|
|
|
1.
Academic Travel Services, Inc., its
employees,shareholders, subsidiaries,affiliates, officers,
directors, successors, and assigns (collectively, "ATS") your
school or other sponsor, city or town, Board of Education,
chaperones, if
applicable, and its and their employees, (collectively,
“Sponsor” ) does not
own, operate or control any person
or entity which is to or does provide goods or services for your
trip including, for example, lodging facilities, airline, vessel
or other transportation companies, guides or guide services,
local ground operators whether or not they use the ATS name,
entertainment or sightseeing operators, providers or organizers
of optional excursions, food service providers, etc. All such
persons and entities are independent contractors. As a result,
neither ATS nor your Sponsor is liable for any negligent or
willful act or failure to act of any such person or entity, or
of any third party.
2.
Without limitation, neither ATS nor
your Sponsor is responsible for any injury, loss, or damage to
person or property, death, delay or inconvenience
in connection with the provision of
any goods or services whether occasioned by or resulting from,
but not limited to, acts of force majeure, war, civil unrest,
insurrection, strikes or other labor activities, criminal or
terrorist activities of any kind or the threat thereof, lost or
stolen belongings, overbooking or downgrading of accommodations,
mechanical or other failure of airplanes or other means of
transportation or for any failure of any transportation
mechanism to arrive or depart timely, dangers associated with
animals, sanitation problems, food poisoning, lack of or quality
of medical care, illness or diseases, epidemics or the threat
thereof, difficulty in evacuation in case of a medical or other
emergency, or for any other cause beyond the direct control of
ATS or your Sponsor.
3.
Changes in hotels or itinerary (for
example, changes in or omitting cities, visitation points,
revising the order of the itinerary, etc.) may be made at the
discretion of ATS or your local ground operator as it or they
deem necessary or desirable. ATS reserves the right to take
photographic or film records of any of its trips and participant
agrees that ATS may use any such photographic or film records
for promotional and/or commercial purposes, as well as approve
of such use by third parties whom ATS may engage without any
remuneration to participant. Participant assigns to ATS all
right, title, and
interest in or to any and all media
in which his or her name or likeness might be used.
4. ATS reserves the right to
decline to accept or retain any person as a member of any trip.
In the event a member is expelled from a trip, no refund of any
kind will be made. ATS reserves the right to cancel any trip
with its sole obligation to refund all monies received by it for
the trip. Trip participants are solely responsible for securing
their own passports, visas, medical inoculations, etc. These
terms and conditions can be changed only by a writing signed by
an officer of ATS
5.
It is recommended that each traveler
purchase Trip Cancellation/ Interruption insurance.
|
|
|
|
6.
ATS is not responsible for
participant’s well-being when absent from
group supervised activities or on a
visit to friends or relatives. Participant accepts liability for
any financial obligations incurred or any damage or injury
caused by his or her negligence or
willful conduct while participating in an ATS program. ATS must
receive signed agreements before departure; it is
the student’s and/or parent or
guardian’s responsibility to turn in such agreement.
7.
All tour members shall observe the
rules of safety and conduct as well as the applicable laws of
the destination as directed by the tour escort or chaperone who
has absolute authority to expel any tour participant whose
actions or
behavior are considered detrimental
to the group’s welfare or
inconsistent with ATS rules and
regulations. ATS has a zero tolerance for the consumption of
alcohol, the use of non-prescription drugs, theft, and
vandalism. Any such breach will result in immediate expulsion.
ATS is released from any liability to any expelled member for
such expulsion and no refunds shall be made.
8.
If I become ill or
incapacitated, ATS may take whatever action it deems necessary
to preserve my health and safety including, without limitation,
obtaining medical treatment for me at my expense, and/or
transporting me at my
own or my parent’s expense back to my home for medical reasons.
I agree to pay any extra expenses incurred on my behalf for
medical or other reasons. If my teacher and/or chaperone has
paid such expenses, I will reimburse him or her.
9. ATS retains the right in
its sole discretion to contact participant’s school, parents
and/or guardian with regard to health issues or any other matter
whatsoever which relates to participant or participant’s
program. These rights transcend any and all privacy regulations
that may apply.
10.
ATS reserves the right to increase
the price of any program by the amount of any increase in its
cost including, without limitation, increases in aviation fuel
prices, air carrier tariffs, motorcoach company tariffs, energy
surcharges, rates of currency exchange (for foreign
destinations), applicable government taxes and any other cost
increase. The limit of such a price increase is 10% of the
originally contracted trip cost. However, a program price change
due solely to contracted group size change is specifically
incorporated in the
group’s contract. I agree to pay such increases in price and
shall not be entitled to cancel my reservation and receive a
refund on these grounds.
11.
I have indicated any medical
problems which might affect my program participation on a
separate sheet.
12.
Arbitration Any controversy or claim
arising out of or relating in any way to these Terms and
Conditions or any other information relating in any way to the
trip, or to the trip itself, shall be settled solely and
exclusively by binding arbitration in Hendersonville, North
Carolina in accordance with the commercial rules of the American
Arbitration Association then existent. In any such arbitration,
the substantive law of North Carolina shall apply. The
arbitrator and not any federal, state, or local court or agency
shall have exclusive authority to resolve any dispute relating
to the interpretation, applicability, enforceability,
conscionability, or formation of this contract, including but
not limited to any claim that all or any part of this contract
is void or voidable.
13.
If I am a non-U.S. citizen, I am responsible for obtaining the
necessary and appropriate passport and visas.
|
|
|
