TERMS & CONDITIONS OF BOOKING – revised 25th January 2024
Please read carefully
Any reference within these Terms and Conditions to 'You' or 'Your' refers to the person booking the Property ("Property").
All references to 'We', 'Us' or 'Our' refers to Crete Escapes Limited. Any reference to the 'Owner' is the owner/representative of the Property that you are booking.
We, Crete Escapes Limited (CRN: 5207604) of The Mills, Canal Street, Derby, DE1 2RJ act only as agent in respect of the booking (accommodation only) made by you for the Property. The accommodation that you can book through us is not owned by us, but by a third party, that is the Owner. We are authorised to make accommodation available to you by the owner of the accommodation or the owner’s authorised representative.
Your contract is directly with the Owner of the Property, and your booking of the Property shall be subject to these Terms and Conditions and any other booking conditions of the Owner provided to you before your stay at the Property, if applicable. When you book a Property, you agree on behalf of yourself, and all those persons named on the booking, to be bound by these Terms and Conditions, and consent to our use of your personal information in accordance with our Privacy Notice which can be found on our website. We accept no liability for the Property, or in respect of any contract you enter in to in relation to the Property that you book on our website, or for the acts or omission of the Owner and/or representative of the Property.
These booking conditions set out the basis on which we arrange your booking of the accommodation. Please note that we do not sell package holidays or linked travel arrangements.
1. BOOKING
When you place your booking on-line, it remains provisional until we confirm it in writing.
1.1. Bookings are treated as confirmed and a contract between you and the Owner will exist when the booking form and deposit (or full payment as the case may be) has been received by us, and a confirmation of booking has been issued by us to you. We recommend that you do not make any travel arrangements until you have received your booking confirmation from us. If we cannot accept your online booking, we will contact you as soon as reasonably practicable to discuss alternatives.
1.2. The details contained within your booking confirmation should be checked by you, and you must notify us of any errors or inaccuracies in writing (email), immediately.
1.3. The Property will be reserved from 16:00 on the day of your arrival until 10:00 on the day of your departure or otherwise agreed with the property manager whilst you are in Crete. Please note any changes agreed by the property managers may incur additional charges, payable locally. If the Property has a swimming pool, it is always unattended (except for maintenance visits).
1.4. Only the persons named on the booking form are entitled to stay at the Property and in no circumstances must the maximum capacity of the Property be exceeded. The Owner may terminate your booking without refund in the event this condition is breached.
1.5. We reserve the right to refuse any booking where:
- We have reason to believe that the person or persons seeking to book accommodation may be the subject of a previous reported issue/issues with us or any other accommodation agent or provider.
- The person or persons seeking to book accommodation are part of a group comprised of single individuals and/or groups consistently predominantly of persons under the age of 25.
1.6. Telephone calls may be recorded for training and monitoring purposes and all written correspondence is saved. We reserve the right to terminate a call, cease correspondence and/or refuse a booking if there is verbal or written abuse to our staff or due to the booking policies of the Owner.
2. PAYMENT
2.1. A 10% non-refundable deposit/booking fee is required at the time of booking. In some cases, full payment may be required if you are booking within 10 weeks of your travel date. Subject to obtaining the Owner's approval, if you need to change your booking dates, your deposit/booking fee may be transferred across to another booking at the same Property for the same duration, providing that the new booking falls within the same calendar year. Amendment charges will apply (see below). If you wish to change your chosen accommodation it will result in a cancellation of the original booking with a loss of any monies paid and the creation of a new booking with a 10% deposit being due immediately.
2.2. If you have paid a deposit/ booking fee, the final balance is due no later than 10 weeks prior to the Property rental commencing, such date will be specified in your booking confirmation. On behalf of the Owner, we reserve the right to cancel any bookings where the balance has not been paid by the due date.
2.3. Payment can be made by sterling bank transfer or debit/credit card (Mastercard or Visa) only. We do not accept payment in cash, by cheque or any other card apart from one in the Mastercard or Visa series. Save where otherwise indicated, all monies you pay to us for the booking will be held by us on behalf of the Owner. When you pay by credit or with a debit card, no surcharge is payable except where you pay with purchasing cards, non-UK registered debit cards (including GBP denominated) or corporate/commercial debit or credit cards. In these circumstances, we reserve the right to levy a 2% handling charge for each payment made by these means. This handling charge will be notified to and subsequently deducted from your damage deposit after your departure from the accommodation. If your bank refuses to make your payment for any reason, you will be liable to pay an administration charge of £50 (non-refundable).
2.4. We reserve the right to alter the prices of unsold accommodation advertised on our website at any time. The price you have contracted to pay for the villa accommodation is fixed in accordance with your booking confirmation letter.
3. CHANGES AND/OR CANCELLATIONS BY THE OWNER
In the unlikely event that your booking needs to be amended or cancelled, we will inform you as soon as possible. We will liaise with both you and the Owner in relation to making alternative arrangements but will have no further liability to you. If your booking must be cancelled and you accept alternative accommodation with us, you will have to pay any difference in price if the cost of the new accommodation is higher or be reimbursed the difference if the cost of the new accommodation is lower. In the event of a cancellation, where no alternative can be offered, a full refund will be paid to you by the Owner. We cannot be held liable for any additional costs incurred by you resulting from the cancellation.
4. CHANGES AND/OR CANCELLATION BY YOU
4.1. If you want to make any changes to your confirmed booking, please notify us in writing (by email) and we will try to assist you. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to meet your request.
4.2. Any bookings made online can be amended within 24 hours of making your provisional booking, free of charge. Please note, this does not apply if you wish to cancel the booking entirely or book a different property. If you want to cancel your existing booking and book an alternative property, you will not be entitled to a refund of any deposit/ booking fee payments made.
4.3. An administration fee of £75 (non-refundable) will be payable to cover any costs we incur in re-issuing paperwork associated with making the amendment. Amendments which are chargeable include, but not limited to, increasing, or decreasing the number of nights stay and altering dates previously booked. Any changes requested after your final balance has been paid will be subject to our normal cancellation policy in terms of any refund that may be due, as detailed below.
4.4. Cancellations must be notified to us in writing (by email).
4.5. Cancellation charges (in addition to any amendment charges due or paid) apply on bookings, as follows:
10 weeks + prior to arrival - loss of deposit/ booking fee
7 – 10 weeks prior to arrival - 50% of total rental minus climate resilience levy
4 - 7 weeks prior to arrival - 75% of total rental minus climate resilience levy
Less than 4 weeks prior to arrival - 100% of total rental minus climate resilience levy
Important: Please note that if the FCDO issue guidance against travel or all but essential travel to your chosen destination, you will not automatically be entitled to a refund. If your accommodation is available, and can be provided as booked, then the cancellation terms set out above will apply.
5. OUR RESPONSIBILITIES
5.1. We act solely as the booking agent and payment gateway for the Owner. We have no responsibility or liability to you other than for the performance of these services. We accept no responsibility or liability for any information that we pass onto you in good faith on our website or otherwise. In the event we are found to be liable to you on any basis whatsoever, our liability shall be limited to our commission on your booking. We do not exclude or limit liability for death or personal injury that arises because of our negligence.
5.2. We may personally visit the Property before we agree to include it on our website. However, we solely rely on the Owners and their personal representatives in Crete to provide us with particulars for the Property and to notify us of any necessary changes to the Property descriptions, amenities on our website or surrounding area. We cannot be held responsible for any incorrect or inaccurate information. Photographs of the Property and gardens are taken when the Property is added to the website and will not be changed unless we are advised of any significant material alterations which does not include the appearance of garden plants and foliage, internal/external decoration and furnishings or anything outside the villa boundary. It is unlikely that new photographs will be taken throughout the season.
5.3. From time-to-time building works and the associated noise/disruption is unavoidable. We have no responsibility or liability to you in this regard. In the event we are notified by the Owner or their personal representatives of such works in close vicinity (within 50 metres) of a Property, we will notify you as soon as reasonably practicable. Please note that no compensation can be offered in these circumstances.
Very occasionally it may be necessary to move you from the Property, either before you arrive or once you are in Crete, due to building work or a problem with the Property which arises and cannot be rectified before or during your stay. We will only do this if necessary. In such circumstances, we will attempt to offer you an alternative property as close in specification to your original booking. Please note that this will depend on availability and other Property owner's agreement at the time and may not be the same standard or location as your original booking.
6. YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
6.1. It is your responsibility to take good care of the Property and its grounds and avoid causing nuisance to others. The Property and grounds should be left in a reasonably clean and tidy state on your departure. Please note that it is not the responsibility of the property manager to wash crockery, cutlery and pots and pans, clean the BBQ or dispose of rubbish after your departure. On behalf of the Owner, we reserve the right to deduct costs from any security deposit to cover any damage, loss or additional cleaning charges over and above a standard end of let clean.
6.2. If your conduct affects our relations with any service provider, we will hold you liable for any costs or losses arising.
6.3. The person making the booking accepts these terms and conditions on behalf of all party members whether the booking form has been signed or not. You must ensure all information provided is accurate as you will be solely responsible for any errors, omissions or consequences of such information being inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise insufficient.
6.4. As a European legal requirement, passport details for the lead name on the booking must be submitted to the Local Authorities in your holiday destination before you travel, like a hotel check-in service. Failure to provide us with the passport details prior to departure may result in delays receiving your final travel details (Travel Information Pack).
7. SECURITY/DAMAGE DEPOSITS
Bookings may be subject to a security/damage deposit to protect the Owners against loss, damage, or breakages at the Property. Please read the damage deposits note carefully, which is located on our website. When you proceed with your booking, you authorise us to charge your given debit/credit card accordingly. You agree and accept that you are wholly responsible and liable for the full cost of any repairs or replacements required at the Property or other losses incurred by the Owner due to breakages, loss, or damage suffered at the Property or to its contents. Such losses shall be charged to the security/damage deposit debit/credit card. We will contact you to confirm any such charges the owner may request us to make.
8. COMPLAINTS
8.1. All complaints must be notified to the property manager or the Owner immediately, so that they have sufficient opportunity to investigate the complaint and/or take remedial action whilst you are staying at the Property. We are not able to deal with complaints after you return home if you have not brought matters to the attention of the property manager or the Owner during your stay. If any complaint remains unresolved on your return, it will be forwarded to the Owner in accordance with our Privacy Notice. We may act as arbitrator if a complaint cannot be resolved, acting solely as an agent with no legal responsibility to you for any refund or compensation.
8.2. We, nor the Owner, can be held responsible or liable for any temporary defect or stoppage in the supply of public services to the Property, to include but not limited to water, gas, electricity, telephone and internet, any equipment, machinery, or other appliances situate at the Property which are beyond the Owner's control. Where WIFI is available at the Property, it is subject to availability, network conditions and the type of service at the Property. It may not be available 24 hours a day and is provided for social use and not for business purposes. Bookings should not be made if guests are wholly reliant on the uninterrupted and unlimited provision of WIFI.
9. FORCE MAJEURE
We do not accept any responsibility or liability for any diminished performance by us, the Owners or any agents or any other supplier of services should any event occur which we or the Owner or any agent or other supplier of services could not have foreseen. You will not be paid compensation, costs, expenses, or any other sums, including the cost of securing alternative accommodation if we or the Owner must cancel or change your booking in any way because of unusual or unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control. These can include, for example, war, or threat of war, riot, civil strife, industrial dispute, terrorist activity and its consequences, disasters of any kind, adverse weather conditions for example but not limited to floods, wildfires and drought, fire, water supply, building work outside the villa boundary/gates, epidemics and pandemics, coronavirus restrictions, unavoidable technical problems with transport and all other events outside of our control.
10. AIR CONDITIONING
Air-conditioning where stated in your villa description is provided at no additional charge. A breakdown of the units can often occur where the units are operated for protracted periods of time and/or where doors and windows are left open. Air-conditioning is intended for use while you are present in the villa and doors and windows remain closed. In the event of a breakdown a specialist engineer is often required. These third-party engineers often have a call out pattern which may take up to seven days before a visit can be arranged or essential parts are sourced. Neither us nor the Villa Owners will pay compensation due to the failure of any air-conditioning unit or electrical appliance. We will of course always do our best to ensure swift repair of any malfunctioning equipment.
11. INSURANCE
It is recommended that you take out comprehensive travel insurance as protection at the time you make your booking in case of cancellation, to include full cover for your personal belongings whilst residing at the Property, and cover for accidental/negligent damage to the Property, or loss suffered in the event of deduction from your security deposit. Any such losses are your responsibility. It is further recommended that you take out travel insurance for general medical expenses, repatriation costs, inability to travel due to coronavirus etc.
12. REFUND PROTECTION
For all bookings made online only, you can select an optional refund protection insurance which is provided by a 3rd party insurer (X Cover.com) via SuperControl, our online booking provider. Crete Escapes is unable to give any advice in relation to this cover, make any changes to the level of protection should alterations be made to the value of your booking once you've completed the checkout process, for example but not limited to, removal of discounts claimed incorrectly, date changes or assistance with any claims. If you choose to add this option to your booking the full amount quoted for the insurance will be payable in addition to the 10% deposit required for the villa rental and for the purposes of any refund or compensation that may be agreed from the Owner, does not form part of the accommodation price and therefore non-refundable by us or the Owner. Please read the separate terms and conditions for this insurance before completing your online booking - https://www.xcover.com/en/pds/booking-refund-protection-travel
13. CLIMATE RESILIENCE LEVY IN GREECE
From the 1st January 2024 the Government in Greece has introduced a climate resilience levy for tourists, replacing the previous hotel tax. The levy applies to stays in ALL rental accommodation from this date and is charged per night based on the size of the property. Charges will range from 1.50 to 10 eur (2024) and will be converted to GBP at the current exchange rate (approx. £1.25 to £8.75) when a booking is made online or manually.
14. ADDITIONAL TRAVEL SERVICES
To assist with your holiday arrangements, we may direct you to companies who provide services such as car hire, transfers, taxis or flights. Any service that you may choose to book or pay for with these Suppliers are not provided by us and do not form a package holiday under the Package and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018. We are not responsible for the provision of the service or for anything that happens during its provision by the Supplier. For the avoidance of any doubt, your contract for any such service will be with the Supplier, and is subject to their terms and conditions, and may be subject to the local law and jurisdiction of the country in which the service takes place.
15. GOVERNING LAW
These terms and conditions and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales. Each party irrevocably agrees that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with this agreement or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims).