Terms & Conditions

 

Hartello Ltd t/a Mopani Safaris – Travel Agency

 

Mopani Safaris - Booking Terms

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NB. It is important to note that the supplier terms detailed on our website and which will be provided at the time of booking, will constitute the Terms associated with the accommodation, flights, transfers and other services booked on your behalf. Please ensure your read these carefully.

                                                                                                                                               

Booking Conditions
A holiday booking is made between Mopani Safaris and the signatory of the Booking Form who must be over 18 years of age (The Party Leader).

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The Party Leader
Is responsible for their group of Client/s. Any payments are arranged through them and they will be the only contact during the booking process and when booking services on their behalf. Any monies owed to Mopani Safaris through the booking process, for services booked on their behalf or through damages made in resort are the full responsibility of, and are payable by, the Party Leader.

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Contract
No holiday contract shall exist between the Client and Mopani Safaris until deposits or full payment as applicable has been received by Mopani Safaris and a confirmation invoice has been issued. In the case of telephone bookings made within 12 weeks of departure, where payment is due by debit/credit card or online transfer, a contract shall come into existence immediately upon Mopani Safaris processing your credit/debit card payment, receiving the online payment in full and providing oral confirmation of the booking by you. When making a telephone booking in such circumstances you are deemed to have accepted these booking conditions at the time of making your telephone booking. In all cases, when you receive your invoice, please check all the details carefully to ensure that they are correct, as the invoice together with these booking conditions, form the basis of the contract between you and Mopani Safaris. If there are any discrepancies in the invoice, please bring these to our attention within 24 hours of issue, otherwise we will assume that the details shown are correct and any amendment/cancellation charges may be levied where changes are subsequently necessary. We reserve the right to amend any obvious errors in the confirmation invoice including those which concern the price. We will do this as soon as we notice the error but no later than 24 hours before departure in the case of late bookings. Please note where a third party supplier service has been booked on the Client's behalf (including but not limited to flights, transfers, gate fees, community levy charges, permits or park entrance fees), the contract exists with the supplier directly and any alteration or cancellation charges will be in line with that supplier's Terms & Conditions.

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Reserving Your Mopani Safaris Accommodation - Deposits & Confirmation
In order to secure your accommodation and take it off-sale, a deposit payment is required, the amount for which is detailed on each suppliers’ Terms. Flights and/or Transfers booked on the Client's behalf are 100% payable at time of booking and the contract exists directly between The Client & the Airline or Operator through whom flights are booked (their terms apply). Transfers booked on The Client's behalf are also payable in full at time of booking (their terms apply). On receipt of your holiday deposit, Mopani Safaris will send you confirmation of booking showing the arrangements booked, the balance owing and when it is due. For bookings made within 8 weeks of travel date, full payment for the holiday must be made immediately to confirm your reservation and any third party suppliers through whom services have been booked on the Client's behalf also must be paid in full at the time of booking. These payments are committed.

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Balance
Full payment of the balance is shown on your confirmation invoice (the Due Date). The person who authorises the booking (The Party Leader) must be over 18 years of age and be authorised to make the booking on behalf of the Client where applicable. The Party Leader shall be liable for full payment for all those persons named on the booking and for other persons added or substituted at a later date. The final holiday balance must be paid in one sum, any additional payments made shall incur a £20 handling fee (per payment). If payment shall not have been received by the Due Date, Mopani Safaris shall have the right to cancel the booking, retain the deposit paid and levy cancellation charges. Any money paid by the Client to an agent, under or in contemplation of a contract with Mopani Safaris is held by the agent as agent for Mopani Safaris until the date on which the agent pays the money to Mopani Safaris.

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Payment
Any payment made by Visa Credit, Mastercard or American Express (AMEX) carry no handling fee. This is applicable to any payment processed through Mopani Safaris and includes, but not limited to, payments made for accommodation, flights, transfers, park entry fees, permits, community/conservation levies and any additional third party suppliers. Debit cards also do not carry a fee however where online banking is made from either a UK or International account, the full balance of the holiday must be paid to Mopani Safaris in one transaction and any banking charges incurred are payable by the Client. Individual Client holiday payments will not be accepted over the telephone and Individual online bank transfers are not accepted from Clients forming part of a larger group - the Party Leader is responsible for collecting all monies owed to Mopani Safaris for every element of the holiday regardless of whether the Contract is direct with Mopani Safaris or with a third party supplier, and these are to be retrieved by the Party Leader from the Client/s directly.

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Prices
The prices quoted on the Mopani Safaris website have been formed ensuring every effort has been made to ensure that these are accurate at the time of publication and as we cannot guarantee these prices, you must check the price of your chosen holiday at the time of booking at which point the correct current price will be advised to you. Please note that prices can reduce/increase at any time therefore the price payable is as quoted at the time of the booking. Mopani Safaris retains the right to change prices due to currency fluctuations. There will be no refunds payable on services booked or partially/fully paid.

Once your booking has been accepted we reserve the right to levy surcharges in the event of changes to Mopani Safari’s costs in dues, taxes or government action (such as increases in VAT or any other government imposed increases) or in relation to the exchange rates that have been used to calculate the cost of your holiday accommodation. In cases where Mopani Safaris has received payment in full from the Client by the Due Date stipulated for latest payment on the invoice, Mopani Safaris will not impose any surcharges after payment in full has been received.

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Your Mopani Safaris Accommodation booking does not include:

1. Holiday Insurance (which you must have at the time of booking). Please ensure you check conditions from your provider, specifically those relating to Force Majeure events and/or pandemics. Of utmost importance is that of repatriation cover from remote places such as safari game reserves or parks.

2. The cost of return travel from home to the Accommodation booked.

3. Room/accommodation supplements for reduced occupancy.

4. Childcare or Babysitting.

5. Security Deposits (either payable at the accommodation on arrival or at time of booking). The amount varies from Supplier to Supplier so please enquire at time of booking. The majority of Mopani Safaris featured accommodations do not request a security deposit, however there is a small handful which may require this on your arrival in resort. Please enquire at time of booking. In such instances, a credit card is held as security and as a pending payment (without immediate authorisation). Subject to no damages made, no costs incurred and no monies outstanding, the payment is not finalised and will not be charged to the credit/debit card held. However, where damage or breakages do occur, or where money is outstanding on a service or product bought you your behalf, the full amount will be authorised immediately even if this is over and above the amount owed to Mopani Safaris or the accommodation supplier. Upon confirmation of costs of repair, any refund of balance will be refunded. We and/or the accommodation supplier reserve the right to recover costs over and above these amounts should the costs relating to damages, breakages or outstanding payments exceed this amount. The Party Leader remains responsible for all members of his/her party regardless of who is/was responsible for the damages or outstanding payment and recovery of loss will be pursued through them. For any costs or any monies outstanding, Mopani Safaris will request payment by the Party Leader. Should this not be paid upon request, a Claim through the Small Claims Court will be submitted to recover the money owed to Mopani Safaris.

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Refunds
Where a cancellation of service is made by The Party Leader on behalf of his group of Client/s, refunds will not be authorised (to include but not limited to accommodation costs, flights, transfers, park entry fees, permits, community levies and third party supplier bookings). Where an alteration is possible, relevant administration charges will apply in order to facilitate the change. On the rare occasion that a mistake has been made resulting in an overpayment to Mopani Safaris, The Party Leader will need to advise us as soon as possible so that we can make a refund to you where applicable. Please note that if agreed, these refunds will be made to the credit/debit card on which the Party Leader's deposit payment was made and may take at least 20 working days to appear on your statement. Please also note that any handling fee will be deducted from the amount refunded.

If, due to adverse weather conditions or other circumstances beyond our control, pre-booked  excursions or tours are not available, our liability is limited to a refund of monies paid for such services but only in cases where we ourselves have been able to retain a refund from relevant third party supplier. No refunds are given for unused portions of the holiday including, but not limited to flights, transfers, car hire, empty beds/accommodation, unused park entry fees, permits, uneaten meals, unconsumed alcohol etc.

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Late Availability and Special Offers/Promotions
Prices of our late availability holidays (or holidays on special offer) may not always be less than first published rates as they reflect demand. We reserve the right to increase or decrease prices prior to booking. Refunds will not be made for those who have booked before these offers started or offers cannot be extended after the expiry date has passed (if applicable). All promotions are only valid at time of booking and are for new bookings only.

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Booking Travel on Your Behalf
Where flight or transfer seats have been arranged and/or bought on your behalf, travel and transfer times shown on the Mopani Safaris website and estimated times of arrival and departure shown on your confirmation invoice are for guidance only and are subject to alteration and confirmation and could differ significantly at peak season times or due to congestion or adverse road/weather conditions. A change in flight or transfer time will not constitute a significant change to your holiday as detailed in the above paragraph titled Changes and Alterations by Mopani Safaris. Specific instructions relating to travel arrangements made on your behalf will be detailed on your confirmation invoice or via email at the time the travel/transfer booking is made and any changes made to these arrangements will carry a £30 administration fee in addition to any cancellation/amendment fee charged by the supplier.

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We cannot accept any liability for flight delays (whether booked by us or you) to and from the UK whether the delays are caused by adverse weather conditions, rescheduling of times by the airline, border/airport authorities and/or the action of air traffic controllers, mechanical breakdown, strike or industrial action, or otherwise. Mopani Safaris cannot accept responsibility for guests missing flights for any reason or mislaying or destroying travel documents and no credit or refund will be given if you fail to take up a component of your holiday as a result. Where a transfer has been disrupted by a delay in any form of travel whether arranged on your behalf by Mopani Safaris or not, every effort will be made to reduce any discomfort suffered by you as a result of the delay however we cannot hold responsibility for rearranging these transfers in relation to these delays or if changes in arrival/departure times have not been advised by the Party Leader to Mopani Safaris without sufficient notice (at least 2 weeks in advance). In certain circumstances you may be able to make a claim under the insurance policy you have arranged with your own insurer.

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Internet Access at Your Accommodation
The majority of our suppliers accommodation and hotels will have Wi-Fi access therefore you are welcome to use your own devices where possible. Due to the remote location of some of the accommodation offered on our website, please note that neither we, nor the supplier, can guarantee continuous and uninterrupted internet connection due to technical circumstances out of their control. Internet is intended for straight-forward web browsing and checking of emails, it is NOT available for live-streaming or downloads (including music & films). Please note that the viewing or downloading of unsavoury or pornographic sights is NOT permitted and should guests be found to be doing so, they will be reported to the relevant authorities.

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New Build Projects & Refurbishments
A number of properties are newly built or substantially converted or refurbished for us each season and we take every possible care with the suppliers to ensure that each such property is completed on schedule. Clearly however, matters outside our direct control, such as local authorities or adverse weather at critical times for example, can occasionally cause delays, and/or there may be changes to the designer's or architect's plans upon which we have we have based our description.

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Special Requests
We will always try to meet any special requests and to pass them to our suppliers in resort. Your request will be shown on your invoice to indicate that a request has been made but this is not a guarantee that your request can be fulfilled. Please note that special requests do not form part of our contractual agreement and we will have no liability if they are not met. We recommend discussing special requests with us at the time of booking rather than before you travel.

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Amendments by You, The Client
If you wish to change any simple details of your booking, please contact us as soon as you are aware of these changes. Name changes will incur an administration charge and where flights have been booked on your behalf, fees will also apply through the Airline/Operator due to the contract being direct with them. Administration fees will apply to Mopani Safaris changes as well as those incurred by third party suppliers.

Mopani Safaris Administration Charges are:
1. Alteration to Travel Services - £30 per change + additional charges by supplier (which may include 100% cancellation fees).

2.  Alterations to Third Party Supplier bookings - £30 per change + additional charges by supplier (which may include 100% cancellation fees)

NB. Where additional charges are imposed on Mopani Safaris in cases of cancellation or alteration by other suppliers, these must be paid by the client over and above the relevant Mopani Safaris charges above.

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Mopani Safaris Accommodation Cancellation by You, The Client
Cancellations must be notified to us in writing by the Party Leader and will only be effective when we receive the written notice of cancellation. In all cases of cancellation by the Client, the deposit, any amendment charges and any travel costs which have been incurred by Mopani Safaris through booking flights, transfers, permits, park entry fees or community levies will be forfeited.

The party leader will be provided with the terms relating to the accommodation booked, including timescales in which cancellation can be made. In order to comply with these cancellation terms imposed by the supplier, Mopani Safaris will collect full payment for your holiday two weeks prior to the second level of cancellation charge applicable. In all cases, the first level of cancellation (ie loss of holiday deposit) will apply to all bookings. If no written notice of cancellation is received and you do not travel, cancellation is deemed to have been received on the day of departure. Mopani Safaris or the accommodation supplier reserves the right to re-sell any part of a cancelled holiday and this does not affect our right to levy cancellation fees.

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Changes and Alterations by Mopani Safaris

Arrangements for holidays can sometimes be made many months in advance and changes can occur. We reserve the right to make alterations to holiday and website details both before and after any booking has been confirmed. Most of these changes are minor and in all cases we will advise you or your travel agent of any changes at the earliest possible opportunity. If a significant change becomes necessary you will have the choice of (except in cases of Force Majeure) a) accepting the change in arrangements; b) purchasing an alternative holiday from us and paying or receiving any difference; or c) cancelling your holiday and receiving a prompt and full refund. In cases of significant change only, we will refund, provide an alternative except where the changes made as a result of unforeseeable circumstances beyond our control (including Force Majeure), the consequences of which could not have been avoided even with all due care which include but are not limited to those circumstances set out in the Important Note section detailed below. No compensation is payable in respect of minor changes and no other claim for compensation and/or expenses will be accepted.

Important note: that Mopani Safaris cannot pay expenses, costs or losses incurred by you as a result of any change or cancellation and shall not be liable for any refund should Mopani Safaris be forced to cancel or change your holiday due to circumstances amounting to Force Majeure. Such circumstances shall include, but are not limited to, terrorist attack, war or threat of war, riot, civil strife, political dispute, terrorism, industrial disruption (actual or threatened), natural disasters (such as avalanches or volcanic eruptions/ash-clouds), nuclear disaster, epidemic outbreak, pandemic outbreak or health risks, significant risks to human health such as the outbreak of serious disease at/around the travel destination, fire, technical problems with transport/machinery/equipment, closure or congestion of airports or ports, border closures, adverse weather conditions, local and UK governmental action and similar events beyond our control. We shall be under no further liability to you, nor shall we be liable for any costs or expenses outside the holiday cost. Compensation or refund will not be paid to adults or children travelling on free places. We recommend the recovery of costs through your own comprehensive travel insurance in cases of such.

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Client Liability
As part of this contract the Party Leader hereby agrees to guarantee payment for any chargeable services requested by you or any member of your group both before and during your holiday. Please treat all accommodation with care and respect. Mopani Safaris reserves the right to recover from you the cost of breakages (estimated if not precisely known), damage to accommodation etc caused with or without intent by you or any member of your party. All guests undertake to behave in such a manner as in no way to cause, distress, danger or annoyance to other guests, accommodation employees and/or any third party. Behaviour deemed unacceptable by your accommodation supplier will result in termination of the holiday of the person(s) involved and neither Mopani Safaris or your accommodation supplier shall have any further contractual obligations to such person(s) including with respect to any return travel or transfer arrangements made on your behalf. These person(s), or the whole group where applicable, shall have no right to a refund for their holiday or any expenses incurred as a result of termination. Mopani Safaris does not accept liability for financial loss or damage to property suffered by you or the person(s) involved. Mopani Safaris accepts no responsibility for the action of its guests and shall not be held liable for any claim made against them (or as a result of their actions) by a third party. In addition, the breach of this clause by any one person in any one property booked may cause Mopani Safaris to demand immediate vacation of the accommodation by every person named on the booking form.

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Mopani Safaris Liability (other than for death/personal injury/illness)
We endeavour to make sure that the holiday which you book with us is supplied and the services performed or provided by us are performed or provided as per the information detailed on our website. We accept responsibility for the acts of our employees, agents, suppliers and subcontractors where they were at the time acting within the course of their employment or carrying out work that we had asked them to do under their contract of agency or supply with Mopani Safaris. In all cases (except where personal injury, illness, death, loss and/or damage to personal possessions results), our liability is limited to the relevant total holiday price of the person(s) affected. In the case of loss and/or damage to personal possessions (including money), Mopani Safaris will not accept any liability as it is a condition of your booking (and therefore reasonably assumed by Mopani Safaris) that you have taken out appropriate insurance to cover such loss and/or damage before travelling.

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Mopani Safaris Liability for Death, Personal Injury and Illness
Please note that we cannot accept liability a) where any failure to perform or improper performance was due to acts and/or omissions of a third party not connected with the provision of your holiday and which were unforeseeable or unavoidable; b) for an event which either ourselves or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not have foreseen or forestalled even with all due care; c) Force Majeure (as previously detailed). Please note that in respect of services provided by travel suppliers (where travel or transfers have been booked on your behalf) and hotel keepers, our liability in all cases shall be limited as if we were carriers/hotel keepers within the relevant international conventions.

Please also note that in all cases of illness or personal injury, we will require you to provide sufficient medical evidence to back any claim made against us or the supplier of your accommodation and any included activities. You are required to obtain this in resort from a local medical professional at the time of the illness, we will not accept backdated medical evidence. It is a condition of this acceptance of liability that you notify us of any claim in writing within 28 days of your return from holiday (for any reason detailed in this section). In the event of any payment of compensation being made, you must assign Mopani Safaris and/or our insurers all rights you may have to pursue a claim against any third party and you must provide us and our insurers with all assistance we may reasonably require. Fraudulent claims will be treated with the utmost disdain and a counterclaim is likely to made in any such circumstance where we feel this has been done.

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Website Information and Accuracy
All reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the descriptions, images, facts or opinions on our website are correct and to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. Accommodation plans and maps should only be used as an indication of layout. Scale and dimensions are subject to error and furniture and rooming arrangements are subject to change. Images of hotels, safari camps & lodges are only of a particular room/property time when specifically stated, otherwise they are only representative of the style and character of accommodation. Whilst we will endeavour to show the most up to date images available, we cannot guarantee this. Opinions expressed are personal to the authors and photographs only relate to a specific destination when specifically captioned. The client should bear in mind that in relation to the information given about the accommodation and certain facilities available within private reserve, concession or national park, we cannot guarantee accuracy at all times or that any particular activity will take place as these services are not under our control.

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Please note that our official website to which we are bound by English Law, is published in the English language therefore we cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies caused by translation services and please note that all correspondence between you and us will be in English (whether this be during the booking process, during the holiday itself or after the holiday in cases of claims made against us).

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Complaints Procedure
Should you have reason to believe we are not providing what we are contracted to provide, we request that you raise this with your accommodation supplier at the time the problem arises so that they are provided with the opportunity ensure that sufficient improvements or changes can be implemented where they feel appropriate or necessary. If you fail to do so you deprive us and our suppliers of the chance to investigate your complaint and to do our best to rectify any problems. If we are unable to resolve matters whilst you are on holiday and you remain dissatisfied, the Party Leader must write to Mopani Safars, 67 Chadstone, Castle Ashby, Northants NN7 1LH within 28 days of your return from holiday giving all relevant information. In any such incident, please note that we will only correspond with one representative of the party and in most circumstances request that this is the Party leader. Please remember that it is your responsibility to show that reasonable care has been used if you wish to make a claim against us and please accept that should a claim be made against us, the complaint will be fully investigated, reports will be obtained from our resort staff or suppliers where applicable and an informed view on any claim will be taken. Fraudulent claims will be treated with the utmost disdain and a counterclaim is likely to made in any such circumstance where we feel this has been done.

Your written complaint will be acknowledged within 7 working days of receipt of your first letter at our office and thereafter a full response will be provided within 28 days of the date the acknowledgement was sent by Mopani Safaris. If you fail to follow this simple complaints procedure, your right to claim compensation will be affected or even lost and we regret that we cannot accept liability in respect of any complaints which are not notified entirely in accordance with this clause.

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Jurisdiction
These conditions and any contract to which they apply are governed in all respects by English Law and shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales.

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Insurance
It is a condition of booking that all clients have insurance which provides sufficient health, liability, personal belongings and repatriation cover. If any person(s) do not take out any insurance, Mopani Safaris will not be responsible for meeting any sums which would have been covered by insurance. You will further be responsible for paying to and indemnifying Mopani Safaris in any such circumstance for such sums Mopani Safaris meets on your behalf. You must tell your Insurers before you travel about anything which may affect your cover. This information must be complete and adequate. If you are not sure whether something is relevant you should advise your Insurers anyway. If you do not tell your Insurers about something that may be relevant your cover may be refused and Insurers may not cover any related claims.

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Health, passports & visas
It is your responsibility to ensure that documents are in proper order before travel. Mopani Safaris accepts no liability for any loss or inconvenience caused as a result of your failure to take reasonable care in this respect. EU Nationals are advised to hold a full passport valid for the duration of the holiday and for at least six months after your return journey. Please be sure to check the vaccination requirements for each destination you visit during your holiday. Anti-malarials are advised in all destinations where malaria is present and as detailed on our website. Pregnant mothers are advised to obtain clearance to fly both from their doctor and airline if their pregnancy will exceed 28 weeks on the date of their return travel.

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Lost Property
Please advise us as soon as possible if you have lost personal belongings or left these in the accommodation on your departure so that we are given every opportunity to locate these missing/forgotten items. Whilst we do everything possible to locate lost property, we cannot guarantee to do so or to be able to arrange for your property to be returned. If we are able to locate lost property and arrange for its return, all postal costs of so doing must be paid in advance along with an administration charge of £25 per item/package. We cannot be held responsible for lost property whilst in transit to the UK howsoever this is arranged. We reserve the right to increase the administration charge for the return of lost property for bulky items with special dispatch costs.

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Problems
If you are ever unhappy with any aspect of your holiday, you must address your complaint immediately to both your safari camp/lodge manager and the local service provider if applicable. In the unlikely event that your problem cannot be resolved locally, you must inform Mopani Safaris in writing of your complaint within 28 days of your return so that any rights to compensation can be examined.

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General
Headings within these booking conditions are for reference purposes only and all images are intended to give a general impression only. These booking conditions and any matters arising from them are subject to and governed by English law. To the best of our knowledge all details on the website and in the brochure are accurate. Hartello Ltd (T/A Mopani Safaris) is registered in England No: 15536476.