SAFETY
Travel with Confidence
Accidents happen. As a fully-insured and licensed tour operator, Damesly has a thorough crisis response management plan.
Please see below for typical incidents and our planned response. Crisis Response is on a case-by-case basis, however, we want you to feel fully supported in that we have a plan for every scenario.
When it comes to Covid-19, policies are constantly changing in destinations around the globe.
Scroll down for our policies amid the pandemic.
SAFE TRAVEL HUB + CRISIS MANAGEMENT
Slipping, tripping or falling on a trip
Tour leader will immediately assess the situation and provide adequate care. All tour leaders travel with a first aid kit which will include bandaids, gauze, antiseptic cream, tweezers, etc.
Your Damesly tour leader will assess/ask you if additional medical treatment is necessary (as in the case of a potential sprain or break).
If so, your tour leader will accompany you in a separate taxi to a medical facility. Our local guide will continue with the rest of the group.
HQ/ Operations will be informed, and emergencies will be handled on a case-by-case basis. If necessary, HQ can assist with new travel arrangements.
If you fall, please contact your travel insurance (required on all of our tours) to recoup medical expenses.
Forgetting your passport
Your Damesly leader will ask each morning “do you have your passport” before departing a hotel for a new city or location.
If your passport was left behind at a hotel property, your tour leader and local guide will coordinate the best response working with the property.
If your passport is lost entirely, you will need to contact the embassy, and our team will be on hand to help.
Getting sick on a tour
The most common illness on a tour is food poisoning.
In this scenario, your tour leader may offer electrolytes, rehydration salts or assist the you in visiting a pharmacy.
If you cannot continue on, your tour leader will remain back with you while our local guide carries forward with the rest of the group.
You miss your flight, bus or train (trip delays)
In the event of flight disruption or delay in reaching your Damesly trip, your Damesly tour leader will make an executive decision on how to proceed.
Options may include:
- Restructuring the itinerary to hang back later or depart the next day so that you can arrive and join the group.
- Offering you an option to fly forward and connect with the group (additional expenses will incur).
- Creating alternative hotel or tour arrangements for you (if your flight is delayed more than 1 day – additional expenses are up to the guest to fulfill).
If your flight is delayed, please reach out to us at info@damesly.com or message your Damesly trip leader.
You get seperated from the group or lost
You will be provided with emergency contact info for our local guide and Damesly tour leader before the tour.
Please message them if you are lost or separated from the group, and stay in one place where they may be able to find you.
There are difficult guests in your group
Guests may be removed from a tour at any point in time for rude, disruptive, dangerous behavior or otherwise.
Your Damesly trip leader will make every effort to first speak to you or the guest in question and provide interventions such as verbal warnings, room modifications, etc.,
However, if none of those things work, the guest will be asked to leave the tour at their own expense.
There's been a major accident
In the event of a vehicle accident, our team will immediately:
- Assess the extent of damage. If the repair is minor and will not delay the tour by more than 1 day, (in the case of a flat tire, etc) your Damesly trip leader will clearly communicate the situation and any applicable timing setbacks to the guests.
- If the accident results in an injury that requires medical attention, your Damesly trip leader and/or local guide will call 911 or emergency medical transport. Trip leader will accompany guests who need medical attention to hospital.
- Trip leader will inform HQ of the situation immediately.
- HQ will contact guest, and initiate calling emergency contact numbers if necessary. HQ has your travel insurance policies on hand and can contact travel insurance if necessary.
- In the event a guest needs significant treatment, HQ, along with local guide and Damesly tour leader, can assist in securing medical evacuation. Our preferred company for this is Medjet.
COVID-19 POLICIES
Vaccinations Requirement
We no longer require guests to be vaccinated, as it is no longer an entry requirement in many places.
As always, please do due diligence in understanding the requirements of a destination.
Our Policy on Face Masks
We no longer require the wearing of face masks, however we do encourage it in smaller spaces and on planes.
We defer to local and country guidelines in the places we visit.
Travel Insurance + Cancel for Any Reason
Travel insurance has always been a requirement on our tours, but is especially important now. Please note that we will be asking for proof of insurance prior to the start of your tour.
Due to the unpredictability of the world, we strongly recommend cancel-for-any-reason insurance from Travel Insured.
Travel insurance providers’ policies vary and not all cover Covid-19. Please check with your individual provider for more information.
IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A "CANCEL-FOR-ANY-REASON" POLICY, PLEASE NOTE, THESE GENERALLY NEED TO BE PURCHASED WITH 21 DAYS OF YOU PUTTING A DEPOSIT DOWN FOR A TOUR. THOSE ARE THEIR POLICIES, NOT OURS, BUT WE WANT YOU TO BE INFORMED!
Guests on our Cuba tour do not need to provide this as the airlines offer insurance with your flights as part of their contract of carriage.
What if I Test Positive Before my Tour?
If you should test positive before a tour, please do not come.
We regret in this instance we will not be able to refund your tour, thus, the importance of having travel insurance.
What if I Get Sick on a Tour?
Traveling in a group environment comes with certain exposure risks. We do our part to minimize risks, however, there's only so much we can do.
We trust you to make responsible decisions for your health and for the best interest of the group.
If you develop a fever on our tour, your tour leader may suggest you take a Covid-19 test and/or quarantine.
Please note, we are unable to force anyone to test.
Cancellation Policy
Because of our upfront costs and payments to vendors, if you should have to cancel your spot on our tour less than 30 days before a trip, we will not be able to refund you.
This is why we strongly recommend all tour guests purchase cancel-for-any-reason insurance, which covers 75% of all travel costs. This type of insurance generally needs to be purchased within 21 days of placing your tour deposit - but check their terms to be sure.
Our Cancellation Policy is here and below:
If cancelling prior to final payment, $500 of your deposit is non-refundable.
A cancellation made by you after final payment but more than 30 days prior to the date of tour departure will incur a cancellation fee of 75% of the full payment.
A cancellation made less than 30 days before the date of travel will incur a cancellation fee of 100% of the full payment.
However in either case the cancellation fee may be reduced at the discretion of Damesly depending on the circumstances of cancellation.
Covid Prevention + Things To Bring
All guests on all tours, regardless of vaccination, will need a negative PCR test.
Please consider also bringing with you on your tour:
- An at-home rapid test
- Hand sanitizer
- Face masks
- Hand soap