Terms and Conditions | Online Contract

Once you have chosen your travel arrangements, please read the conditions of travel as your booking is subject to all the terms listed below.  A contract is entered into once we receive your deposit, and we accept and confirm the booking. This online contract is mutually binding for both parties - UlkoTours (the supplier) and the person placing a reservation (the client).

Please note that travel arrangements are NOT confirmed until stated so in writing by ULKOtours. 

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2022 Update

In 2022 we are not operating shore excursions in Russia, but still operating all other Baltic ports along cruise itineraries from our office branch in Riga, Latvia.

We still offer land tours in Russia to all customers arriving by air.

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Before you go

Passports/Visas - For international travel, U.S. citizens need a passport valid for at least six months beyond the completion of the cruise or tour as well as a Russian Visa (NO Visas are required for Europe and the Baltics). Non-U.S. citizens should contact their booking agent or appropriate consulate for information on all necessary documents required. No Visas are required for cruise ship passengers of any nationality.

Port Security Measures/Customs - The Port and Customs Authority requires all passengers to provide their name exactly as it appears on the passport, passport number, date of birth, and gender, as well as Citizenship.

Membership and Health - Membership will be granted to all persons. Please consult your physician for pre-departure health advice. UlkoTours reserves the right to terminate the tour of any persons who are abusive of others or whose behavior disrupts the tour. Easy Tours are suitable for persons that require assistance or use a wheelchair. If you need a slower pace, extra help, or the use of a cane/walking stick, Easy tours will be perfect for you. Moderate and Intensive programs are not recommended for guests with special needs. These are active programs and require you to make a realistic assessment of your health. All participants are expected to be in vibrant good health and to be ready to experience cultural differences with grace. Walking and climbing the stairs are required in many museums and cathedrals/churches. If you need a slower pace, extra assistance, or the use of a cane/walking stick/wheelchair, UlkoTours private programs are here to help you.

Travelers Needing Special Assistance - It is recommended that guests needing such assistance are accompanied by an able companion who will assist them during the tour. We regret that some itineraries cannot accommodate wheelchairs or motorized scooters; ask at booking. Wheelchairs are available for rental on a daily basis, at 50 USD per day. If required, we can provide services of a strong male assistant to help to push the chair/getting the person in and out of the vehicle (if no special vehicle is ordered). The price depends on the duration and intensity level. Please contact us for details.

Photography and Video on Tour - Occasionally UlkoTours will use photographs or videos taken by fellow guests on tour for print, Internet, and other media promotional purposes. If you prefer that your image NOT be used in any marketing activities, please notify your UlkoTours guide at the start of your tour.

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Booking Procedures  

An appropriate deposit for each program chosen will be your only obligation until you arrive in Russia or the Baltics. The balance of the tour cost must be paid upon arrival or may be pre-paid in advance.

Full pre-payment MAY be required if your tour destinations do not include Saint Petersburg, Russia.
The deposit goes towards your total tour amount.

ULKOtours requires a 20% or 100 USD per person deposit  (whichever is greater) to guarantee your reservation.

Once the deposit arrives, we will process your travel documents and will email them to you.

The deposit is fully refundable up to 21 days before the tour when your tickets/vouchers will already be paid for.

On-Line Reservations
Ulkotours  offers a secure online booking for all standard tours:
1. Select the desired tour and click Book.

2. Enter your travel details required to complete the reservation (arrival and departure info, hotels, group size, etc.). Review the Total price for your tour and Continue to the Confirmation Page.

3. After our Customer Service Managers review your submission, you will receive a Secure Link for online Deposit Payment via our partner bank: Russian Standard Bank, General license of the Central Bank #2289 of 19.11.2014 to conduct banking operations. https://www.rsb.ru/  

4. Open the link to proceed to the Russian Standard Bank Secure On-Line Payment page. Enter your Credit/debit card details and confirm the transaction.
5. You will be redirected back to Ulkotours website once the bank approves the Transaction.
6. Your travel documents will be processed shortly and emailed to you. You're all set to go!

Additional Orders and Custom-made Special Tours
An Additional Order covers all extra tickets not included in a standard package tour, i.e., theater and folk-show tickets, train and plane tickets, any other bookings/reservations that you need us to perform on your behalf.
A Custom-made Special tour includes all special arrangements that are provided by partners of ULKOtours and must be booked and prepaid by ULKOtours in advance to secure availability. Cancellations are possible on terms of the partners only. Such tours include, but are not limited to: theater backstage tours, ballet master-classes,  cooking classes, matryoshka-doll classes, wedding and birthday arrangements, Moscow Stalin bunker tours, all types of military tours, helicopter tours and similar arrangements that are not offered regularly.
A 100% pre-payment for all additional orders and custom-made tours is required at the moment of booking by Credit Card on-line/ Bank Money transfer. If a 100% pre-payment is not received within seven working days after the booking request, the reservation is canceled automatically.
Ulkotours reserves the right to cancel all reserved bookings in case a pre-payment is made untimely, incompletely or incorrectly.
Please use one of the Payment Options below to pay for your Additional Order.

Pre-Payment and Payment Instructions for private tours
Ulkotours requires a minimum of 100 USD or 20% (whichever is greater) per person deposit to confirm your reservation.
The balance for the tour can be paid :
In advance by Credit Card online, or in the morning/afternoon of the first tour day (we adjust payment times according to the program)

If your tour is based on an hourly rate, we will provide you with a detailed receipt for all the services rendered. 

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Payment Options

Ulkotours accepts several forms of payments for Deposits/Full Advance Payments/ Additional Orders/ Balance Payments.

Payment by Credit Card
We accept all major credit card types for tour payment in our office: Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Diner's Club, JCB.

Payment On-line by Credit Card.
We accept all major credit card types for tour pre-payment online: Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Diner's Club, JCB.
Please ask your designated Customer Service Manager to send you an e-invoice or email us at booking@ulkotours.com. 
You are welcome to inform our Customer Service Managers about the amount of pre-payment you wish to make. You are welcome to make a full balance payment for your tour at any time convenient for you.

1. After communication with Ulkotours Customer Service Managers, you will receive an email with a  Secure Link for online Deposit Payment via our partner bank: Russian Standard Bank, General license of the Central Bank #2289 of 19.11.2014 to conduct banking operations. https://www.rsb.ru/  
2. Open the link to proceed to the Russian Standard Bank Secure On-Line Payment page. Enter your Credit/debit card details and confirm the transaction. 
3. You will be redirected back to Ulkotours website once the bank approves the Transaction. 
4. Your updated travel documents will be processed shortly and emailed to you. 

Bank Money Transfer

• In USD/Roubles to Russia: According to the banking rules in Russia, we will send you an official contract to be signed and an invoice. You will need to return the signed contract to us (by fax or email) before the payment is completed on your side.

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How does online payment work? 

From your order to the delivery of your tour confirmation, the following steps present the process of our online purchasing system : 

Your order and a secured bank server connection - Once you have determined the tour you like and submitted the order form, you will receive an email from Ulkotours with a Secure Link for payment.  Check your details (reservation number), and if everything is correct, click on the button " Pay" to be redirected to the secured server of our bank (Russian Standard Bank) from where you will proceed with your payment.
Our bank will then establish a secured connection between their server and your computer (using the SSL technology with 128 bits encryption) so that you can safely enter your credit card information for your payment. You can check that you are in a secured zone by looking at the presence of a small icon representing a closed padlock in your internet web browser (generally located on the right side corner) and double click on it to verify the identity of this server. 

A safe transaction - From the secured server of our bank partner, you can safely enter your credit card information (card number, expiration date, and the last three digits located on the backside of your card) to proceed with your payment. As our bank is in charge of the whole transaction, no third party, including ULKOtours, can have access to your card number. As a consequence and also because your credit card information is never stored, this system fully ensures you against any possible use of your card number after that. 

Payment acceptation and delivery - After you have verified and validated your credit card information, our bank will then immediately indicate to you whether your payment is accepted or rejected and will also inform our server at the same time about this result. If your payment is approved, you will automatically receive a confirmation email of your purchase. Your tour Confirmation and Tour Tickets (where applicable) will be emailed to you shortly. In the improbable event where you do not receive your email in the expected delay, please contact us at booking@ulkotours.com by indicating your name and date of purchase. 

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Bank and Credit Card Fees

Some banks and credit card companies impose fees for international transactions. If you are making an online payment on a US credit card, your card will be charged the equivalent of the amount you have been discussing with your manager (OR minimum required deposit amount, which is 100 USD) in the local currency (Russian Roubles) and your bank may convert the payment amount to your local currency and charge you a conversion fee. This means the amount listed on your credit or bank card statement may vary slightly from the original amount discussed with your manager or from the 100 USD amount. Usually, the difference is not greater than 1%.
If you have any questions about these fees or the exchange rate applied to your booking, please contact your bank. 

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Cancellation Policy and Refunds

If you cancel

A customer may cancel the tour at any planning stage.  For cancellations, please contact your designated Customer Service Manager or email us at booking@ulkotours.com. 

General Tours (all tours, except tours in St Petersburg that include Hermitage museum & Catherine's palace, and Moscow including Kremlin*)
     In case of cancellation at least 7 days in advance of the scheduled departure, there is no cancellation fee.
     In case of cancellation between 3 and 6 days in advance of the scheduled departure, there is a 50 percent cancellation fee.
     In case of cancellation within 2 days of the scheduled departure, there is a 100 percent cancellation fee.

*Tours in St Petersburg that include Hermitage museum & Catherine's palace, and Moscow with Kremlin admission.
     In case of cancellation at least 21 day(s) in advance of the scheduled departure, there is no cancellation fee.
     In case of cancellation between 20 and 15 day(s) in advance of the scheduled departure, there is a 30 percent cancellation fee.
     In case of cancellation between 14 and 10 day(s) in advance of the scheduled departure, there is a 50 percent cancellation fee.
     In case of cancellation within 9 days of the scheduled departure, there is a 100 percent cancellation fee.

Should you wish to cancel your travel arrangements, you must notify Ulkotours in writing. If your cancellation is 7 days before the tour or less, please state the reason for cancellation as your insurance policy might cover you, and Ulkotours will issue you a corresponding letter for your insurance company.
 
If there have been no services performed and no additional orders purchased for you, you will get your 100% refund for the canceled tour in the original payment method maximum within 10 business days after the written cancellation. 

Additional Orders
Unfortunately, we do NO refunds for Additional Orders once the order has been purchased for you.
You will be issued an applicable receipt to submit to your insurance company.

If we cancel
If we need to make a major change or cancel, we will tell you as soon as possible and if there is time to do so before the arrangements are due to commence, we will offer you the choice of:

1.    (for major changes) accepting the changed arrangements,
2.    getting a refund of all monies paid, or
3.    accepting an offer of alternative arrangements of comparable standard from us, if available (we will refund any price difference if the alternative is of a lower value).
You must notify us of your choice within 7 days of our offer. If you fail to do so, we will assume you have chosen to accept the change or alternative arrangements. 

The above sets out the maximum extent of our liability for changes and cancellations and we regret we cannot meet any expenses or losses you may incur as a result of change or cancellation.

 No liability beyond offering the above mentioned choices can be accepted where:

1. we are forced to make a change or cancel as a result of unusual and unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control such as force majeure, the consequences of which we could not have avoided even with all due care; or
2. where applicable, we have to cancel because the minimum number of bookings necessary for us to operate your trip has not been reached.

No compensation will be payable and the above options will not be available if we cancel as a result of your failure to comply with any requirement of these booking conditions entitling us to cancel (such as paying on time) or where a change is a minor one.

Force Majeure Cancellations

Very rarely, you or we may be forced by "force majeure" to change or terminate your trip less than 14 days before it starts or after departure but before the scheduled end of your time away. If this situation does occur, we regret we will be unable to make any refunds (unless we obtain any refunds from our partner suppliers), pay you any compensation, or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result because we incur expenses as well on our side.

In case you or we are forced to cancel your trip more than 14 days before it starts because of "force majeure", we will do our best to provide a refund but will not pay you any compensation or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result.

During force majeure events, or for all cancellations because of force majeure events, you have the following options:

• a full refund;
• a full amount tour credit for any future booking;
• tour re-scheduling for a future date without any extra charges or penalty;

We do not guarantee that your preferred option will be available for your reservation. Your preferences will be taken into account but the final decision will be made by us based on the current force majeure situation and the political, environmental, financial, health, or any other circumstances around it.

In these booking conditions, "force majeure" means any event which we could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. Such events may include, whether actual or threatened, war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, significant risks to human health such as the outbreak of serious disease at the travel destination, pandemic, acts of government, adverse weather conditions, fire and all similar events outside our control. Except where otherwise expressly stated in these booking conditions, we regret we cannot accept liability or pay any compensation where the performance or prompt performance of our obligations under our contract with you is prevented or affected by or you otherwise suffer any damage, loss, or expense of any nature as a result of "force majeure".

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Tour changes policy

Please be aware that all changes in the tour starting time can (and must!)  be made no later than 24 hours before the beginning of the trip.
We are happy to change the starting location to suit your arrival schedule if needed.
All the changes made within the last 24-hour limit will result in either reducing the tour duration or charges for the extra time (guide/driver services).
Please also be aware that famous museums do not allow changes to the pre-booked tour times due to a large number of visitors.

Museums LAST-MINUTE cancellation policy (less than 9 days):
Catherine's Palace in Pushkin - non-refundable, no changes allowed
Hermitage,  Yusupov's palace, Grand Palace in Peterhoff - refundable only 9+ days before the tour, no changes allowed.
All other museums - fully refundable, any changes allowed.

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Discounts

The following discounts apply to our services:
Saint Petersburg & Moscow Shore Excursions:
    Student Discounts: applicable to all children from 7 y.o. until 17 y.o. 10 USD for 1-day tours, 20 USD for 2-day tours, 30 USD for 3-day tours.
    ISIC Discounts: applicable to all students with a valid ISIC ID. Same discount rate as Student Discounts.
    Child Discounts: applicable to children from 0 to 6 y.o. Discount rate from 50% to 100% of the tour cost, depending on the tour program.
Baltic Shore Excursions:
    Student Discounts: applicable to all children from 7 y.o. until 17 y.o. Discount rate from 5% to 10% of the tour cost, depending on the tour program. Not always available.
    Child Discounts: applicable to children from 0 to 6 y.o. Discount rate from 5% to 100% of the tour cost, depending on the tour program. Not always available.
Tours & Packages, Short Day Trips
    Student Discounts: applicable to all children from 7 y.o. until 17 y.o. Depending on the tour program. Not always available.
    ISIC Discounts: applicable to all students with a valid ISIC ID. Depending on the tour program. Not always available.
    Child Discounts: applicable to children from 0 to 6 y.o. Discount rate up to 50%. Selected tours up to 100%.
Early Bird Discount 
The discount amount is 5%.
Available only to private tours prepaid in full 6 months in advance and earlier.
It can only be paid for by credit card authorization form.
Payments by check, online credit card, PayPal are not valid for the discount.

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Granting of services 

When a pre-payment is received by Ulkotours, we will send you an e-mail confirmation with the reference number and details for all services ordered. 
We recommend our clients to register with Ulkotours Personal Account to have access to their booking details and to be able to review/modify and cancel reservations on time. 

What to expect, when you have ordered: 

• Transfer Your driver will be waiting for you in the arrival hall of the airport/by your coach at the train station/ by your bus at the bus station with a sign with your name on it.
• Guiding days Your guide will meet you in the lobby of your hotel at the date and time specified in your tour confirmation.
• Additional Orders All additional orders will be delivered to you by your guide or left at the hotel reception in a company envelope. Additional orders are delivered at least 24 hrs before the time of the event.
• Fast Track All clients who have ordered Fast Track with Ulkotours are met by the airport representative at the sky bridge upon the plane arrival with a sign with your name on it.

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Late arrival and No Show

In case a client does not arrive by an appointed time to the place where services start to be granted:

• an order for transfer will be held for 2 hours beginning from an appointed time, and then it will be canceled automatically.
• An order for a personal tour guide and other additional services (interpreters, private driver, etc.) will be canceled after 1 hour.
• An order for a Visa-free shore tour will be canceled after 2 hours.
• Waiting time for any Baltic Shore Excursions is ONLY 15 minutes! After that, your tour will be canceled and non-refundable.

If for some reason you are late – please try to inform us in advance: +7 911 926 4724

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Early departure 

In case of early departure (emergency cases only), a client according to his application by email or phone will be refunded the money for the services that have been ordered and prepaid but not used.

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Gifts Policy 

Each customer booking a tour with ULKOtours receives 1 (one) gift available at the time of tour:
-  A photo album of St. Petersburg.
 Gifts are subject to availability. No cash substitutions. Additional gifts (for your non-visiting friends) can be purchased in the office.
Note 1(one) gift PER MARRIED COUPLE. Children/Students are not entitled to receive THIS particular type of gift (special Kids Welcome Gifts available for them)

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Photo Contest 

This photo contest is open to all ULKOtours customers who have participated in private or group land tours or shore excursions in Saint Petersburg, Russia, or any of the Baltic destinations offered by ULKOtours.
All submissions for Photo Contest must be sent by email to elena@ulkotours.com.
All contest participants must provide their first and last name, reservation number, and postal address.
Each file name must contain the client's last name and reservation number. For example Smith170584.jpg
All files need to be submitted in JPG format, at least 2 MB in size.
All photos must be high resolution, at least 2000 x 1500 px for horizontal images, or 1500 x 2000 for vertical photos.
ULKOtours will announce one winner monthly on the ULKOtours website and social media, including ULKOtours Facebook Page.
The panel of ULKOtours judges will select one image that is most unusual, beautiful and reveals the beauty of tour destinations offered by ULKOtours.
Each monthly winner will be contacted via email.  All prizes will be mailed to the postal address provided.
All prizes are chosen are sponsored by our Gift and Souvenir Store partner network and are selected at ULKOtours judges discretion.
Please note that when you enter the contest, you agree that ULKOtours will use your name and your photo materials provided in promotional materials, both online and offline.
By entering the Contest, all participants will be deemed to have accepted and be bound by the above Terms and Conditions regarding this photo contest.

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Tour Feedback Forms Prize Draw

All ULKOtours clients are welcome to participate in the Tour Feedback Forms On-Line Survey and Prize Draw. No minimum amount to purchase required. No multiple entries are allowed, limited to one entry per person.
All online survey participants are automatically entered into the MONTHLY 200 USD prize draw by ULKOtours.
Please find out more details and exact participation instructions from your Saint Petersburg Tour Guide or one of the office managers when you stop by to pay for your tour or in the morning when you meet one of the company representatives in port.
Follow the instructions provided by the company representative and get a chance to win 200 USD!
The survey must be completed within a maximum of four weeks after the end of the tour.
All completed forms will have a chance to win 200 USD.
ULKOtours will announce one winner monthly on the ULKOtours website and social media, including ULKOtours Facebook Page.
Each monthly winner will be contacted via email.  
The prize consists of 200 USD ULKOtours vouchers that can be applied to any future tour. The vouchers may be used by family members, friends, and anyone who has a unique voucher code. The voucher has no cash value. The voucher can be used as payment for the tour, NOT exceeding 50% of the total tour cost.
Please note that when you enter the prize draw, you agree that ULKOtours will use your name in promotional materials, both online and offline.
By entering the prize draw, all participants will be deemed to have accepted and be bound by the above Terms and Conditions regarding this prize draw.