Terms and Conditions | Tuscany

Please take a moment to read the terms and conditions for this trip. Then return to the registration form to accept the terms in order to proceed.

Because of the complexity of the current travel environment and the changing regulations, The Writer’s Journey LLC, Graseilah Coolidge, and Karyn Bristol (hereafter “TWJ”) strongly recommend that you work directly with a trusted travel agent. Please refer to Travel Insurance section of this document for more information.

Payments, Cancellations and Refunds

Cost: $6650 per person for double occupancy based on two people sharing a twin-bedded room at the Villa. Accommodations are European style; if you're a couple and want to have one bed, it may be two twins pushed together. Bathrooms for the double-occupancy rooms are typically outside the bedroom, shared with one other room.

Payment Schedule: A non-refundable deposit of $1000 is due with registration, plus a $200 non-refundable deposit if you intend to join us for the additional tour of Florence. The final balance of $5650, plus any supplements will be due March 1, 2023.

Single Room Supplement: There are three types of single room upgrades. The first is a single with a shared bath that costs an additional $600. The second is a “single plus”, with a private bath, that costs an additional $950. And we have one special private master suite that includes a loft studio apartment, a kitchen, and stand-up shower (as opposed to a bath) for $1500.

Florence Extension: The cost for the four-day Florence extension is $1400 for a double occupancy room and $2100 for a single room. We will take a maximum of eight travelers and a minimum of four. If less than six people sign up, there will be a small group supplement of $500 per person. Double occupancy rooms will be limited to couples, family members, or friends choosing to travel together.

Roommates: If you sign up for a double room without having a roommate in mind, we will try to pair you up with someone. If we can’t fine someone you will be automatically upgraded to a single and you will need to pay the price difference.

Size of Trip: This is an intimate vacation with a minimum of 11 travelers. If the minimum number is not met, you will receive a full refund. The Writer’s Journey LLC will not be responsible for any additional expenses incurred, such as nonrefundable airline tickets or passport fees.

Price Includes: The trip price is for one person and is based on two persons sharing a room with two twin beds. Trip cost also includes all ground transportation from our meeting place in Florence to the Villa and for all activities on the itinerary; luggage transport; breakfast, lunch, and dinner each day, with the exception of one lunch; clean, comfortable accommodations throughout the trip; all activities described in the itinerary; the services of local guides; writing and yoga instruction; tips for restaurants on itinerary; and pre-tour information.

Not Included: Round trip flights to and from Florence; overnight accommodations on-route if necessary for your flight itinerary; transit from the Florence airport to our meeting place and back the end of the trip; laundry; one lunch; optional tips for local guides; personal, medical, or trip cancellation insurance; COVID-related expenses (such as tests); souvenir shopping; personal phone calls; personal laundry; beverages and alcoholic drinks; extra snacks; extra taxis; and anything extra you’re inspired to do that’s not included in the itinerary.

Included in Florence Extension: Lodging for 4 nights in central Florence; breakfast each morning; 3 dinners at local restaurants; all activities described in the itinerary; entrance fees to museums, buildings, and landmarks visited during the tour; local guides for many of the activities.

Not Included in the Florence Extension: Hotel incidentals; lunches; optional tips for local guides; personal medical or trip cancellation insurance; souvenirs; personal phone calls; bottled water; extra snacks; wine or alcoholic drinks (outside of the included dinners); or extra taxis.

Itinerary: All activities on this tour are subject to change. The itinerary may be adjusted slightly due to weather or to take advantage of special events that may occur. No one is obliged to attend any tours, meetings, excursions, church services, or seminars. However, no refunds will be made for any missed activities. If you leave the tour at any time, for any reason, you are fully responsible for your expenses and safety.

Cancellations and Refunds: The initial $1000 non-refundable deposit (or $1200 if you register for the Florence extension trip) will be forfeited in all cases. After February 1, 2023, there will be no refunds. Exceptions to this cancellation policy cannot be made for any reason, including personal emergencies. Travel protection insurance will provide your only option for recouping your investment in the trip.

We reserve the right to cancel the trip (due to lock downs, natural disasters, border closures, or unforeseen acts of god). We will notify participants a minimum of 40 days in advance of the start date and everything you've paid directly to The Writer’s Journey LLC will be refunded—minus $500 administrative fee. We require this fee because arranging international programs is a complex process which requires us to make advance preparations and payments regardless of whether we run the trip or not. For this reason, we recommend that you purchase “Cancel for Any Reason” travel insurance coverage and always do your due diligence about what’s being covered. This can be included in the international travel protection plan that purchased through your travel agent.

This is an intimate vacation, limited to 16 people, with a minimum of 12. If the minimum number is not met, you will receive a full refund. The Writer’s Journey LLC will not be responsible for any additional expenses incurred, such as nonrefundable airline tickets or passport fees.

Please do not purchase airline tickets until we have informed you that the minimum number of participants has been met.

There will be no refunds for leaving the retreat early or arriving late. Further, there are no refunds for any part of the program that you do not attend or participate in. Although we do our best to avoid this, it may be necessary for The Writer’s Journey LLC, Laura Davis, or Graseilah Coolidge to cancel a retreat due to insufficient registration, new COVID travel restrictions, or any other cause. If a trip is canceled due to low enrollment, you will be notified at least 40 days in advance of the trip dates, and your entire payment to The Writers Journey LLC will be refunded to you within 14 days after the cancellation. Refund of payments made constitutes full settlement, and releases Laura Davis, The Writer’s Journey LLC, Graseilah Coolidge, Karyn Bristol, and their agents from any further liability. In the event that The Writer's Journey LLC must cancel a trip, Laura Davis, The Writer’s Journey LLC, Graseilah Coolidge, Karyn Bristol, and their agents are not responsible for any additional expenses incurred, such as non-refundable airline tickets, hotel bookings, or passport fees.

Travel Insurance: Travel Insurance is required for this trip. At a minimum, you need insurance to cover the standard $1,000,000 medical evacuation coverage, trip cancellation, trip interruption and trip delay coverage, $100,000 in medical coverage including hospitalization due to COVID-19, and if available in your state, coverage that will cover you should you need to quarantine.

You should not buy the add-on travel insurance offered when you buy your airline tickets. Also, do not assume that the travel policy that may be included as part of your credit card benefits will be adequate or provide everything you need.

It’s essential that you do your own due diligence because policy provisions vary by company, state, and depend on your age, and sometimes pre-existing conditions. You can have a travel agent arrange for your insurance or you can do your own research—but do your research.

These are some of the questions you’ll want ask:

  1. Under what circumstances can I cancel my trip and have it be fully refunded?
  2. Will the insurer refund the full cost of my trip and all travel costs if I have a positive COVID test before I embark? What documentation and evidence are necessary to claim this benefit?
  3. What if I have to quarantine in the country I’m visiting, am returning to, or are transiting through? What will and won’t I be covered for?
  4. What if a country I am traveling to, through, or from changes their policies immediately before or during my trip?
  5. If 70 or older, do you cover travelers 70 and older?
  6. What about my pre-existing conditions? What do I need to know?

Also, important to note:

  • In most instances, insurance MUST be purchased within 14 days of your first booking date if you want the pre-existing exclusion to be waived.
  • Some companies may treat COVID-19 like any other illness, but not all insurance companies do. Some companies exclude coverage for COVID-19—which will not provide adequate coverage for this trip. Please be sure to ask.
  • If your country requires a mandatory test on return or departure, these are not covered by insurance, but will need to be paid out of pocket.
  • Cancel-for-any-reason or interrupt-for-any-reason insurance is also available.
  • Be sure to remain flexible with other travel arrangements. You should have the ability to change or cancel your hotel and airline reservations if needed. Special internet deals, promotional airfares, or reservations from discounted online travel engines will not be appropriate.
  • Your initial deposit for this trip is not refundable. After February 1, 2023, the only refunds offered for this trip will be through travel insurance. Trip protection insurance is the best way to protect your investment. Be sure you understand what your insurance will and won’t cover.

To check on the most current travel updates and rules for international travel, click here.

Photo Release: We will photograph group members and group activities for use in PR for future trips and Laura's daily blog of the trip. No pictures will be taken of any intimate or personal sharing. Please notify us if we are not free to use photographs of you.

Organizer - Participant Contract: The Writer’s Journey LLC, Laura Davis, Graseilah Coolidge, Karyn Bristol and their agents, associates, or other cooperating agencies act only in the capacity of agent for the participation in all matters relating to transportation and/or all other related travel services and assume no responsibility whatsoever for injury, loss, or damage to person or property in connection with any service, including but not limited to damages resulting directly from: acts of God, detention, annoyance, delays and expenses arising from quarantine, medical emergencies and evacuation, pandemics, strikes, thefts, pilferage, force majeure, failure of any means of conveyance to arrive or depart as scheduled, civil disturbances, government restrictions or regulation, discrepancies or change in transit over which it has no control. On advancement of deposit the depositor agrees to be bound by the above recited terms and conditions. Prices subject to change without notice, due to currency fluctuations and/or other causes.

Cancellation fees and penalties are defined above. No partial refund or credits will be given for unused services. The organizer reserves the right to accept, retain, or cancel any prospective or actual member of the tour at any time, at any place, and for any reason, at our discretion. Organizer will not reimburse participants for any substitute arrangements they make on their own. Deviations from the pre-paid itinerary are at the participants’ expense.

Payments: Trip cost is based on a minimum number of twelve participants. If the minimum number is not met, you will receive a full refund. The Writer’s Journey LLC will not be responsible for any additional expenses incurred, such as nonrefundable airline tickets or passport fees.

Release and Assumption of Risk: I am aware that during the trip that I am participating in under the arrangements of The Writer’s Journey LLC, and their agents or associates, certain risks and dangers may occur, including, but not limited to the hazards of hiking, accident or illness, pandemic, quarantine, forces of nature and travel by air, automobile, bus, train or other conveyance. I consent to and agree not to hold The Writer’s Journey LLC responsible should any of their suppliers fail to provide the travel services I have purchased.  I, on behalf of my representatives, heirs, successors, and assigns do hereby completely release and forever discharge The Writer’s Journey LLC, any affiliate, and their present and former members, principals, contractors, agents, employees, successors, and assigns from all claims, rights, demands, actions, obligations, liabilities, and causes of action of every kind and character, known or unknown, mature or unmatured, which may have now or in the future arising from any act or omission or condition occurring related to the travel services which I have purchased. The terms hereof shall serve as a release and assumption of risk in addition on behalf of any minors accompanying me. I have read and agreed to these conditions, especially noting the policy on cancellation and refunds on this sheet. I am aware that should I choose not to purchase travel protection insurance as put forth under “Insurance” above, I will be liable for all costs in the case of cancellation, trip delays, damage or loss of baggage and medical emergencies whatsoever. Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this Agreement, or the making, performance or interpretation thereof, shall be settled by binding arbitration in Santa Cruz, California, in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association then existing, and judgment on the arbitration award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction over the subject matter of the controversy.

SUPPLEMENTAL COVID ADDENDUM TO ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND ASSUMPTION OF RISKS & RELEASE AND INDEMNITY AGREEMENT

Because of the unforeseen and unprecedented nature of COVID-19 and associated international and U.S. federal, state and county restrictions, The Writer’s Journey LLC, Graseilah Coolidge, and Karyn Bristol (hereafter “TWJ”) has had to add this addendum to our retreat registration process.

Nature and Purpose of this Addendum:

The participant already has or will sign the trip’s terms and conditions and Release and Assumption of Risk document. That document remains in force, and the participant, by signing, must also acknowledge and agree to this Supplemental COVID Addendum (hereafter “Addendum”). The purpose of this Addendum is to provide the participant with additional information on the risks and the participant’s responsibilities and assumption of risks associated with attending one of our trips during the COVID-19 pandemic. Importantly, this Addendum re-affirms the participant’s enrollment and participation in the trip and activities under the trip’s terms and conditions and Release and Assumption of Risk document, fully incorporated here, by this reference. The participant is voluntarily participating in the activities despite the risks, including the risks associated with COVID-19.

Some, but not all, of the COVID-19 related inherent risks and consequences include:

  • US or International Travel. The presence of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 in the US or another country presents uncertainties and risks associated with travel, including but not limited to sudden closing of borders and/or in country (or any US state) quarantines (whether the participant is trying to travel to or through, or return from, a travel location), varying or inconsistent global or in-country (US or otherwise) travel advisories, cancellation or termination of air, ground or other travel into, through or out of a location, etc. Medical facilities may be primitive, inadequate, unavailable, or inaccessible (including, in the case of sickness from COVID-19, lack of critical care medical equipment such as but not limited to ventilators).
  • Personal Health and Participation. There are risks associated with the participant’s contact with other persons, spaces, equipment, or otherwise, including the risk of a participant, staff, family member, or other persons’ carrying, being infected by, or contracting SARS-CoV-2 (virus) and/or COVID-19 (resulting disease) or other disease, virus or bacteria before, during, or after the trip and/or transmitting it to others. Further, someone could have COVID-19 but not show symptoms.
  • Exposure or Transmission. There are risks of participant being exposed to, contracting, and/or transmitting to others life-threatening human/animal/insect/other borne communicable and/or contagious diseases, such as but not limited to COVID-19 (via the SARS-CoV-2 virus).
  • Trip Interruption or Cancellation. If a participant becomes ill during a trip, we may need to isolate the participant/s and require COVID-19 testing, and this may mean the trip could be cut short or cancelled and with the participant/s possibly incurring additional travel and medical expenses. If the trip has to be cut short, TWJ will not issue refunds for lost days. The inherent risks – and any other risks, hazards and dangers (collectively “risks”) can cause injury, death, or other loss to the participant, fellow participants, staff or others, and because of the risk of COVID-19 transmission, the risks extend to the participant and other members of the participant’s family or home community, as participants arrive to - and return home from - a trip, as well as to individuals encountered on our trip, including importantly, vulnerable and at risk populations, and participant shares in the responsibility for their and others’ well-being.

The above risks and consequences exist despite us adopting new COVID-19 related policies (whether directed or suggested by international, federal, state, or county officials or otherwise) for its participants and staff.

Acknowledgement and Assumption of Risks: I am voluntarily participating with knowledge of the risks, including risks associated with COVID-19. Therefore, I assume and accept full responsibility for the inherent and other risks of the activities (known or unknown, identified or not), and for any injury, damage, death, or other loss suffered by me resulting from the risks, including the risk of my own negligence or other misconduct, and assume and accept any increased risks to me or others related to my participation in this trip and activities during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

PLEASE RETURN TO THE OPEN TAB WITH THE REGISTRATION PAGE TO COMPLETE YOUR REGISTRATION NOW. IT SHOULD STILL BE OPEN IN ANOTHER WINDOW ON YOUR DESKTOP.

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