TERMS & CONDITIONS

BOOKING AND PAYMENT CONDITIONS

In our website you will find a small selection of our products and customized activities.

You may ask for additional information, book and confirm your trip by sending us an email to info@essenceofitaly.it or calling +39-0552466800 : our english speaking team is at your disposal for any clarification you may have and will be glad to take care of your specific needs and customize your itinerary.

Once the booking is confirmed and payment is processed you will be provided with a voucher you can deliver to our suppliers in Italy.

Payments :

Essence of Italy accepts all major credit cards (VISA & MASTERCARD).

We do not apply any commission for credit card use. If you prefer different methods of payments, please enquire:
accounts@essenceofitaly.it

Travel agents can decide to settle the payment by credit card for the total net or via wire transfer. Tour Operators can send us a check or wire transfer.

Company:

ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL

Bank name:

Monte dei Paschi di Siena

AGENZIA FIRENZE

Iban code:

IBAN: IT 58 Q 01030 02836 000 000 155409

Swift code:

PASCITM1W32

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Multiday Tours, Packages & Customized Tours (ESSENCE OF ITALY)

1. Introduction. Notion of tourist package

a) the Legislative Decree no. 111 of 17.03.95, concerning the execution of the Directive 90/314/CE, for consumer protection states that both the organizer and the seller of the tourist package asked by the customer, must be licensed for carrying out their activities (art. 3/1, letter A, 111/95 Legislative Decree)

b) the customer has the right to receive a copy of the tourist package sale contract (in accordance with article 6 of the 111/95Legislative Decree), which is the necessary document to apply for the Guarantee Fund in reference to article N. 18 of these general contract terms. The notion of “tourist package” (article 2/1 of 111/95 Legislative Decree) is the following: The objects of tourist packages are journeys, holidays and “alli inclusive” circuits, resulting from the pre-established combination of at least two of the following elements, sold or offered for sale at a flat rate, whose length will exceed 24 hours, that is, at least one night:

a) transportation; b) accommodation; c) tourist services not additional to transportation or accommodation (omissions)... which are an important part of the “tourist package”.

2. Legislative sources

Besides these general conditions, the sale contract of a tourist package is also regulated by the clauses pointed out in the journey documentation, given to the customer. This contract, concerning the arrangement of travel, holiday and single tourist service sales, is also regulated by the Law of 27th Dec.1977 no. 1084, ratified and executed by the Travel Contract International Convention (CCV), subscribed on the 23rd April1970 in Bruxelles. In addition to the above mentioned CCV, the sale contract of a tourist package is also regulated by Legislative Decree n.111/95, emanated as an enforcement of the Directive n.90/314/CE concerning the journey, holidays and “all-inclusive” circuits. Furthermore, the contract at distance signed by the consumer, for all the applications to the contracts for free time services, is subject to the Legislative Decree n. 185 of the 22nd of May 1999, concerning the “Implementation of the 97/7/CE directive about the consumer protection in regard contract at distance”, and to the Legislative Decree n.70 of the 9th of April 2003 concerning the “Implementation of the 2000/31/CE directive about some juridical aspects of the information society in the home market, particularly referred to the e-commerce”

3. Technical data

ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator

P.I. 05270480485 , 12/02/2012

REA 534161

Policy R.C. UNIPOL policy n1/2539/65/67741235.

4. Booking

Booking can only be effected following the consumer acceptance of the general conditions of this contract. The contract is to be considered when ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator has confirmed the booking, with the relevant information, via e-mail, fax or by telephone. Specifications about the package or about a single tourist service are included in the notes and details of the offer (displayed before the booking confirmation), or in other communication tools, as provided by the law in force. ESSENCE OF ITALY is responsible for accommodations , services as well as activities included in the package . However it is clients’ duty to carefully check that hotel and service standards offered are in line with their comfort level and budget needs and to make sure accommodation and service level offered meet their personal expectations before confirming the booking. In case the tourist product created by ESSENCE OF ITALY Tour Operator and published on a brochure requires a minimum number of participants, ESSENCE OF ITALY reserves the right not to carry out the trip if the requested minimum number of participants has not been achieved.

5. Payments

A partial payment of the 30% of the entire participation fee must be deposited at the booking time. The balance must be paid within 30 days prior departure. Bookings made in the 30 days before the beginning of the Experience must be paid immediately.

The payments can be made by either of this:

-Credit card (via credit card authorization which must be filled, accepted and signed by the customer and sent back to EOI)

or

- Bank transfer

Company:

ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL

Bank name:

Monte dei Paschi di Siena

AGENZIA FIRENZE

Iban code:

IBAN: IT 58 Q 01030 02836 000 000 155409

Swift code:

PASCITM1W32

In case of bank transfer payment, it is necessary to send the copy stamped by the bank of the bank transfer through email before h.5pm of the booking day, or the following day in case the booking has been done after that time.

It’s established that in the cases in which rescission penalties of consumer are enforced, as per the following art.8, the organizer is legally entitled by the consumer to hold the amount received as partial payment as valid for the due penalty.

The non-payment of the above-mentioned sums at fixed dates is an explicit resolutory clause, which would determine the rescission of the tourist package sale contract, set apart the compensation for further damages suffered by the organizer.

6. Price

The price of the tourist package is specified in the contract and expressed in EURO.

Extra expenses, such as compulsory fee to pay in loco, are always specified in the notes and details of the offer. The price can be changed until 20 days before departure and only in case of variations of the following: transportation costs,including the fuel cost; taxes and fees on some kinds of tourist services, such as landing and embarkation or disembarkation fees, in ports and airports; exchange rates applied to the package itself. As for such variations, these will be referred to the exchange rates and to the above-mentioned costs, as well as to the relevant prices quoted at the moment of the booking application.

7. Customer rescission without penalty

The customer can withdraw from the Contract, without paying penalties, in the following cases

- Price increases over 10 percent, due to the reasons specified in the above-mentioned art. 6;

- Significant modification of one or more material elements of the contract, which can objectively be defined fundamental fort he fruition of the tourist package taken as a whole, and proposed by the organizer after the contract itself stipulation, but before the departure, not accepted by the customer. In the above-mentioned cases, the customer has, alternatively, the right to:

a) Take advantage of an alternative tourist package, without extra cost or with the return of the overcharge in case the second tourist package is of inferior value than the first one.

b) Get the return of the only amount of money already given. The refund must be effected within seven working days from receiving the refund written application form. The customer will have to submit his decision (to accept the modification or to recede) within and no longer then two working days from the moment in which he has being given the notice of the rise or variation in price. In case of lack of explicit official announcement within the above-mentioned term, the proposal formulated by the organizer is considered accepted.

8. Renunciation prior departure

-In case a registered participant would withdraw from the contract before departure for different reasons than those of art. 7, the tour operator will apply the following penalties, beside the burdens and costs of the services cancellation:

-30% of the total amount if the renunciation is given to the tour operator until 30days before the starting of the booked services

-50% of the total amount if the renunciation is given to the tour operator until 20days before the starting of the booked services

-75% of the total amount if the renunciation is given to the tour operator until 15days before the starting of the booked services

-100% after the above-mentioned terms.

The same amounts have to be paid also by those who cannot take part to the travel because of missing or irregular personal emigration documents. No refund is due to travellers who decide to interrupt the travel or their stay already started.

9. Modification or cancellation prior departure

In case in which ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator , before the departure, gives written communication of its impossibility to supply one or more services of the tourist package , the consumer will have the right to choose another tourist package of the same quality or superior without any additional costs or an inferior tourist package with the restitution of the difference in price, or the customer will be refund of the sum already paid within 7 working days from the moment of the rescission or cancellation, if the cancellation is depending on circumstances not imputable to the customer. The organization can void the contract if the minimum number of participants has not been reached, and on condition that the organizer has given this information before the start of the tourist services. In this case the organizer will have to refund only the amounts perceived within 7 working days from the moment of rescission or cancellation, any other refund excluded.

10. Modification after departure

In case that after the departure the organizer cannot supply, for any reason (apart from circumstances depending on the customer) an essential part of the services included in the contract, alternative solutions will have to be provided to the consumer without extra-charges. If the value of the supplied services is lower than the value of the estimated ones, the value of the difference must be refund. In case no alternative solution is possible, or the solution offered by the organizer has been refused by the customer for serious and justified reasons, the organizer will provide free-of-charge a means of transport equivalent to the original one, which should have also been used for going back to the initial departure point, or to another possibly pre-established place, compatible with availability. The customer will be refunded in accordance with the difference between the cost of the estimated services and the cost of the services granted up to the moment of anticipated return.

11. Transfer of bookings

The customer has the right to be replaced by a different person by giving written notice to ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator. The renouncing client can be replaced by an-other person always if: a) the organizer has been informed in writing at least 4 working days before the fixed departure date, receiving at the same time a notice concerning the name and address of the assignee; b) the substitute meets all the conditions for the fruition of the service (ex article 10 of Leg. Decree 111/95), requirements relating to the pass-port, visas health certificates, hotel accommodation and transport services ; c) the replacing person has to pay a substitution fee of €50 which is to cover all the expenses concerning the substitution. The renouncing customer is severally responsible for the payment of the settlement by the assignor ,as well as for the costs under letter c) of this article.

As for some kinds of services, it may happen that a third party service supplier does not accept the modification of the assignee name, even if it has been carried out within the terms under letter a) of the present article. ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator will not be responsible for the possible non-acceptance of the modification by thirdparty service suppliers. This non-acceptance will be immediately communicated by ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator to the parties before departure.

12. Participants obligations

The participants have to be equipped with personal passports or other documents valid for the destination Country, with the health certificate if required. Furthermore, the tourist will have to follow ordinary cautiousness and diligence rules, and specific rules effective in the destination countries, all the information supplied by the organizer, as well as the regulations and administrative and/or legislative provisions regarding the tourist package. The participants will be asked to answer for all the damage suffered by the organizer because of their incapacity to follow the above-mentioned obligations. The customer must provide the organizer with all the documents, the information and the elements owned by himself, which might be useful for exercising the subrogation right of the latest towards third parties, responsible for the damage. The customer is held responsible by the organizer for the detriment of the subrogation right. At the moment of the booking, the customer will also communicate, in writing, to the organizer the details needed which might possibly be part of specific agreements, such as journey instructions, provided their accomplishment is possible.

13. Hotel classification

The official classification of hotel structures is given in the catalogue (in paper or electronic) or in other information material, in case it will be explicitly and formally pointed out by the competent authorities of the country in which the service is supplied. In absence of official classifications recognized by the competent Public Authorities of the countries members of the European Union, to which the service refers with the aim of pointing out in detail the quality characteristics of the hotel accommodations offered and making the customer well aware of his choice

ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator reserves the right to supply, in catalogue or leaflet, its own quality evaluation of the receptive structure.

14. Responsibility

The organiser is responsible for the damage caused to the customer because of the total or partial default of the services described in the contract, either if these are performed by himself or third-party suppliers, unless he proves that the event depends on the customer (including initiatives taken by himself independently, during the execution of tourist services), or on events not linked with the supply of the services described in the contract, fortuitous events, act of God, or by circumstances that the organizer itself might not reasonably foresee or solve, on the basis of a principle of professional care. Under no circumstances will the seller receiving the booking of the tourist package answer for the obligations coming from the travel organization. However, the seller is solely responsible for the obligations coming from its intermediary activity, in conformity with the responsibility limits fixed by the above-mentioned laws or conventions.

ESSENCE OF ITALY SRL Tour Operator, is also responsible for the privacy of the consumer data, exclusively when these arrive on the database and not during their transmission.

15. Compensation limits

Under no circumstances, the organizer compensation will be higher than the compensation indemnities described by international conventions, with reference to the performances whose non-fulfillment caused the responsibility, that is the Warsaw Convention of 1929 about international air transportation, the text modified at The Hague in 1955; the Berna Convention (CIV) about railway transportation; the Bruxelles Convention of 1970 (CCV) about the organizer responsibility. In any case, the compensation limit cannot exceed the sum of 2,000 Germinal gold francs for property damage, fixed in article 13 no. 2 CCV, and 5,000 Germinal gold francs for any other damage”, as well as for those fixed in art.1783 of Civil Code. In case of the change of these conventions, or formulation of international new ones concerning the services objects of the tourist package, the indemnity limits will be applied according to the law in force at the moment of the unfortunate event.

16. Obligation of assistance

The organizer is obliged to perform assistance to the customer, on the basis of a professional diligence principle, solely with reference to its obligations, or by contract or law regulation. The organizer and the seller are exempted from their responsibilities (art. 13 and 14), when the unsuccessful or wrong execution of the contract depends on the customer or depend on an inevitable or unforeseeable third-party event, or on a fortuitous or act by God event.

17. Complaints and charges

Every unsuccessful execution of the contract must be notified by the customer on the very moment of its happening. In this way, the organizer or its local representative can immediately find a remedy for it. The customer can make a complaint by sending a registered letter, with receipt note, to the organizer, within 10 working days from the date of the return to the place of the departure. If complaints happen in the execution place of the tourist services, the organizer has to assist the costumer according to art.13 in order to find a prompt an equal solution. In the same way, even in case of complaint reported at the end of the service, the organizer will have to provide and guarantee in any case a prompt answer to the customer request.

18. Insurance

Before departure, it is highly recommended to purchase on own a personal insurance policy covering expenses deriving from the cancellation of the tourist package, illnesses, accidents and lost luggage.

19. Guarantee Fund

In case of insolvency or bankruptcy of the organizer, the customer can turn to the “National Guarantee Fund For the Consumer of the Tourist Package”, in accordance with the Ministerial Regulation n.349 of the 23 July 1999 for the achievement of the following needs:

a) refund of the price paid for services entirely or partially not enjoyed;

b) repatriation, in case of journeys to foreign countries.

c) an immediate economic availability in case of forced return of tourists from non-EC members, on occasion of emergencies due or not due to the organizer’s behavior.

Apart from urgent circumstances, when is possible to address directly to the competent diplomatic representations, to obtain the Found intervention a written demand must be presented describing the situation, expenses, and including the original travel contract and all the payments made, to the following address:

Ministero delle Attività Produttive,

Direzione Generale per il Turismo , Ufficio C1 -Tutela del Turista, Via della Ferratella, 51 00184 Roma. e-mail: fondodigaranzia@tin.it –fax n. 06 773 –626

The procedure to make use of the Fund are fixed by means of the President of the Council of Ministers Decree ,in conformity with art. 21 no. 5, Legislative Decree 111/95).

20. Place of jurisdiction / arbitration clause

All disputes between the two parties in connection with this Contract shall take place in the Court in which the organiser is located. With one accord it could be foreseen that the controversies from the application, interpretation, contract execution, will be up to an Arbitration Tribunal, composed by the same amount of designed arbiters as the number of parties in cause plus one as President nominated by the designed arbiters, that is, in absence of the Tribunal President, where the organizer is legally located. The Arbitration Board located in the organizer legal office will ritually decide according to the law, prior an eventual tentative of reconciliation.

ADDENDUM

Compulsory note according to the Italian Law n.269/98, article 16. The Italian Law punishes the crimes concerning prostitution and juvenile pornography by means of reclusion, even if these crimes are committed abroad.

The organization cannot accept responsibility for damage caused by third parties or for reasons beyond their control, and cannot be held responsible for the loss of valuables, luggage or objects during excursions.