Price Validity
Published prices are valid at the time of publication but are subject to change. They may be varied by advertising or special offers, or changed after the publication date for any reason, including without limitation, to cover changes in government taxes and charges, exchange rate variations, fuel surcharges, airline charges, a force majeure event or other material increases by suppliers. The most up to date pricing may be found on our website www.botanica.travel. Prices will be confirmed at time of booking and honoured for up to seven days. Once the non-refundable security deposit is paid the price will be guaranteed. All holidays are subject to availability at the time of booking.
Deposits and Final Payments
A non-refundable US$500 per person security deposit is required within seven days of booking.
Final payment is due 100 days prior to departure unless otherwise stated.
Final payment is required at 130 days prior to departure for:
• Landscape & Gardens of Kangaroo Island & the Lower Murray River BTKMR10
• Gardens, Art & Cuisine of the Canal du Midi & theFrench Riviera BTMCC10
• Renaissance Gardens of Italy by Canal Boat & Tuscan Landscapes BTIBC10
• Boutique Canal Cruise & Dutch Tulips During Spring BTDT9
• Luxury Cruise & Floral Diversity of Australia’s Eastern & Southern Coasts BTCSC18
For Australian and New Zealand tours, final payment is due 60 days prior to departure.
Botanica reserves the right to cancel any ticket or booking or, refuse to honour any price or carry any passenger where payment has not been received by Botanica within the specified time. All fares and charges are in US dollar currency. Payment in full is required at the time of booking for reservations made within the final payment period. If a reservation cannot be confirmed, all monies will be refunded.
Price Change
Changes in transportation costs, including the cost of fuel dues, taxes or fees chargeable for services such as landing taxes or embarkation or disembarkation fees at ports and airports and exchange rates mean that the price of your travel arrangements may change after you have booked. However, there will be no price change within 30 days of your departure. We will absorb and you will not be charged for any increase equivalent to 2% of the price of your travel arrangements, which excludes insurance premiums and any amendment charges. You will be charged for the amount over and above that, plus an administration charge of $1 per person together with an amount to cover agents’ commission. If this means that you have to pay an increase of more than 8% of the price of your travel arrangements, you will have the option of accepting a change to another vacation if we are able to offer one (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value), or cancelling and receiving a full refund of all monies paid, except for any amendment charges. Should you decide to cancel you must do so within 14 days from the date on your final invoice. We will consider an appropriate refund of insurance premiums paid if you can show that you are unable to transfer or reuse your policy. Should the price of your vacation go down due to the changes mentioned above, by more than 2% of your vacation cost, then any re-fund due will be paid to you. However, please note that travel arrangements are not always purchased in local currency and some apparent changes have no impact on the price of your travel due to contractual and other protection in place.
Airline Deposits and Payments
The holiday package deposits shown above exclude any commercial airline payments, should Botanica be arranging flights with your booking. The required payments and payment schedule for flights will be advised by your Guest Relations consultant.
Travelling with Minors
Children under 12 years of age are not recommended on tours and cruises. Children under 18 years of age must be accompanied by an adult and share their accommodation with an adult.
Included in Holiday Package Price
All coach and travel, accommodation, airfares (if indicated in individual itinerary), gratuities, airport transfers on the first and last day, sightseeing, specified excursions, meals, admissions, port charges and the services of Botanical Guides and Crew as stated in your itinerary.
Not Included in Holiday Package Price
Airfares (unless stated), airport taxes, meals and drinks other than those specified in the itinerary, passport and visa fees, excess baggage, fuel surcharges, gratuities not specified in your itinerary, vaccinations, government taxes and laundry (unless stated).
Choosing Your Holiday
Holidays operate on nominated dates. To maximise enjoyment of your Botanica holiday and to ensure that it lives up to your expectations, it is important that you choose the right holiday package for your requirements. Our marketing collateral contains limited information, however, there is more information online at www.botanica.travel and our qualified staff are available to discuss your options.
Gratuities
Gratuities for the land portion of your tour, shore excursions, and on board your river or expedition cruises are included within the tour price. Gratuities cannot be redeemed for cash.
Hotels
Hotel rooms in Europe are often smaller than those in Australia and New Zealand. In more remote places, hotel standards may not be quite as high as in major centres. Botanica endeavours to utilise the most suitable accommodation available in each destination to ensure that passengers enjoy high levels of cleanliness, comfort and service. The hotels listed will be used on almost all holiday packages, however, if a change is necessary for any reason, Botanica will endeavour to ensure that alternative accommodation is of an equivalent standard to those shown. Hotel rooms are generally not available for check-in before 3pm and require check-out by 10am.
Twin or Double Rooms
Accommodation in all hotels, regardless of the rating, is in standard rooms (sometimes named superior/deluxe) based on twins or doubles unless otherwise stated.
Solo Travellers
A limited number of single rooms/suites/cabins may be available by request at time of booking your cruise/holiday package. Single room/suites/cabins are not available on certain cruises. Single rooms/suites/cabins are usually smaller than standard twin or double rooms and often only have one single bed.
Cruising – Cabin/Suite/Stateroom Selection
Botanica will make every effort to assign specific cabins, cabin numbers or locations on the ship if requested. If this is not possible, Botanica reserves the right to make changes to cabin assignment, within the category booked, without prior notice.
Passengers Needing Special Assistance
Botanica welcomes passengers with disabilities or special needs however, please note the following:
1. Any disability or medical condition requiring special attention must be reported to Botanica at the time of booking including all important information relating to your health, mobility and fitness which may affect your partial or total participation in the cruise or tour. This information is also crucial to allow Botanica to ensure the tour you have chosen is suitable and meets your needs. Any changes to health, mobility and fitness must also be reported to Botanica as soon as possible and prior to departure. Where possible Botanica will make reasonable adjustments to the tour to accommodate your special needs however, it cannot do so if the adjustment required would be unreasonable in all of the circumstances, including if such adjustments would affect your safety and/or the safety and/or enjoyment of other passengers.
2. If you require special assistance or care (such as pushing a wheelchair, assistance with dressing or assistance with walking or hearing emergency alarms unaided), you must travel with a companion capable of providing the required assistance or care. Please be aware that Botanica does not provide personal assistance and consequently deaf passengers must share accommodation with a person capable of hearing alarms in cabins when travelling on European river cruises. On all other packages, passengers travelling alone who are unable to hear emergency alarms should notify us at the time of booking to ensure necessary arrangements can be made. As Botanica tours frequently include visits to gardens where structured walkways may not be present, it may not be possible to use wheelchairs in such places, and consequentially wheelchair passengers will need to accept the direction of our guides regarding their participation in such visits. Botanica is unable to assist any passenger with walking, dining, boarding or disembarking any transportation vehicles (including river and ocean cruise ships and trains). To safely participate in embarkation and disembarkation you must be able to do so without the need for special assistance. You must also be able to do so without unreasonably impacting other passengers’ safety and/or enjoyment.
3. While Botanica will make reasonable efforts to accommodate the special needs of disabled passengers, it is not responsible for any denial of services by any third party entities it has travel arrangements with, such as carriers, hotels, trains, restaurants or other independent suppliers, or for any additional associated expenses charges by those parties.
4. Please note coaches and minibuses are not equipped with wheelchair ramps. Most river and ocean ships have elevators, however not all Botanica ships have elevators. Many ships require the use of stairs to go between decks. Further, side by side docking may require passengers to climb and descent stairs to cross over vessels to disembark and embark at times. Botanica ships often sail through remote areas that do not have convenient docking facilities. In such circumstances it will be necessary for passengers to negotiate temporary gangplanks and uneven surfaces. If the crew decide that it is not safe for a passenger to negotiate such operations they may require passengers to stay on board. Cabin doors and restrooms may not be wide enough to allow access by standard wheelchairs. Wheelchairs and walkers cannot be carried on coaches, due to space limitations. For safety reasons, passengers in wheelchairs cannot be carried on ramps in ports where the river or ocean cruise ship is at anchor. Botanica is unable to provide individual assistance to any passenger for walking, dining, disembarking or embarking cruise ships and/or coaches or other transportation vehicles or other personal needs.
Health and Fitness
A good level of fitness and health is required to participate on Botanica’s holiday packages. In some destinations there are extensive sightseeing excursions by foot which includes the climbing of stairs. Mobility is needed boarding or alighting coaches, river cruise ships and trains. We recommend a visit to the doctor before travelling to overseas destinations and consult with them regarding any vaccinations which may be required. It is your responsibility to advise Botanica of any pre-existing medical conditions that may affect the normal conduct of a holiday package and the enjoyment of other passengers. A Health, Fitness & Mobility Questionnaire will be provided and requested to be completed at the time of booking if you advise of any health, fitness or mobility issues. Botanica is not liable for any injury, illness, or loss of enjoyment which could have been reasonably prevented had we been made aware of a pre-existing condition and been provided an opportunity to review it. We will not be responsible for any costs associated with cancellation penalties or the return of passengers from a tour, and a refund for lost touring cannot be claimed.
Walking Tours Health and Fitness - BTGW5, BTLHI8, BTNC11 and BTTW7
As most of the sightseeing is by walking a high fitness level is required. Relevant for tours A Walking Wildflower Discovery of the Grampians and Beyond (BTGW5), Discoveries of Lord Howe Island’s Flora, Seabirds & Marine Life (BTLHI8), New Caledonia Walking Tour, with Native Flora, Birdlife & Kanak Culture (BTNC11) and Tasmania’s Wildflowers, Tall Timber Forests & Coastal Walks (BTTW7). Guests must be healthy and fit, with the ability to walk unaided over a variety of terrains up to maximum of 4 hours a day with breaks. Please note that wheelchairs and other walking aides are not suitable for these conditions.
Visa and Passports
All passengers must have a valid passport that is valid for at least six months after the holiday package return date, except Australian residents travelling on domestic tours wholly within mainland Australia, Tasmania and Lord Howe Island. Australian passengers on Australian coastal, and Norfolk Island packages will require valid passports valid for at least six months. Passengers must consult with the appropriate consulates to ensure that they have any applicable visas for countries included in the holiday package prior to departure. Passengers are solely responsible for meeting necessary passport and visa entry requirements and paying all associated costs. Botanica is not responsible for delays or missed portions of the holiday package resulting from incorrect travel documents or visas.
Shore Excursions
The timing of shore excursions on all river ship and expedition ship holiday packages may differ slightly for each package. Published times are a guide only and are subject to change without notice. It is impossible for large coaches to be used for some city sightseeing excursions and many towns and cities will be visited by way of walking tours. For river cruising, clients must be able to climb ramps to embark or disembark river cruise ships. Depending on river water levels, these may have a number of steep steps. Venue closures outside of Botanica’s control may affect our ability to operate some excursions. Holiday packages including time in Switzerland and other alpine regions may include excursions to, at times, high altitudes.
Gardens
We have endeavoured to select an interesting and diverse range of gardens, however we do not accept responsibility for their presentation. Variations to the gardens visited are at the discretion of Botanica. Sometimes published gardens or garden festivals may not be available and will be replaced with an alternative visit wherever possible.
Transfers
Airport transfers are included on the first and last day of the holiday package at designated times. No refund will be given for unused transfers. Transfers cannot be re-routed to other pick-up points or destinations. Passengers who miss the pre-booked transfers must make their own way to/from the hotel at their own expense. A group transfer is generally a shared transfer and the type of vehicle used will normally be dependent upon the size of the group.
Public Holidays & Festivals
Most countries have public holidays, religious or otherwise. Festivities may temporarily disrupt your holiday and some religious holidays may result in a reduction of facilities and entertainment.
Other Special Offers
Special Deals and Special Offers other than those advertised herein may be promoted by Botanica after the program is released. These new special deals/offers do not apply to existing bookings unless otherwise stated. For terms and conditions relating to special deals and special offers are available on our website.