Booking Terms and Conditions
Dawson Travel strongly recommends you print a copy of the "Booking Terms and Conditions" for future reference.
Should you have any queries, please email us at info@dawsontravel.ie or call us on: 021 - 4274397
1. Contract:
These conditions govern all bookings with Dawson Travel (the Company), whose registered office is at 35 Princes St, Cork. The company acts as a Travel Agent which under the PACKAGE HOLIDAYS AND TRAVEL TRADE ACT, 1995 is defined as a person other than a carrier who as agent sells or offers to sell to, or purchases or offers to purchase on behalf of, any person, accommodation or air, sea or land transport commencing in the State to destinations outside the State or Northern Ireland or who holds himself out by advertising or otherwise as one who may make available such accommodation, either solely or in association with other accommodation, facilities or services;”.
Our Responsibility
Your contract is with the supplier(s) (e.g. the airline or hotel supplier) concerned. We act only as a Travel Agent and have no liability for any of the travel arrangements and in particular any liability for any illness, personal injury, death or loss of any kind.
Flight only and or individual travel arrangements
Flights, or Flights plus hotel arrangements hereafter defined as “individual travel arrangements” generally offer much greater flexibility than Tour Operator Package Holidays, giving the traveller the opportunity to choose from a greater selection of flights for a range of durations. Individual Travel arrangements may consist of a combination of flights, accommodation, car hire, transfers and travel insurance as required. Each booking is a separate and distinct booking and your bookings, even though they may be linked to the same dates of travel do not constitute a package holiday. All bookings are purchased individually at their own individual price. The total price for several bookings is the sum of the price charged for each individual booking, which will include Travel Agent commission. Charter flights and Tour Operator Package Holidays available on this web site are fully protected via the scheme operated by the The Commission for Aviation Regulation ("CAR"). Refunds are provided by the CAR direct to you.
Any booking made or order placed by you, whether through the Company's website or otherwise, shall be deemed an offer by you to purchase the relevant package or other holiday arrangement subject to these booking conditions and it shall be at the Company's discretion to accept the offer; said acceptance shall be deemed to exist on dispatch of a confirmation invoice to the client by the Company.
No contract between you and the Company shall come into existence until the Company accepts full payment and issues a confirmation invoice. All contracts with the Company and all matters arising from them are subject to Irish law and to the exclusive jurisdiction of Irish courts. The person who makes the booking accepts these conditions on behalf of all members of the party and is responsible for all payment due from the party.
Booking services with the company are currently only available to persons who are at least 18 years old. By submitting a booking you warrant and confirm to us that you comply with those arrangements.
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2. Payment by Credit / Debit card
Payment on booking requests made on the website can be made by Visa or Mastercard, or by debit cards. The Company reserves the right to charge you in addition for any handling fees incurred by us in relation to bookings made by credit cards, these fees are currently 2.5% for visa and mastercard. Payments made by debit card card do not incur a fee.
In accordance with mail order regulations, all documents will be posted to the billing address of the credit card holder and not the address of the passenger (unless they are one and the same).
We strongly recommend that all documents be sent to you by registered Post or Courier Service to your home, office or departure airport for an additional fee. Documents can be mailed by First Class post, but the Company will not accept responsibility for documents mislaid or lost in the post. Lost or mislaid tickets may require full payment to be made again, pending a refund of the original documents. Refunds will not be paid to you until they have been received by the Company from the relevant airline or consolidator. This usually takes 8-10 weeks but in some cases (e.g. lost tickets) may take considerably longer, i.e. up to 6 months. The minimum charge will incur a reissue fee levied by the airline, in addition to a €40.00 amendment fee.
Please note we can only accept credit cards for clients who have a billing address in Ireland.
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3. Alterations and Cancellation by you:
(a) Alteration: Any alterations will be treated as a cancellation and rebooking and the cancellation charges set out in paragraph (b) below will be payable.
(b) Cancellation: You or any member of your party may cancel your booking at any time providing that the cancellation is made by the person making the booking and is communicated to us in writing. The minimum charges that will be applied are outlined below, and are based on the day the written cancellation is received and whether documents have been issued.
(c) Changes - you or any member of your party may change a booking should the airline permit. An administration fee of €75 will be applied per change per ticket, before ticket issue, in addition to the airline charge.
Type of arrangements:
(i) Flight Only Refunds
The amount returned by the airline for refund is subject to a 20% or €75 administration fee per ticket (whichever is greater in value) in addition to a cancellation fee charged by the airline.
(ii) Individual Travel Arrangements
Period before departure* Amount of Cancellation of the holiday price
More than 2 weeks before departure - 75%
Less than 2 weeks before departure - 100%
Failure to arrive at point of departure 100%
**NB - Some travel arrangements may be liable to 100% cancellation fees - this will be advised at the time of booking.
You will be notified on your confirmation invoice if different cancellation charges apply.
*Note: All airline tickets, particularly promotional fares, are payable in full on booking and are non-refundable regardless of the date OR reason for cancellation. In all cases, unused car rental portions or vouchers are non-refundable. If for any reason you are unable to present your car hire voucher to the respective supplier and are billed locally for the charges, the Company will reimburse the price you paid for such voucher but not the charges paid locally. Please see the insurance page for details of cover and charges.
Please note that an Administration fee of €50 per person ( €100 per family ) applies on all cancellations.
(iii) Tour Operator Package Holidays
Holidays must be paid for in full at least 12 weeks before the scheduled date of departure or if the contract is made later than 12 weeks before the scheduled date of departure, it must be paid for in full on the signing of the BOOKING FORM or agreeing. Cancellation for Non-Payment. If the holiday is not paid for by the due date, the Organiser shall have the right to cancel the holiday. If the Organiser, at the request of the Consumer or Retailer, agrees to delay cancellation of the holiday, then if the Organiser subsequently cancels for non-payment, the cancellation charges set out below shall apply and be payable by the Consumer. Because of the ever changing nature of airfare structures and the increasing availability of instant purchase air fares and tickets with restricted conditions most of the flights which we sell must be paid for in full at the time of booking together with our normal deposit. Such airfares are non refundable and accordingly cancellation of holidays involving instant purchase/ticketed and restricted conditioned flights will incur loss of airfare together with our standard cancellation charges as detailed below. All cancellation charges apply to each person covered by a booking. As cancellation cover applies immediately, any insurance premium paid is not refundable.
More than 12 weeks before the departure date any deposit paid shall be forfeited.
Within 12-8 weeks of departure 70% of the cost of the holiday is forfeited.
Within 8-4 weeks 80% of the cost of the holiday is forfeited.
Within 4 weeks of departure – 100% of the cost of the holiday is forfeited
Please note that an Administration fee of €50 per person ( €100 per family ) applies on all cancellations.
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4. Alterations by the Company:
Although the Company makes every effort to ensure that published descriptions are correct, it does not own or operate airlines and other suppliers and cannot control or prevent changes. The Company therefore reserves the right to change the description of any flight and/or ground service before you book, in which case you will be told before a confirmation invoice is issued.
(a) Flight only or Individual Travel Arrangements: Alterations to bookings of this kind are infrequent. Although under no obligation to do so, the Company will endeavour to notify all changes before departure if it is practicable to do so. (Please see section 13 Flights.) No compensation is payable by the Company in such cases. Should a schedule change occur to your itinerary after full balance/ticket issue, on either the outbound, or return flights the relevant suppliers decision will be final.
(b) Tour Operator Package Holidays: Occasionally due to reasons beyond the Company's control, the Tour Operator may amend the flights and/or other services which make up a package booking after it has been confirmed. Such changes are considered to be either "major" or "minor". A major change is one made before departure that involves a difference of more than 12 hours in departure from Ireland, change in your resort area overseas, or a change of accommodation to a lower classification than that booked. A minor change is any other change. Whilst the Company has the right to make a minor change at any time without notification, major changes will be advised as soon as is practicable offering you the choice of (a) accepting the amendment as notified (b) purchasing another arrangement from the Company with the price difference payable/refundable as appropriate (c) cancelling the arrangement(s). If you choose (c) all monies paid to the Company for the package will be refunded. In addition, you will receive the compensation listed below, except in cases of "force majeure" or "low bookings", as defined in Clause 6 below. You must inform the Company of your decision as soon as possible after receiving notification (and in any event within 7 days).
Period before scheduled departure within which a major change is notified.
Compensation per person:
Over 56 days: NIL
56-29 days €25
28-15 days €40
14 days €50
Note: In all cases the Company's liability is limited to the rates of compensation listed above. No further claims will be accepted for costs or additional expenses incurred as a result.
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5. Cancellation by the Company:
(a) Flight only and Individual Travel Arrangements: In the unlikely event that a booking has to be cancelled a full and prompt refund will be made of all monies paid to the Company less any insurance premiums and amendment fees. No compensation is payable.
(b) Tour Operator Packages: The Company reserves the right to withdraw or cancel the service on offer. If the booking is cancelled before departure for any reason other than non-payment by you then you will be offered the choice of purchasing another arrangement from the Company, with the price difference payable/refundable as appropriate, or of receiving a full refund of all monies paid to the Company (except insurance premium and any amendment fees). In addition, unless the cancellation has been caused by "force majeure" or "low bookings" (defined in Clause 6 below) compensation will be paid on the scale set out in Clause 4 above. The Company will never cancel a package within 30 days of departure except for reasons of "force majeure" (see Clause 6).
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6. Force Majeure/Low Bookings:
(a) "Force Majeure": includes war, threat of war, riot, civil disobedience or strife, industrial dispute, terrorist activity, natural or industrial disaster, fire, adverse weather conditions, level of water in rivers, technical or maintenance problems with transfer, unforeseen operational decisions of air carriers such as changes of schedule, or any unforeseeable or unavoidable event beyond the Company's control.
(b) "Low Bookings": is where the number of persons who have booked a particular arrangement is less than the minimum required to make it viable.
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7. Pricing Policy:
All fares displayed on this website are for information purposes only and are subject to alteration at any time prior to issue of a confirmation invoice, either due to error on the Company's part or unforeseen fare increases levied by the airline(s) in question.
All fares and other information displayed on our website are subject to availability and all booking requests will be subject to confirmation by a member of staff.
Once a confirmation invoice has been issued the price shown on that invoice may only vary as outlined below or if you amend your booking (see Clause 3).
(a) Individual Travel Arrangements: While every effort is made to avoid surcharges, the right is reserved to pass on any cost increase levied by the suppliers. No surcharge will ever be levied for air tickets after we have received full payment in cleared funds and tickets have been issued.
(b) Tour Operator Packages: Prices may only be changed to reflect government action, increase in transportation costs (e.g. airfares and cost of fuel), changes in dues and taxes or fees payable for services (e.g. landing taxes or embarkation/disembarkation fees at ports and airports) or to reflect fluctuations in exchange rates. In all cases the Company will absorb an amount equivalent to 2% of the invoice price (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges). Only amounts in excess of the 2% will be passed to you and should this figure exceed 10% of the invoice price due to the Company (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges) you will be entitled to cancel the booking and receive a full refund of all monies paid (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges). If you decide to cancel in these circumstances you must do so within 14 days of the issue date on the surcharge invoice. The Company will not impose any surcharge within 14 days of departure.
(C) Flight only AIRLINE TICKETS - ONLINE SERVICE FEES
Sales amount excl. Taxes SERVICE FEE
€0 - €500 €25
€500 and above €40
Low cost airlines €20
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8. Responsibilities of the Company:
(a) Holiday arrangements excluding Tour Operator Packages: In consideration of the fact that the Company acts only as a booking agent, the Company has no liability whatsoever for any aspect of the arrangements and, in particular, has no liability for any loss, personal injury or death however incurred. The company relies upon descriptions, images and accommodation grades provided the supplier and accepts no liability
(b) Tour Operator Packages: If any part of the package you book with the Company is not as described and does not reach a reasonable standard, or if you suffer personal injury, illness or death as a result of any improper performance by the Company of the obligations it owes to you under this contract, the Company will pay you reasonable compensation taking into account all relevant factors including the invoice price of your package, any steps it was reasonable for you to take to minimise the inconvenience/damage suffered and the extent to which the deficiency or improper performance can have affected your enjoyment of the package. However, this acceptance of liabilities is subject to the following three qualifications :-
( i) The Company will not be liable to pay you any compensation if the deficiency, personal injury, illness or death concerned does not result from any fault on the part of the Company or its suppliers, but is caused by your own acts and/or omissions, by the acts and/or omissions of a third party (excluding one of the Company's suppliers) or by circumstances which neither the Company nor its suppliers could have anticipated or avoided even exercising all due care.
(ii) The Company's liability to compensate you and the amount of compensation payable by the Company is limited in accordance with certain international conventions, the Warsaw Convention as amended the Hague Protocol 1955, the Berne Convention 1962, the Athens Convention 1974 and the Paris Convention 1962. Copies of these conventions are available from the Company upon written request but 28 days should be allowed for delivery.
(iii) It is a condition of the payment of compensation to you pursuant to Clause 8 that you notify the Company of any complaint or claim strictly in accordance with Clause 9 below and, further, assign to the Company any rights you may have against any third party in connection with your claim. You must co-operate with the Company and the Company's insurers in this regard.
If you suffer a personal injury, death or serious difficulties as the result of an activity which does not form part of the package you have booked with the Company, the Company will not be liable to pay you any compensation but will offer you such advice and guidance as is reasonable in all the circumstances and, where appropriate and at the Company's sole discretion, financial assistance up to a limit of €3,175 per confirmation invoice (not per member of your party). Any such financial assistance is for the sole purpose of taking legal proceedings against a third party responsible for your injury, death or other loss. Assistance must be requested within 90 days of the incident concerned and is repayable to the Company from any monies received from a third party or under any insurance policy.
Nothing in these conditions shall be deemed to exclude or restrict the Company's liability for death or personal injury caused by its negligence.
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9. Complaints:
If a problem occurs, whilst you are abroad, you must inform the relevant supplier (e.g. hotel, car rental company, airline) immediately so that the matter can be put right. If the supplier cannot resolve the problem to your satisfaction, at the time, you must also contact the Company's Head Office in Cork immediately by telephoning (353) 021 - 4274397 or faxing (353) 021 - 4271288, so that the Company is given the opportunity to help. In the event that a complaint cannot be resolved at the time, you must write within 28 days of your return to the Company's customer relations manager quoting your original booking reference and giving all relevant information. Failure to take these steps will hinder the Company's ability to resolve the problem and/or investigate it fully and in consequence, any right to compensation you may have will be extinguished or, at the very least, substantially reduced.
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10. Passports, Visas and Health Requirements:
Some information about passport, visa and health requirements may be shown on your confirmation invoice. Clients not holding passports marked must check applicable requirements with their Embassy. Please check your visa requirements and note that many countries require that your passport is valid for six months beyond the period of your stay.
Requirements can change and it is your responsibility to ensure that you comply with applicable passport, visa and health requirements and take all necessary documents with you to gain access to any country or region to which you make travel arrangements. If you fail to do so, you will be solely responsible for any cost, loss or damage which you or the Company incurs as a result of your failure.
Visa First, our visa partner may send you a text to follow up with you should you require a visa to the destination you are flying to. We are not responsible if you do not receive this text.
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11. Behaviour:
It is your responsibility to ensure that you and the members of your party do not behave in a way which causes offence or danger to others or which risks damage to property belonging to others. In such circumstances all suppliers (e.g. hotel managers, airline pilots) and the Company have the right to terminate arrangements made on your behalf, in which case the Company's responsibility to you ceases immediately and there can be no refunds, no payment of compensation and no reimbursement of any cost or expenses you may incur as a result. Further, you will be liable to reimburse the Company for any expenses whatsoever it incurs as a result of your behaviour.
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12. Supplier's Conditions:
Please note that, as between you and any of the suppliers whose services form part of your booking, the suppliers' standard terms and conditions will apply. This is particularly important in the case of "Individual Travel arrangements" where the company acts only as a booking agent between you and the relevant suppliers. The suppliers' standard conditions may limit or exclude liability, often in accordance with international conventions. Copies of these conditions may be requested in writing, but up to 28 days must be allowed for delivery.
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13. Flights:
Please note that a flight described as "direct" will not necessarily be non-stop. All departure/arrival times are provided by the airlines concerned and are estimates only. They may change due to air traffic control restrictions, weather conditions, operational/maintenance requirements and the requirement for passengers to check in on time. The Company is not liable if there is any change to a departure/ arrival time previously given to you or shown on your ticket. It is for this reason that all clients are advised to reconfirm their flights, with the airline, 72 hours prior to departure. The Company is also unable to make any special arrangements for you if you are delayed; these matters are in the sole discretion of the airline concerned. Your ticket is your document of travel and the information on the ticket is deemed correct unless advised by you within 72 hours of departure. All prices shown are subject to availability.
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14. Special Requests:
If you have any special requests, these will be passed on to the relevant supplier but cannot be guaranteed by the Company.
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15. Financial Security:
To ensure that you would be refunded and/or repatriated in the unlikely event of the Company's insolvency the Company is licensed and bonded. It is licensed by the Irish Department of Transport, Kildare St, Dublin 1. This ensures that monies paid to Dawson Travel are secure.
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16. Departure Taxes:
It is not always possible to include all departure taxes on your ticket - in some cases departure taxes must be paid locally and these are payable to the Government of the country departed and are non-refundable.
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17. Pre Travel Advice:
If you are unsure about conditions at your destination you should call the Department of Foreign Affairs, Stephens Green, Dublin 2 or check relevant Internet site, or www.fco.gov.uk
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18. Unaccompanied Children Under 16.
Children on an Aer Lingus flights between 12-16 years of age may travel alone. A child under 12 must be accompanied by an adult over 16 years of age. Rules may vary for other airlines. It is essential that you speak to one of our sales consultants for exact information on the airline your children are traveling on.
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19. Delivery of Travel Documents.
The Company recommend you choose the express delivery option to ensure the shortest ticket delivery time. If you choose Regular delivery, and tickets do not arrive before the departure date, The Company accept no responsibility for any subsequent additional costs or charges required in order to enable you to travel.
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20. Insurance:
We cannot recommend strongly enough the importance of taking out adequate travel insurance. Many principals require you to take out travel insurance as a condition of booking with them to cover you and your party against the cost of cancellation by you; the cost of assistance (including repatriation) in the event of accident or illness; loss of baggage and money; and other expenses. If we have issued your policy please check it carefully to ensure that all the details are correct and that all relevant information has been provided by you (e.g. Pre-existing medical conditions of all those on whose health your travel arrangements depend). If you do not disclose relevant information your insurance may not be effective. You must read your policy booklet thoroughly and if you are not satisfied with the cover you can apply for a refund with 7 days of purchase.
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21. Liability:
In the event of a genuine website error or inaccuracy, we reserve the right to withdraw an offer immediately. The Company reserve the right to cancel all confirmed bookings that are subject to genuine website error or inaccuracy. In the event of such cancellation the Company's only liability shall be to refund the ticket price paid by the customer.
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22. Accommodation Ratings
Hotels are generally ranked in Stars and Apartments and Aparthotels in Keys. Our accommodation ratings are a guide that rank properties according to quality and are intended to serve as guidelines for guests who are making reservations. While these ratings can be helpful when making a choice of properties, there is no standardized worldwide rating system.
For example, the standard of a 3 star hotel is Cork is far different from a 3 Star in Milan as ratings are determined by local government agencies or independent organisations, and they vary greatly from country to country. In fact, ratings can also vary from city to city within the same country, and even between accommodation in the same city. In other words, there is no uniform measure that determines a properties rating. Even though star ratings can seem arbitrary, they can still be beneficial and can help to inform you about a property and assist you with your selection process.
National consumer travel organizations, travel websites, accommodation suppliers, the property and guidebooks assign ratings to hotels and apartments, but each one uses its own set of criteria to determine the rating. We use the rating provided by our accommodation suppliers who would contract with the hotel and these are what we provide as guidance. Dawson Travel will not amend, alter or refund any booking when requested by the customer, where the customer has found an alternative rating and request an upgrade, or refund or amendment as a result.
NOTE: By booking with us your money is guaranteed. We have a Client Protection Bond that covers all elements of your booking.
When you make a booking you sign a booking form accepting the conditions of the agreement between you & DAWSON Travel Please note DAWSON Travel are not the principle and this is not a package holiday. Each element of your holiday has been booked separately and any changes may affect other elements.
If you make a booking online you accept the terms and conditions by ticking the check box and accepting the terms and conditions.
If you are late paying any of the above instalments there is a surcharge of €5 per person per week that will automatically be added to your invoice.
If you cancel, you are still liable for the flight balance and applicable accommodation cost, it will need to be paid by the person cancelling or the others on the file. Any insurance premium paid is non refundable. Accommodation cancellation fees vary depending on the supplier.
The organiser reserves the right to alter, change, curtail or cancel a holiday.
If as a consequence of circumstances beyond the control of the organiser, the Organiser is obliged to curtail, alter, extend or cancel a Holiday; the consumer shall not be at liberty to maintain a claim for compensation or otherwise for any loss arising as a consequence of the said curtailment, alteration, extension or cancellation of the holiday.
If one of these suppliers i.e. the airline makes any changes to your schedule, the other suppliers are not obliged to make corresponding changes.In the event of any such changes we will do our best to facilitate any changes but additional charges may apply from the suppliers or refunds provided before travel.