Thank you for considering Panorama Travel for your visit to Oman. We intend any visit to Oman with us is safe, enjoyable, and rewarding.
1) GENERAL
1.1 Panorama Travel is based in Muscat, Oman. Therefore, panorama Travel operates only under the jurisdiction of the Sultanate of Oman Government. By booking with Panorama Travel, you acknowledge this and accept the jurisdiction of the Oman Government Legalization in all aspects of the booking and consequences.
1.2 Our advice is not a substitute for authoritative advice from your government, healthcare service, and insurance provider. We suggest you obtain appropriate advice from your government, healthcare service, and insurance providers to enable you to prepare for the visit.
1.3 As a visitor to Oman, all medical services require payment by you. Personal insurance should take out by you to ensure all members of your group. Oman’s liability and compensation laws may differ from those in your own country. In the event of an emergency requiring medical attention, we can only help you obtain treatment if you have provided your insurance details and they are suitable for the Sultanate of Oman.
1.4 Term number 1.3 does not apply to the Gulf Country Conference (GCC) citizens
1.5 The information you provide to us may be given to 3rd parties, such as hotels, to ensure service; this may include passport information, which the Oman Government requires.
1.6 Visas and Valid Passports are required to enter Oman – Not including GCC citizens and List of Group-1 Countries – Passports should have more than six months of validity before expiry and empty pages available for visa stamps.
9.7 You should carry with you a valid credit card while in Oman. Many establishments, such as hotels, require a valid credit card to ‘swipe’ at check-in as security during your stay or use their equipment even though we are responsible for the daily room rental. If your card is invalid or funds are unavailable, the hotel or other service provider may refuse to provide services or equipment. We cannot be held liable in the event of any 3rd party refusing to permit you to use their services or equipment if your card is not valid or funds are not available.
1.8 If Airport Transfers or other airport services are to be provided by us so may meet you on your arrival, we require the Flight Details – Airline, Flight Number, and expected arrival time at Muscat International Airport (local time in Oman). We provide a specific location to meet us.
1.9 We ask that you email us about one week before your arrival in Oman to confirm that your flights and other details are unchanged.
1.10 The receipt of payment indicates that you and each member of your party agree to our terms and conditions. Therefore, we do not require your signature for the agreement.
2) OUR SERVICE
2.1 We will supply services and accommodation as described. We make no hidden charges and include all Oman Government Taxes.
1.2 We deal with accommodation providers whose number of rooms may be as few as five; if one accommodation provider does not have rooms available to you, we might not proceed with a program unless we use alternative accommodation.
2.3 Should you feel that we have misunderstood your requirements or made an error in the quotation, or if you need to have details amended, please advise us. Changes made by you after booking may require additional charges or cancellation fees by third parties & us.
2.4 If you have specific requirements, such as a particular hotel, hotel rating (all ratings are by Oman’s Ministry of Tourism), diet, or if you have personal needs that need consideration when planning a tour – please advise us. We will then incorporate them into our planning and notify you if we cannot meet your requirements.
2.5 As this is an Islamic country, many hotels and restaurants in Oman do not serve alcohol. Therefore, if the availability of alcohol is a critical element in your decision to stay in a hotel, please advise us only to offer such accommodation.
2.6 The responsibility for the security of your possessions is not assumed by staff employed by us or accommodation or service providers.
2.7 Our communication is only in English and guided in either Arabic or English unless specifically requested in other languages.
2.8 Our staff are a key element of any program you take through us. We operate our private tours with the same person as the driver/guide. Since driving requires an alert driver, for your benefit, we ask that you avoid placing onerous physical duties on them, such as lifting oversize luggage. We can offer full-service tours if required; please advise us when you are making the booking.
3) PAYMENT & QUOTATIONS
3.1 We are an Omani-based company and we quote in (OMR) Omani Riyals.
3.2 We present prices in the world’s leading currencies to make it easy to understand the cost. But the amount that reaches our bank must be correct in OMR.
3.3 We will not alter our quotation within 7 days of quoting you. However, once you accept, we allow an additional 7 days for payment/deposit.
3.4 We cannot anticipate your wish to book with us; therefore, we do not make bookings or reservations for any service until we receive the deposit or full payment.
3.5 We accept bookings in date order based on when the payment was received and, irrespective of any correspondence, this may mean that we cannot offer services due to our or other service providers’ commitment to clients who have made bookings before you.
3.6 If you book multiple-day or self-drive tours against any booking, we ask for a 10-40% non-refundable deposit (See our Cancellation Section). The balance of 60-90% is to be received by us in full two weeks before the services we have undertaken to provide are due to start. These ratios of the deposit and balance might vary based on the services & the itinerary booked with us.
3.7 If your booking is for a short excursion, at our discretion, we may not require a deposit but will require full payment before the tour.
3.8 With reservations made less than three weeks before arrival, we ask for payment in full against the reservation.
3.9 Unless full payment has been received 2 weeks before your arrival, we will regard the booking as canceled by you, and accommodation and services will be automatically released three weeks before the booking date.
3.10 If your arrival is at short notice or requires numerous hotels, or booked into accommodation with limited room numbers, please confirm your intention to book with us before making payment so that we may inquire regarding room availability. Actual booking by us will not be made until receipt by us of the initial deposit payment or, in the case of a request less than five weeks before arrival, full payment is required.
3.11 We charge per person (pp); any alteration in numbers will require a re-quote. Likewise, changes to your requirements will require us to re-quote or perhaps inform you that we cannot supply them.
3.12 If your quote is in Omani Rial (OMR), exchange rate variations may occur, and these are beyond our control). You may calculate exchange rates at the following site www.xe.com.
3.13 International airfare is not included in the cost of the trips unless indicated.
3.14 Quotations depend on the method of payment. In the case of high-cost multi-day or group programs, we offer quotations based on payment by bank transfer to our bank Muscat account to avoid the large extra cost of paying by credit or visa cards for the benefit of our customers.
4) CANCELLATION
4.1 In case of any cancelation by you – we will retain the deposit, and it will be available at face value should you re-book with us at a later date – no longer than one year from the canceled booking.
- If cancellation by you is more than 14 days before arrival, we will refund 60-90% of the net program cost.
- If canceled by you 11-13 days before arrival we will refund 50% of the net program cost.
- If canceled by you 8 – 10 days before arrival we will refund 30% of the net program cost.
- If canceled by you within 7 days before arrival no refund will be made.
4.2 These Cancellation periods are extended by 10 days in each instance during Christmas & New Year and Easter Holidays periods or where a room booking is for more than 8 rooms. In case of a refund of any monies, we will only make that refund by the method payment was made to us by you. We will refund as a percentage of our Omani Rial currency. Currency alterations and all bank charges are against your account.
4.3 Cancellation by us without subsequent liability. If we cannot provide the required services for any reason, we will be refunded in full any pre-payment by you, including the (10-40%) deposit, and we will be responsible for our Bank charges.
4.3 Cancelation in force majeure applies. See terms and conditions number (7).
5) SAFETY AND BEHAVIOR
5.1 Many activities, including walking on loose surfaces, slopes, hiking at altitude, swimming, and riding, may not suit the elderly, pregnant, young, or infirm people. Therefore, we urge you to take professional advice if you or any party member may consider coming on those tours.
5.2 It is your responsibility to exercise suitable judgment regarding the health and safety of yourself and others accompanying you and their ability to undertake such activity when participating in any activity during your period in Oman. By booking with us, you indemnify us, our staff, and accommodation and service providers if you or any member of your party suffers death, accident, or injury while on holiday or tour booked with us or causes death accident, or injury to others.
5.3 We reserve the right to make immediate termination of any person whose behavior includes intoxication by alcohol or drugs, an insult to the religion, ruler, state, or individual. We will make no compensation for this termination.
5.4 We may ask you to sign specific indemnity forms for activities including camel riding, Horse Riding, Trekking, and other adventure activities.
5.5 Equipment hire and use (such as ‘dune buggies,’ binoculars, for individual activities) are under a replacement basis if you lose or damage.
5.6 Panorama Travel holds all the rights to immediately terminate the traveling of any person in case of suspected infectious disease that might affect others.
6) HOTELS
6.1 Hotels in Oman generally have check-in at 14:30 and check at 11:30 AM.
6.2 We use hotels ranging from world-class luxury with hundreds of rooms to accommodations with five rooms. Hotels away from Muscat vary considerably in standard and, in some cases, are very simple.
6.3 Since exact room availability within any accommodation depends entirely on the departure of earlier guests, the accommodation provider cannot assure room adjacency, interconnecting rooms, or specific rooms. In our turn, we cannot do more than indicate to them what is preferred.
6.4 Bed configuration may only be double or twin (separate beds) in some hotels or room grades. If you have preferences, please indicate those. We will mark your choice the hotel against our booking.
6.5 Smoking policy in Oman regarding rooms, restaurants, and other establishments does vary. However, we ask that you do not smoke in a vehicle, restaurant, or public area within a building. In addition, while some hotels do have a mix of smoking or non-smoking rooms, the enforcement of such a policy can be lax in smaller hotels resulting in some rooms having a tobacco odor despite being administered as non-smoking.
6.6 Oman is a desert country – showers are a typical facility, rather than baths, in Muscat hotels and some hotels in Muscat.
6.7 We will confirm hotels after receiving the payment. We act as an agent on behalf of any accommodation provider and are not the principal.
6.8 Many hotels require a valid credit card to ‘swipe’ at check-in as security during your stay or use of their equipment.
7) FORCE MAJEURE
7.1 You must contact your insurance company in the event of an accident that may prevent your ability to travel, such as an injury, a hurricane, an earthquake, an airport strike, or war.
7.2 In Panorama Travel, we will do everything we can to ensure your safety and ease of movement in addition to cancellation compensation according to the laws of our partners and service providers in this aspect, as we did in the volcanic eruption of Iceland and the Covid-19 pandemic.
8) IF YOU ARE DISSATISFIED WITH OUR SERVICES
8.1 If we have not met your expectations regarding our services or services others provide to you as part of your holiday booked with us, please advise your guide or our office immediately. We will investigate and, if required, endeavor to make an immediate rectification.
9) OTHER
9.1 If we are forced to change the program by any circumstances beyond our control, such as bad weather, infrastructure damage, road closure, vehicle failure, government requisition or closer, etc., we will endeavor to offer suitable alternatives. However, we cannot be liable for such changes in circumstances.
9.2 Oman has public holidays during which Government departments (most Museums are government establishments) close. In the case of religious holidays, notice may be only a day in advance. During religious holidays, there are occasions when service providers withdraw alcohol from sale with little notice. We may not be able to give you notification of such occurrences. Non-religious holidays are generally notified about a week before they commence. Such closures are beyond our control.
9.3 Establishments such as the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque have specific dress requirements to obtain entry. They also have an entry prohibition for people who have consumed alcohol or have a strong smell of Tobacco. The authorities administer such entry considerations within the establishment, and we cannot be held responsible for their decision to prohibit entry.
9.4 We utilize images from our tours and other events for publicity and general illustrative purposes. If you object to including those of you or your party, please advise us against the booking.
9.5 Oman has public holidays during which our office does not open. Oman’s gov. announced these holidays a week before they commenced in the case of non-religious holidays. In the case of religious holidays, notice may be only a day in advance.
9.6 We have different terms and conditions for the other international destinations we work with and are included in the Reserved Programs.
9.7 In the belief in responsible tourism and the positive impacts tourism can make when booking with Panorama Travels, a donation of RO 1 per person is added to your invoice to the Environmental Society of Oman (Let us know if you prefer to remove the donation).
If you wish any additional details, please contact us.