Terms & Conditions

Most of my clients are referrals, and book months in advance, so a last-minute cancellation means a lost work day for me....so I try to avoid that!

If you have a serious emergency, then I will work with you to re-schedule or refund your deposit; in other situations we can take it on a case-by-case basis.

That's the english version, but if prefer legalese, here you go:

1. Booking:

A deposit of 30% of the total price of the tour is required on booking; the balance is due no later than 30 days prior to the beginning of the tour (14 days for day trips).

2. Payments:

a) The balance payment, i.e. the price of the tour (excursion) minus the deposit already paid to us, depends on the total price established and agreed upon for the specific tour(excursion) booked.

b) Final Payment Policy: ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) reserves the right to reconfigure remaining balances of total payment due to exchange rates and fluctuations in the market between time of initial deposit and time of balance due date.

c) We may request a bank transfer for payments over 500 euro. If paying by a wire/bank transfer, client is responsible for all intermediary bank and wiring fees. Please add 40 euros for international wire transfers.

3. What the price includes:

The price will include all services agreed upon in the tour contract and only those services.

4. Alterations to your bookings :

a) It is our policy to make your alterations to bookings free of charge. However, in the case where additional costs may incur, these should be paid in full by you or your agency.

b) ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) reserved the right to make changes in the published itinerary whenever, in their sole judgment, conditions warrant, or if they deem it necessary for the comfort, convenience or safety of the program. They reserve the right to withdraw without penalty any program announced.

5. Cancellations:

a) Any cancellations must be made by written notification or fax. Cancellations received 60 days or more prior to the departure date of the trip are subject to a forfeit equal to 20% of the total cost of the tour/services; those received 59-45 days before the departure date are subject to a forfeit of 40%; those received 45-21 days before the departure date are subject to a forfeit of 60%; those received less than 21 days before the departure date are subject to a forfeit of 80%. There will be no refunds for tour days missed by you.

b) The terms and conditions of a cancellation by client(s) are subject to each individual operator's policy. ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) assumes no responsibility should client or tour operator cancel for any reason, including sickness, death in the family, conflict of war or any other circumstance under which ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) hasn?t any control.

c) Chefs, Hosts and Tour operators reserve the right to cancel a course, and in most cases their liability will be limited to refunding all money paid.

d) We reserve the right to cancel your tour at any time. No compensation is payable where unforeseeable circumstances cause us to cancel your holiday either before your departure or during your holiday. Unforeseeable circumstances include: war - threat of war - civil strife - terrorist activity - industrial dispute - natural disaster - fire - sickness - accident - bad weather conditions and the results of these including water drought or shortage - the acts of any government or public authority and all events of a similar nature beyond our control.

e) In the unlikely case of your accomodation being cancelled by us before your departure we will do our utmost to rearrange suitable accommodation.

6. Travel Insurance:

a) Although Travel Insurance is not compulsory, we recommend medical and personal insurance to cover medical expenses and loss of baggage or personal belongings.

b) Always check the small print of a travel insurance policy to ensure that it meets your individual requirements. No liability under any circumstances will be accepted by us for damage to luggage, motor vehicles and personal effects owned by you. You agree to indemnify us against any damage caused by you.

7. Responsibility and Liability:

a) ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) serves only to assist in making necessary travel arrangements for participants, and in no way represents or acts as agents for transportation carriers, hotels, and other suppliers of services connected with the programs. Travel and service are subject only to the terms and conditions under which such accommodations, services and transportation are offered or provided, and ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) and its respective owner, employees, agents, representatives, and assigns therefore accept no responsibility and liability. ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) or its servants, agents, or employees are not liable for any injury, damage, loss, accident, delay, or other irregularity which may be caused by the defect of any vehicle or the negligence or default of any company or person engaged in carrying out or performing any of the services involved, caused by any other entity or person during the travel program. Additionally, responsibility is not accepted for losses or expenses due to sickness, weather, strikes, wars, or other such causes. All services and accommodations are subject to the laws of the country in which they are provided.

b) Baggage and personal effects are the sole responsibility of the owner at all times.

c) As a condition to participating in the designated program(s), each participant must agree to and sign the Registration Form with the Release Form.

d) We cannot be held liable or accept responsibility in any circumstances for your illness, bodily harm, death or discomfort unless it can be proved this is due to direct negligence or omission on our part. Neither can we be held liable or accept responsibility in any circumstances for your illness, bodily harm, death or discomfort as a result of suggestions made in any of our information.

8. Changes:

a) Changes of accommodation will not be made without your permission. In the case that no other suitable accommodation can be arranged your deposit and any money paid to us will be refunded.

b) We reserve the right to reverse the printed itinerary. In such cases, the locations visited and excursions taken will be the same, and this will not be considered a material alteration to the program.

c) We reserve the right to alter our prices at any time.

9. Disputes Governed by Italian Courts:

a) Contracts with ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) are governed by Italian law and in case of dispute jurisdiction is conferred on Italian courts.

b) In the case of a dispute, notice must be provided in writing within seven days of the date of service provided.

10. Refunds:

a) No refunds will be given for any unused portions of any programs/tours/courses and clients will not be reimbursed if they do not show up for programs/tours/courses.

b) Any class or trip cancelled by the client will be examined on a case by case basis, and based on the individual terms of the actual tour, excursion or cooking lesson posted online. At no such time is a client guaranteed a refund of a deposit or cancellation fees of any kind, including advance notice of cancellation. ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) reserves the right to charge the client's credit card for any balance due, per the terms of the agreement, per excursion, cooking lesson or vacation package, even in the event of advance notice of cancellation if the terms of payment specify that no refunds will be made due to cancellation of the client.

c) ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) is not responsible for any expenses incurred by the client in preparing to attend any program, including non-refundable tickets, reservations, hotel and airfare.

d) In all events, reimbursement will be limited to the monies paid by the client.

11. Data and privacy

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b) In no event or instance shall ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks), its licensors, its suppliers or any third parties mentioned at the Vatican Art Walks.com site be liable for any damages, lost profits, or damages resulting from lost data or business interruption resulting from the use or inability to use ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) and the content whether based on warranty, contract, tort or any other legal theory, and whether or not ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) is advised of the possibility of such damages. The Content of this website comes from sources believed to be accurate, but may contain inaccuracies or typographical errors. ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) makes no representations about the results to be obtained from using the ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) Site or the Content. The use of the Vatican Art Walks.com Web site and the Content is at your own risk.

c) ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) may contain links to third party websites. These links are provided solely as a convenience to you and not as an endorsement by ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) of the content on such third-party websites. ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) is not responsible for the content of linked third-party sites and does not make any representations regarding the content or accuracy of materials on such third-party websites. If you decide to access linked third-party websites, you do so at your own risk. Your use of third-party websites is subject to the terms and conditions of use for such sites.

d) You acknowledge that in connection with the Vatican Art Walks.com site, information will be transmitted over local exchange, interchange and Internet backbone carrier lines and through router switches serviced by third party local exchange and long distance carriers, utilities, Internet service providers and others, all of which are beyond the control and jurisdiction of ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) and its suppliers.

e) Accordingly, ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) assumes no liability for or relating to the delay, failure, interruption or corruption of any data or other information transmitted in connection with the use of the Vatican Art Walks.com site. If your use of the Vatican Art Walks.com site or the content results in the need for servicing or replacing data or equipment, ARTOURS (Vatican Art Walks) is not responsible for those costs.