HPB shared Tours

 

 

SALSA AND SUGAR PLANTATIONS, BEACHES & WATERFALLS

 

CUBA  -  HAVANA & TRINIDAD

GUIDED WALKING HOLIDAY

 

Wander through cobbled streets of colonial buildings while music drifts out of doorways, follow the river through sugar valleys, or stroll barefoot along the sandy beach  -  as you get into the rhythm of Cuba.

DEPARTURE DATE

COST

20 November 2011 - 11 nights

Single room supplement:£0

29 January 2012 - 11 nights

Single room supplement:£285

25 February 2012 - 11 nights

Single room supplement:£285

 

£2,785 pp

£2,785 pp

£2,985 pp

BOOKINGS AND RESERVATIONS

TRAVEL

Prices are based on direct flights with Virgin Atlantic from Gatwick to Havana.  Regional flights may be available at a supplement.

PRICE INCLUDES

• Direct return flights with Virgin Atlantic from London Gatwick
• Optional indirect flights from Manchester (supplement may apply)
• 6 days of guided walking
• 10 nights hotel accommodation
• 10 breakfasts, 9 lunches, 10 dinners in hotels and local restaurants
• Airport transfers
• Havana  -  Trinidad return transfer by coach

• All local transport

NOT INCLUDED

All drinks including water, Cuban tourist card (we can arrange this for £25), Cuban tourist exit payment (currently $25 CUC, Travel insurance.

Travel Club
For bookings & reservations call 01638 674744 or click here
ABTA    ATOLHPB Travel Club Ltd, HPB House, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 8EH
Telephone: +44(0)1638 674744 | Email: tours@hpb.co.uk

ITINERARY

 

SOME OF OUR DAYS

 

Olá Havana
Arriving at Havana airport around 5pm it's a short drive into the centre of Havana Centro where we stay overnight. Stroll around the square to soak up the atmosphere before dinner and get an idea of what you can expect from your stay in Cuba. 30 minute airport transfer approximately.

Pearl of the south
After breakfast we head south by coach to Trinidad on the coast, stopping en-route for lunch. Arriving in Trinidad by mid-afternoon we will have time for a short walk around the charming squares admiring the pastel coloured houses before dinner.

La Boca beach
We wander down through the cobbled side streets and charming squares of Trinidad, whose museums include the House of the Troubadours and a Casa de la Musica. Guys ride into town on horseback and music drifts from doorways of bars and courtyards. Then on to the village of La Boca where clear sea laps the sands, for lunch on the beach and a swim.

Down on the farm
We start at our local tour manager Julio's riding stables where farm hands arrive on horseback or sit playing guitar in the shade. From here we'll wander through rich arable land, along the surrounding valley and up into the hills. Along the way we'll meet the local people in this farming community, see oxen pulling loads or perhaps glimpse the farmer's daughter washing an old Cadillac in the river.

Sweet as sugar
Walking along the verdant valley past relics from centuries of colonial sugar plantations, we'll climb gently to the viewpoint or Mirador where we can stop for a drink or taste fresh-pressed sugar cane juice, before our descent into the valley.

Free day to explore
The many options include horse riding from the ranch, taking a catamaran to an offshore island to see the wildlife and iguanas, a day walking barefoot along the sandy beach, visiting the museums, or relaxing around the hotel pool.

Water water everywhere
We'll follow the course of a lovely river through rich arable land and small farms. Later we'll climb steadily to a wonderful waterfall where we can picnic.

Cuba libre
Waving farewell to gentle Trinidad we return to the excitement of Havana, where we stay in some splendour in the Hotel Parque Central. We'll do as the locals do and walk along El Malecon sea wall boulevard for sunset, with its view of the fortress guarding the harbour from pirates, before dinner in a local restaurant. Cuban cigars or cocktails and salsa dancing after dinner are optional!


Old Havana
A day of sightseeing on foot through old Havana, exploring landmarks of museums and cathedrals, grand squares and street life. Everywhere we go, live music fills the streets, horse-drawn carriages clip-clop past and people drive their cherished but dilapidated old Chevvies and Cadillacs. We'll take time out over lunch in a shaded patio.

Walking along the waterfront
We walk back from Alamar, where the barrios are home of the Cuban hip-hop scene, along the coast towards Havana. We end up at the small fishing village of Cojimar, the setting for Ernest Hemingway's story The Old Man and the Sea, which he wrote while living in Cuba in 1951. We'll have lunch in Hemingway's favourite bar, while pelicans perch on posts.

Fond farewell
The final morning is left free for guests to explore Havana, then a special farewell lunch in town before catching the coach for airport at 4pm. 30 minute transfer approximately.

Note: This is a selection of the many options available. Weather conditions, group interests and the tutor will influence the final itinerary.

 

GENERAL INFORMATION

 

travel information

Flights are with Virgin Atlantic, details as follows:

Depart London Gatwick   1210  -  Arrive Havana                 1705        Flight No:  VS063

Depart Havana                1935  -  Arrive London Gatwick    0910 + 1  Flight No:  VS064

                                                                                            (next day 1/12/11)

1 bag up to 23 kgs plus one item of cabin baggage to a maximum of 6 kgs.

Health

The requirements and recommendations in force at the time of publication are detailed below. If there is any change, you will be informed when you book. However, it is your responsibility to double check relevant requirements and recommendations before departure to ensure that you comply with them and take with you the correct documentation for the country you are visiting.

You must hold a valid travel insurance certificate covering medical expenses.  Currently no compulsory health requirements.

 

Passports and Visas

This advice is only valid for British passport holders. Please advise us if you hold foreign documents in order that we can check entry requirements. It is your responsibility to double-check relevant requirements before departure to ensure that you comply with them and take the correct documentation for the country you are visiting. It is important that you hold a ten year British passport with at least three months validity from your return date in the UK. Visa cards are valid for up to 30 days and this can be pre-arranged with Authentic Adventures.

 

Money

Mastercard and Visa are increasingly accepted, provided they are not issued by a US bank.  ATM's are becoming more common however cash can be obtained in banks with non-US Visa credit and Visa debit cards.

 

The local currency is the Convertible Peso.  CUC's cannot be purchased or exchanged outside Cuba.  US dollars are not accepted in Cuba however some large hotels will accept the Euro. 

BOOKING CONDITIONS

Your contract is with Authentic Adventures

 

1. YOUR AGREEMENT WITH US
To make a booking, please return the booking form duly signed and completed together with the nonrefundable deposit of £600 per person to HPB Travel Club Limited. A contract will come into effect between us when we send out our holiday receipt. The balance is due 8 weeks before the commencement date of the holiday (the "commencement date"). When a booking is made within 8 weeks of the commencement date, a booking is confirmed on receipt of the total holiday cost.

2. PRICES
We guarantee that the price of your holiday will not be subject to any surcharges once a booking has been confirmed, except as a result of an increase in taxes or a change in the currency exchange rate. We will absorb the equivalent of 2% of the holiday price. Should the surcharge be in excess of 10% of the holiday price you will be entitled to cancel your holiday and receive a full refund of monies paid. Should you decide to cancel you must exercise this right within 14 days of the date shown on the surcharge invoice. We will not surcharge within 30 days of the commencement date. We reserve the right to correct errors in both advertised and confirmed prices. We will make these corrections as soon as we become aware of the error. Changes and errors do occasionally occur. Please check the price of your chosen holiday at the time of booking.

3. OUR LIABILITY TO YOU
3.1 The accommodation, transport and other services we arrange on your behalf belong to and are managed by independent suppliers. However, subject to these conditions, we accept responsibility should you or any member of your party suffer death, personal injury, illness, loss or damage as a result of any proven failure to perform, or improper performance of, any part of our contract with you by any of our employees, agents, suppliers or sub-contractors (providing they were at the time carrying out work authorised by us) except in the following situations. We will not be liable when failure to perform or improper performance was due to (a) the act(s) and/or omission(s) of the person(s) affected or (b) the act(s) and/or omission(s) of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable or (c) an event which either ourselves or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not have foreseen or avoided even with all due care.

3.2 We limit the maximum amount we may have to pay you for any and all claims or parts of claims which do not involve personal injury, illness or death. Except where loss of and/or damage to luggage or personal possessions is concerned or a lower limitation of liability applies to your claim, the maximum amount we will have to pay you for such non personal injury claims if we are found liable to you on any basis is twice the price (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges) paid in respect of each person affected. The maximum amount will only be payable where everything has gone wrong and you have not received any benefit at all from your holiday.

3.3 It is a condition of the acceptance of liability set out above that you will notify us of any claim you and/or member(s) of your party have in accordance with the complaints procedure set out below. Any person(s) to whom any payment is made must also assign to ourselves or our insurers any rights they may have to pursue any third party in connection with the claim.You must provide ourselves and our insurers with all assistance we may reasonably require with that claim.

3.4 In all cases, our liabilities in respect of carriers and hotel keepers are limited as if we were carriers/hotel keepers within the applicable international conventions.

3.5 Travel arrangements are subject to suppliers’ and carriers’ conditions which are incorporated into these conditions. See 5. Conditions of Suppliers.

3.6 Our coaches leave the airport at the time specified in our correspondence. Out of respect for our groups, the coaches do not normally wait for late arrivals. It is the responsibility of anyone missing our coach to make his or her own way to the destination hotel. The address and telephone number of destination hotel will be sent to you prior to departure.

4. YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
4.1 Your holiday receipt contains all details of your agreement with us.

4.2 It is your responsibility to check this information and advise us of any inaccuracy within 7 days of receipt failing which we cannot accept any liability.

4.3 Activity holidays can be hazardous. In the interests of safety you undertake to follow the advice of our representative, guide or hotelier, comply with any local codes of conduct, follow the country code and act sensibly and prudently at all times.You also agree to indemnify us from all loss and/or damage arising from any act of default on your part.

4.4 It is your responsibility to ensure that your papers, passport etc. are in order. Non EC residents should check visa requirements with their consulate, and obtain one if necessary. Although the United Kingdom is part of the European Union, you are still required to carry a full 10 year British passport with you every time you travel to a European destination. (Please note that some overseas countries require your passport to remain valid for a minimum period after entry to that country. If your passport is in its final year of validity, you are advised to check the requirements of the country of destination).

You should obtain a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). The EHIC can be used to cover any necessary medical treatment due to either an accident or illness within the European Economic Area (EEA). The card entitles the holder to state-provided medical treatment within the country they are visiting. This may not cover all of the services you would expect within the UK.

For information on how to obtain a European Health Insurance Card you can telephone 090 7707 or apply online at www.ehicard.org.

4.5 It is also your responsibility to advise us in writing, at the time of booking, of any medical or other ailment or allergy. We must also be notified of any special dietary requirement. You are responsible for ensuring that the holiday you select is within your physical capabilities.

5. CONDITIONS OF SUPPLIERS
Many of the services which make up your holiday are provided by independent suppliers. Those suppliers provide these services in accordance with their own terms and conditions. Some of these terms and conditions may limit or exclude the supplier's liability to you, usually in accordance with applicable International Conventions. Such terms and conditions are incorporated into our contract with you so that, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any exclusions and limitations of liability contained in such terms and conditions apply to our contract with you in relation to those services to which they apply. Copies of the relevant parts of these terms and conditions are available on request from ourselves or the supplier concerned.

6. FOREIGN OFFICE ADVICE
Should the foreign office advise against visiting one of our regions, we shall immediately take their advice and cancel holidays in line with their recommendations. See 11. If we change or cancel your booking.

7. CHANGING YOUR BOOKING DETAILS
We realise that occasionally you may wish to make minor changes to your booking which do not involve a change of date, location or transfer to another person. Wherever possible we will endeavour to make these changes, subject to availability, and you will be liable to pay any costs which result.

8. BOOKING FLIGHTS THROUGH US
Authentic Adventures undertake to search for a flight for your holiday and will charge the cost of your flight, any taxes, fees and charges. For this service we will charge an administration fee of £50 per booking. The cost of these flights, together with any associated costs, is non-refundable.

9. IF YOU TRANSFER YOUR BOOKING TO ANOTHER HOLIDAY
If for any reason you decide not to travel (rather than cancel your booking and incur cancellation charges) you may transfer your booking to another holiday. The option to transfer must be taken up 56 days or more prior to the commencement date. Transfers from USA Botswana, India and Iceland are not permitted. All monies due to us at the time of the transfer shall become non-refundable and may only be used against an alternative holiday taken within 12 months of the original booked holiday. Should the total cost of the alternative holiday be less than the transferred monies no refunds or further transfers will be permitted. The right to transfer is subject to an administrative fee equivalent to 25% of the cancellation charge defined below. This fee is payable within 7 days of receipt of transfer confirmation.

10. IF YOU CANCEL YOUR BOOKING
If for any reason you cancel your holiday after we have issued the holiday receipt, you must notify us in writing. The cancellation of your holiday comes into effect upon receipt of the written notification from you and the following cancellation charges will be due:

Up to 8 weeks before start date Deposit only
56 – 28 days before start date 50%
27 – 14 days before start date 80%
Less than 14 days before start date 100%

These cancellation charges exclude flights which are payable in full and apply to all monies due to us at the time of cancellation.

11. IF WE CHANGE OR CANCEL YOUR HOLIDAY
Although we try hard to avoid cancellations and changes to the holidays, due to the forward planning of our holidays this is sometimes unavoidable. We must therefore reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel or make changes to your holiday. This includes cancellations due to force majeure or under booking. See definitions below. These changes can be major or minor. In the case of a major change or cancellation (a major change is defined as a change to accommodation of a lower rating for all of your holiday or a change of holiday dates) we will advise you as soon as possible and we give you the following options:

– Accept the new arrangements
– Take an alternative holiday subject to availability (if a lower price we will refund the difference; if a higher price you must pay the difference)
– Withdraw and accept a full refund of all monies paid (excluding holiday insurance premiums or additional costs we have incurred on your behalf)

In the event of a minor change (any change that is not defined as a major change above), the above options will not be available to you. We also reserve the right for any reason or at any time, at our sole discretion, to decline to accept or to retain any person on a holiday as a client particularly if their conduct is disruptive and affecting the enjoyment of other participants on the trip, and we shall be under no liability for any costs incurred by such a person as a result of our doing so.

FORCE MAJEURE is the unusual and unforeseeable circumstance beyond our control, the consequences of which neither we or our suppliers could avoid, examples of which are war or threat of war, riots, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial disputes, natural or nuclear disaster, fire or adverse weather conditions, level of water in rivers, or other similar events beyond our control.

UNDER BOOKING is the situation in which the minimum number of clients required to operate the tour is not met. That number is 8 and we may cancel the tour in these circumstances.

12. TRAVEL INSURANCE
It is a condition of booking a holiday that you are covered by medical and personal accident insurance. This should include repatriation back home. We strongly recommend that you and all members of your party are adequately insured as soon as you book your holiday as this ensures that your deposit is protected.

13. COMPLAINTS
If you have a complaint whilst on holiday you must report it at the time to Authentic Adventures*. Failure to notify the Authentic Adventures* representative at the time, providing the company with an opportunity to rectify the cause of the complaint, may result in your loss of any legal rights in respect of the particular matter. Should we be unable to resolve the problem locally, written details must be received at our office within 7 days of your return to the UK.

14. DATA PROTECTION AND PRIVACY POLICY
We will store and use information that we receive about you or other members of your party for the purposes set out in our Privacy Policy. If you want to see our Privacy Policy, then you can either request a copy from us or you can find it on our website. We regret that we are unable to accept your booking if you do not agree to our use in this way of the information you supply to us.

15. FINANCIAL FAILURE INSURANCE
Authentic Adventures* is committed to customer satisfaction and consumer financial protection. We are therefore pleased to announce that a no extra cost to you, In accordance with "The Package Travel, Package Tours Regulations 1992" all passengers booking with Authentic Adventures* are fully insured for the initial deposit and subsequently the balance of monies paid as detailed in your booking confirmation form. The policy will also include repatriation if required, arising from the cancellation or curtailment of your travel arrangements due to the insolvency of Authentic Adventures*. This insurance has been arranged by Towergate Chapman Stevens through IGI Insurance Company Ltd.

In the unlikely event of Insolvency you must Inform Towergate Chapman Stevens immediately on 01932 334140 or alternatively in writing to Towergate Chapman Stevens, Towergate House, 22 Wintersells Road, Byfleet , Surrey KT14 7LF. Please ensure you retain this booking confirmation form as evidence of cover and value.

Policy exclusions: This policy will not cover any monies paid for Travel Insurance or any claim relating to Air Flights. Please ensure the Company you have booked with has the appropriate CAA / ATOL Bonds in place. For flightinclusive holidays see details of our ATOL bonding, see Financial protection.

*Authentic Adventures is the trading name for Authentic Adventures Ltd.