Ardeche - Family Adventure Holidays

Ardeche
White Water Adventure
2014
Welcome
Ardeche Adventures is a small company bringing a
personal touch to family adventure holidays. We work
alongside Family Adventure Holidays who assist us
with the booking process and handle all pre-travel
arrangements. Although we are always happy to discuss
any aspect of the holiday should you wish to give us a
call. With a maximum of six groups per week, our holidays
provide you with the opportunity both to bond as a family
and to form friendships with like-minded others.
Our team of instructors meet and surpass all of the
necessary qualifications required by UK governing bodies
and will be there to guide your family through each activity
with professionalism, employing the right balance of
maturity and fun to make your visit with us as safe and
enjoyable as possible.
No experience is necessary for any of our activities as
all skills are taught on site. We will never attempt to push
you out of your comfort zone but will encourage you to
share the challenges of the activities as a family in an
environment that is both exhilarating and safe.
The week is centred around the canoe descent of the
Ardeche river, a magnificent limestone gorge that plays
host to thousands of adventurous tourists each summer.
The descent takes two days, with one night spent at a
Bivouac site deep in the heart of the gorge. Our river team
will take care of you the whole way, guiding you through
the rapids and keeping you entertained with games and
tales of the area. We have a vast knowledge of what
makes a comfortable descent, so we’ll supply you with
tents and sleeping bags, a fantastic barbecue as well as
coffee and a hearty breakfast.
As well as canoeing, a day at a high ropes course up in
the pine forests of Villefort is included, as well as another
day climbing and abseiling in the limestone cliffs of the
Chassezac gorge.
Though we do have a set itinerary for the week, we are
flexible and more than willing to customise the holiday to
your needs.
We always photograph the week’s excitement and provide
you with all of the images free of cost.
Phil Gasson.
When my teenage children coerced me
into an activity holiday, canoeing down
the Ardeche, it must be said that my
reaction to my husband was, “That is my
idea of hell.”
As a confirmed wimp, neurotic mother
and altogether non-outdoorsy type, I was
dreading this little adventure. However,
due to the excellent tuition, unparalleled
safety, good company and wonderful
scenery, believe it or not, I’m queuing up
to do it all again! A wonderful experience!
Maria Conway, aged 46!
familyadventureholidays.com
tel:
01273 803030
Typical Itinerary
Saturday
We’ll come to visit you at your accommodation to run
through the weeks plans. We understand that traveling can
be exhausting, so after a short introduction you’ll have the
rest of the day to relax and explore.
Sunday
This is a free day, though we recommend you start by
visiting our local morning market in Lablachere.
Most families use this day to settle into holiday mode,
though if you’re keen to get going we’ll happily organise
some activities for you.
Monday
Today you will be climbing and abseiling in the
Chassezac Gorge, enjoying the challenges posed by its
limestone cliffs. The activities will test your muscles, and
serve as a gentle introduction to the week ahead.
Tuesday
A day at the high ropes course in Villefort. This is a
fantastic day of zip lines and high rope challenges, where
you can fly through trees safe in the knowledge that
you and your kids are harnessed and in the hands of
professionals.
Wednesday
Today we begin the canoe descent, a two day adventure
through the Ardeche gorge. It is here that you’ll really
begin to appreciate the magnitude and beauty of the
Ardeche.
As well as negotiating the many rapids along the way, we
have time to swim and have lunch on the rivers edge.
We’ll arrive at the bivouac site in the late afternoon,
where we’ll prepare our sleeping area and light the BBQ.
The site is fully equipped with a shower block and toilets
and we will provide tents and inflatable beds for anybody
worried about an uncomfortable night!
Thursday
After sleeping out under the stars you’ll rise to the
smell of hot chocolate and pancakes. Once dry sacks
are loaded, we’ll set off for the final day of the descent,
ready to face more rapids and stunning scenery. By early
evening we’ll arrive at the bottom of the gorge to make
our way, by road, back along the gorge. The ride back is
almost as thrilling as the river itself, with new, even more
breathtaking views of the gorge unfolding with each turn
of the road.
Friday
This is a day of your design; in the morning you will be
able to choose from activities such as kayaking, climbing,
abseiling or gorge walking.
Saturday
Departure day. We’ll come and wish you a safe farewell,
providing you with any directions or information you may
need for the journey ahead. Hopefully you’ll have had a
great holiday and will already be thinking about your next
visit with us.
Our time with you guys was voted
by Sarah and the kids as our best
holiday ever. Competing with Orlando,
Caribbean, skiing etc. For the kids it was
down to the activities but also in great
part how they were treated as grown ups
by your team.
Willie Kirkpatrick
familyadventureholidays.com
tel:
01273 803030
Costs
Our family package price is for a 8 day self-catering holiday
with five full days of activities in a 2 bedroom chalet. As this
is a self-drive holiday travel is not included, prices start from
£398 per person.
For 2014 we do have an all-inclusive deluxe package where
we provide families with all activities, in resort transport
and accommodation in a stunning 4 bedroom gite. The
packages are for families of five and cost £986 per person.
Dates for 2014:
Our holidays run Saturday to Saturday throughout the
traditional school holiday periods, both for the summer
and half term breaks, just give us a call or email us to
discuss dates and availability.
[email protected]
or call: 01273 803030
Note: Recommended minimum age for our activities
is 8 years old, but please enquire as we can
customise your holiday to suit the needs of all ages
Getting to us Safety
Travel by Road
From Calais we are 640 miles (using the French auto routes
approx 12 hours drive).
Train
Eurostar to Avignon, Momtelimar or Nimes
Flights
Ryanair to Nimes or Easyjet to Marseille.
These destinations are within easy driving distance two
hours of our site and car hire is available at all of the
stations/airports.
We pride ourselves on our selection of staff as
we hand pick and train our teams personally. Our
instructors are chosen ultimately for their maturity
and professionalism, but we insist that they are
blessed with a sense of adventure and fun.
All our instructors are from the UK and hold all
relevant qualifications.
We operate a policy of transparency, and all staff/
instructor details will be available to our guests
upon request
All activities we provide will be instructed and
supervised by UK instructors.
familyadventureholidays.com
tel:
01273 803030
I’m just writing to say how much my
kids and nephew enjoyed the holiday.
Everything, and I do mean everything,
was just brilliant! The boys have such
good, fun memories of the kayaking,
Camping, Climbing and, dare I say it,
the nudists!!!
The scenery and landscape, like your
attention to detail and safety on the
trip, were truely exceptional. I haven’t
stopped going on about what a great
time we had to all my friends and family.
The Pendleton’s & Matthew
familyadventureholidays.com
tel:
01273 803030
Terms & conditions
Family Adventure Holidays and FamilyAdventureHolidays.com are trading names of Class Tours
Limited (FAH) which is a UK registered and regulated company (Reg 06537480 Vat 971 9934
66) and its trading and registered office address is; Verulum House, 142 Old Shoreham Road,
Hove BN3 7BD. Telephone; 01273 803030
Please take time to read the following terms and conditions carefully. They are the basis of the
contract between yourself and FAH.
A contract will exist between the customer(C) and FAH when the customer has paid a deposit.
You will then automatically receive a confirmation/invoice. If you think anything is incorrect
please contact us straight away. All correspondence will be with the Customer named on the
confirmation invoice who accepts the following conditions on behalf of all participants. The
contract is governed by English Law and any dispute will be dealt with under the exclusive
jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales. Any monies paid to an appointed agent (PayPal)
will be held by the agent for FAH until they are paid over to FAH. Please note that we do not
store credit card details nor do we share customer details with any 3rd parties.
Your final payment and travel tickets
The balance of your account is payable not later than 6 weeks before holiday commencement. If
payment is not made by the due date, Family Adventure Holidays reserve the right to advise you
of the cancellation of your holiday booking and make a cancellation charge at the appropriate
rate. Full payment must accompany bookings made within 6 weeks of departure.
Your Financial Protection
The Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours Regulations 1992 require us to
provide security for the monies that you pay for the holidays booked with Family Adventure
Holidays. We provide this security by way of a bond held by ABTA under licence number V5658
Changing your booking or travel
If, after you have confirmed your booking, you wish to make any alterations, Family Adventure
Holidays reserves the discretionary right to charge an administration fee of £25 per alteration.
Any such amendment may be communicated to FAH in the first instance but must be confirmed
in writing immediately thereafter. In order that all our overseas centre staff have the correct
information we cannot accept additions or alterations to travel arrangements within 7 days of the
commencement of the holiday.
If we are forced to make changes
Family Adventure Holidays will do its utmost to provide all of the arrangements that have been
confirmed, but must reserve the right to alter or cancel any activities, accommodation or other
arrangements, if operational, weather or other considerations so dictate.
If we have to make a major change to your holiday, we will offer a suitable alternative if
available, or 100% refund, if we are not able, in our opinion, to offer an alternative that is
sufficiently comparable. Compensation will be paid as below if we have to make a major
change to your holiday within 8 weeks of holiday commencement, unless the change is due
to circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including but not limited to war, riot, civil
commotion, act of God, industrial dispute, Government action, epidemic, disease, adverse
weather or natural disaster.
56–29 days – 10% of holiday price
28–15 days – 15% of holiday price
14 days or less – 25% of holiday price
Cancelling your holiday or travel
If you find that you cannot take your FAH holiday and have to cancel, for whatever reason, your
deposit will be forfeited to cover our costs. If we receive your written cancellation within 56 days
of your holiday commencement date, higher cancellation charges will be made, as follows:
56 to 29 days prior to commencement – 30% of the total holiday price.
28 to 15 days prior to commencement – 45% of the total holiday price.
14 to 1 days prior to commencement – 100% of the total holiday price.
On or after the commencement date – 100% of the total holiday price.
The date of effective cancellation is calculated on the day of receipt of written advice in our
Reservations Department.
Your Family Adventure Holidays holiday insurance may cover the cost of cancellation. If in doubt
don’t hesitate to contact our brokers, Fogg Travel Insurance Services, on 01623 631 331.x
Any complaints
If there is any problem with the holiday, we want to put this right for you as soon as possible.
Please bring your concern or your complaint to the attention of your Group Leader/Centre
Manager straightaway. If we have been unable to find a solution, you have 28 days from the end
of your holiday to write to us to explain your grievance. FAH will acknowledge this straightaway
and will reply in detail within 28 days of receipt.
If you are still unhappy, your complaint may be referred to arbitration under a special scheme
arranged by the Association of British Travel Agents in conjunction with the Institute of
Arbitrators. This scheme provides for a simple and inexpensive method of arbitration on
documents alone, with restricted liability on a customer in respect of costs. The scheme does
not apply to claims for an amount greater than £5,000 per person. There is also a limit of
£25,000 per booking form. Neither does it apply to claims which are solely or mainly in respect
of physical injury or illness or the consequences of such injury or illness. The scheme can
however deal with compensation claims involving minor injury or illness, subject to a limit of
£1,000 per person. Application for arbitration must be made within 9 months of return from
holiday. Further details can be supplied by ABTA on request. Their address is: 30 Park Street,
London SE1 9EQ.
Our responsibility
Family Adventure Holidays accepts responsibility for those elements of the holiday
arrangements which are under our direct control, and for the acts and/or omissions of our
employees, agents, subcontractors and suppliers. Save as set out below, no liability is accepted
for personal illness, injury or death.
We do accept responsibility for any personal illness, injury or death which results from the
negligent (as the word is understood in the English Law) acts or omissions of any servant or
agent, or any supplier, working on our behalf in the provision of services or facilities to you and
whilst acting within the scope of their employment.
Please note, however, that we do not accept liability for any air or sea carriers whose individual
conditions of carriage apply and are often subject to international agreements. We cannot
be held responsible for the failure or inability of any equipment or computer programme to
recognise or correctly interpret or process any date as the true or correct date, or to continue to
function correctly beyond that date.
We cannot be held responsible for the loss of enjoyment or additional expenses due to delays
or changes in any travel arrangements or other services which are caused by circumstances
amounting to force majeure, such as, but not limited to war, riot, civil commotion, act of God,
Government action, epidemic, disease, natural disaster, industrial dispute or adverse weather
conditions. We can only be liable for the provision of special requests where we have confirmed
their availability in writing.
Should you or any member of your party have the misfortune to suffer illness, injury or
death during the period of your holiday, arising out of an activity which does not form part of
the arrangements made by us, we shall, where appropriate, and subject to our reasonable
discretion and prior agreement, give you and your family every help that we can by way of
initial assistance, including initial legal costs associated there with, up to a maximum value
of £5,000 per booking. You must request such assistance within 90 days from the date of the
misadventure and in the event of there being a successful claim for costs against a third party or
there being suitable insurance policies in force, the costs incurred by Family Adventure Holidays
shall be recoverable from yourselves.
We shall not be liable in respect of any loss of profits, damage to goodwill or any type of special,
indirect or consequential loss even if such loss was reasonably foreseeable or we have been
advised of the possibility of you incurring the same. Subject to the above and excluding liability
for death or personal injury, our liability shall be limited to £15,000 (pounds sterling) in respect
to any one claim.
Your responsibility
It is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to advise FAH of a child’s special diets and any
other special needs in writing or by telephone at the time of booking. This information will be
reconfirmed to you in our documentation. (All children participating in watersports must be able
to meet FAH swimming requirements as detailed in the FAH Holiday Guide.)
It is also the responsibility of the parent/guardian or other person acting in ‘loco parentis’ to fully
advise FAH, when booking, and then follow this up in writing, of any illness, disabilities, social or
behavioural problems that a youngster currently has, or has recently experienced, which might
affect the youngster or other guests during the FAH holiday.
We reserve the right to exclude any person before or after holiday commencement if important
personal details have not been fully declared and/or his/her behaviour is incompatible with the
general enjoyment and wellbeing of others. Any costs involved in this would be entirely at the
responsibility and expense of the Customer, to whom any costs for damage and other expenses
incurred would also be charged.
Personal property
Your personal property, including baggage, is your own responsibility at all times, unless any
loss or damage is due to our negligence or failure to carry out our responsibility. Please check
insurance policy to see what personal items are covered and in what circumstances as this
might influence what you bring with you.
Data Protection
The personal information requested at the time of booking and on subsequent proformas is held
on computer and required to allow our employees, agents, sub-contractors and suppliers to
provide the promised holiday to our normal high standards. By providing us with the information
required for booking you are deemed to accept the above and to have gained consent from
the parents of all members of your party to disclose their details to us. If you book with FAH or
request a brochure, then you consent to receive future mailings and information from Family
Adventure Holidays. If you do not wish to receive these mailings, please advise at the time of
booking or alternatively write to Family Adventure Holidays.
Photography
We regularly take photographs and videos for promotional and training purposes, if you do not
want your family to appear in these you must write to FAH Customer Service and inform FAH
Staff on arrival at the centre.
ABTA
Family Adventure Holidays is a Member of ABTA with membership number V5658. ABTA and
ABTA Members help holidaymakers to get the most from their travel and assist them when
things do not go according to plan. We are obliged to maintain a high standard of service to
you by ABTA’s Code of Conduct. For further information about ABTA, the Code of Conduct and
the arbitration scheme available to you if you have a complaint, contact ABTA, 30 Park Street,
London, SE1 9EQ Tel: 020 3117 0500 or www.abta.com
Finally
The details here are published in good faith in October 2013.