What makes The Ultimate Travel Company different, above all, is the highly individual travel service it offers to highly individual travellers.

We have grown because we offer higher standards of personal service, greater flexibility and more imaginative options to clients who demand the best. Our commitment to quality and value for money is relentless. It is founded on a bedrock of specialist and intimate knowledge of the destinations we offer and is driven by a passion for world class travel.

Experience and Expertise
The Ultimate Travel Company is owned and run by a small team of directors, led by Nick Van Gruisen, who have worked in travel for most of their lives and bring a wealth of experience to the specialist travel services that the company offers.

We have been fortunate to build a dedicated team of expert staff, kindred spirits who share our love of travel. They have lived in, worked in or visited every destination featured in our brochures. This personal experience, combined with the intimate knowledge of our local experts, means that every destination in this brochure has been thoroughly vetted by someone from The Ultimate Travel Company. You can be sure that the advice and information you are given is detailed, accurate and up to date.

We believe that the experience, expertise and local knowledge within The Ultimate Travel Company represent a unique resource, unmatched by any other organisation.

Our Escorted Tour Groups
In general, our tours seldom carry more than 15 to 20 passengers, and often fewer. For those of you who are new to, or have never considered travelling on, an escorted tour, we hope the words of one recent passenger will offer some encouragement…

‘I have to confess we were very pleasantly surprised as we had been worried about all kinds of things. We need not have been. The tour itself was wonderful, with comfortable hotels, smart coaches, and excellent guides who struck the perfect balance with just the right amount of ‘culture’ – not too little and not too much! Our travelling companions were charming and we look forward to seeing them again on other tours in the future and, last but not least, our tour leader was a delight. Nothing was too much trouble and she undoubtedly contributed a great deal to the success of the tour. All in all a painless and enjoyable experience, which we will not hesitate to repeat. Thank you Ultimate Travel.’

Tour Itineraries
One of the most important factors in our tours is the itinerary,which is carefully planned to ensure that passengers enjoy every aspect of a tour. Our tour leaders and guest lecturers play an important part in this, sharing their knowledge,expertise and personal contacts with us to ensure that no aspect is overlooked. We believe that our itineraries fulfil the quality and attention to detail that our passengers demand
The individual itineraries featured here are an outline, albeit fairly comprehensive, of what is intended .Whilst every effort is made to operate the itineraries as shown, on occasion it may be necessary to alter the content and/or running order of a particular tour. You will receive a full and more detailed itinerary at the time of travel.

As a company run by people with a passion for travel, we are aware of the vital support that tourism can provide to communities and fragile habitats throughout the world. We are also aware that tourism can have a negative impact on the people and the environment, and are committed to doing what we can to work against this. Whilst there is much that we still need to do, here are some of the projects we have undertaken to date...

- the 'environmental audit' of all aspects of our business has been completed.
- our principal overseas suppliers have signed up to a strict ethical code which sets out our expectations for employment standards - put simply, that all are treated fairly and with respect.
- as a specialist operator we cannot compromise on research trips, but we fully offset our carbon emissions by contributing to a small but innovative tree planting scheme in southern India.
- our London office has made the switch to renewable energy with Ecotricity, and we now dispatch all company literature in recycled and recyclable packaging.
- following the success of a 'plastic bag free trek' in the Himalaya last June, we now provide all our clients with a Fair Trade cotton shoulder bag, which is made by women who have been rescued from human trafficking and exploitation in Nepal.

We are very proud of our continued commitment to these issues which is something that we feel, sets us apart from other travel companies. If you would like any further information about anything you have read here, please do not hesitate to contact us.

1. Contracts
A binding contract is only entered into when The Ultimate Travel Company Limited has issued a Confirmation Invoice. This takes place after we have received a completed and signed Booking Form with payment of the deposit.
2. Payments
An initial deposit of £250 per person is required together with the Booking Form. Certain tours may be subject to a higher deposit in which case you will be notified at the time of booking. The full amount is payable if booking less than 8 weeks prior to departure. Any balance is due 8 weeks prior to departure. If the balance is not paid in time, we reserve the right to cancel your holiday and apply the cancellation conditions as set out below. Payments made by you to a travel agent are at all times held by the travel agent on behalf of The Ultimate Travel Company.
3. Flights
Because the majority of our holidays are individually tailored it is not possible to include all information concerning airports, airline operators and aircraft types. This information will be included on the confirmation invoice.
4. Cancellations by you
You may cancel your holiday at any time, provided that the cancellation is confirmed in writing by the person signing the Booking Form. As this incurs administrative costs, we will apply cancellation charges as set out below:
Period before departure within which written cancellation is received:
Sum of cancellation charge shown as a percentage of the holiday price
More than 60 days - Deposit
More than 22 days - 50%
More than 15 days - 75%
14 days or less - 100%
However, we will try to recoup the expenses incurred from our suppliers, in which event we will return these to you after deducting a reasonable amount for our efforts.
5. Cancellations by The Ultimate Travel Company
If the required minimum number of passengers (as stated on each itinerary) is not reached on group tours, we will, subject to 60 days warning, either cancel the departure, offer a full refund, or apply a supplement subject to passenger approval.
6. Alterations by you
We will do our best to make any alterations you may require after confirmation has been issued subject to the payment of any increased costs relevant to the change. If alterations are made less than 8 weeks prior to departure, an additional £30 charge will be levied together with any communications costs incurred.
7. Alterations by The Ultimate Travel Company
7.1 Occasionally we have to make alterations (to both itinerary and price) for reasons of flight cancellations, schedule changes or ‘force majeure’. This legal term means unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control, the consequences of which neither we nor our suppliers can avoid. Examples are war or threat of war, riots, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial disputes, natural or nuclear disaster, fire or adverse weather conditions.
7.2 If the alteration is significant (see 7.3 below) then we will notify you as soon as possible and offer you the choice of: (i) accepting the modification, (ii) changing the booking to an alternative holiday, or (iii) cancelling and receiving a full refund. If the alternative is cheaper, we will refund the difference; if it is more expensive, you will pay the difference to us. If there is a significant change within 8 weeks of departure for any reason other than those mentioned in paragraph 7.1 and you decide to cancel and receive a full refund, we will then pay you reasonable compensation.
7.3 Significant alterations are change of flight time by more than 12 hours, changes in transportation cost, change of international airport (unless between airports that serve the same city), change of destination or a change to a lower standard of accommodation.
7.4 Your booking is accepted on the understanding that you realise that the tourism infrastructure in relation to both travel and accommodation may be substantially lower than you would expect in Britain or Europe. As a consequence we do our best to make sure connections and transfers go smoothly, but this may not always be possible due to flight cancellation, local political situations, weather, mechanical breakdown, or other unforeseen circumstances. No refunds will be given for services not utilised.
7.5 We will try to notify you of any a minor alteration (i.e. any change not included in 7.3 above), although we are not obliged to do so or to pay compensation.
7.6 As the travel arrangements that we arrange are for small numbers of passengers, we can make no special arrangements if you are delayed at the outward or homeward points of departure.
7.7 The tour leader may at any time during the course of a holiday terminate the participation of a member of the party if he reasonably considers it necessary for the health or safety of that person or any of the remaining members of the party.
8. Exchange Rates
Prices in this document are based on an exchange rate of 1.95 US Dollars per Pound Sterling.
9. Surcharges
No surcharges will apply if payment is made in full on booking. Otherwise, surcharges may be applied in the event of a variation of the exchange rate specified in paragraph 8, governmental action, airport charges and aircraft fuel costs. We will absorb amounts of up to 2% of the holiday price excluding insurance premiums. Only amounts in excess of 2% will be passed on, and if this means paying more than an increase of 10% of the holiday price, you will be entitled to cancel your booking and obtain a full refund of all monies paid (except insurance premiums, visa and vaccination costs) provided that cancellation is made within 7 days of the notification.
10. Liability
Should you or any of the persons included in the booking suffer death, personal injury or illness arising out of an activity forming part of your holiday arrangements, we will accept responsibility unless there has been no fault on our part or our suppliers and the cause was your own or the relevant persons’ fault, or one which neither we nor our suppliers could have anticipated or avoided even with the exercise of all due care. However, where death or personal injury is suffered in the course of air, rail or sea travel and hotel accommodation, we limit our liability to compensate you in accordance with the relevant international law conventions which limit liability. Where the cause of death or personal injury is the act or omission of our agents, suppliers or sub-contractors, our acceptance of liability is subject to you assigning to us your rights against them and to your co-operation with us in any legal action we may wish to take against them. The maximum liability for any damages other than for personal injury or illness will be limited to the price paid for the tour.
11. Travel Insurance
It is imperative that you take out adequate travel insurance to our reasonable satisfaction. We will require you to let us have evidence of your insurance at least 8 weeks prior to departure or at the time of booking if later. We reserve the right to terminate your booking if you fail to obtain travel insurance cover. Particular care should be taken to ensure that you have adequate cover, especially for cancellation and emergency repatriation in the event of medical problems.
12. Complaints
You should make any complaint known to our local representative at the earliest opportunity. If they are unable to resolve the problem to your satisfaction, you should contact our London office. If at the end of your trip you feel that your complaint has not been properly dealt with, you must first notify us in writing within 30 days of your scheduled date of return and we will do our best to resolve the problem.
13. Bonding and Financial Protection
The Ultimate Travel Company holds an Air Travel Organiser’s Licence (ATOL) granted by the Civil Aviation Authority. The Authority checks our finances and requires us to arrange a bond which ensures that you will be repatriated and/or refunded in the unlikely event of our insolvency for air holidays. Our ATOL number is 5111.
14. Jurisdiction
All matters arising from your contract with us are governed by English Law and are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.
15. Consumer Protection
The air holidays and flights in this brochure are ATOL protected, since we hold an Air Travel Organiser’s licence granted by the Civil Aviation Authority. Our ATOL number is ATOL 5111. In the unlikely event of our insolvency, the CAA will ensure that you are not stranded abroad and will arrange to refund any money you have paid to us for an advanced booking. For futher information, visit the ATOL website at www.atol.org.uk. Compliant with current laws and regulations, bookings made with us which do not include international flights are ABTA protected since we hold a licence granted by the Association of British Travel Agents. Our ABTA number is W0745.
Data Protection Statement
Please be assured that we have measures in place to protect the personal booking information held by us. This information will be passed on to the principal and to the relevant suppliers of your travel arrangements. The information may also be provided to public authorities such as customs or immigration if required by them, or as required by law. Certain information may also be passed on to security or credit checking companies. If you travel outside the European Economic Area, controls on data protection may not be as strong as the legal requirements in this country. We will only pass your information on to persons responsible for your travel arrangements. This applies to any sensitive information that you give to us such as details of any disabilities, or dietary/religious requirements. (If we cannot pass this information to the relevant suppliers, whether in the EEA or not, we will be unable to provide your booking. In making this booking, you consent to this information being passed on to the relevant persons.) Full details of our data protection policy are available upon request.