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Essential Information
The Exodus price
You can find both cheaper and more expensive operators than Exodus: our strength is that we provide the greatest choice of adventurous holidays worldwide, and the best value for money. We aim for good quality, and we don't cut corners in providing it. While luxury is certainly less important to us than interest, we still always aim at reasonable standards of comfort where it is available.
Other Information
Group size and minimum numbers
On all Group Trips we indicate a normal group size in the Group section. Most of our holidays are group holidays and require a certain number of participants to operate. In the unlikely event that a holiday does not reach the minimum numbers, we may be forced to cancel. Therefore we strongly recommend that you do not make any non-refundable or non-changeable travel arrangements until the trip has been confirmed. If the group size drops below the minimum stated, we reserve the right either to cancel or to run the trip with minor modifications. We also reserve the right to confirm trips on numbers lower than the minimum indicated in this brochure, but we will not exceed the maximum client group size indicated.
Accommodation
Rooming on group and independent trips
We use a variety of different accommodation on all our trips. Please refer to Where do we Stay' on page 8 for more information. We've based our prices on the following assumptions:
Families of two and four
All family groupings of two and four will be put into either one or two twin rooms. How you decide to share is at the discretion of the adults.
Flights
Most prices shown in this brochure include flights from a UK airport to the destination airport and back, UK departure tax, all necessary domestic flights on the trip itinerary and all airport transfers if booked on the group flights. If flights are not included, this is specifically mentioned under the flights information on the trip's page and also at the bottom of the Dates & Prices box. If you do not need our group flights on a trip where flights are included, please ask a member of our sales team for the "land only" price or have a look on our website. If you book at the land only price, international flights are not included, but internal flights generally are, except where tickets for these have to be issued in conjunction with your international ticket. Transfers are not included at the land only price except where stated on the trip page.
Family of three
Wherever possible we will put you in a triple room. Please be aware that in some places triple rooms are in short supply. This means that, in practice, a triple room will often simply be a twin room with a mattress on the floor or a further bed squashed in. Where it is impossible to provide a triple room, you will have to decide which of your party takes the single room (at no supplement).
Age requirements
The minimum age for each trip and activity is indicated in the trip information. These ages apply to the date of departure, not the date of booking. We regret that we cannot accept unaccompanied children under the age of 18. All trips in this brochure are family holidays and therefore, for each family booking, there must be at least 1 child under the age of 18. If you want to book as an extended family, such as three generations, you can book on one of our group departures. However too many adults compared with children will change the group dynamics and you may be better off booking an independent family holiday instead. Please speak to our Group Sales department on 0845 330 6009 or email groups@exodus.co.uk. There is no upper age limit on our holidays but as most holidays are quite active, we ask that clients over the age of 70 send a letter with their booking form explaining their understanding of the nature of the holiday and confirming that they are fit enough to participate fully.
Family of five or more
For larger families, we will provide twin rooms as standard, with a triple room if there is an odd number. Please note that on a very few occasions, it may be necessary for one of you to share with a member of another family. This is when accommodation is strictly limited. It goes without saying that we will never ever pair an adult and child together or people of the opposite sex if they are not part of the same family booking.
Accommodation
All accommodation is included in the price. See accommodation section for more details.
Food
Meal plans vary according to area and circumstances: for every trip, details of what is included are shown in the Food section of each trip, and in the Trip Notes.
Rooming at activity centres
Activity Centre holidays that are based on a one or two week hotel stay have different rooming arrangements. Adult and child prices are based on two persons sharing, but there are discounts available for children sharing a room with adults on a triple (or sometimes quadruple) occupancy basis. Where this option is taken, we will arrange for the children to sleep on a pull-out bed or sofa-bed, and ensure that the room is generally large enough for the number of occupants. In general, we would suggest that one child (or two younger children) be accommodated on this basis, as rooms large enough for four are rare. When booking an Activity Centre we ask you to specify who will be sharing in each room.
Transport
All necessary transport during the trip is included, whether private or public. Airport transfers are included for anyone booked on the group flights. They are not included for land only clients and for some alternative flights.
On your trip
Spending money
Your family needs to take enough money to cover the cost of meals not included in the trip cost, and for drinks and incidentals. Advice on this is given in the Trip Notes. Remember there are often optional activities, or souvenirs to buy and you should allow some extra spending money for these.
Sightseeing
Included wherever it is part of the itinerary (as stated in the Trip Notes). There are usually optional trips too, which must be paid for locally.
Staff
On all trips we provide a leader or local representative, assisted by local guides, drivers and any other staff as appropriate. Leaders usually meet the group locally.
Baggage on flights
You are restricted to 20kg of baggage on most flights. We recommend you to take rather less than this to allow for souvenirs that you may want to bring back. On some internal flights the weight limit is lower; where this is so we state it in the Trip Notes. Please note that airlines are also becoming stricter on the size and weight of hand luggage carried on flights.
Optional single supplement
There may be instances when you specifically want a single room. Perhaps Granny needs one or parents of a family of three or five want to ensure they get a bit of space! For whatever reason, we can offer a single room at the price indicated on the trip page. You only need to pay for this if you want to ensure a single room. Please be aware that paying a single supplement does not guarantee you sole use of a twin or double room, and that single rooms are often smaller than a standard twin/ double. Please note on certain trips single accommodation is not available due to local operational conditions.
Permits, taxes and entrance fees
We include all necessary local permits, taxes and entrance fees to National Parks or sites that are part of the itinerary, with the exception of trips to the Galapagos Islands (Incas & Islands, p. 52), where a local tax must be paid on arrival at the islands in US$ cash.
Not included
Any meals and other food not included in the meal plan, visas, vaccinations, travel insurance, foreign airport taxes where not included in the price of the ticket, sleeping bags and other personal equipment, sleeping mats on some camping trips, entrance to historical sites if not specified in the Trip Notes, extra optional excursions and any personal expenditure such as laundry, drinks and tips.
Baggage on trip
On a few trips there are restrictions as to the type and weight of baggage that you can bring. On trips where it is not possible to take a suitcase you will need a soft bag or backpack; the Trip Notes will advise you on this. Generally you can take whatever type of bag you wish; just make sure that you don't take too much, and that your bag will protect your belongings and stand up to rough treatment.
Location of rooms
Whilst we will do our very best to ensure that families are roomed close together (in some cases, we can arrange adjoining rooms), we can't guarantee this. Most family holidays occur during peak season and we sometimes have little to no control over where you will be put. You need to come prepared for this.
No local payments
Regular Exodus clients will know that for some time we, along with some other operators, have been using a system of local payments' - where a proportion of the operational costs are paid directly to the leader on arrival. While this undoubtedly offered a good deal in terms of overall costs, it has been unpopular with many of our clients. We are therefore pleased to announce that none of the trips in this brochure have fixed local payments, so the price you see on the page is the price you pay for the holiday. While some of the headline prices may have risen, we have not added any extra costs into the total price, apart from the local payment and any standard annual fluctuation in price. Of course there is always the chance to spend money locally on optional excursions, meals and drinks, but these are always at your discretion and an idea of cost is given in the Trip Notes. Any other specific local costs are stated under the Dates and Price box. If you are comparing prices with other operators, do check the total price paid as we believe that Exodus offers the best balance between value for money and operational quality.
On-trip services
On all trips the staff are there to help if you need any special assistance. Camping trips tend to be more participatory than hotel-based trips. Most are full service and we have cooks and camp helpers to do the work, but on some trips you will need to help by putting up your own tent and sometimes help with the cooking.
Camping
On all camping trips, tents are for two clients only. The only exception to this is in permanent tents (i.e. in the Masai Mara) where we may be able to have 3 beds in one tent.
Communal accommodation
Please be aware that on certain trips we stay in communal accommodation. It may be that you are overnighting in the desert or at a homestay in the jungle. In these cases you should be aware that all adults and children are put together and that there are no opportunities for privacy.
Clothing & equipment
On most trips light, comfortable casual clothes are all that is needed, plus cold and wet weather protection. Please note that some children, especially when tired, can suffer from the cold more than adults. We therefore advise you to always over pack with clothes rather than under. On some trips you will need a sleeping bag and sleeping mat and occasionally other items of specific equipment; where this is the case, details are given in the Trip Notes.
Flexibility
It may be that as the tour progresses your children would like to share a room with a new-found friend. We will try and accommodate this but at times it may prove to be impossible, as all rooms have to be pre-booked.
Equipment hire
For your convenience, we operate a scheme through which you may hire specific equipment, including sleeping bags and duvet jackets. For full details, please ask for our Equipment Hire leaflet.
The child price
Where possible we have tried to offer a reduced price for children. In some cases the difference in price is due solely to child rates (valid for ages 2 - 11 years inclusive) on airfares. On all our group and independent trips the trip price is the same whether you are in a makeshift triple or in a twin, and rooming arrangements may vary at each accommodation. The activity centres are priced slightly differently. There is rarely a reduction on the airfare for short haul flights. Accommodation rates are generally per room rather than per person, therefore children in their own room are usually charged the same as adults. However we can offer reasonable reductions based on triple occupancy of rooms, with a child on a pull-out or sofa bed. Most activities have no price reductions for children, except in a few areas such as Egypt.
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To book call 0845 863 9636 or visit www.exodus.co.uk
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