Minnesota Owls and More Tour Info

January 27 – February 2, 2019

Kim Risen & Rick Bowers lead

TOUR COST: Tour – $2195.00; Single Supplement – $395
All amounts quoted are in U.S. Dollars. The cost of this trip, based on a minimum group size of three, is $2195.00 from Minneapolis, Minnesota. If the final group is less than three participants, a small group supplement may be charged.

REGISTRATION: A non-refundable deposit of $395.00 and completed registration form are required to confirm space. Without these, no one is considered registered. Registrations are taken on a first-come first-served basis with priority based on the postmark date.

COST INCLUDES: Accommodations based on two persons sharing a two bedded room. We select good hotels convenient to our birding destinations. For single rooms a single supplement will be charged. We try to supply roommates when possible, but we can’t always find one. If we can not find you a roommate, you will be charged the added cost of single accommodations. Meals as outlined in the group itinerary. All transportation, including internal segments described in the itinerary. Transportation may be by private or chartered car, station wagon, van or bus, canoe, boat or ferry. Taxes & Local Fees along with all group admissions, park entry fees and access fees are included in the tour price. Expert guide service, photo instruction and set up services.

COST DOES NOT INCLUDE: Not included are transportation to or from Minneapolis, Minnesota, excursions not included in the itinerary, laundry, personal tips, alcoholic drinks, soft drinks, juices, mineral waters and other beverages away from included meals, room service charges, souvenirs, insurance of any kind, telephone calls and use of TV not included in the room rate and overweight baggage fees.

MEAL COSTS: Only meals indicated in the itinerary are included in the cost of this tour (included hotel breakfasts.) Because a person can eat quite well for as little as $25 per day or they can choose to spend three or four times that amount for a single day, depending upon your choices, we do not include meals where we cannot control the costs. NatureScape Tours has a policy of NOT overcharging one person to cover another’s POTENTIAL meal choices—which we would have to do if all meals were budgeted into the cost of this tour.

TIPS: All expected gratuities encountered during your tour (restaurant wait staff, luggage porters, bus drivers and local guides) is included in the cost of your tour. However, if you feel your NatureScape Tours leader, local guide or lodge personnel have given you exceptional service, it is perfectly suitable for you to bestow any gratuity you elect. We strongly stress that such tips are completely optional and solely at your discretion.

DATE OF COST QUOTATION: July 28, 2018
We can only quote current costs. Tour planning begins more than a year before the tour runs. While we try to arrive at our best estimates, we can’t predict fluctuation of currency exchange rates, increases in hotel or vehicle rates outside of our negotiated contracts, etc. Therefore, we reserve the right to increase the tour cost when there are justifiable reasons. However, we make a sincere effort to arrive at the closest possible estimate and have even absorbed small increases at times to avoid raising tour costs to participants. Many of our suppliers have gone to surcharges in their contracts with NatureScape Tours as a means to offset the uncertainties inherent in such long distance planning. The two most prevalent are:

FUEL: In today’s volatile oil market, it’s difficult, nay, impossible, to accurately project fuel costs into the distant future. Prices for our tours are based upon fuel rates reasonably expected at the time of your tour’s start. While NatureScape Tours does everything possible to maintain the quoted price of your tour, with a dramatic shift in fuel prices, it may be necessary to charge a fuel surcharge. If such a surcharge is levied, every effort will be made to minimize the cost passed along to you. In almost all cases, these are additional charges being assessed NatureScape Tours by our service suppliers and vendors who have exercised their right, under their contracts with NatureScape Tours, to increase prices caused by substantial changes in their cost of fuel.

EXCHANGE RATES: As with oil, it’s impossible, to accurately project foreign currency exchange rates into the distant future. Prices for our tours are based upon the rate of exchange reasonably expected at the time of your tour’s start. While NatureScape Tours does everything possible to maintain the quoted price of your tour, with a dramatic shift in exchange rates, it may be necessary to charge a surcharge. If such a surcharge is levied, every effort will be made to minimize the cost passed along to you. In almost all cases, these are additional charges being assessed NatureScape Tours by our service suppliers and vendors who have exercised their right, under their contracts with NatureScape Tours, to increase prices caused by substantial changes in foreign currency exchange rates.

PLEASE NOTE: In more than 30 years of running tours, we’ve NEVER had to assess an additional charge or surcharge to a client. We feel strongly that our staff’s careful planning and negotiation will continue our unblemished record.

TOUR CANCELLATION: Our cancellation policy is generous. We negotiate with each of our service providers and have contracted payment dates directly with them. Accordingly, all payments received by us, less your non-refundable deposit of $395.00, will be returned to you in full if we are notified in writing at least 121 days prior to tour departure date. 

Due to contractual obligations with our hotels, trains, bus and van rentals, boat charters and other costs where we have contracted payment dates there are no refunds for cancellations within 120 days prior to tour departure. 

Payments made on your behalf to purchase nonrefundable but changeable tickets may result in the loss of that cost should you decide to cancel. In some cases, if you can find a replacement to take your spot on your tour, we can change the name on such tickets at a lower cost than purchasing a new ticket. In such cases, the difference could be refunded to you provided enough notice has been given.

Some participants have lost substantial sums when illness, or other circumstances prevented them from taking a tour or forced them to depart the tour early. We can’t offer refunds for unused portions of a tour unless agreed to before the tour. Trip cancellation insurance may reimburse you your losses if you must leave a tour early for illness or other valid reason.

Therefore, we strongly advise you to buy trip cancellation insurance which may reimburse you the entire unrecovered amount if it becomes necessary for you to cancel, shorten or change your participation on your tour.

UNANTICIPATED COSTS: Rarely we have had unexpected costs during a tour. Cancellation of air flights or trains have required staying in hotels for extra nights, hiring vehicles for extra excursions and other services. At times schedule changes or route changes have been necessary. If such changes are proposed and accepted by participants, it is with the understanding that they accept the obligation to pay any extra unanticipated costs.

On all of our tours, participants are responsible for any extra expenses incurred from deviations to our scheduled tour itinerary which result from events out of our control (additional hotel nights, transfers and transportation by air, water or ground). This could be a weather related event, the result of flight or rail cancellations, labor strikes, acts of God and the like.

We advise you to buy trip cancellation insurance which may reimburse you any unrecovered payments from cancellations or additional payments from necessary tour deviations.

UNUSED PORTIONS OF A TOUR: We can’t offer refunds for unused portions of a tour unless agreed to before the tour. If you fail to show up or meet the tour regardless of the reason, we are under no obligation to provide any refund. Trip cancellation insurance may reimburse losses if you must leave a tour early for illness or other valid reason.

COMPLETION OF PAYMENT: Foreign travel agents, hotels, tour and boat operators, etc. require advance payment. We can offer better rates on our tours because of contracted payment dates and your cooperation helps avoid problems with your arrangements. For this tour we require final payment to be received in our office by January 15, 2019.