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Your Safety
We take you and your
students safety very seriously at Russian Gateway. Although
on the whole, the country is no more dangerous than any
other European destination, we strictly adhere to the
following safety procedures on all tours.
Compliance With UK / EC Regulations
Russian Gateway (UK) Ltd
is compliant with European Commission Directive on Package
Travel (The Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package
Tour Regulations 1992-SI3288/1992) your money is kept secure
until you return from your holiday ensuring repatriation
should Russian Gateway go bankrupt. In all circumstances,
payment for flight elements will be made to Eastways Travel
Limited, our ATOL protected flights provider and your
tickets will always be issued within 48 hours of payment
being made. All of our flights, without exception are on
scheduled airlines and you will always be provided with
valid return air tickets and prepaid accommodation,
excursion, guide and transfer vouchers so you are 100%
protected in the extremely unlikely event of our insolvency.
Russian Gateway (UK) Ltd is a limited company in England and
Wales (UK) - company registration number is 3878501. VAT
Registration number is 803 3949 31.
Risk Assessment
We are happy to help with risk assessment or any other
safety management planning that may be necessary. We control
very closely the suppliers we work with via our Moscow and
St.Petersburg offices and as the only tour operator to
Russia with full time staff, contactable 24 hours a day in
either city, we know you will be well looked after.
Hotels
Hotels we use are fully compliant with all local and
national fire and safety regulations and are inspected by
our senior staff at least once per year. In addition we have
our own staff (guides, drivers) in and out of the hotels on
a daily basis throughout the year - staying in rooms /
liaising with management / using the facilities which gives
us a very good feel for how the hotel is being run on an
ongoing basis which we feel is a much better indication of a
hotels worthiness than a formal audit, which is by no means
flawless. We do have our favourites in each category (3, 4 ,
4+ and 5 Stars) and most of our schools travel in 3 and 4
stars. In Moscow this more often than not means the Hotel
Izmailovo in 3*** and Kosmos in 4**** and in St.Petersburg
the Sovietskaya in 3*** and the Park Inn Pulkovskaya in
4****. Certainly these hotels are used to dealing with large
school groups and we are happy to recommend them as having
excellent price / quality ratios. In addition each have
expert staff trained to deal with emergency / hazardous and
medical situations and all comply with the rigorous health
and safety standards imposed by local government.
Transport
In Russia we have a fleet of vehicles which comply with all
local safety standards. Although not an official law in
Russia we do insist that all vehicles we use have fully
functional seatbelts. For small parties we use Mercedes Vito
Luxury Minibuses and for larger groups we have a range of
vehicles up to 52 seats. An integral part of most groups'
tours is an overnight train journey between Moscow and
St.Petersburg. We have never had any problems on board
(there is at least one policeman and a train
controller on every journey). In addition in every carriage
there is a carriage attendant who will look after you.
Compartments will be 2 or 4 berth and each has a main lock
and a door stop latch which makes the door virtually
impossible to open from the outside even when the main lock
has been opened. In all cases we try to have all members of
the party in adjoining compartments.
Guides
Our guides are professionally qualified (blue badge level),
and are normally teachers or lecturers by profession. We
employ only experienced guides who have dealt with many
school groups in the past and who will most definitely give
your students both an educational and fun experience. We
hold all personal details of our guides on file and have
stringent criteria for employment with Russian Gateway UK
Limited.
Excursions / Free Time
Of course (unless you want to) you will not be chaperoned 24
hours a day and we recommend you use sensible precautions
when wandering around. Just the same as if you were in
Paris, flashing large wads of cash around is not advisable !
Contrary to
media reports, Moscow and St.Petersburg are no more
dangerous than any other large European city (in fact the
locals are much friendlier than in most cities). The closest
you will get to the mafia is seeing their Mercedes 600s
stopped at the traffic lights. In certain parts you may see
gypsy children asking for money - just give them a firm no
and if they will leave you alone. You are always well looked
after by our local guides! . Don't forget the streets are
wide in Russia on the whole and crossing is much easier by
subterranean passage. If you make a run for it you are
dicing with Mercedes 600s, trams and trolleybuses so beware!
Don't put your hands in your pockets in Russian churches and
dress appropriately ie ladies cover shoulders etc.
Health
No vaccinations are required
for Russia. If you are concerned, get the Health Advice for
travellers booklet by calling 0800 555 777. If you suffer
from any medical condition, please ensure you take enough
medication with you. Emergency medical treatment is free in
Russia but we suggest you take out a UK medical insurance
policy as well. Don't forget to take the Emergency medical
number with you. In St.Petersburg it is wise to avoid
drinking the tap water which contains nasty bugs. Also, in
Russia, alcohol tends to very cheap. Pretty much a taboo
subject but we feel it merits attention, even for 16 or 17
year olds. In certain Russian kiosks / small shops, 6
bottles of Vodka may look identical in every way but with 6
different price tags. This obviously indicates that quality
can, well, vary. We strongly recommend that teachers /
potential group leaders make this point very clear to group
members - spirits should not be taken in any way, manner or
form. Worst case scenario is drain cleaner. If you want more
advice on this or any other health matter pertaining to your
trip do not hesitate to contact us - our experience is great
and we can offer all kinds of advise - on and off the record
which will make your trip memorable for all the right
reasons. |
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