Travel Plans
Passports
In order to enter all countries, you must have 6 months or more left on your passport before it expires, from the date when you plan to return home. (If the last day of your trip is November 1st, your passport must expire no later than May 1st.) If your passport is due to expire in less than 6 months from your planned return date, it is vital that you have it renewed before travelling.
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Visas
It is the responsibility of each individual to check on the visa requirements in regards to their nationality and ultimate destination.
For all nationalities and destinations please check the immigration laws pertaining to the passport you hold. Please check with the closest Embassy pertaining to your destination, as the laws change frequently. This site is an excellent source for finding the locations of embassies and visa requirements, for all destinations: World-Wide Visa Information
For all CAMS workshops you only require a tourist visa
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Travel Insurance
We require that all attendees get travel insurance in case, for any unforeseen reason, they are unable to attend. Our cancellation policy is below and will be adhered to. The company we prefer is World Nomads, and for those over the age of 70: Allianz. There are, of course, many other reputable companies to be found.
Travel insurance will assure you that your airfare will be reimbursed, in case for any reason you need to cancel, and there may well be policies that cover additional expenses. In the event of the organisers themselves cancelling, they will not be held responsible for reimbursing any expenses aside from the workshop costs (you would be reimbursed the full amount you paid for your CAMS deposit or reservation).
Many credit card companies have built-in travel insurance for any purchases made through them. It is advisable to check on this before purchasing another policy.
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Cancellation Policies
Cancellation Policies apply to everyone out of fairness to all participants. Please purchase travel insurance to ensure you against any unforeseen illness, injury, inclement weather, natural disasters and such.
For ALL cancellations more than 75 days before a workshop there is a £500 cancellation fee.
For ALL cancellations 31 - 75 days before a workshop, the fee is 50% of the workshop package price.
For ALL cancellations 0 - 30 days before a workshop, the fee is 100% of the workshop package price.
If a situation arises where a workshop has to be cancelled, 100% of monies received will be refunded.
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ENGLAND
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For those travelling Internationally, the closest airport to Shrewsbury is Birmingham (BHX) followed by Manchester (MAN), but it is also relatively easy to get there from both Gatwick and Heathrow.
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Birmingham International Airport (BHX) is on the train-line that goes directly to Shrewsbury, it conveniently runs through the airport. It takes about an hour and 15 minutes and a one way fare costs around £25. Pre-paid tickets are often cheaper and can be purchased through Trainline but it can be problematic if there are flight delays, unless you choose a flexible fare.
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Manchester International (MAN) is about a 10 minute walk to the train station and still only about an hour and 45 minutes from Shrewsbury, but there is one train change at Crewe. The one way fare is about £35.
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Local black taxis are readily available for getting from Shrewsbury to the Abbots Mead and only cost about £6. It is about an 11 minute walk, but there is a steep hill and most people will have luggage, so walking is only recommended for the luggage-free or more adventurous.
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From Gatwick - By train the shortest travel time is just over 3 hours. The cost is between £110 - £140.
From Heathrow - By train the shortest travel time is just over 4 hours. The cost is between £130 - £180.
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For all British train travel this is a handy phone App.
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If you choose to rent a car, from Heathrow it is approximately 2 hour and 30 minutes, or from Gatwick 3 hours.
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There is free parking at the Abbotts Mead, but it is not at all necessary to have your own car.
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USA - California
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Our venue in the USA is on the Central Coast of California in the small town of Buellton, Santa Barbara County. The closest International airport is Los Angeles (LAX) about a 2 1/2 - 3 hour drive away (depending on traffic), and the closest domestic one is in Santa Barbara (SBA), about 35 minutes away. There are fairly frequent public shuttles from both airports, and many car rental options. There is little to no public transport available in this part of the USA, but we will do our best to set up taxi/Uber/car pools amongst students. The shuttle service that takes you directly to Buellton from either LAX or SBA is Central Coast Shuttle.
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Many travellers qualify for an ESTA visa waiver entry to the USA. Check here to see here if your country/passport qualifies you. We are happy to provide all appropriate paperwork for those requiring visas to enter the country.
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INDIA
For 1st time travellers to India, we realise how daunting it can be to arrive in such a completely different culture. We are committed to making the travel experience as comfortable and nonthreatening as we possibly can.
CAMS Indian events will be held in Goa, a small state on the west coast of Southern India. Goa is relatively small and narrow, with an Arabian Sea coastline of about 100 km. The location we have chosen is Palolem Beach, to the far south. It takes some time to get there, but the journey itself is a fascinating one, and well worth the effort.
The closest international airports to Palolem are Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai (BOM), and Dabolim Airport (GOI). Although Dabolim is an International airport, only certain budget European airlines, Qatar, and a limited number of other airlines fly there.
Dabolim airport is about 65 km from Palolem, which is a drive of around an hour and a half away by road from the workshop location.
Travel from Australia and Europe to India is not so complex and we are very happy to assist with these arrangements, please contact us directly.
Those who decide to spend time in Mumbai and then take the train to Goa are advised to book their tickets well in advance, an extremely reliable and simple way to book train tickets is through Clear Trips. Those arriving by train will disembark at Margao station, and we will arrange car pick-up if you would like us to. It is about an 8-hour train journey from Mumbai to Margao, and very comfortable in either a 1st or 2nd AC class compartment. If you are lucky enough to be in one with clean windows you will have a splendid view of the countryside, and since many trains leave Mumbai in the morning, you will travel primarily in daylight hours.
From Margao train station to Palolem takes about an hour and 10 minutes by taxi.
There have been some positive changes in acquiring Indian visas lately, for most countries they can now get them online.
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Miscellaneous Travel Information
Cost wise it helps immensely if you have some flexibility on dates, plus travel mid-week is generally more reasonable.
We recommend that you check the frequent flyer programme for the airline you choose. Affiliate frequent flyer programs can be found on the respective airline's website.
We will try and keep this page up to date with any changes, and please don't hesitate to contact us if you need any assistance. We are happy to help in whatever ways we can.
