General Terms and Conditions
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General Terms and Conditions

These Terms and Conditions govern the relationship between you and Grand Circle Foundation, Inc. You agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions. They state, among other things, the cancellation policy for the Cuba programs and certain limitations of liability. These terms affect your rights to sue, governing law, forum, and jurisdiction; please be sure to carefully read these terms and make sure you understand your rights and obligations and our rights and obligations. We strongly recommend you purchase travel protection.

Reservations and Payments
A deposit of $500 per person is required to secure your reservation. To secure reservations on a trip departing within 90 days, full payment is required at the time of booking.

Final payment is due at least 90 days prior to departure. Grand Circle Foundation reserves the right to cancel reservations that are not paid in full at any time after final payment is due. Cancellation charges may apply.

Cancellations and Refunds
If you must cancel your reservation on a Cuba program, you may do so by calling 1-855-423-3443, or by letter. Send letters of cancellation to Grand Circle Foundation, 347 Congress Street, Boston, MA 02210. Cancellation charges will be calculated as of the date we receive your cancellation. Any applicable refunds will be returned to you in the manner in which payment was made, and processed within 30 days of receipt of your cancellation.

Cancellation and Change Penalties for the Cuba Programs:

Prior to departure:         Charge:
65 days or more             No Charge
64-35 days                   $500
34 days–departure         100% of program price

If you are a no-show, if you cancel your trip after the departure date, if you do not have a valid passport or are not able to obtain a valid Cuba Visa or if you leave a trip already in progress, you will not receive any refund for all or any unused portion of your trip.

Cancellations made within 14 days after booking will be subject to the cancellation charges, unless the reason for canceling given at the time of cancellation is your rejection of these Terms and Conditions.

If you reserved a double room and are sharing with a friend or family member, and that person cancels prior to departure, you will be subject to an additional single supplement fee.

Reservation Changes
If you make changes to your program date, it will be treated as a cancellation and the relevant cancellation charges will apply. Name changes are considered reservation cancellations and are subject to the above cancellation charges. All traveler requests are subject to availability and are not guaranteed.

In certain circumstances, Grand Circle Foundation may change the departure date of your program or consolidate any departures that do not reach a minimum level of participation or are overbooked. In this event, you will be offered an alternative departure date. If we are not able to agree upon a suitable alternative, you will be entitled to cancel your reservation and receive a full refund of your program price.

Grand Circle Foundation reserves the right to cancel or shorten a program's departure without notice, in which event your sole remedy shall be a prorated refund for any unused portion of the trip.

Single Travelers
The Cuba program dates offer a very limited number of single rooms. There will be an additional charge for single occupancy of accommodations.

Passports and Visa
A valid passport is required, and must be valid for six months after the completion of your Cuba program. Non-U.S. citizens who are residents of the U.S. are eligible to travel on these programs. Non-U.S. citizens who are not residents of the U.S. cannot reserve these Cuba programs.

The cost of a Visa for Cuba for non-Cuban born participants is included in the program price. Information about the Visa will be sent to all participants, and the participants will receive the Visa in Miami, prior to departing for Cuba.

There is a supplement, currently $200 per person, for a Visa for Cuban-born participants. No Cuban-born person will be allowed to make a reservation if they have previously applied for a Cuban Visa and were rejected. If any Cuban born person knows of any reason why their Visa application may be rejected, it is strongly recommended that they not make a reservation, as they will be subject to full cancellation penalties if the Visa application is rejected and they are unable to travel on the program.

Air Arrangements
You are responsible for your own transportation, including air travel arrangements, to and from Miami.  If you are unable to make your departure, it is your responsibility to work with the airline on which you are ticketed to reach your destination. Grand Circle Foundation and its affiliates are not responsible for any additional expenses you may incur prior to joining your trip. For example, if an air schedule requires an overnight stay, the costs of the overnight stay (including hotel and meals) are at your expense.

For all air travel arrangements between Miami and Cuba, you will receive a final package approximately fifteen days prior to your departure date that will include your air information, and you will receive your air tickets at the airport. Please note that your air tickets and other program documentation must bear your first and last names exactly as they appear on your passport. It is your responsibility to check your travel documents when you receive them to make sure they are correct. If they are not correct, please contact Grand Circle Foundation immediately.

Grand Circle Foundation and its affiliates are not responsible if an airline cancels or delays a flight, including your flights in and out of Miami and the flights in and out of Cuba for any reason (including weather). Grand Circle Foundation and its affiliates are not responsible for and will not provide any refund for portions of trips missed due to cancelled or delayed flights. Air routings are subject to availability. Routings are not guaranteed, and are subject to change at any time.

Medical Issues
You must advise Grand Circle Foundation in writing, at or prior to booking, of any physical, emotional or mental condition which (a) may affect your ability to fully participate in the program; (b) may require professional attention during the program; or (c) may require the use of special equipment. If any such condition arises after you make your reservation on the program, you must advise Grand Circle Foundation in writing immediately.

Grand Circle Foundation reserves the right to decline or cancel your reservation, or to remove you from a program in progress, if Grand Circle Foundation reasonably determines your condition would adversely affect the health, safety, or enjoyment of you or of other participants. If Grand Circle Foundation removes you from a program in progress pursuant to this paragraph, you will not be entitled to any refund of your Program Price and Grand Circle Foundation shall have no further liability.

The Cuba programs are not wheelchair-accessible. If you are unable to travel without assistance, you must be accompanied by an able companion. If you have a condition which requires special equipment or treatment, you must bring and be responsible for all necessary items related to your condition. Grand Circle Foundation cannot accommodate motorized scooters of any kind. Grand Circle Foundation cannot accommodate women past their sixth month of pregnancy and cannot accommodate service animals.

If you have a condition as contemplated herein, you travel at your own risk. Grand Circle Foundation is not liable for any injuries or damages you may suffer relating to such a condition, including without limitation loss of special equipment, lack of assistance with or accommodation of special needs, and unavailability of medical assistance or treatment.

Due to Cuban government regulations, the following coverage is included in our charter airline tickets:

  • Maximum of $20,000 to cover emergency medical costs incurred in Cuba.
  • Maximum of $7500 evacuation insurance, provided only if a Cuban doctor states that you need to be evacuated in order to receive adequate treatment.

Except as described above, Grand Circle Foundation is not responsible for the costs of any medical treatment you may require during the program. Under no circumstances is Grand Circle Foundation responsible for the quality of medical care, or lack thereof, you may receive while on a Cuba program.

Special Conditions
These Cuba programs will operate based on the Specific License granted by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Department of Treasury. We are authorized to travel to Cuba under OFAC license #CT-17899 through June of 2012. The operation of September-December departures is subject to the renewal of this license.

These are structured programs. Participants are required to attend each visit and event as detailed. Failure to comply with the structured program may be reported to U.S. officials.

We caution that Cuba is a very special destination, we urge each participant to respect the laws and customs of this nation as the U.S. government does not maintain full diplomatic relations with Cuba. Grand Circle Foundation will assume no responsibility and will not be held liable due to inappropriate actions or activities of any participant while in Cuba.

Responsibility
The responsibility of Grand Circle Foundation and its affiliated companies is strictly limited. Grand Circle Foundation's Cuba programs consist of certain educational travel services, including surface and air transportation, visits, meals, guides, and hotel accommodations that Grand Circle Foundation reserves from various suppliers (collectively, "Suppliers"). Grand Circle Foundation does not own or operate any of these Suppliers. The Suppliers providing services for Grand Circle Foundation's Cuba programs are independent contractors, and are not agents or employees of Grand Circle Foundation. As such, Grand Circle Foundation is not responsible for any negligent or willful act or failure to act of any supplier or of any third party. By utilizing the services of the Suppliers, you agree that you will look to such Suppliers for any accident, injury, property damage, or personal loss to you or to those traveling with you, and that neither Grand Circle Foundation nor any representative of Grand Circle Foundation shall be liable.*

Without limitation, Grand Circle Foundation is not responsible for any injury, loss, or damage to person or property, death, delay, or inconvenience in connection with the provision of, or failure to provide, any goods or services occasioned by or resulting from—but not limited to—acts of God or force majeure, acts of war or civil unrest, insurrection or revolt, strikes or other labor activities, criminal or terrorist activities of any kind, overbooking or downgrading of accommodations (except as expressly set forth herein), mechanical or other failure of airplanes or other means of transportation or for the failure of any transportation mechanism to arrive or depart on time, sanitation problems, lack of medical care, or for any other cause beyond the direct control of Grand Circle Foundation.

To the extent that Grand Circle Foundation is involved in reserving air transportation for you, Grand Circle Foundation acts as an agent of the air carrier and not as your agent. For all other purposes, Grand Circle Foundation does not act as an agent for any party whatsoever.

Grand Circle Foundation reserves the right to decline to accept or retain any person as a member of any Cuba program. Grand Circle Foundation also reserves the right to remove you from a program in progress, if Grand Circle Foundation reasonably determines your behavior is adversely affecting or jeopardizing the health, safety, or enjoyment of you or of other participants. Except as discussed above in "Medical Issues" your sole remedy shall be a prorated refund of your Program Price for any unused portion of the trip.

Grand Circle Foundation reserves the right to modify itineraries and substitute hotels and accommodations. Included features may not be available for all departures.
California law requires certain sellers of travel to have a trust account or bond. Grand Circle Foundation has a trust account. Grand Circle Foundation is not a participant in the California Travel Consumer Restitution Corporation.

* Grand Circle Foundation utilizes the services of Educational Travel Alliance, Inc. ("ETA"), an OFAC licensed Travel Service Provider, to provide certain services related to the coordination of the Cuba programs. ETA may in turn utilize the services of other suppliers, which are independent third parties, including companies in Cuba, to make arrangements related to the programs.  

Applicable Law and Liability
This relationship shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts without regard to conflicts of laws principles. Any claims against Grand Circle Foundation must be brought in the Courts of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to the exclusion of the Courts of any other state and country.

In no event shall Grand Circle Foundation be liable for any indirect, consequential, punitive, multiple, incidental, special or exemplary damages, however caused, and whether in contract, tort or under any other theory of liability, and regardless of whether Grand Circle Foundation has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, Grand Circle Foundation's liability for damages hereunder shall in no event exceed the amount actually paid by you to Grand Circle Foundation for the program giving rise to the claim. The foregoing limitation of liability shall not apply to liability for death or personal injury to the extent applicable law prohibits such limitation.

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