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Group of men and women celebrating on a beach in Goa after completing a Dream Challenge

Travel Alerts

A statement on coronavirus (COVID-19)

Last updated 24th June 2021 - still current 22nd October 2021

The safety and health of our Dream Challenges participants is always our top priority and we are monitoring the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation carefully and continuously.

All tour operators and holiday insurance providers take their guidance from Foreign & Commonwealth Office advice.

A message from the MD, Callum O'Driscoll

To all our valued customers

We are monitoring the coronavirus situation around the world daily. The UK Government’s ‘roadmap’ details key dates in the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. We can already look forward to travelling around the UK and in the very near future, we should hear more about opportunities to travel overseas in 2021. The government expects to announce changes to its Red, Amber, and Green country lists and travel regulations every three weeks.

The rapid progress in vaccinations is giving many of us the confidence to travel as soon as possible and if you choose a Dream Challenge, you’ll have the extra confidence of knowing that our industry-leading COVID-19 14-point plan will stay in place throughout 2021. Your health and wellbeing will always remain our foremost priority. If there is a requirement to have a test in your destination country before you return to the UK, we will arrange and pay for it.

We are making plans to operate UK challenges from 17 May 2021 and we will be guided by government advice on overseas challenges every three weeks when announcements are made.

We anticipate delivering UK challenges this summer and overseas challenges in autumn and winter 2021. However, a Dream Challenge must meet all the following criteria to take place:

  • The UK government, including the Foreign Commonwealth Office and the authorities of the destination country, must be allowing travel and events of this type at the time of departure.
  • There must be no general requirement for isolation or quarantine on arrival in the destination country or on the return to the UK at the time of departure.
  • The challenge must meet all the relevant parts of our 14-step COVID-19 action plan.
  • There must be enough people wanting to travel to make the group viable.
  • All challengers must be able to take part not just safely but also enjoyably.

If we have to cancel a Dream Challenge for one of these reasons, we will contact all participants as soon as possible. We are committed to providing the most convenient, alternative arrangements, matching prices where possible.

As a medium-sized events and travel company, we are dealing with the continuing impact of the COVID-19 situation on hundreds of our challenge departures and thousands of customers.

It will take time to do this and we need to be sure that we are following the latest UK Government advice at all times. As such, we are working through our challenges strictly in date order. Please be assured that we will be in contact with you, but I would respectfully ask for your patience so that we can we can deal with the most urgent matters first.

Thank you again for your loyalty and understanding, and best wishes from Dream Challenges.

Callum
Managing Director
Dream Challenges

 If you were booked on a challenge that was due to depart in 2020

If your challenge was cancelled, you will have received an email with details of your refund and transfer options. You can still transfer your registration fee to a new challenge.

If you are booked on a challenge departing in 2021 or 2022

  • In line with the decision-making process outlined above, we have cancelled or postponed all challenges that were due to happen before 31st July 2021.

  • We will be reviewing overseas challenges for the rest of 2021 after the expected reviews by the government every three weeks.

  • Should any of the challenge criteria mentioned above make your challenge unviable, we will contact you as quickly as we can.
  • If we cancel your challenge, there will be no charge to transfer to the new travel dates and we will match your 2020 or 2021 price for the same itinerary* departing in 2021. If you choose a 2022 departure date of the same itinerary, we will match the available 2021 price in 2022.

  • If your intended itinerary is not available in 2021, we will match the 2020 or 2021 price (whichever you are currently booked on) for a 2022 departure of the same itinerary. 

  • Alternatively, you may choose to transfer to any other 2021 or 2022 challenge (with no admin fee to pay). Any difference in price would be payable or, if in your favour, refundable. See all our challenges here. We will also match 2021 challenges with 2020 prices and match 2022 challenges with 2021 prices when you are transferring from a cancelled challenge.

 

If your challenge has not been cancelled

  • Balances will be due 12 weeks before your departure date. 

  • If you are registered on a 2021 challenge, you can transfer at any time, free of charge, to a later 2021 or 2022 challenge.
    * This remains at our discretion and the offer of a free transfer may be withdrawn at any time. You may need to pay increased registration or challenge fees if the price is different. You will be credited if the difference is in your favour.

  • If you are registered on a 2022 challenge, you can transfer to a 2021 or 2022 challenge free of charge.

  • If you are registered on a 2022 challenge, our usual £50 per person transfer fee will need to be paid to transfer to any other challenge in 2022 or later.

  • If you wish to cancel now, normal booking conditions apply.

  • Please note that mass participation events such as Women V Cancer London to Brighton, Women V Cancer Ride the Night, and the Snowdonia Challenge have different booking conditions that were given to you at the time of your registration on the event.

  • We reserve the right to cancel your challenge within 12 weeks before departure if the number of late customer cancellations makes the challenge commercially unviable or any of the above criteria mean the challenge can't go ahead. 

For our full booking conditions please visit https://www.dream-challenges.com/booking-conditions/

Top tips on planning your travels during the pandemic

COVID-19 has had a huge impact on our ability to travel and it is understandable if you don't feel comfortable travelling right now. Dream Challenges is delighted to have been able to trek the West Highland Way safely with a group of adventurers in October 2021 and we are all set to cycle and trek further afield by the end of the year. That said, we understand many of our challengers are hesitant to roam far from home this year and are instead planning to join us on one - or several - of our amazing challenges in 2022! 

If you are still feeling unsure about travelling, LoveHolidays' top tips for hesitant travellers might help to assure you. You can check them out here and see their advice for personal hygiene here. 

Remember, we are planning all our Dream Challenges with our industry-leading 14-step initiative to keep you safe and minimise the risk of COVID-19 and we are always just an email away if you have any questions. 

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