1.1. We believe transparency is paramount to clarify our, and your, responsibilities. We do, however, try to let common sense prevail (in your favor) as we believe this is the basis for all interactions, regardless of legal reasons.
1.2. We suggest you to carefully read these general conditions of contract, which constitute the terms and conditions by which we offers services related to travel, stays and sports activities.
1.3. Participation in Horizon Adventures travels, activities and guided tours is subject to compliance with these rules and conditions, as well as those stated in our offers, in the explanatory documentation provided to you before departure and in the technical notes presented on the website or on the program sent to you during the booking process.
1.4. Our services abroad often lead to areas where the local services are not always comparable to European standards and/or where efficiency and punctuality are not always perfect. You may therefore at times need to exercise patience and a minimum of flexibility and collaboration.
1.5. Horizon Adventures’s offers and estimates are not contractual offers, and are subject to reconfirmation of the price and services included in the specific offer, depending on availability at the time of your booking confirmation or if there are any significant changes to the price between the time of booking and the time the tour actually takes place.
2.1 The sale of tourist packages/activities involving services provided on a national and international level is regulated by the Italian Law 1084 of 27/12/1977, ratified and implemented by the International Convention on Travel Contracts (CCV), signed in Bruxelles on 23.4.1970, as well as by the Code of Tourism (articles 32-51) and its successive modifications.
2.2 The present Contract is regulated by the laws of the Italian Republic. The Udine Court has exclusive competence for any controversy related to or deriving from the present contract or its execution.
2.3 All information provided by you is treated in accordance with privacy regulations and will not be shared with third parties, except for reasons related to the carrying out of procedures for the arranged travel or activity. European Community norms on travel matters are recognized in principle, where not in contrast with the local regulations of the countries where the services are provided.
3.1. The booking and enrolling procedures for our trips and activities, whether directly through us or through another travel agency, follow the steps below:
Your booking is valid only after we receive a deposit and/or the balance as well as the signed contract.
3.2. By confirming, you agree to send all required documentation (e.g. copies of passports or insurance contracts, or other documents which must be those that will be used during the trip, in the terms described by Horizon Adventures) in accordance with the terms indicated in the travel offer or received via email. You also agree, on arrival or when necessary, to temporarily consign your passport or original documents, as well as any sums of cash, for the carrying out of services.
4.1. Each Horizon Adventures offer, service or tourism package is calculated according to the exchange rates and costs of services at the time the offer is drawn up. Quotas published in the online catalogue or single offers may be modified at any time in accordance with fluctuations in the exchange rates, changes in the costs of suppliers, transport companies or tourist services, or with similar services or adjustments that could cause changes in the program and quotas.
4.2. We will not pay any supplier to freeze their prices before receiving your first payment, in accordance with the terms described in our invoice. We cannot confirm any booking until we receive your first payment.
4.3. If, after we have confirmed a travel proposal, there are fluctuations in the exchange rate in excess of 3% of the indicated quota per person, these will be charged to you. You will be duly informed within 20 days before the date of beginning of the services. Increases in quotas after this deadline are excluded. This does not apply to increases in quotas due to rights, taxes, airline fares, visas, government permits, or mistakes in calculation.
4.4. There may be variations in prices between the date of our offer and the date of our invoice, and between the date of our invoice and the date of effective payments to suppliers of services. This is due to changes in prices by suppliers before they are paid for the trip or activity, to any modifications you agreed to and to changes in the currency exchange rates at the time we receive each payment. If participation quotas increase by more than 10% after confirmation of an offer by Horizon Adventures, you have the right to recede from the contract with no penalty within five days after receiving notification.
5.1. Unless agreed otherwise in writing, including by email, your payments for enrolment, deposit and balance must be made by bank transfer or credit card as indicated in the invoice sent to you, or, if agreed, by cash payment on arrival. In-situ payments for visas or permits must be in cash and in the indicated currency.
5.2. The payment deadlines indicated in our invoices are an essential part of the contract. If you fail to meet the agreed deadlines, we reserve the right to change prices or even to terminate the contract you have signed.
5.3. By making a payment, you are effectively signing up for the trip and automatically confirming that you have read and accepted the general conditions of the travel contract and booking conditions, an integral part of the current confirmation-invoice, and agree to send us a copy (doc/pdf/jpg) of the bank transfer/credit card payment, for each payment.
It is your responsibility, as confirming client, to ensure that you make the payments by the above deadlines.
5.4. The deposit is 30% of the invoice total (or other amount agreed) and must be paid at sight within two working days of the invoice issue date, unless agreed otherwise in written contract.
5.5. In accordance with the instruction on the invoice, the balance must be paid by the deadlines indicated or within 5 days (for daytrips) or 45 days (for multiple day travels/activities) before the beginning of our services. This does not apply to agreed payments to be made on arrival in situ. Full, immediate payment is required for trips starting fewer than 45 days after confirmation (for multiple day travels/activities).
5.6. You are responsible for any charges by your bank or an intermediary. Only payments credited to our bank accounts as described in our invoice can be recognised. Any outstanding sums of money must be settled with the balance, or paid in cash on arrival or at beginning of the trip or activity.
5.7. Horizon Adventures reserves the right to cancel without notice any service, even if underway, which you have not fully paid for by the deadlines described in the invoice or agreed on with Horizon Adventures. In this case, you lose all rights to any reimbursement of sums already paid.
5.8. If we do not hear from you within 20 days from our last email or other written communication to you, your request may be cancelled or our services terminated.
5.9. Horizon Adventures guarantees the services, including starting procedures on your behalf for visas or permits, only after we have received your deposit and the necessary documents and copies.
5.10. Our Guides are not authorised to ask you for, receive from you or reimburse you any payments without express written authorisation, including via text messages and email, from Horizon Adventures.
6.1. You may transfer your booking to another person only on the conditions set by Horizon Adventures, provided there are no other reasons or logistical problems for Horizon Adventures. If a transfer is possible, you are liable for any additional costs for changes, government permits or visas issued in your name, as well as any penalties to third-party suppliers (e.g. accommodation, transport). The transferee is responsible for paying the outstanding sums or other supplements. Horizon Adventures will confirm the transfer and these sums in writing. Whilst Horizon Adventures will try to find the best solution for you, it is under no obligation to accept a requested transfer.
6.2. While you may decide to forgo services at any time before they begin, you must email us confirmation of this decision.
6.3. The following are excluded from reimbursement: all services subject to penalties by third party suppliers (accommodation, mountain huts, transport, guides, etc ), permits and visas requested/reserved by Horizon Adventures on the client’s behalf, the quota for any single supplements which another participant has to pay as a result of the loss of double occupancy, and the non-refundable sum, unless the trip is cancelled by Horizon Adventures. We advise you to purchase an insurance policy that includes cover for cancellation of the trip.
6.4. If you cancel your participation in a trip, guided tour or activity after confirming and paying, the following penalties to your participation quota will be applied:
As mentioned in paragraph 6.3 all services subject to penalties by third party suppliers will not be refunded.
6.5. In the case of a booking of a tour which, for reasons of the customer’s technical level, weather, precarious and dangerous conditions of the environment where the activity will take place, will be modified by the Guide in charge, there will be no refund.
6.6. The guide in charge will always have the last option regarding the decisions of itinerary choice, renunciation, customer responsibility, timing and anything related to the logistics of the itinerary.
6.7. In case of cancellation for customer’s technical level, weather, precarious and dangerous conditions of the environment where the activity will take place, the Guide will always give a plan B, according to customers’s requests and, even if the plan B could not be completed, Horizon Adventures will save your deposit/balance in your account for another travel, tour or guided trip.
7.1. Horizon Adventures reserves the right to cancel any trip or activities, having duly informed you, as a result of events outside our control, including cancellation of flights or other means of transport, strikes, natural disasters, war, civil unrest, coups or force majeure. Horizon Adventures is obliged only to reimburse the sums you have paid.
7.2. If the guide or tour leader decides for reasons related to the weather, the conditions of the ground, the snow or anything that may affect the safety of the group, to cancel the activity, it will be up to the guide to propose two dates to reprogram the activities. If there is no possibility to reschedule, the 30% deposit will not be returned. In case of full payment, 70% will be returned. In the case of cash payment to the guide, you will have to pay an amount equal to 30% of the total.
7.3. In the above case (7.1), Horizon Adventures will promptly inform you and reimburse any sums you have already paid, or offer an alternative, which you are not obliged to accept. Other rights cannot be exercised. The conditions for exclusion from reimbursement or from cancellation of the trip are also applied.
7.4. If the minimum number of participants for group events is not reached by the deadline (as indicated on the web page of every trip or activity), Horizon Adventures offers two solutions: 1) if you decide to forgo the trip, we will fully reimburse your deposit without penalty; or 2) if you still wish to continue the trip or activity, we will recalculate your quota according to the final number of participants, and then inform you of the updated figure. If, at this point, you choose to cancel your participation because the price has changed excessively, your deposit will be reimbursed without penalty.
In this case, we must receive notice of your cancellation no later than 2 calendar days after you have received our email with the final number of participants and recalculated quota. Your notification is essential, as if there are fewer enrolments, other participants may also see their quota vary and act accordingly.
8.1. Horizon Adventures is responsible for the correct scheduling and description of the offer and the carrying out of the services, as well as for the choice and quality of the suppliers. To ensure your trip or activity is enjoyable and goes smoothly, Horizon Adventures is at your disposal to solve any problems that may arise during the itinerary and guarantees 24-hour telephone assistance. Contact numbers will be given to you before or on your arrival in situ.
8.2. For trips abroad, the accommodation categories indicated are in accordance with local regulations. These categories are often modest and do not reflect international standards since they are in relatively undeveloped regions touristically. The choice of accommodation structures is the exclusive competence of Horizon Adventures. You may request different structures, but Horizon Adventures is not obliged to agree to them.
8.3. Overbooked overnight stays may cause variations in the scheduled services and, where possible, will be substituted with others of the same level or better.
8.4. You need to have at least a basic level of fitness to be able to safely enjoy yourself on our trips and activities, and you take part at your own risk. However, we recommend that you inform us, when booking, if you have a health problem which could physically put you at risk.
8.5. The transport contract of the airline is the sole regulator of relations between yourself and the airline. We decline all responsibility in this regard, even when the flight is booked through us.
8.6. The following services are not included in our offers: insurance policies, required entry visas where not indicated, additional charges for excess baggage, tips, meals and drinks not specifically indicated in our offers, visits and excursions outside the described itinerary, personal expenses (e.g. laundry or dry cleaning services), telephone or telecommunication charges, and the proposed optional activities (depending on availability).
8.7. When Horizon Adventures indicates the duration of transfers, flights, walks etc., these are estimated travelling times only and do not take into account breaks or delays for whatever reason.
8.8. Horizon Adventures is not responsible for the failure to provide single services caused by conditions which it could not reasonably foresee or solve, such as the inability to visit a location which is closed or undergoing renovation, indicated holidays which have been moved to another date, strikes, bad weather, risky conditions, insufficient technical level, disasters, civil or military unrest, uprisings, terrorism, coups, catastrophies, delays or cancellation of transport or flights, roadworks, denial of issue of booked airline tickets or denial of boarding by airlines or transport companies, or other similar occurances which are not attributable to Horizon Adventures. Services that cannot be carried out for any such reasons will not be subsituted or reimbursed.
8.9. Horizon Adventures is not responsible for the theft of, or damage to, baggage or any type of equipment. Transporting such items is often difficult: a porter may fall, or landslides or accidents may cause damage, for which we decline all responsibility. We recommend you insure your baggage against such and similar events.
8.10. Issuing the visas or government permits which Horizon Adventures requests for you or for our staff is the exclusive competence of the relevant authorities (embassies, ministries, governmental bodies). These may deny access to specific areas or prevent the continuation of the trip or services.
8.11. Any additional costs, deriving from the above-mentioned or similar causes, related to overnight stays, meals, porterage, or additional transport are to be paid by the participants, also to the supplier of the services at that time, as operating costs for the reorganization of services. There will be no reimbursement for, or substitution of, services not provided. We recommend you keep enough cash on hand for any such costs due to additional overnight stays, meals, transport etc. which are not included in our offer.
8.12. You must have a valid passport for all the countries included in the itinerary, as well as the stay or transit visas and health certificates that may be required, except for those that Horizon Adventures requests on your behalf. You must also observe the rules of normal caution and diligence, the specific laws in force in the destination countries, administrative rules and regulations, and all the information given to you by Horizon Adventures, or you will be held to account for any damages which may be claimed against Horizon Adventures with regard to the above.
8.13. Participation in Horizon Adventures ‘s services is your personal responsibility. You declare at your own risk and under your own responsibility that you are aware of the implicit risks of the sports activities and that you are sufficiently fit and able to undertake the nature and relative risks of the trip or outdoor activities.
8.14. Horizon Adventures cannot verify that you are fit and able before the included services begin, whether these concern leisure or culture, mountaineering, or outdoor sports activities in general or at high altitudes. We therefore reserve the right, even for psychological reasons, not to allow you to continue the trip or activity, on your arrival or during the trip or activity, if your unsuitability is manifest or if you represent a risk for the other participants or the carrying out of the trip or activity. If you confirm participation on behalf of another person, you are responsible for checking that they are (as yourself) fit and able for all the included activities, and you recognise that Horizon Adventures has no responsibility for any danger or risk resulting from their participation.
8.15. Issuing the visas or government permits which Horizon Adventures requests for you or for our staff is the exclusive competence of the relevant authorities (embassies, ministries, governmental bodies) and Horizon Adventures declines all responsibility in this regard.
8.16. Any consequent penalties or charges are to be paid by you. If local authorities deny access to areas or do not allow the trip or activities to continue, Horizon Adventures has no responsibilities with regard to the continuation of the trip or services.
9.1. Horizon Adventures strongly recommends that you take out an insurance policy covering medical expenses, repatriation, cancellation of the trip before or during the trip (e.g. due to the non-issue of in-situ permits), cancellation of flights (including domestic), theft , damage or loss of baggage and, if the activity includes excursions with trekking, mountaineering, rafting, paragliding, mountain biking or other outdoor activities, emergency missing-person search and helicopter evacuation or rescue. Horizon Adventures is under no obligation to judge the suitability of your policy clauses, having no competence in the matter.
You are not insured by Horizon Adventures and participate in the trips or activities under your own responsibility.
9.2. We usually recommend World Nomads, which has special policies for adventure trips and those based on sports activities.
9.3. If available, a copy of your original insurance contract must be sent to Horizon Adventures within 14 days before the beginning of services. If you are not covered by insurance, you are responsible for yourself during the trip or service offered by Horizon Adventures. Horizon Adventures is not obliged to check whether you are insured or not.
10.1. On principle, Horizon Adventures reserves the right to accept or decline any changes. You accept that Horizon Adventures may substitute accommodation and/or places of stay with other ones of similar level, as well as to make other changes which may arise for operating reasons. If you cancel in-situ services or make any changes which have not been accepted and confirmed by Horizon Adventures, we decline all responsibility with regard to reimbursement to you for any consequent expenses or risks.
10.2. Any special requests, such as rooms for smokers/non-smokers, communicating or adjacent rooms, special food diets, early check-in or late check-out, must be made when booking and a supplement must be paid. Although we will do our best, we cannot guarantee that your requests will be met.
10.3. You cannot be charged for expenses deriving from changes in program or services due to mistakes in the offers after confirmation by Horizon Adventures or which are the fault of Horizon Adventures.
10.4. Requests for changes to our offers before final confirmation by you are possibile. As well as involving cost adjustments, continuous requests for changes are also subject to a €20 additional charge per change/person for operating costs.
10.5. Additional services in situ deriving from events outside Horizon Adventures ‘s control (e.g. cancellation or delay of flights, refusal to proceed, denial of issue of permits or visas, landslides, natural disasters, strikes etc.) are your responsibility and must be paid for directly in situ or on request by Horizon Adventures.
10.6. If you request changes after confirmation, and these requests can be met, they are subject to an adjustment of costs and an additional charge of €15 per modification/person. During the trip or activity, if you request changes that can be met by Horizon Adventures, you must pay for them. There is no reimbursement for services which you have not used or which are not the responsibility of Horizon Adventures.
10.7. Changes during the trip or activity due to force majeur, such as interruption of air or land transfers, even without notice, or other events outside Horizon Adventures ‘s control may result in the use of alternative transport, accommodation or services, if these are necessary for the continuation of the trip or activity. We recommend you have sufficient cash for such circumstances and that you keep every invoice or receipt for any claims to your insurance company.
11.1. For small problems during the trip or activity, e.g. a faulty toilet or broken lightbulb, please use common sense and see the hotel staff or reception first for a solution. Ask Horizon Adventures for assistance only if a satisfactory solution is not found in a reasonable amount time.
11.2. You must notify Horizon Adventures without delay of any shortcoming in the carrying out of the contract by telephoning our 24-hour assistance phone numbers, so that we can promptly solve the matter ourselves or through our local representative or accompanying staff.
11.3. You must also send any complaint by recorded delivery or by email with confirmation request directly to Horizon Adventures or through the travel agency where the trip was booked, no later than ten working days from the end of the trip or services, or you forfeit any rights.
12.1. You must contact only the telephone assistance or our offices to request any changes to the program or services. Horizon Adventures declines all responsibility for any consequences deriving from changes in the services or itinerary made without our written approval (also via text message or email). Our staff or service providers are not authorised to offer or accept requests for changes to services, visits or the itinerary on Horizon Adventures ‘s behalf.
12.2. Unless you have stated otherwise in writing, you accept that any photograph, video or written material including you which is made by you or our staff and is shared with Horizon Adventures, may be used on our website, magazines or other media.
12.3. Additional clauses or changes to the current “general conditions of contract” are not valid unless confirmed in writing or email by Horizon Adventures.
13.1. For any disputes, the Udine court will be competent.
13.2. This contract is regulated by Italian law and for any dispute that cannot be resolved amicably, the Italian court has exclusive jurisdiction.
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