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Preparing for departure Itinerary Coverage Passports and visas Emergency contacts Spending money Packing Flights Arrival Instrument Details Tour Director Hotels Rooming Meals Adult Expectations Your resources Tools to travel with A world of support Our itinerary March 14, 2015 *Excursion on day 3 subject to change based on band activities All-Inclusive Coverage Plan For just $155 your plan covers: Illness and accident Baggage and property Tour cancellation and interruption Flight delay 24-hour access to an English-speaking representative Deadline for enrollment is 35 days prior to departure: January 14th Please call EF Customer Service at 800-665-5364 to add this before the deadline Passports and visas All travelers are responsible for securing necessary documentation Valid passports are required for all travelers. Name and gender listed on your EF account must exactly match passport information. Passports must be valid for 6 months after tour. Non-U.S. citizens may require special visas or other travel documents. Carry a copy of your passport with you and also leave a copy at home. Emergency contacts EF will use the emergency contact list if they need to communicate any information while we’re on tour. Emergency contacts cannot be traveling with this group and must be available for the duration of the tour. Confirm your emergency contacts at least 30 days prior to departure. Make sure your information is correct and up to date. All changes can be made on your personalized website. If you are contacted with an emergency, call the next person on your list to relay the information. Spending money ATMs are the best way to get money. Don’t bring traveler’s checks, they can be difficult to cash. Notify your bank or credit card company that you’ll be abroad. Bring the equivalent of $50 in the currency of your arrival destination. We are responsible for our lunches and tipping. Packing Pack light: we will be responsible for loading our own luggage on and off the bus and into hotels. Pack a change of clothes in your carry-on in case your luggage is lost. You are responsible for any luggage handling fees charged by the airlines. See the fees at: eftours.com/baggage A full packing list can be found in the Travelers’ Handbook or at: eftours.com/packinglist Carry any valuables or You are responsible for lunches medications in your EF (box lunch provided on parade day) backpack or carry-on. Flights Seat assignments In-flight meal requests Our seats will be assigned at check-in. Contact the airlines at least 72 hours prior to departure. Your ticket Baggage allowance Frequent flier miles cannot be redeemed, and tickets are not eligible for upgrade. Confirm baggage allowance with each airline before departure. You’re responsible for any associated fees. eftours.com/baggage *Flights will be confirmed between 60 and 70 days prior to your departure Arrival We’ll meet our Tour Director once we have cleared customs and claimed our baggage. We will start the tour right away and won’t check in to our hotel until the end of the day. Staying awake throughout the arrival day is the best way to beat jet lag. Taking a nap might make you feel worse. Instrument Details Storage - Stored on bus when traveling to and from airport/festival/hotel but for the rest of the time they will be in the hotel - Purchase a lock so there is no risk of your instrument getting stolen Tour Director Our dedicated Tour Director will be with us the whole time to handle logistics and provide suggestions for activities. All Tour Directors are trained to handle challenging situations and emergencies that might arise. Tour Directors have 24-hour access to local EF offices, as well as our worldwide and North American headquarters. Hotels Generally, hotel rooms are smaller than in the U.S. Many hotels may not have air conditioning or elevators, and late check-ins may be necessary. Wi-Fi will not always be available in hotels. Hotels will be confirmed 30 days prior to your departure Rooming Students are roomed 3-4 per room in a combination of twin and shared double beds. Adults will share twin rooms with other adults. Family rooms available as well Meals Breakfast typically includes cereal, bread, juice, coffee and tea. Lunch is on our own. Dinners will be a mix of local cuisine and familiar dishes and will be a preset meal for our entire group, rather than ordering from a menu. Group may be split during meals based on how many people the Restaurant can accommodate This ensures everyone will be eating at the same time, but it may just be at different places Food portions are smaller than they are in the U.S. Table water is included, other beverages are an additional cost. Inform us of any allergies. EF EDUCATION FIRST: Expectations for Adult travelers • EF Educational Tours – Tours are designed for students, NOT adults • Accommodations, Pace, and Food are tailored to student travelers – Accommodations: due to the size of this group our only option is to work with more modern accommodations – #1 Goal is to have the entire group in ONE hotel: modern hotels are generally larger and can accommodate this group size, but may be further outside the city center. Staying outside the city center reduces cost and assists with safety of students. We do not want students to have easy access to bars and discos. – Accommodations will not be 100% finalized until no earlier than 2 months prior to departure. – Contracted hotels must meet the following criteria: work with student groups, adhere to EF’s stringent safety requirements, bus parking, private bathrooms, breakfast area and at minimum continental breakfast plus various other requirements set for by EF. – Hotels are generally 3 star (based on European star standards NOT US star standards) in order to keep costs low. – Generally, there is no porter service so all bags must be handled by each individual traveler Adult Expectations • Pace: this will be a faster paced tour where you will see a lot in a short amount of time. Please be prepared to walk many miles per day (could be 5 miles of walking each day). Faster pace is part of the design in student tours. This may be the only opportunity for many students to visit another country. We need to allow them to see as much as possible in a very short amount of time Faster pace is for safety. Keeping students busy will decrease the chance of behavior issues, ensure they are tired at night and ready to go to bed at the end of a long day. Being on Time is extremely critical on student groups. Being late is not tolerated from students or adults. If adults are consistently late, the bus can and will leave you in order to ensure students get to their scheduled and pre-paid activities on time. Being late can cause the group to miss appointments and not see/participate in the scheduled activity. If you are late and the group leaves you, then you are responsible for any transportation costs you must incur to meet back up with the group. Adult Expectations • Food: a mixture of local and familiar foods tailored towards the palate of students, not adults. No choices per person for dinners, please use lunch as your opportunity to eat as you choose. Dinners: Due to the size of the group all dinners will be a pre-set menu. Special Diets need to be taken into consideration prior to departure from Atlanta. Please notify your group leader at least 110 days prior to departure. Breakfast is continental – pastries, fruit, coffee and juices Your resources Traveler’s Handbook: You should have received this 30 days after enrollment. Safety Handbook: Look for it in the mail about 50 days prior to departure. Personalized website: Log in to watch destination videos, review your itinerary and find hotel and flight information as it becomes available. Tools to travel with Pocket Guide For Expert Travel: A collection of tips and tricks that will come in handy on tour. EF Backpack: Great for your carry-on bag or for use during the day. Emergency Calling Card: How to reach the local equivalent of 911 while abroad. A world of support EF Emergency Support Numbers From the U.S.: 800-637-8222 While abroad: 001-617-619-2913