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HOW IT WORKS

On this website you will find suggested itineraries that have been carefully planned to make the best use of your time. These can also be tailored to suit your needs and visions. Once you have formulated your ideas, or if you require some specific or general advice, please call us on 01892 515966 or email us on pettitts@btconnect.com. On receipt of your request we will provide you with a full written quotation together with our suggestions and recommendations. Once we have created an itinerary that matches your requirements and received your deposit we will proceed to place reservations through the Pettitts India Tours Pvt Ltd office in Delhi and our appointed agents elsewhere.

Should you wish to discuss your plans and ideas in person we would be delighted to welcome you to our office. The Spa town of Royal Tunbridge Wells has excellent train connections from London Charing Cross (50 minutes) and is also convenient for the M25 London Orbital Motorway.

OFFICE HOURS:
* Monday – Friday: 9.15 am – 5.30 pm
* Saturday and Sunday – By appointment

Telephone: 01892 515966
Fax: 01892 521500
E-mail: pettitts@btconnect.com

PRICES
These vary according to selected airlines, hotels and season, however, an indication to the current cost of our featured itineraries are given on this website. On receipt of your request we will provide you with a full written quotation together with our suggestions and recommendations. Our prices are fully guaranteed against any surcharge for any reason.

WHEN TO BOOK
In general, if you are planning a complex itinerary you should book at least two months or more before your intended date of travel. However, with flexibility we are able to accommodate most late bookings even up to one week before departure.

TRAVEL INSURANCE
Pettitts do not offer Travel Insurance as many clients prefer to make their own insurance arrangements to suit their particular requirements. However it is a condition of your contract with Pettitts that every member of the party has full Travel Insurance which covers, specifically, medical treatment and emergency repatriation where appropriate, without any exclusions.

Please note that we will need to know the name of your insurers together with the following information before commencement of your holiday.

• Name of your Insurance Company:
• Policy Number:
• Insurance Emergency Contact Telephone Number:

For non-UK residents who may require travel insurance we recommend that you contact P J Hayman & Company Ltd on 00 44 23 9241 9050 or visit their web site at www.pjhayman.com.

PRE-EXISTING MEDICAL CONDITIONS / DISABLED PASSENGERS
It is essential that you advise us before booking if you have any disability, pre-existing medical conditions or important dietary requirement that Pettitts should be made aware of before we accept responsibility for operating this itinerary to the countries named. We may request that you provide a letter from your doctor confirming your fitness to travel.

PASSPORTS & VISAS
First and foremost it is imperative that the surname and initials on your passport corresponds exactly with the surname and initials you have given Pettitts to be printed on any airline tickets. Failure to do so may result in the airline refusing you the right to travel. Your passport should be a 10-year British passport, valid for at least six months beyond your planned return date. Visa applications for your chosen destinations will be sent with your booking confirmation together with a recommended visa service that can undertake the applications on your behalf. Non-British passport holders should check with the relevant embassies, as visa requirements may be different to that of British passport holders. It is the client’s responsibility to ensure that they can obtain the appropriate visas for the countries to be visited.

HEALTH & SECURITY
Your doctor will advise you on anti-malarial precautions and on which inoculations are compulsory and which are recommended for your itinerary. For current information on health advice you may wish to visit the Medical Advisory Services for Travellers Abroad (MASTA) Web Site at www.masta.org or telephone 0906 822 4100.
High Altitude: If you intend to visit any area where the altitude exceeds 3000m please consult your doctor as to the suitability of your journey in relation to your health and you should also consider the possible risks of altitude sickness. Anyone suffering from high blood pressure, anaemia and respiratory problems should not undertake such journeys.

SAFETY & PROTECTION
At Pettitts we pride ourselves on selecting the highest quality services available to make your holiday the best. However, because we travel to such far-flung and interesting destinations, many of which are off the beaten track, it is not always possible to find standards equal to those we take for granted in the UK and EEC regulations do not apply to any of the countries featured in this brochure. General standards of safety and hygiene will differ from country to country and we advise you to be vigilant at all times. The Foreign and Commonwealth Travel Advice Unit may have issued information about your holiday destination. You are advised to check this information at www.fco.gov.uk .

ON CALL 24 HOURS A DAY
We will provide you with contact details of the overseas agents that we work with in your chosen destination to assist you during your holiday whenever you need help or information. In addition we will also provide you with a 24 hour Pettitts contact number to a member of our staff in the UK.

GETTING THERE
The flexibility of our service enables you to fly from anywhere in the world and commence your tour on any date you choose. We are more than happy for you to arrange your own international flights. We use only scheduled flights commencing from the UK.

HOTELS
From guesthouses and ancestral homes to luxurious hotels the options of where to stay are almost endless. Simply select your style of accommodation and we will advise you and tailor-make an itinerary using hotels to suit you best. The hotels that we have selected for the tours detailed on our website are among the best and / or most atmospheric in each centre with many belonging to leading hotel companies.

TRAVEL BY CAR
Our cars and drivers in each country are carefully chosen for experience and reliability and you can confidently sit back and enjoy the fascinating sights and sounds unfolding before you. All tours are based on travel by air-conditioned car. The only exception to this is in the cooler climes of the Himalaya, the hill country of Southern India and some areas of Ethiopia where air-conditioning is not required.

India: Our tours are based on the modern Toyota Innova car which is considered to be one the best vehicles for touring this country. If the size of your party consists of more than 3 persons we would recommend, for your safety and comfort, that you travel in two Toyota Innova’s or we can also provide a larger Tempo Traveller mini bus which normally consists of 9 seats. Please note, however, that the Tempo Traveller is not fitted with seat belts. In India your experienced driver will speak English but please remember that this is not their first language. Your driver is usually augmented by knowledgeable local guides, especially in the major cities. On tours of Sri Lanka your driver also serves as your guide.

South America and Asia: In South America and all other Asian countries drivers do not normally speak English, therefore, a local representative or a knowledgeable local guide always accompanies you in your car. In South America and the Far East, depending on the route and duration of your tour, we normally use modern air-conditioned vehicles such as saloon cars, MPV’s or 4 wheel drives. In Asia the roads are the main arteries of daily life and people, cars, trucks, pedestrians, rickshaws and livestock often share the bustling and unregulated thoroughfares. The roads themselves vary enormously from pot-holed cart tracks to national highways but are all affected at certain times of the year by the monsoon rains. When calculating journey times you should allow for travelling an average distance of 40kms to 60kms per hour but reducing to 20kms to 30kms in mountainous terrain or on badly maintained roads.

Morocco: Overall, Morocco has an excellent network of good tarmac roads linking the main towns and cities, the three main passes over the Atlas Mountains and much of the Sahara region. Your driver will speak fluent French and will have only a limited knowledge of English. As such he is not a guide but will have good knowledge of his country. We can also arrange self-drive itineraries through our local representative with AVIS in Morocco – further details are available on request.

Libya: In Libya your driver will speak English and will also be your guide. This will be augmented by knowledgeable local guides at the archaeological sites. Depending on the route and duration of your tour we normally use air-conditioned saloon cars such as Peugeot and Renault or 4 wheel drive vehicles when visiting the Sahara. We must advise you that seat belts are not always fitted in the vehicles that we use.

Ethiopia: In Ethiopia your driver will normally only speak limited English and therefore you will be accompanied by either an English speaking representative or a local guide. Depending on the route of your tour we would normally use non air-conditioned vehicles.

Jordan and Syria: Both these countries have an excellent network of good tarmac roads linking all the main towns and cities. Your driver will speak limited English, but throughout your tour of Jordan or Syria you will also be accompanied by an English speaking guide. Depending on the route and duration of your tour we normally use modern air-conditioned saloon cars such as a Nissan Maxima, Toyota Camry or Samsung.

TRAVEL BY TRAIN
India and China offer some of the largest rail networks in the world and train travel can be an enormously enjoyable means of getting around. However, the standard of comfort can vary enormously, but wherever possible we book the best available seats. Should you wish to undertake further journeys by rail we will be pleased to advise you from our experience where we feel this would be suitable.

TRAVEL BY AIR
We always try to keep the use of internal flights to the minimum but sometimes they are unavoidable for reasons of time and distance. When an itinerary in the brochure has flights between cities the cost is included and is based on the scheduled economy class services of domestic airlines. In India delays and last-minute cancellations are not uncommon, especially in Northern India during mid-December to mid-January when fog can delay flights. Should this happen our local representative will discuss the best possible alternative available with you and will endeavour to get you to your destination with the minimum of inconvenience either by surface or air.

RAMADAN
Ramadan is a special month of the year for Muslims throughout the world and is a time for fasting and inner reflection. During the day the general pace of life slows and many restaurants are closed, however, the cities are lively at night especially during the second half of the month. Exact dates vary from year to year, but the approximate start date of Ramadan is expected to be on 1st August 2011 and 30th August 2011.

CLOSING DAYS
When planning your itinerary you may wish to note the following guide to current closure days of some of the more important monuments, museums and places of interest.

Country	City	Place of Interest	Closed
India	Agra	Taj Mahal	Friday
	Ajanta	Ajanta Caves	Monday
	Kochi	Mattancherry Palace	Friday
	Kochi	Synagogue	Friday and Saturday
	Chennai	All Museums	Friday
	Delhi	Red Fort	Monday
	Delhi	Chandni Chowk	Sunday
	Ellora	Ellora Caves	Tuesday
	Mumbai	Prince of Wales Museum	Monday
	Mumbai	Elephanta Caves	Monday
	Kolkata	Victoria Memorial Museum	Monday
Laos	Luang Prabang	Royal Palace Museum	Saturday & Sunday
	Vientiane	Wat Si Sisaket	Monday
	Vientiane	Pha That Leung	Monday
Vietnam	Hanoi	Museums	Monday
	Hanoi	HCM Mausoleum	Monday & Friday
Sri Lanka	Colombo	National Museums	Friday

Please also be aware that most museums in Libya are closed on a Monday. In Morocco some museums and tourist sites are closed on a Tuesday.

DATA PROTECTION POLICY

Your booking:
In order to process your booking and ensure that your travel arrangements run smoothly and meet your requirements we need to use the information you provide such as name, address, any special needs / dietary requirements etc. We take full responsibility for ensuring that proper security measures are in place to protect your information and we are a registered user under the Data Protection Registrar. We must pass the relevant information on to the suppliers of your travel arrangements such as airlines, hotels, transport companies etc. The information may also be provided to security or credit checking companies, public authorities such as customs / immigration if required by them, or as required by law. Additionally, as your holiday is outside the European Economic Area (EEA), controls on data protection in your destination may not be as strong as the legal requirements in this country. We will not however, pass any information onto any person not responsible for a part of 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 cannot provide your booking. In making this booking, you consent to this information being passed on to the relevant persons.

Marketing:
We will hold your information, where collected by us, and may use it to inform you of offers in the future or to send you brochures. If you do not wish to receive such approaches in the future please let us know. BROCHURE /WEB SITE ACCURACY The information given in our brochures and web site has been thoroughly checked, however, there may be alterations to transport schedules, routings, hotel accommodation and facilities or Government Regulations. Should any changes occur that involve your itinerary we will endeavour to keep you informed on the situation before your departure.