Tyr54a package holiday without surprises: a traveller's reference

An independent reference for travellers. We are not a travel agency or tour operator: we do not sell or arrange holidays and have no connection with the former website on this domain.

Reference

Reference

This section briefly explains words you will come across in holiday descriptions, contracts and insurance policies. The definitions are in plain language; for exact wording, see the text of the law and the documents themselves.

Anyone who understands the difference between a tour operator and a travel agent already knows whom to write to if a trip goes wrong. That knowledge saves weeks of correspondence.

— Editor's view

Holiday

Tourist product (package tour)
A set of services combined into one trip: usually transport, accommodation and other services such as transfers or excursions. In Russia, tourist activity is governed by Federal Law No. 132-FZ "On the Fundamentals of Tourist Activity in the Russian Federation", adopted in 1996. Other countries regulate package travel in their own way.
Tour operator
A company that puts the package together and is responsible for the set of services. In Russia, only legal entities listed in the unified federal register of tour operators may act as tour operators.
Travel agent
A company or sole trader that promotes and sells a package put together by a tour operator. Put simply, a travel agent sells someone else's holiday, so it matters to know whose.
Transfer
The journey from the station or airport to your accommodation and back. It can be shared or private. Whether it is included should be checked in the contract, not in the description.
Contract for a tourist product
The agreement between the traveller and the seller of the holiday. Under Russian rules it is made in writing and includes details of the tour operator and of what the holiday consists of: dates, itinerary, accommodation and other services.

Documents

International passport
The document for leaving Russia and entering other countries. Requirements for how long it must be valid are set by the country you are entering, so check them for every trip.
Visa
Permission to enter a country, issued by that country itself. Whether you need one, which type and how to get it — look it up on the country's official websites.
E-visa
A visa applied for online. Apply only through the country's official portal: intermediaries often charge for filling in exactly the same form.
Consent for a child's travel
A document in which a parent confirms their consent to a minor's trip when the child travels without their parents or with only one of them. Check the procedure in official sources.

Insurance

Travel medical insurance
A policy that covers the cost of medical care during a trip within the terms it sets out. Before you go, find out which situations it covers and what to do if you need a doctor.
Excess
The part of the costs the insured person pays themselves. If a policy has an excess, small costs stay with you and the insurer reimburses whatever exceeds that amount.
Insured event
An event for which the insurer must pay out under the policy terms. What counts as such an event, and what does not, is set out in the policy wording — worth reading before you travel.

Where these terms come up

  • Guides

    How to choose a package holiday and check the tour operator: steps, mistakes, a checklist. Plus the article catalogue.

  • Questions

    Short answers on buying a holiday, documents and visas, and what to do if a trip is cancelled or changed.

  • Long-haul trip (in Russian)

    A note on the old destination page address and what to check before buying a long-haul holiday.

  • Visas & entry (in Russian)

    A note on the old destination page address and how to check entry requirements without intermediaries.

  • Questions

    Short answers on buying a holiday, documents and visas, and what to do if a trip is cancelled or changed.

  • Collections

    Reading paths: a first trip abroad, a holiday with children, a weekend in the countryside.

  • Updates

    A feed of new reference articles with dates and topics.

Sources

  • Federal Law No. 132-FZ "On the Fundamentals of Tourist Activity in the Russian Federation"
  • Unified federal register of tour operators (Russia)
  • Official country websites on entry requirements

Information is correct as of the date the material was prepared. Laws and requirements change: check the current version of Russian Federal Law No. 132-FZ in official publications, and check a country's entry rules on its official websites before every trip. Outside Russia, package travel protection works differently, so check the rules where you buy.