Terms and Conditions of Balanzan Tours, Africa

It is Balanzan Tours' responsibility to provide the services listed with a tour itinerary. Balanzan Tours includes this information with every price quote.

All lodging is double occupancy, bed & breakfast; private baths are included whenever available. Comparable hotel substitutes will be provided if planned accommodations are not available. For single occupancy, a single supplement will be applied. Day rooms are not included unless specified. Hotel check-in time is 2:00 PM, and check-out time is 12:00 noon; day room check-out time is 6:00 PM.

Balanzan Tours reserves the right to make itinerary modifications or to change hotels or other tour components, if these are deemed necessary or advisable for the continuation of the tour, for safety and security reasons, or to prevent delays that would be detrimental to the tour or its members. Balanzan Tours is not responsible for any delays or consequences of any delays due to circumstances beyond Balanzan Tours' control. Balanzan Tours will make every effort to provide alternate and comparable services if changes are made.

For independent group arrivals, Balanzan Tours will provide one airport transfer upon arrival, and one upon departure; other arrivals and departures will be assessed an airport transfer fee. If a group member arrives late that person is responsible for any and all transportation costs incurred in catching up with the group.

All luggage should have sturdy identification tags and should always be locked. Balanzan Tours personnel will assist travellers with lost luggage formalities at Bamako airport. Balanzan Tours will also make every effort to forward lost luggage to its owner during the tour; any costs incurred in forwarding luggage are the responsibility of the traveller.

Estimated prices to forward lost/delayed bags:

Prices may vary with weight or number of bags


Additional ground services required as a result of international flight schedule changes, illness or emergencies are the responsibility of the traveller. Balanzan Tours personnel will do what they can to assist travellers who may need to make new flight arrangements. This is done as a courtesy and implies no responsibility on the part of Balanzan Tours to find or make new arrangements. The costs or penalties for any such arrangements are the sole responsibility of the traveller.

Balanzan Tours' guide has the ultimate recourse of removing a traveller from a tour at any time, if that person's continued presence is deemed harmful to him/herself or others, or if it adversely affects the quality of the tour and/or the enjoyment of the group. A pro-rata refund will be made for missed activities, contingent upon refunds provided by suppliers.


Travellers must procure their own passport, entry visa(s), and health documents.

Travellers agree to comply with local laws and regulations, and to respect cultural practices observed during the tour. Travellers understand that living conditions and practices in West Africa are not the same as in their home countries. Travellers must be ready to experience cultural differences with grace.

Travellers are expected to be on time for all tour activities; there are no refunds for missed activities. If travellers miss any flights or other scheduled departures, the responsibility and the cost of rejoining the tour will be theirs.

Travellers with special needs or disabilities must inform Balanzan Tours at the time of booking; failure to disclose in advance any physical or other restrictions, or the need for special accommodations, will make it impossible to meet those needs. When informed, Balanzan Tours will make every effort to accommodate travelers, and will inform travellers of local conditions they will likely encounter.

For their own safety as well as for the smooth operation of their tour, travellers are expected to follow their guide's requests and instructions; any problems encountered during the tour should be brought to the guide's attention immediately, so that he may remedy the situation. If he is unable to do so, or you are not satisfied with the remedy, please call Balanzan Tours office, or report the problem to Balanzan Tours office prior to your departure, at latest.

Tips and gratuities, while not necessary, are accepted as recognition of quality of service by guides, drivers, and restaurant personnel. These tips and gratuities are not covered by tour fees, and are entirely at your discretion.

Health and Fitness

Travellers must be healthy, fit, and prepared to endure hot weather conditions.

Elevators are not routinely available outside capital cities, and some stair-climbing may be required. If you have an underlying medical condition, Balanzan Tours must be informed and you should get your physician's approval before reserving your tour.

Be advised that in case of illness or accident, Balanzan Tours' liability is limited to transporting the traveller to the nearest medical facility, and/or back to Bamako for an immediate flight home, at the traveller's expense. Missed activities due to illness are refundable on a pro-rata basis, contingent upon refunds provided by suppliers. Appropriate insurance coverage is recommended (see section on Insurance, below).

Yellow Fever immunization is required to enter Mali and neigh boring countries—consult your doctor, travel health clinic.
 Malaria is endemic throughout West Africa. See your doctor for a prescription for a malaria-prevention medication. While on tour travellers should try to prevent mosquito bites by wearing appropriate clothing, and by using an insect-repellent.

If you have special dietary requirements, please inform us; special requirements may be met with advance preparation.

For the health and comfort of all Balanzan Tours clients and staff, all vehicles are No Smoking.

Safety and Security

Travellers' safety and security is Balanzan Tours' first priority. We do not conduct tours to dangerous areas and we always work with local personnel, who are fully apprised of local safety and security conditions.

Please note that for safety reasons, we avoid driving after dark as much as possible. Driver fatigue is an issue, as well as the condition of the local roads (narrow, unlit, not always in good repair). Also, there are many road hazards specific to the nighttimes hours: vehicles frequently without headlights, pedestrians who think they are as visible at night as during the day, and free-ranging farm animals (namely donkeys and cattle) grazing along the roadside.

Travellers are expected to exercise caution in public areas, where pick pocketing may occur. Travellers are also expected to keep their valuables at hand at all times, and to keep their luggage locked. Balanzan Tours is not responsible for articles forgotten or left behind in hotel rooms, restaurants, etc.

Insurance

Travel insurance is recommended, but not required; it is not included in the tour price. In case of accident, Balanzan Tours' responsibility is limited to transport to the nearest medical facility, and/or to Bamako for an immediate flight home, at your expense. Check your existing policies (health, homeowners, student, etc.) to see what coverage you may already have. Otherwise consult one of the specialist travel insurance companies such as Access America (800 284 8300; www.accessamerica.com) or International SOS Assistance (215 245 4707; www.intsos.com). You should consider coverage for medical expenses including evacuation, trip cancellation, and lost luggage or personal effects.

Domestic flights

Tours utilizes the services of local agencies for domestic flights; as such, Compagnie Aérienne du  Mali(CAM) or Mali Air Express (MAE) and Balanzan Tours clients are subject to the policies of these airlines.

Balanzan Tours is not a ticket agency for domestic flights.

For sound but unforeseeable reasons, scheduled domestic flights are sometimes delayed, postponed or cancelled.

Air reservations should be made as early as possible; tickets should be purchased no later than 30-60 days prior to the flight dates, to assure availability.

Purchased tickets are the reservation confirmation; prices are subject to change until tickets are purchased.

Penalties: Reservation cancellations made 15 days or less prior to the reserved flight are subject to 50% cancellation penalty; reservation cancellations made 48 hours or less prior to the reserved flight are non-refundable.

Domestic flights may be replaced by ground transportation, if the domestic flight schedule renders flights impossible within the constraints of a tour and/or the tour dates; in this case, the missed flights are non-refundable as the ticket price will be used to make alternate land arrangements.

The Mopti arrival/departure may be cancelled if there are enough passengers for a direct flight, Bamako-Timbuktu or Timbuktu-Bamako.

Occasionally, the one-way flight to Timbuktu is postponed, and the roundtrip flight to/from Timbuktu is implemented on the same day. When this happens, the time spent in Timbuktu is little more than a few hours, at best.

Due to the uncertainties of flying, cancellation insurance is recommended.

These terms apply to independent tours. Group tours have separate terms, which are tour specific. To confirm a reservation the following deposit and final payment terms must be strictly adhered to and are required at time of reservations.
Deposit Due Per Person is 30% of cost, whichever is greater. We reserve the right to request additional deposits as required by hotels and suppliers for peak periods, such as Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving and New Year. This will be communicated at time of confirmation of booking. Final payments are due at least 60 days before departure. Acceptable forms of payment are: check, money order, wire transfer and major credit cards.
Some international airfares have advance purchase and ticketing requirements, which will be communicated at time of reservation. Additional payment to cover such costs will be requested in order to issue the tickets. Airline carriers impose penalties pursuant to fare rules, and for any changes to post booking air reservations. Reservations received within 60 days of commencement of travel must be paid in full upon confirmation. Reservations received within 30 days of departure date may be subject to a non-refundable rush-booking fee of not less than $25 per person to cover additional expenses incurred in expediting booking. Tours requested within 15 days of travel date will be confirmed subject to special handling requirements, cost, and payment conditions.
The air and tours prices shown are based on tariffs, exchange rates and air-fares in effect at the time of posting, and Balanzan Tours reserves the right to alter prices quoted should such prices be affected by inflation, costs of fuel, labor or material, air fares or foreign exchange rate change.
We do not arrange for loyalty program / mileage free tickets or upgrades, but we will be pleased to provide you with a detailed flight itinerary required for any of these programs.

Tour Prices

Balanzan Tours private tour prices are digressive and depend upon the size of your party; prices are provided upon request. Prices are in Euros, and are subject to change until a tour deposit is received. Prices are per person, double occupancy. If requested, price conversion to US Dollars will be made at the time of payment, at the exchange rate of the day.

Tour itineraries list what is included for that tour price; read this information carefully.
Prices do not include international travel to/from Africa, passport fees, entry visa fees, excess baggage charges, airport taxes, immunizations or other medical services, non-specified meals, alcoholic or other beverages, insurance, tips for tour staff, laundry and other personal expenses.

Cancellation Policy, Refunds

Balanzan Tours' cancellation policy is as follows:
These terms apply only to independent tours. Group tours have separate cancellation penalties, which are tour specific.
Because on the special nature of the tours we offer, suppliers impose rigid cancellation fees. Balanzan Tours has no control over these fees and cannot make any exceptions to these charges.
The following cancellation penalties apply per person:
If a cancellation is received after Balanzan Tours is in possession of the initial deposit, but more than 60 days prior to departure, the cancellation fee incurred will be 50% of the deposit, whichever is higher.
59-36 days prior to departure, cancellation charge is 50% of tour cost, whichever is higher.
35-16 days prior to departure, cancellation charge is  75% of tour cost, whichever is higher.
Less than 16 days before departure, no refund. Cancellation charge is 100% of tour cost.
Depending on the reason for cancellation, your www.travelsafe.com may cover your cancellation fees in whole or in part.
We reserve the right to impose additional penalties as imposed by hotels and other suppliers for peak periods such as, but not limited to, Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, New Year and such other periods which are high season for a particular destination or property.

General Disclaimer
Travellers must understand and accept that participation in any tour may entail certain unpredictable risks and dangers, notably but not limited to river excursions, desert excursions or treks (on foot, horseback or by camel) in any location. Animal behaviour is unpredictable and may cause personal injury. Road accidents can occur anywhere.

Please be aware that precautions are taken to guard against all such dangers, but your safety cannot be guaranteed. Participation in any tour is at your own risk.

Security Matters
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