Covid Assurance
Customer satisfaction is at the heart of everything we do here at Discover the World Education. As former teachers and destination specialists ourselves, we understand more than most how important the financial, health and safety aspects of planning a school trip are. We know that value for money and complete transparency is important to you and your students, and we want to reassure you that with us you are travelling in the safest of hands.
If you enquired or booked after October 2020 you will be eligible for our Discover the World Education industry leading Covid Assurance Policy. Discover the World Education offers you complete transparency by giving you more flexibility and reassurance than any other school trip provider. You can continue to plan a life-changing school trip and bring education to life, all without the financial risk.
Please note; The Covid Assurance below applies to schools departing the UK. If you are travelling from outside of the UK, then please speak to your travel specialist at the time of booking and we will create a bespoke Covid Assurance Policy based on your requirements.
Entry requirements:
We expect that groups will become fully vaccinated in line with UK Government recommendations. Therefore, as the UK Government are facilitating the vaccination of travellers 12 and over, if some members of the group have chosen not to be vaccinated they will not be covered by our Covid assurance.
We have outlined how the destination entry requirements will affect your Covid Assurance cover, see below:
What is the current situation?
Currently, you can enter the Azores without having had any vaccinations. Passengers who are not fully vaccinated and aged 12+ will be required to take a pre-travel test or provide a suitable proof of prior infection.
When booking a trip with us, our Covid Assurance will apply to these rules, therefore you will receive a full refund (in some cases you may lose your flight deposit, see below) if the Azores change their entry requirements and passengers are required to be vaccinated.
What is the current situation?
Costa Rica currently have no Covid-related entry requirements. Passengers are not required to be vaccinated, take a test, or quarantine.
If Costa Rica or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions that prevent your entire team from going ahead, then we will look to postpone your trip or give you a refund (in some cases you may lose your flight deposit).
If Costa Rica or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions which affect only some of your group and you still want the trip to go ahead, we will work with you to get the right price for the remainder of your group and if this isn’t possible we will offer you a deferral. Any passengers that have to drop out in the event of a reintroduction of Covid travel restrictions will receive a deposit refund.
What is the current situation?
Iceland currently has no Covid-related entry requirements. Passengers are not required to be vaccinated, take a test, or quarantine.
If Iceland or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions that prevent your entire trip, then we will look to postpone your trip or give you a refund (in some cases you may lose your flight deposit, see below.)
If Iceland or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions which affect only some of your group and you still want the trip to go ahead, we will work with you to get the right price for the remainder of your group and if this isn’t possible we will offer you a deferral. Any passengers that have to drop out in the event of a reintroduction of Covid travel restrictions will receive a deposit refund.
What is the current situation?
Italy currently have no Covid-related entry requirements. Passengers are not required to be vaccinated, take a test, or quarantine.
If Italy or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions that prevent your entire team from going ahead, then we will look to postpone your trip or give you a refund (in some cases you may lose your flight deposit).
If Italy or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions which affect only some of your group and you still want the trip to go ahead, we will work with you to get the right price for the remainder of your group and if this isn’t possible we will offer you a deferral. Any passengers that have to drop out in the event of a reintroduction of Covid travel restrictions will receive a deposit refund.
What is the current situation?
Montenegro currently have no Covid-19 related entry requirements. Passengers are not required to be vaccinated, take a test or quarantine.
If Montenegro or the UK introduces Covid-19 restrictions that prevent your entire trip, then we will look to postpone your trip or give you a refund (in some cases you may lose your flight deposit below).
If Montenegro or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions which affect only some of your group and you still want the trip to go ahead, we will work with you to get the right price for the remainder of your group and if this isn’t possible we will offer you a deferral. Any passengers that have to drop out in the event of a reintroduction of Covid travel restrictions will receive a deposit refund.
What is the current situation?
Norway currently has no Covid-related entry requirements. Passengers are not required to be vaccinated, take a test, or quarantine.
If Norway or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions that prevent your entire trip, then we will look to postpone your trip or give you a refund (in some cases you may lose your flight deposit, see below.)
If Norway or the UK reintroduces Covid-19 restrictions which affect only some of your group and you still want the trip to go ahead, we will work with you to get the right price for the remainder of your group and if this isn’t possible we will offer you a deferral. Any passengers that have to drop out in the event of a reintroduction of Covid travel restrictions will receive a deposit refund.
When will decisions be made?
We understand that you need time to organise and plan your trips, therefore we will work with you to make the final decision regarding cancellation by 21 days before departure. You will also have the option to postpone the trip if you choose to do so.
If you choose to reduce the group size of your trip, we will work with you to get the best price for the new group and offer refunds where applicable.
If you decide to cancel your trip and the Covid related circumstances do not apply, then our usual booking conditions booking conditions will apply.
Additional reasons for cancelling:
We will also provide you with a full refund for the following reasons:
- FCDO advising against all but essential travel to your chosen destination
- Department for Education ban overseas travels for school trips
- A quarantine for arrival in your chosen destination
- Quarantine is in place for return arrivals back to the UK
- National or regional lockdown restrictions which prevent your group from travelling
- If social distancing regulations would make the group travel infeasible
- Your group is prevented from travelling by vaccination requirements which were not in place at the time of booking
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If local legislation is in place at your destination which hinders the primary reason for your trip
Flight Deposits:
Traditionally a school trip is made up of a variety of different elements (accommodation, flights, coaches, activities, teacher tour leaders etc) and the above refund conditions apply to all elements of your trip with the exception of flights. Your financial security is very important to us and we have worked relentlessly with our air suppliers to offer you as much flexibility as possible. In regards to the flight element of your trip we have the following guarantees in place:
- If the FCDO advises against all but essential travel leading to your flight being cancelled you will receive a full refund
- If your flights are with Icelandair, Play, Wizz or Jet2, Discover the World Education will give you a full refund for the total of your trip (including trips)
- If you are flying with BA you will be charged £40pp cancellation fee
- If you are flying with TAP Air (Air Portugal) you will be charged £50pp cancellation fee
- If you have booked with another airline not stated above then, unfortunately you will not get a refund on the flight element of your trip, as these flights are non-refundable to Discover the World Education
Covid-19 Testing:
We are pleased to announce that for new bookings we will include the cost of testing as part of your 2022 school trip, as long as schools meet the following requirements;
- All passengers have been vaccinated in line with destination entry requirements, if the UK Government permits it. Additional test costs incurred due to missed vaccinations will need to be covered by the traveller
- Schools have paid their deposit after 11th May 2021, for a school trip in 2022
Due to the constantly evolving situation, all operational details on the actual process of getting tested will be discussed between you and your dedicated Travel Specialist and will be dependent on the process in place at the time of travel. All other aspects of the Covid Assurance still apply.
Costs of testing are included for school group bookings only, not for Teacher Inspection Visits.
COVID-19 FAQs
- We understand that planning a school trip during COVID-19 requires more sign off, meaning you have to ask a few more questions.
Extra advice for booking a school trip
- You need to make sure you have an insurance policy that protects you and your students. To help you with this, we have put together a quick, handy guide to choosing your school trip insurance provider…