided to you on request.

When travelling on a ferry or transport provided by any other courier, the Conditions of Carriage of that carrier apply and are subject to any applicable National Conditions or International Conventions which may limit or exclude liability.  The Public Service Vehicle (Conduct of Drivers, Conductors and Passengers) Regulations 1990 as amended apply to all coaches throughout any tour in the UK.

14.    Do I need a passport or travel documents?

You are responsible for ensuring that you have the correct travel documents.  We cannot be held liable for any loss or expense suffered by you or any member of your party because of an incorrect passport.

15.    What assistance will you give me if things go wrong when it is not your fault?

If you, or any member of your party, suffer death, illness or injury whilst overseas arising out of any activity which does not form part of your package travel arrangements or an excursion arranged through us in the UK, we shall at our discretion, offer advice, guidance and assistance.  Where legal action is contemplated and you want our assistance, you must obtain our written consent prior to commencement of proceedings.  Our consent will be given subject to you undertaking to assign any costs, and benefits received under any relevant insurance policy to ourselves.  We limit the cost of our assistance to you and any member of your party to [£5,000.00] per party.

16.    Passengers with health considerations/disabilities

Our tours may not be suitable for people with certain disabilities or medical conditions. If you have a disability, coaches/other forms of transport can be difficult to get on and off and some of our hotels do not offer ground/lower floor accommodation or lifts/easy access. We always endeavour to assist if we reasonably can where additional equipment needs to be transported in relation to a disability or medical problem.

Effective 04/04/13