(1) Reservations

A verbal booking is valid for 14 days, whereby Gone Birding should receive a completed booking form and non-refundable deposit of £100-200 (varies per tour). Bookings are on a first come basis on receipt of a completed booking form & deposit. Bookings are confirmed upon receipt by you of a receipt of deposit and invoice for the outstanding balance from Gone Birding. This confirmation binds the applicant and Gone Birding to a contract under English law. Gone Birding reserve the sole right to decline any booking for whatever reason Gone Birding see fit, without any reason having to be given what so ever. All details are held on computer for sole use of Gone Birding. If you wish to amend or delete these details please advise Gone Birding.

(2) Payments & Refunds

The balance of the tour is due no later than 60 days before departure date. No reminder will be issued. Gone Birding reserve the right to treat the booking as cancelled as stated below if payment is not received on the due date. If you cancel the booking following the receipt of payments by us, the following terms will be followed. The booking can be cancelled up to 60 days before the departure date for a full refund of all moneys paid minus the deposit. Cancellation of 59 to 31 days would result in a refund of 50 %, minus the deposit. Cancellation of 30 days or less would result in no refund of any moneys paid to Gone Birding. Gone Birding recommend you take out travel insurance to cover unforeseen eventualities that cause you to cancel. As stated, refunds are non- returnable, however these and balances can be transferred to another person or tour minus an administration fee deemed by Gone Birding to cover any costs. These transfers are allowed if the person making the booking is prevented from participating in the tour due to sickness or accident to himself or herself or close family member, or any another unavoidable reason. However these only apply if the place can be filled or there is a waiting list, then the place would be offered to them in the first instance. If no waiting list exists then the above cancellation terms would apply.

Protection- your payments are held in a trust account until you return from your tour this is to comply with regulations. Although Gone Birding are not ABTA/ ATOL Bonded- we don't need to be as our tours start and finish at the destination airport. However you are fully protected as we only use ATOL protected airlines, which means if the airline goes under, the ATOL coverage means we will be brought back home by another airline.

(3)Cancellation

Gone Birding reserve the right to cancel any tour for whatever reason not less than 4 weeks before the date of departure. In such an event all Moines paid including deposits would be refunded in full. Normally this is due to insufficient numbers for the tour to be financially viable.

(4) Cost Increases

Some unforeseen increase in costs may occur. It may be this can be absorbed into the original price, however if the increase is significant, (greater than 10% of tour price), Gone Birding will write to you no later than 8 weeks before the departure date with the extra amount and an explanation. You will have the option of paying the amount, or cancelling your booking for a complete refund of all Moines paid including deposit. If the increase is less than 10% you can pay the amount or cancel your booking (see section 2) If less than 8 weeks you can pay the amount or cancel your booking full refund of all Moines paid including £50 deposit. Any cancellation must be received in writing within 14 days of the date of the notification.

(5) What's Included

The cost of the tours includes all travel costs from point of pick up (usually the airport), (we may offer to organise a taxi to and from the airport but this is extra to the tour price). All accommodation and meals as set out in the itinerary of each tour, and the services of a guide (s) for the duration of the tour. Items not covered by the cost include travel insurance, passport and visa costs, excess baggage costs (overseas tours and third party transport obviously), medication/ vaccines, telephone calls, laundry, drinks not included in the tour and tips for service.

(6) Alterations

Changes to the itinerary may be in order if in the opinion of the guide the tour would benefit from an alteration. i.e. bad weather or a better site being available, these would be deemed minor changes. However should major changes occur during a tour, i.e. strike, severe weather delay or breakdown, then any extra costs will be the responsibility of the tour participants. It is therefore strongly recommended that travel insurance be taken out for the duration of the tour.

(7) Tour Information

General tour information will be outlined in leaflets relating to each tour, including a basic itinerary; areas to visited and target species. However we implicitly do not guarantee to find any species. Any species mentioned in any format is an indication of the species we may encounter. However we will do our utmost to find all target species. If more detailed information is required, i.e. clothing, equipment requirements, then please contact Gone Birding for advice. During the tour a daily species list will be kept, this will be available to all participants upon their return and within 6 weeks. As stated above any species list is an indication of species likely to be encountered, and in no way guarantees these species will be found.

(8) Accommodation

Will normally be in medium standard b+b's or hotels, usually with private facilities, unless stated in the specific tour leaflet. Single rooms are normally available at supplemental cost. If travelling singly we will endeavour to find a participant of the same sex to share a room. If this is not possible Gone Birding may have to provide a single room at a supplemental cost. If you pre-book a single room and one is unavailable you will receive a pro-rata refund for the day(s) you had to share. In the unlikely event of reserved accommodation being unavailable the tour guide will endeavour to find similar accommodation, although this may be of a lesser standard.

(9) Insurance

Gone Birding do not undertake any form of insurance for it's tours. Therefore it is strongly recommended that each participant take out adequate insurance to cover all eventualities that may occur on tours of this nature (UK only). This should cover cancellation charges, expenses/compensation resulting from delays to travel. Do please ensure that any expensive equipment, especially optics is adequately covered. Do please check your household policy, or check with your current home contents insurer. For future overseas tours travel insurance is essential and a booking would be deemed cancelled should proof of the insurance for each participant not be received by the final payment date (see section 2).

(10) Participants

Gone Birding tours are not normally strenuous, however a level of fitness is required as full days in the field are the norm, with occasional, unavoidable, strenuous activity. This activity will be made clear in each tour leaflet. Participants must be prepared for full days in the field and complete walks of several miles a day, often on uneven or slippery surfaces to complete the tour itinerary. If you have health or medical problems you are required to contact Gone Birding before hand for advice on tour suitability. You are also required to state these medical problems/ requirements on the booking form. However subject to the limitations of the tours, arrangements can be made to cater for your needs i.e. half days, or possibly alternative routes or rest areas for those who require them, although these cannot be guaranteed. Please contact Gone Birding for advice. A group of people together for several days require a certain amount of co-operation and consideration amongst the participants. The tour guide has full authority for the duration of the tour. Each participant will be expected to behave in a reasonable manner. Any anti-social behaviour in the opinion of the tour guide will be pointed out by the guide whereby you should desist, i.e. smoking whilst in confined areas or taking plants, animals, eggs from the wild. Gone Birding reserve the right to send home at their own expense and without refund of any moneys, any participant who behaves in an unacceptable manner after the tour guide has advised them of their unacceptable behaviour. This totally at the discretion of the tour guide.

(11) Group Size

The max. group size will be outlined in each tour leaflet. Normally this is 8 or less. If there are more than 12 participants on the tour then a second guide will be accompany the tour. Gone Birding reserve the right to change the leading guide, or second guide without notice.

(12) Gone Birding Responsibility

Gone Birding will take all reasonable steps to ensure that all services provided are of an acceptable standard. However Gone Birding accept no liability for injury, damage, expense or loss for whatever reason during the tour. Gone Birding therefore strongly recommend adequate insurance. Despite great care errors and omissions may occur in any Gone Birding information. Unless the error/ omission has a major affect on the tour, then no claim for compensation will be entered in to. Any complaints should be received by Gone Birding within 14 days from the end of a tour.