Terms and Conditions.

The following provisions are an integral part of the travel contract concluded between you and Ameropa Reisen. These provisions amend the statutory provisions of §§ 651a-m BGB (German Civil Code) and §§ 4-11 of the “Verordnung über Informations-und Nachweispflichten nach bürgerlichem Recht” as implemented by German civil law due to Directive 90/314/EEC on Package Travel and Holiday Tours.

Terms and Conditions

Booking Conditions (February 2012)
Contents
1. Conclusion of Contracts
2. Payment
3. Services
4. Changes in Service and Price
5. Cancellation prior to departure/Cancellation fees
6. Changes, Booking Transfers, Replacement Passengers
7. Unused Services
8. Force Majeure
9. Cancellation by Ameropa-Reisen
10. Dismissal on grounds of conduct
11. Passenger´s Obligations
12. Limitation of Liability
13. Cut-Off Period for Claims
14. Limitation of Actions
15. Passport, Visas and Health Requirements
16. Insurance
17. Applicable Laws
18. Data Privacy
19. Place of Jurisdiction
Postal Address:

1.1 Your booking shall be deemed as a firm tender for the conclusion of contract. Any industrial resale of tours or its parts (such as tickets) is prohibited. The basis of your offer is what we advertise including any supplementary information for the relevant journey.

1.2 Agents (e.g. travel agencies) and service providers (e.g. hotels, carriers) are not authorized to modify travel contracts or exceed Ameropa´s contractual obligations by agreement or any kind of assurance. The same is true for providing any kind of information that is contrary to what we advertise.

1.3 We will accept your booking both orally and in writing and via telephone, telefax message or by e-mail/Internet. If you book your journey via e-mail/Internet we will acknowledge the receipt in the same way.

1.4 In case of either explicit or separate declaration of commitment you will be obliged to perform your contractual duties as well as fellow passenger´s duties.

1.5 The contract will be concluded with the receipt of Ameropa´s acceptance which does not require a special form. Ameropa will forward a booking confirmation at the time of or immediately upon conclusion of contract. This does not apply to bookings made less than seven (7) business days prior to the day of departure.

1.6 Variations from Ameropa´s acceptance and booking will be deemed to be a new offer which will be binding for a period of ten (10) days. The contract will be concluded based on that new offer unless specified otherwise. Any kind of unreserved payment or prepayment will be considered as acceptance.

2.1 Ameropa-Reisen and its agents accept payments prior to the end of your journey only in the event of the delivery of the “Sicherungsschein”. After the conclusion of contract and on delivery of the “Sicherungsschein” the prepayment is due in the amount of 20% of the travel price. The final payment is payable in full at the time of collection of your travel documents (about eight (8) days prior to departure) but not before delivery of your “Sicherungsschein”. This applies to all cases of cash payment. In any case of payment by MasterCard or VISA the credit card needs to be presented at the time of booking while the credit card receipt needs to be signed. Please keep in mind that the payment process must be instigated about 28 days prior to departure. The travel documents will be available about eight (8) days prior to departure.

2.2 If any payment (prepayment and final payment) is not remitted or is delayed (default of payment), despite having issued a reminder, then Ameropa shall be entitled to cancel the contract and to claim damages pursuant to the cancellation policy relating to the booking as set out in subparagraphs 5.2 to 5.5.

3.1 Basis of the contract is what Ameropa-Reisen advertises in any media. We reserve the right to modify catalogue information prior to the conclusion of contract. Ameropa is obliged to inform about these modifications prior to booking.

3.2 Ameropa will not accept any liability for any kind of information, such as hotel leaflets or internet promotion, not provided for by Ameropa unless otherwise expressly agreed.

3.3 For all bookings including half board, full board or all-inclusive the boarding service will begin with dinner on the day of arrival and will end with breakfast on the day of departure.

3.4 If your ski pass is included in the travel price, Ameropa will not accept any refund even in case of no or limited services by the operator (e.g. weather or maintenance). The same is true for guests not making use of their ski pass at all or on a given day. We would like to point out that operators reserve the right to open up or close down business without preannouncement later or earlier to the end of the season.

3.5 The hotels that Ameropa-Reisen offers are officially sanctioned by local authorities and are run in accordance with local governmental provisions. Unless otherwise expressly agreed the accommodation will be in standard rooms. All rooms will be ready for occupancy between two (2) and three (3) p.m. (date of arrival) and will be available until ten (10) a.m. (date of departure). In case of not arriving at your destination on your scheduled day of arrival or arriving after six (6) p.m. you must notify the front desk. You will find the relevant telephone numbers in your travel documents. Unless otherwise expressly agreed all extra hotel services are fee required (e.g. sauna). We would like to point out that many hotels claim deposits paid for either in cash or by credit card for services not included in the travel price, such as but not limited to minibars or call charges. As a general rule “half-board” means that your dinner will be included. This does not necessarily mean that your dinner will be a warm meal especially on closing days. If you have booked full-board and your first meal during your vacation will be lunch, the service will end with breakfast on your scheduled day of departure. If your first meal will be dinner, the service will end with lunch. Packed lunch shall be deemed as full-value meals. For variations refer to the scale or your schedule.

3.6 If you want to bring any pets an application and permission of the relevant service provider (e.g. renter) will be required. Pets must be applied for at the time of booking. The following details are required for the application: breed, its weight and size. As a general rule fighting dogs are not permitted. The aforementioned even applies to cases where pets are permitted as per Ameropa´s advertising. As a general rule only one pet will be allowed. If you want to bring more than one you must obtain the service provider´s permission. The costs must be paid for on-site. It shall be understood that pets must not cause annoyance for other guests and are not allowed to be brought to some restaurants, pools or beaches. On the other hand a ban on pets does not necessarily mean that there will be no pets on-site.

3.7 The child reduction is based on the age of your children during your stay and not their age at the time of booking. The additional costs for childbeds or baby cots have to be paid for on the spot. This applies regardless of granted child reductions. For more information about child reduction on-site, refer to the scales of prices.

3.8 Holiday flats and holiday homes have to be occupied with the advertised and confirmed number of guests at the max. Unless otherwise expressly agreed, children shall be deemed as “regular guests” regardless of age.

3.9 As far as an “extra bed” is concerned it might well be that your extra bed will be a couch, cot or slumberette placed in your flat or room. These might be smaller than regular beds. Anyhow you will have to deal with less living space and less space to stow luggage.

4.1 Ameropa reserves the right to modify services even after the conclusion of contract as long as modifications are necessary, not in bad faith, not considerable and do not change the contract in its entirety.

4.2 As far as modified services are concerned, warranty claims remain unaffected.

4.3 Ameropa-Reisen is obliged to inform immediately about considerable modifications in services as soon as Ameropa knows about the reason for changes.

4.4 As far as cruises are concerned only the skipper in charge of the ship shall have full authority on whether, when and how the cruise shall be operated (e.g. changes in times or routes due to safety or weather reasons). If the skipper needs to modify routes on river cruises due to high or low tide Ameropa-Reisen undertakes to provide an alternative.

4.5 Ameropa-Reisen reserves the right to modify any published and confirmed prices in the event of an increase of costs for transportation or charges levied by government agencies, local authorities, other official authorities or by airport companies, such as harbor fees or airport charges and airport passenger taxes. The same is true for any changes in foreign exchange rates applying to your journey. The aforementioned applies to any cases where the time span between the conclusion of contract and your scheduled day of departure is at least four (4) months. The modification of published and already confirmed prices will be in accordance with the following calculation:

a) in the event of an increase of costs per unit or seat we will charge you with the full increase;

b) in any other case we will charge you with the increase per seat, meaning that we will divide the full increase by the number of available seats and share the expenses.

4.6 In any case of considerable changes in service or an increase of more than five (5)% of your total holiday costs you will either be entitled to cancel the contract free of charge or demand to participate in an at least equivalent tour as long as Ameropa-Reisen is able to provide an alternative without extra charges. No matter what option you will be going for, you will be obliged to inform Ameropa-Reisen about your decision without delay after being notified about changes/increase.

5.1 You are entitled to cancel your booking prior to departure. The cancellation needs to be forwarded to the given address (see below). In case of booking via one of Ameropa´s agents, Ameropa-Reisen accepts the cancellation of contract via the relevant agent. We strongly recommend to cancel in written.

5.2 If you cancel your booking prior to departure or no-show for departure, Ameropa-Reisen will lose its claim for the travel price. However, Ameropa-Reisen is entitled to claim adequate compensation for already made arrangements and expenses depending on the relevant travel price. This applies to cases where the cancellation is not to be traced back to the fact of force majeure or attributable to Ameropa’s fault.

5.3 Ameropa’s claim for compensation is temporally scaled. This means that we will calculate our claims in due consideration of the date of cancellation (the receipt of cancellation will be the deciding factor) and your travel price. Furthermore we will take due account, however, of any expenditure which we normally save as a result of any cancellation of the contract or through reallocation.

Cancellation options at a glance:

5.3.1 Standard fees:

A. “Hotels, Boardinghouses etc.”:
Up to 30 days before departure 20 %;
29-22 days 25 %;
21-15 days 35 %;
14- 7 days 50 %;
6- 2 days 65 %;
1 day or no-show 80 % of the relevant travel price.

B. “Holiday Flats and Holiday Homes”:
Up to 45 days prior to commencement of the rental time 20 % of the rental instalment;
44-35 days 50 %;
34- 3 days 80 %;
2 days and no-show 90 %.

5.3.2 Exceptions to the standard regulation:

5.3.2.1 “Bahn-Erlebnisreisen weltweit”
The fees apply in addition to the cost of visas issued and ordered

A. Train travel adventures (Exceptions, see below):
Up to 60 days before departure 20 %;
59–30 days 25 %;
29–16 days 50 %;
15- 3 days 80 %;
2 days and no-show 90 %.

B. Travels including ship passages and routes:
Up to 60 days before departure 20 %;
59-35 days 30 %;
34-22 days 50 %;
21- 3 days 90 %;
2 days and no-show 95 %.

C. For the following tours special cancellation fees are valid:

C1. Orient Express p. 44–46; Royal Scotsman p. 47:
Up to 56 days before departure 20 %;
55-43 days 30 %;
42-29 days 60 %;
28- 3 days 80%;
2 days 90%;
no-show 95%.

C2. El Expreso de la Robla p. 52; El Transcantabrico p. 53:
Up to 60 days before departure 20 %;
59–30 days 25 %;
29–16 days 50 %;
15- 3 days 80 %;
2 days and no-show 100 %.

C.3 Bernstein-Schienenerlebnis p. 57, Zarengold p. 60-65, Mit der Transsibirischen Eisenbahn von Moskau nach Peking p. 66, Chinesische Seidenstraße Peking - Almaty p. 68, Auf Schienen zum Dach der Welt p. 69, 1001 Nacht Istanbul - Damaskus p. 70, Sonderzugreise Registan: Astana - Aschgabat p. 71, Auf Schienen durch das Land der Maharadschas p. 75, Goldener Ahorn p. 76, USA - Von New York nach Los Angeles p. 77, Südstaaten & Kupferschluchten p. 78, Abenteuer Anden: Argentinien, Bolivien & Peru p. 79, Im Desert Express durch Namibia p. 81, Auf Schienen durch die Weiten Australiens p. 82:

Up to 92 days before departure 15 %;
91-42 days 45 %;
41-11 days 80 %;
10 days and no-show 90 %.

5.3.2.2 "Radtouren“

A. Bicycle tours

Up to 60 days before departure 20 %;
59-30 days 30 %;
29-16 days 50 %;
15- 3 days 80 %;
2 days and no-show 90 %.

B. Sailing trip experiences and combined bicycle and boat tours:

Up to 60 days before departure 20 %;
59-35 days 30 %;
34-22 days 50 %;
21- 3 days 90 %;
2 days and no-show 100 %.

5.3.2.3 In case of booking transfers or cancellation of packages that include tickets (e.g. for sporting events or concerts), Ameropa-Reisen is entitled to claim compensation for the booking transfer or cancellation as well as the full ticket price. The same applies to separately booked tickets.

5.4 You have the right to provide us with evidence that no losses have been incurred or that the loss is substantially lower.

5.5 Ameropa-Reisen reserves the right to claim higher compensation as set out in the “cancellation options at a glance”. In this case Ameropa-Reisen is obliged to put a figure and to provide evidence on the compensation claimed. Furthermore we must take due account of any expenditure which we normally save as a result of any cancellation of the contract or through reallocation.

6.1 Any changes in booking are fee required. We will charge you for changes with
€ 15,- per booking.

6.2 There is no right to change dates, destination, place of departure, accommodation or mode of transport (booking transfers) after the conclusion of contract. If we change your booking as requested, however, Ameropa-Reisen will be entitled to charge you as follows:
- hotels and boardinghouses up to 30 days before departure, € 15,- per head,
- holiday flats and holiday homes up to 45 days prior to commencement of the rental time, € 34,- per unit.
We will not accept any changes after expiry of the aforementioned terms. Booking transfers after expiry of the aforementioned terms require the fee required (please refer to subparagraph 5.2 to 5.5) cancellation of contract in connection with a new booking.

6.3 You are entitled to claim a third party to adopt your contract. We may oppose the change of passengers if the replacement passenger does not meet the special requirements in relation to the journey or if to do so would conflict with statutory provisions or official directives. In any case we will charge our additional costs for hotels, boarding houses etc. (€ 15,- per head) and holiday flats and holiday homes
(€ 34,- per unit). The passenger and the replacement passenger are liable as joint and several debtors for both the travel price and the aforementioned additional costs.

Ameropa-Reisen will not accept to refund any unused services that we contractually offered (e.g. because of premature departure or other reasons). We will attempt, however, to make our service providers refund expenditures which they saved as a result of unused services. This will not apply to minor and irrelevant services or if compensation would conflict with statutory provisions or official directives.

In any event of cancellation due to force majeure we would like defer to § 651j BGB (German Civil Code). § 651j BGB reads analogous as follows:

(1) Both the Tour Operator and the passenger are entitled to cancel the contract solely under the provisions of the present § 651j BGB in case of considerable complication, danger or annoyance to the journey.

(2) In the event of the cancellation due to subparagraph 1, the provisions of § 651e subparagraph 3 clause 1 and 2, subparagraph 4 clause 1 BGB will apply. The Parties will share additional costs for the back haul. Any other additional costs will be placed to the debit of the passenger.

Ameropa-Reisen reserves the right to cancel the contract in the event of not matching the needed minimum number of participants (if advertised). Ameropa-Reisen undertakes to inform immediately about not matching the aforementioned requirements and will submit an advice of cancellation without delay. Ameropa-Reisen is furthermore entitled to exercise its right to cancel immediately at an earlier date if we definitely know that we will not match the necessary requirements. In any of the aforementioned cases we will immediately refund payments received.

Ameropa-Reisen reserves the right to cancel without previous notice (after warning) if your behavior is such that other guests feel deeply annoyed or the immediate cancellation of contract is justified by other infringements of contract. Ameropa´s claim for the travel price remains unaffected. We will take due account, however, of any expenditure which we save as a result of any cancellation of the contract or through reallocation.

11.1 Notice of Defects
You are entitled to demand remedy in any case of Ameropa-Reisen not being able to provide contractual services. However, you are obliged to notify Ameropa-Reisen of any defects without delay. If you contravene culpably Ameropa-Reisen will not accept any reduction of travel price. The aforementioned shall not apply to cases where notification appears to have no prospect of success or appears to be unreasonable.
It is your obligation to forward your complaints to Ameropa´s representative on-site. In destinations without representatives on-site you are obliged to forward your complaints to our service providers (hotel management, renter etc.; you will find the relevant addresses in your travel documents) or directly to Ameropa-Reisen, Bad Homburg. Both our representatives and our service providers are instructed to arrange remedy if possible. Neither our representatives nor our service providers are entitled to accept claims.

11.2 Setting a deadline prior to cancellation
You will be obliged to allow a reasonable period of time for remedy if you want to cancel your contract because of travel defects, as per § 651e BGB. The same is true for any termination for cause.
The aforementioned does not apply if Ameropa-Reisen denies remedy or remedy appears to be impossible. The same is true for any termination with immediate effect because of a passenger´s special, foreseeable, legitimate interest.

11.3 Travel Documents
You are obliged to notify Ameropa-Reisen in the event of your travel documents (e.g. tickets or vouchers) not being submitted within the period stipulated in subparagraph 2.1 of Ameropa´s present Booking Conditions.

11.4 Limitation of Damage
You are obliged to prevent and limit damages to a minimum. Furthermore you are obliged to notify Ameropa-Reisen about any signs of damages.

12.1 Ameropa´s contractual liability for damages, except personal injury, is limited to three (3) times the amount of your total holiday costs, if

a) you did not cause damages in an intentional or negligent manner,

b) damages are solely attributable to one of our service provider´s faults.

12.2 Ameropa-Reisen accepts its tort liability for material damages up to the amount of three (3) times of your total holiday costs, if the damage is not to be based on intentional behavior or gross negligence. The aforementioned limitation of liability applies to each passenger per journey. Carriage may be subject to the liability regulations set out in the Montreal Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air which governs, and where applicable limit, the liability for loss or damage to luggage and for delays. These provisions remain unaffected.

12.3 Ameropa-Reisen does not accept liability for defaults and personal or material damages relating to brokered events arranged for by third party suppliers (e.g. excursions, sporting events, visits to a theatre, exhibitions, carriage to and from the place of departure to your final destination). This particularly applies to all services advertised for or confirmed as brokered services arranged for by service providers so that it appears to be evident that the relevant services do not form part of the travel contract.

Ameropa-Reisen accepts liability for

a) services concerning carriage from your scheduled place of departure to your scheduled destination and carriage and accommodation during your journey,

b) damages caused by Ameropa-Reisen not attending its duties to indicate or inform passengers about certain aspects of the journey. The same applies to damages caused by Ameropa-Reisen not attending its organizing duties.

The cut-off period for contractual claims is one (1) month, with effect from the day your journey ends, as per travel contract. The term shall only be deemed as kept if you forward your claim to Ameropa´s following address. After expiry of the term your claims will be cut-off, unless you provide us with clear evidence that the failure to meet the deadline was not attributable to your fault.

14.1 The statutory period of limitation for claims for personal damages, as per §§ 651c-651f BGB, due to Ameropa´s negligent behavior or negligent or intentional behavior of one of Ameropa´s statutory representatives or agents, will be two (2) years. The same applies to any other claims for damages due to Ameropa´s gross negligence or gross negligent or intentional behavior of one of Ameropa´s statutory representatives or agents.

14.2 Alle The statutory period of limitation for all other claims, as per §§ 651c-651f BGB, will be one (1) year.
14.3 Both the statutory period of limitation of one (1) and two (2) year/s, as per subparagraph 11.1 and 11.2, take effect one (1) day after passengers should have arrived back home, as per travel contract.
14.4 As long as the parties negotiate about claims made, the statute of limitations will be suspended until one of the parties refuses to keep on negotiating.
The claims made will become time-barred after three (3) months of the end of the suspension at the earliest.

15.1 German nationals will find a summary of needed requirements at http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de. Ameropa-Reisen assumes that none of the passengers or fellow passengers need to be treated in a special way because of certain characteristics (e.g. stateless persons or dual citizenship). As far as nationals of other countries are concerned we strongly recommend to gather the relevant information from the relevant consulate.

15.2 You are required, and it is entirely your responsibility, to obtain the necessary travel documents and vaccinations (if necessary). The same applies to the compliance with customs and foreign currency regulations. Ameropa-Reisen shall not be liable for the consequences which befall you as a result of failing to obtain the necessary papers or failing to observe the relevant regulations or instructions (e.g. cancellation fees).

We strongly recommend that you take out a special Ameropa travel cancellation insurance (RRV)* provided for by the “Europäische Reiseversicherung”. (*minus the insurer´s retention as per insurance conditions)

The travel contract shall be governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany and shall be construed in accordance with German court rulings. The same is true for legal consequences (e.g. scope of liability) in cases where passengers do not proceed legally in Germany but abroad.

18.1 You hereby acknowledge that you provided Ameropa-Reisen with your personal data for the following purposes: to perform the contract, to inform its customers and to customize our products. Ameropa-Reisen undertakes not to forward any of your data outside of the DB-Corporation.

18.2 You are entitled to cancel the aforementioned agreement by informal written notice at any time. In the event of you cancelling the agreement, Ameropa-Reisen will erase all your data to those which are absolutely necessary for the performance of contract without delay.

18.3 Your data will be saved and protected from abuse in accordance with the BDSG (Federal Data Protection Act).

19.1 All actions against Ameropa-Reisen need to be brought to Ameropa´s place of registered office in Bad Homburg v.d.H..

19.2 All actions against passengers need to be brought to the competent court at the passenger´s registered residence. All actions against businessmen, corporate bodies under public law, legal persons under private law need to be brought to the competent court at Ameropa´s place of registered office in Bad Homburg v.d.H..
The same applies to complaints against persons having their registered or habitual residence abroad or persons with unknown registered or habitual residence.

19.3 The aforementioned provisions will not apply

c) if international agreements are applicable (and not modifiable) to the contract which differ in favor of the customer or

d) if national laws provided for by the customer´s country and applicable to the contract differ from the following provisions or German Laws in favor of the customer.

Ameropa-Reisen GmbH
61343 Bad Homburg v.d.H.
Germany