FAQ

A. The balance for your holiday is normally due 14 weeks prior to departure. You will be advised of the amount outstanding by email or letter at the same time as you receive your your Cruise Line confirmation invoice. For certain cruise lines, higher grade cabins, longer duration cruises such as world cruises or sectors and packages put together by ourselves the balance due date may be greater than 14 weeks and you will be advised of this at the time of booking.

A. All cancellation requests must be sent to us in writing (by fax, email or letter) and need to be sent to this address: Cancellations, The Cruise Specialists, Sheilling House, Glenbervie Business Park, Larbert, FK5 4RB. Email admin@the-cruise-specialists.co.uk or Fax 0871 288 5026. Please also remember that should you wish to cancel your holiday or someone from it, we charge a cancellation fee of £75 per booking in addition to the charges detailed in the Cruise Lines terms and conditions. Cancellations can only be accepted based on the date of arrival of the cancellation in writing. 

A. There is a 2.5% charge for all Visa and MasterCard credit card payments to cover merchant fees made to us by the card issuer. There is no charge at all for Delta, Switch, Maestro, Connect or other debit card payments. American Express payments incur a charge of 3%. Please note that currently any payments made by credit card or Amex while making an on-line booking do not attract any charge.

A. For fly cruises The Cruise Specialists only deal with ATOL protected cruise lines. ATOL (Air Travel Organisers' License) is a tour operators' licensing scheme operated by the Civil Aviation Authority. ATOL protects your money against insolvency. If an ATOL tour operator (cruise line) stops trading, the CAA will refund your money. If you are on holiday it will allow you to complete your stay and travel home as planned. Cruise lines providing cruises that do not involve flights provide similar protection through their membership of Passenger Shipping Association or other scheme. The Cruise Specialists are fully ABTA bonded K1464 and ATOL protected 6042 for cruise packages put together by ourselves as part of The Freedom Travel Group Ltd.

A. As a general rule, all Tour Operators advise that up to 28 weeks of pregnancy you can travel as long as you have checked with your GP. From 1 day over 28 weeks of pregnancy upon return and up to 32 weeks, you must obtain a doctors' certificate stating how many weeks pregnant you are and your due date. It must also state that you are fit to travel. You should take this certificate with you to the airport as you may be asked for it at check-in. You must also check with your travel insurance company that you are covered under your policy and make sure that your due date and how many weeks pregnant you are is noted by the insurance company. Over 32 weeks of pregnancy you cannot travel with any airline. All airlines advise that you check with them directly before booking if over 28 weeks pregnant. If you or any of your party are pregnant, please check with your GP that it is alright to travel before making any booking.

A. The Cruise Specialists comply fully with the data protection act and information can be obtained by writing to our office at Sheilling House, Glenbervie Business Park, Larbert, Falkirk. FK5 4RB

A. Please check the details of your booking with care, to ensure that all details of your confirmed holiday are as required. It is important to note your booking reference number from this documentation, to quote whenever you contact us. Please quote your lead passenger name and departure date also. Please contact us as soon as possible to reduce the likelihood of additional amendment charges incured by the cruise lines. Please note for all amendments The Cruise Specialists charge a £35 amendment charge in addition to any fees charged by the cruise line.

A. Yes - it is a booking condition of all Cruise lines that you have adequate insurance to cover your trip abroad. Please also remember that the sooner you take out Insurance the sooner you will be covered in the event of the need to cancel due to insurable unforeseen circumstances. We no longer sell insurance, however, if you call 0870 844 2742 and quote code K1464, Holiday Extras can provide a competitive quote for you. You will be required to answer a few questions about any possible pre-existing medical conditions. Please ensure that any travel insurance covers cancellation costs for the full gross value of your cruise before any discounts received from us.

A. If you do need to make amendments to your holiday booking, please contact us on 0871 288 5025 or the direct line of the consultant who made your booking. Please note for all amendments there will be a £35 amendment charge in addition to any charges applied by the cruise line.

A. Our call centre opening hours are Monday to Thursday 9 am - 8pm Friday & Saturday 9 am - 5.30pm Sunday 10am - 6pm. We are open bank holidays and only close on Xmas Day and New Year's Day.

A. Any necessary refunds made back to your credit card will take up to 7 days to show as having been refunded. We will only refund money back to you by the same method used for the initial payment. For instance if you paid by cheque you will be refunded by cheque.

A. All tickets are dispatched to you 7 to 10 days before your departure date (or earlier where possible). Please note that a number of cruise lines now issue e-tickets which means you will receive an email with a link to your ticket rather than a physical document in the post. Please make sure you supply us with your correct email address for these purposes.

A. The cruise line invoice can be used to check that your travel arrangements have been booked correctly. Please DISREGARD all of the costs shown on your Cruise Line Invoice. Any applicable deal or discounts from The Cruise Specialists will NOT be included and the cost may therefore vary from the actual price you pay. Please refer to your The Cruise Specialists documentation for your complete holiday costing.

A. We would strongly recommend visiting the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website for all the latest travel, health and VISA information if you are travelling to a destination outside the EU. It is especially important to check in plenty of time before your holiday if you are visiting a country for which inoculations are recommended or required. Please be aware that it is your responsibility to obtain visas, to make sure you have a passport with at least 6 months validity on it and you have taken any necessary inoculations.

A. The Cruise Specialists is a trading name of The FreedomTravel Group Ltd registered in England & Wales with registered number 3816981. Vat No. 403 3146 04. Registered office: New Century House, Manchester, M60 4ES. Head Office: Hamil Road, Buslem, Stoke on Trent, ST6 1AJ. The Freedom Travel Group is part of Co-operative Group Ltd. 

Our office address for all correspondence / payments is The Cruise Specialists, Sheilling House, Glenbervie Business Park, Larbert, FK5 4RB