Why we have this page

When you enroll in a Professionals Abroad delegation, you are asked to sign our Terms & Conditions. We require all delegates to sign this document before traveling with us. You may review this document in its entirety below.

For a quick reference, we’ve pulled out two sections of our Terms & Conditions and placed them up top. Here are easy-to-read explanations of our policy on cancellation, and our process for handling single room and roommate requests:

What happens if you need to withdraw from the delegation

• When you enroll in a program, you pay a deposit of $500.
• 90 days before departure, the remaining balance is due.

If you need to withdraw from the delegation, we need to receive your cancellation request in writing. The date on which we receive your cancellation request determines how we handle your withdrawal.

• If you cancel more than 90 days prior to departure, $200 of your deposit will be refunded to you.
• If you cancel 90-61 days prior to departure, all payments except the $500 deposit are refunded to you.
• If you cancel 60 – 31 days prior to departure, 50% of the program cost is refunded to you.
• If you cancel fewer than 30 days prior to departure, none of the program cost is refunded to you.
• If Professionals Abroad cancels the program, all payments, including the deposit, are refunded to you.

Finally, please know that Professionals Abroad does not accept liability for any airline or train cancellation penalty incurred by the purchase of a nonrefundable airline or train ticket to or from the departure city. Please make your reservations carefully!

What happens when you request a single room or a roommate

Prefer a single room? First of all, please understand that in some hotels, single rooms are very small. The premium you pay is for privacy, not spaciousness. Second of all, while we try very hard to accommodate everyone’s first choice, we simply cannot guarantee single room availability. We typically have a limited number of single rooms available, and we offer them at extra cost on a first-come, first-served basis.

Prefer a roommate? If you’d like to share a room with another delegate, please let us know and we will do our best to arrange that. Because our ability to do so rests on the participation of other travelers, we cannot guarantee that we’ll find you a roommate, but we will try!

• If we cannot find a roommate by the time your final payment is due, we will invoice you for the higher single room rate.
• If we are subsequently able to find you a roommate, we will refund the difference between a double room rate and a single room rate.

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TERMS & CONDITIONS

Professionals Abroad is a division of Academic Travel Abroad, Inc (ATA).

Land Cost

Prices are listed in U.S. dollars and are based on a person sharing a room with another. While we do our best to maintain the listed price, because our prices are set over a year in advance, we reserve the right to change costs due to extraordinary circumstances beyond our control. The main delegation land cost is based on a set minimum of number of participants, as are any guest and extension program costs. These minimum numbers must be met in order for the programs to operate.

What Is Included

• Comprehensive educational program by delegate leader and professional on-site guides
• All accommodations and meals as outlined in the itinerary
• All ground transportation within the itinerary unless otherwise indicated
• All sightseeing as specified in the itinerary
• Entrance fees
• Gratuities to porters, drivers, and guides
• Transfers to and from airports for those arriving or departing according to the designated itinerary
• Baggage handling for one checked piece and one carry on piece per person
• The assistance of an ATA professional travel team to assist with pre-trip questions, travel arrangements, including flights, extra hotel nights, or other services.
• Comprehensive pre-departure information about the destination

What Is Not Included

• Domestic airfare to and from your home city
• Airport transfers and baggage handling for travelers arriving well before or after the planned group transfer or departing the trip before or after the planned group transfer
• Travel and trip cancellation insurance
• Passport, visa (for non-Cuba destinations), airport departure and excess baggage fees
• Meals not specified in the itinerary; food and beverages not part of the included meals
• Personal items such as telephone, fax and internet charges, laundry, room service, alcoholic or other beverages not specified as included
• Gratuities for non-group services
• Expenses resulting from delays due to bad weather, road conditions, sickness, government action, and flight delays
• Expenses incurred in making individual travel arrangements in conjunction with the trip

Payments, Cancellations and Refunds

A $500 deposit is due by credit card upon application. Balance is due upon receipt of invoice, 90 days before departure. Acceptable forms of final payment are credit card (VISA, MasterCard, American Express or Discover), check or wire transfer.

All cancellations must be received in writing (email or fax). Per person cancellation fees are based on the date of the cancellation notice.

If you cancel…	Your penalty is:
After Initial Deposit	$300.00
90 – 61 days prior to departure	100% of deposit
60 – 31 days prior to departure	50% of Program Cost
30 days or less prior to departure	100% of Program Cost
Cancellation of program by Professionals Abroad	Full Refund to You

Please Note: Professionals Abroad does not accept liability for any airline or train cancellation penalty incurred by the purchase of a nonrefundable airline or train ticket to the tour departure city and return.

Insurance

We strongly recommend the purchase of trip cancellation insurance, which is available for coverage of expenses in conjunction with cancellation due to illness or accident. Baggage insurance is also recommended. In the event that you must cancel your participation in a delegation, trip cancellation insurance may be the only source of reimbursement. We will send you a brochure from Travel Insurance Services, or you may obtain coverage through a company of your choice. All ATA trips include Emergency Evacuation Insurance as part of the trip price.

A Note about the Itinerary

While every effort will be made to carry out the program as planned, the nature of travel is unpredictable and we must be prepared for changes. The itinerary as described is subject to modification by ATA. Rest assured that, should any changes be needed, we commit to deliver an experience as outstanding as the one originally planned.

Single Rooms

A limited number of single rooms are available at extra cost on a first-come, first-served basis, but availability cannot be guaranteed. Please understand that, in some hotels, single rooms are very small. The premium you pay is for privacy, not spaciousness. If you would like a roommate, we will do our best to find you one. If we are unable to find a suitable roommate, you will be charged the higher single rate. Your invoice and price to pay will include the single supplement until a roommate is found.

Health Recommendations

To enjoy your travels to the fullest, you should be in good physical and mental health. Any physical condition requiring special attention, diets, or treatment must be reported in writing when the reservation is made. We reserve the right to decline to accept or retain any person as a participant should such a person’s health, mental condition, physical infirmity, or attitude jeopardize the operation of the travel program or the enjoyment of other participants. All health information is protected and treated as confidential.

RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT AND LIABILITY DISCLAIMER

Read Carefully: This Association’s delegation trip is managed by Academic Travel Abroad, Inc. (ATA), a professional travel company, hired as an independent contractor. ATA acts only as an agent for the respective third party suppliers of goods and services (e.g., hotels, airlines, railroads, bus companies, local tours, etc.) by making arrangements for transportation, accommodations, and other services.

Neither the Association, nor ATA controls, owns, or operates these suppliers. The suppliers are independent contractors. Neither the Association, nor ATA shall be held liable for personal injury, death, loss, baggage claims, damage, accident, delay, and/or irregularity arising out of any act or omission of these suppliers, their employees, agents, or representatives. Neither the Association, nor ATA shall be held responsible for losses or delays arising from sickness, pilferage, acts of terrorism, weather conditions, and/or acts of God. All such losses or expenses shall be borne by the program participant.

The Association and ATA reserve the right to cancel any trip prior to departure in which case the entire payment will be refunded without further obligation. The Association and ATA also reserve the right, without penalty, to withdraw the delegation trip announced, to decline to accept any person as a participant in a tour, or to require any participant to withdraw from the tour at any time, when such action is determined by tour staff to be in the best interests of the health, safety, or general welfare of the tour group, or the individual participant, subject only to the requirement that the recoverable portion of the total amount paid that corresponds to the cost of unused services and accommodations be refunded, if any. Participants are encouraged to purchase airline tickets no sooner than 60 days before the tour begins to avoid airline cancellation penalties if a tour is canceled or otherwise modified subsequent to the participant’s purchase of those tickets.

The Association and ATA reserve the right, without penalty, to make changes in the published itinerary whenever, in their judgment, conditions warrant, or if they deem it necessary for the comfort, convenience, or safety of tour participants. Dates, schedules, program details, and costs, although provided in good faith based on information available at the time of publication of the brochure or catalog, are subject to change and revision.

The Association and ATA shall not be liable for the purchase of non-refundable airline tickets to the tour departure city and return. Baggage and personal effects are at all times the sole responsibility of the participant. Participants are encouraged to purchase of travel insurance. It is understood that air, ship or train tickets when issued shall constitute the sole contract between the passenger and carrier concerned.

All services are subject to the laws of the country in which they are rendered.

California Seller of Travel

CST #2059002-40

ATA is a participant in the California Seller of Travel program. California law requires that certain sellers of travel have a trust account or bond. ATA has a trust account. ATA is not a participant in the California Travel Consumer Restitution Corporation.

AS A CONDITION OF ACCEPTANCE OF ANY APPLICATION, EACH APPLICANT MUST AGREE TO THE STATEMENT SET FORTH BELOW:

The undersigned has read carefully the Responsibility Statement and Liability Disclaimer set forth above, the schedule of activities for this tour, as well as the terms and conditions of application and participation as set forth in the tour brochure(s) or on the associated website, and acknowledges and accepts the Responsibility Statement and Liability Disclaimer and any risk associated with the tour and the conditions, including the refund policy, set forth above and in the tour brochure(s) and on the associated website.

The undersigned further acknowledges that there are many risks and uncertainties inherent in any travel, including but not limited to the hazards of various modes of transportation, forces of nature, acts or omissions of foreign governments, terrorism, war, insurrection, theft, illness, and damage to person or property due to the negligent acts or omissions of suppliers, tour staff or others.

By registering for this delegation, the undersigned certifies that she/he does not have any mental, physical or other condition or disability that would create a hazard for herself or himself or other participants.

In consideration of, and as part payment for, the right to participate in the tour, the undersigned, on behalf of himself or herself, his or her dependents, heirs, executors, administrators and assigns, hereby waives, releases, and discharges the Association, its directors, shareholders, officers, employees, representatives or agents, and ATA and its officers, directors, shareholders, employees, and agents, (“Releasees”) from liability, claims, demands, injuries, damages, consequential or indirect damages, actions or causes of action for personal injury, death, property damage, or loss suffered by any person in connection with this tour, even if caused by the active and passive negligence or omission of tour staff, suppliers, or other related persons or entities, and, further indemnifies, holds harmless and promises not to sue the Releasees from any and all liabilities or claims made as a result of participation in this activity, whether caused by the negligence of a Releasee or otherwise. In addition, by registering for this tour, the applicant certifies that he or she is mentally and physically capable of full participation in this tour.

By registering for the Association’s travel delegation, the participant agrees to the Responsibility Statement and Liability Disclaimer and the Terms and Conditions herein and that the participant acknowledges that he/she has carefully read this section and fully understands that this is a waiver and release of liability.