MEMBERS TRAVEL GUIDE

Transcription

1 Luxembourg, 5 April 2004 MEMBERS TRAVEL GUIDE I. ORGANISATION OF TRAVEL ASSISTANCE 1. Parliament's Secretariat provides Members with assistance in organising their travel. This facility covers, on Parliament's premises in the three places of work, the reservation of hotel rooms, the reservation and issuing of plane, train and boat tickets and car rental. It comprises two separate units which work together to provide a comprehensive service: a. The Members Travel Office (MTO) is a service of the Directorate-General for Finance which Members can use in connection with individual travel or group travel to attend parliamentary meetings. This service can look for available connections and reserve flights which meet the needs of Members and official delegations, but it does not issue plane or train tickets. It can also provide information on hotels. b. A private travel agency, CWT (Carlson Wagonlit Travel), which works on the basis of a contract concluded with Parliament. This agency can issue plane or train tickets and can reserve tickets or hotels both for Members and for Parliament's officials and other staff. In connection with their flight reservation needs, Members can contact the Members' Travel Office (MTO), CWT or any private agency. Given that the MTO cannot issue tickets, tickets for flights reserved by the MTO must be ordered from CWT, in accordance with the deadlines for issuing and paying for tickets set by the airline. These deadlines are specified when the reservations are made. Like any other travel agency, CWT can also make reservations for private travel (an arrangement not covered by its contract with Parliament). 2. This guide provides information on the following: Chapter II: Chapter III: Chapter IV: Last page: Information concerning air travel Information concerning air fares Information concerning hotel reservations Contact addresses for MTO and CWT NT\ doc PE /Quaest.

2 II. INFORMATION CONCERNING AIR TRAVEL Rules governing travel expenses and allowances 3. These rules can be consulted on the Intranet (Europarl Inside, 'Members and assistants/financial entitlements'). A Member travelling by plane is entitled, for one return trip per working week, to a flat-rate travel allowance comprising an amount equivalent to the 'YY economy' fare for the journey between the nearest appropriate airport to the Member s place of residence and the airport serving the place of work. Given that this is the full fare without restrictions, it is not possible to reimburse any cancellation or alteration fees incurred when using a reduced fare. For more information: CaisseDep@europarl.eu.int Individual travel 4. Members can ask MTO and CWT to look for the best connections. CWT issues tickets at the fare and with the airline chosen by the Member (with the exception of low-cost airlines, which do not deal with travel agencies). Travel to attend meetings outside the places of work 5. Meetings outside the usual places of work are organised by the Internal Policies or External Policies Directorates-General, or by a political group. The organiser of the meeting informs MTO of the reservation requirements. MTO and CWT then ask airlines for a reduced fare based on the number of people leaving from the same place, generally Brussels. MTO, CWT and the organiser of the meeting then inform Members of the conditions offered. MTO and the organiser of the meeting are also responsible for informing the authorities of the host state regarding the participants' arrival. 6. Where the number of Members travelling on the same flights permits, a reduced fare is also offered from departure points other than Brussels, e.g. for meetings of political groups or large interparliamentary delegations. In general, however, airlines consider group travel to mean at least 10 people travelling together both ways, which is rare in Parliament. 7. In the case of ACP-EU meetings, the Bureau rules adopted on 10 February 2003 lay down that: - if Parliament decides to charter an aircraft, this means alone is authorised, - in other cases, Members must obtain their tickets from Parliament's accredited travel agency, within the limits of the prices negotiated for the meeting concerned. Price of tickets purchased from CWT 8. Tickets purchased and paid for by Members themselves for travel within the EU are issued at the price set by the airline for individual passengers, for the chosen class and fare. Airlines pay the issuing travel agency commission for such tickets. No additional commission is charged. PE /Quaest. 2/8 NT\ doc

3 9. Tickets invoiced to Parliament (Administration or political groups) bear a negotiating commission which is paid by Parliament where fares have been negotiated directly with airlines for individual journeys. These are 'corporate' fares (see Chapter III) based on the number of tickets purchased by Parliament over a given period. These fares are set by airline and by destination; Parliament selects the best offers for each destination every three months. Except where the airline has given its agreement in writing, these prices do not apply to groups of passengers. The same principles apply to 'conference' fares for travel to meetings outside the usual places of work. 10. CWT pays back some of its commission to Parliament by way of compensation for the material facilities made available to it. CWT's main contractual obligations to Parliament involve the services of more than 20 people, sending some 10 people to Strasbourg for each part-session, supplying material and subscribing to the Galileo network, thus enabling MTO to make reservations for Members. Conditions and deadlines for issuing tickets 11. As indicated in Chapter III, choosing reduced-fare tickets means that the tickets will be subject to restrictions, and penalties will apply where these restrictions are not complied with. Consequently, MTO and CWT draw the attention of Members and their assistants to these restrictions when reservations are made, in particular to the deadline for issuing the ticket. If the Member does not ask CWT to issue the ticket before that date, the price quoted when the reservation was made will no longer be valid unless a written derogation has been obtained from the airline, and any additional costs must be borne by the Member. 12. It is not possible to cancel the first reservation and make another for a different date in the same file. The reservation system detects any such attempt and the airline applies penalties, even after the ticket has been issued. MTO and CWT have been instructed to reject any such requests, which give rise to penalties for which there is no budget. Furthermore, the airline may cancel the reservation if the deadline for issue has passed. The issuing of any ticket outside IATA rules must be confirmed by the airline in writing. 13. It is possible to cancel one file and open another. However, cancelling a file can mean that the reserved seat is lost immediately and is allocated to someone on the waiting list. It is possible to open a new file before cancelling the old one, but only if the flight is not already full. Air tickets purchased on the Internet 14. Several airlines allow tickets to be bought directly from them via their Internet site, without passing through an agency. Reservation and payment must often be made at the same time, and passengers must provide their credit card number via the Internet. This is normally the only way of purchasing tickets for low-cost airlines (see Chapter III). Where conventional airlines allow tickets to be purchased on the Internet, the price is not always very different from that charged when tickets are purchased via an agency. NT\ doc 3/8 PE /Quaest.

4 III. INFORMATION CONCERNING AIR FARES Air fares: a complex issue 15. Two air travellers sitting side by side in the same aircraft and in the same class of travel may have paid very different prices for their tickets, even if they purchased them from the same travel agency and at more or less the same time. The opening up of the market to competition has in effect 'deregulated' fares, which used to be regulated by the IATA. Airlines have now adopted a policy of yield management, which involves deriving maximum revenue from each aircraft seat. 16. Yield management is based on relatively simple principles: the various seating classes are divided into sub-classes, for each of which there is a fare ranging from zero in the case of free seats (for the beneficiaries of FFPs [frequent-flyer programmes], for example) to full fare. Yield management is administered centrally (within each airline there is a single office dealing with seats on all flights) and seats are assigned to the various sub-classes on the basis of demand, which means that a seat may at any time be switched from one sub-class to another, except in the case of reserved seats. 17. Hence it is the market which at all times determines the fare at which a seat will be sold. It may be the case that seats in one and the same class are price differently according to the time at which they are sold. The seats which are sold first are not necessarily the cheapest, since if not enough seats in the class are filled the fare may very well be reduced. As a general rule, different fares are accompanied by different validity restrictions, although decisions on those restrictions also depend upon the specific situation on the market. 18. Public fares comprise full fares, special fares and promotional fares. Travel agencies may also secure negotiated fares, which are not published. Low-cost airlines set their own fares. Full fares Both promotional and special fares are subject to strict terms and conditions governing deadlines for issue, length of stay and the penalties incurred in the event of alteration or cancellation. If the terms and conditions governing the issue of a ticket are not observed, the fare quoted when the reservation was made will no longer apply. The 'forced' issue of a ticket at a fare which no longer applies constitutes an infringement of IATA rules, in response to which the carrier may either simply cancel the reservation or deny boarding and in either case fine the travel agency which issued the ticket or even withdraw that agency's licence. 19. These fares apply in economy class, business class and first class. They are valid on all airlines (YY), they are interchangeable between airlines (except in the case of routeing surcharges) and they may be altered or cancelled without charge. They have no minimum period of validity and their maxim period of validity is one year from the date upon which the ticket is issued. For journeys within Europe, economy-class YY tickets generally entitle their owners to occupy a business-class seat without paying any supplement. PE /Quaest. 4/8 NT\ doc

5 Special fares 20. Special fares are (usually economy-class) public fares: o belonging to the pex, superpex or apex category (other terms are also used, depending on the individual airline). Tickets must be issued at the same time as the reservation is made or at the latest within 24 to 72 hours. The required minimum stay is in principle overnight from Saturday to Sunday but may also be two or three days. Changes to and/or cancellation of the ticket are rarely authorised; o of the euro-budget type (the name may vary according to the airline concerned). There is usually no minimum-stay requirement but tickets must normally be issued at the same time as the reservation is made or at the latest within 12 to 72 hours. Restrictions in respect of changes and/or cancellations may apply; o of the excursion type, which may be regarded as noble fares, since they can usually be altered without incurring any charge. They are nonetheless subject to maximum and minimum periods of validity; o of the reduced-price business type, which may also be regarded as noble, since there are few restrictions attached to them and they may be cheaper than an economyclass full fare. Such tickets may have to be issued within certain time limits and they may be subject to alteration and/or cancellation charges. 21. The reservation classes of these various types of fare normally vary from one airline to another. There are also reduced fares corresponding to these various types which are valid on all airlines, in which case they are known as YY Pex, Apex, etc. These reduced YY fares are more expensive than those valid on a single airline. Promotional fares 22. A promotional fare is a public fare but one with a limited shelf-life : a fare which is available in connection with a special offer, which is restricted in terms of the number of seats available and the length of time during which it remains on offer, and which is specific to one or more different airlines. 23. Once the initial number of seats has been sold, promotional fares may once again be held out for sale without prior notice. This accounts for the fact that the second of three reservations made on different dates may be either more or less expensive than the third one! A promotional-fare ticket is bound by very strict terms and conditions governing reservation, issue, alteration and cancellation. It should be appreciated that not all those attending a meeting will be able to secure such fares, which apply to a limited number of seats. Negotiated fares 24. 'Negotiated' fares (which are not divulged to the public) are valid only on flights operated by a given airline (or possibly by an airline alliance). Negotiated fares comprise: NT\ doc 5/8 PE /Quaest.

6 (a) (b) individual ('corporate') fares, which are negotiated for a given period by a travel agency on behalf of a particular company or institution, depending on the restrictions or the degree of flexibility required by that company or institution. The fare (excluding the commission customarily paid by the airline to the travel agency) is charged either as a fixed price invoiced to the company or institution or in the form of a direct payment collected when the ticket is sold; group fares, which are ones specifically requested for a given group of travellers. A 'group' is normally a minimum of ten people travelling together on both the outward and the return flights. It should be noted that such fares may be higher than an individual fare, since group fares are considered on a case-by-case basis depending on the number of passengers, how full the flight is when the application is made, the final destination and the 'fare mix' for each flight. Fares charged by low-cost airlines 25. These airlines charge their own specific fares. As a general rule, reservations can be made only on the Internet and the airlines offer little if any assistance or compensation should a flight be cancelled, even if that flight constitutes a passenger's return flight. 26. Travel agencies and conventional airlines are unable to compete with low-cost airlines operating via the Internet if price is taken as the sole criterion. The final choice lies with the passenger. Parliament's reimbursement arrangements are based on the use of conventional airlines offering flexible alteration/cancellation terms and conditions. If you buy a cheap ticket yourself, you must take responsibility for whatever happens if either your mission or your flight is altered or cancelled. IV. INFORMATION CONCERNING HOTEL RESERVATIONS Individual reservations 27. In the case of individual travel the MTO can provide information about hotels but only CWT may on request reserve hotel rooms for meetings at or away from the usual places of work. 28. In Brussels, CWT has agreements with approximately 60 hotels which will offer reduced rates (including the cost of making a reservation through an agency). There are also agreements with a few hotels in Luxembourg. For Strasbourg part-sessions, CWT holds a quota of approximately 250 rooms but the hotels concerned do not offer either reduced rates or commission for the agency which makes the reservation. In the case of Strasbourg, therefore, reservation costs for rooms within the quota must be paid by Parliament and the number of such rooms is limited. Members are therefore advised to make their own reservations with the hotel itself. The tourist offices in the major European cities are also able to assist in the search for hotels and the Strasbourg tourist office has set up a room-finding service for the EU Institutions. For further information consult euraccueil@ot-strasbourg.fr PE /Quaest. 6/8 NT\ doc

7 29. Certain hotels or hotel chains offer the EU institutions special rates (described as 'government' or 'subsidised') but will not pay anything to an agency: individuals must make their own reservations with the hotel itself. Such rates are not always valid for the periods during which demand exceeds supply (during trade fairs, for example). This is the case in Strasbourg during Strasbourg part-session weeks. Reservations for meetings held away from the normal places of work 30. For meetings held away from the normal places of work the MTO and CWT are able to negotiate hotel rates in agreement with the meeting organiser (political group, interparliamentary delegation, etc.). Hotels normally set a date beyond which any cancellation will incur charges. For this reason, as soon as the meeting organiser has confirmed the choice of hotels, Members, officials and other staff must reserve in their name one of the rooms out of the set earmarked for the meeting. Such reservations may be confirmed by means of a credit card in the case of Members and political-group staff and, in the case of secretariat officials, by notifying CWT of the mission-order number. 31. By the date specified in the agreement with the hotel, CWT is required to release the rooms which were earmarked for the meeting but for which no named reservation has been made. This is to prevent the meeting organiser from having to pay any cancellation charges. 32. In certain cases the meeting organiser takes responsibility for hotel reservations without approaching either the MTO or CWT. He must then notify those attending the meeting, and also the MTO and CWT. On occasion it is the meeting host himself who reserves a set of rooms with the assistance of a local agency. In such cases the MTO and CWT are unable to act on Members behalf. Internet reservations 33. Certain hotels and certain specialist websites enable hotel rooms to be reserved on the Internet. The rates advertised can sometimes be highly competitive but it should be borne in mind that: (a) the lowest rates are often restricted to a small number of rooms, since many hotels also practise the principle of yield management, just as airlines do (see Chapter III). Such rates are usually available only for a limited number of rooms and cannot be used in the case of all those attending a meeting; (b) hotel-reservation websites sometimes add a service fee and/or taxes to the rate advertised for the room. A credit card number usually has to be provided via the Internet in order to validate a reservation. NT\ doc 7/8 PE /Quaest.

8 MTO Brussels Strasbourg ASP building Tel LOW building Tel Person in charge: Luc Van Damme 3 H T Flight reservations: Luc Geubbelmans 3 H T Gaby Michaely 3 H " Antonio Prieto 3 H " Venera Valenti 3 H " Stefano Vullo 3 H " Hotel information: Caroline Carpelan 3 H Nancy Van Hout 3 H DG8bureaudevoyages@europarl.eu.int CWT-Parliament (Brussels) Brussels Strasbourg ASP building Tel LOW building Tel Manager 3 H T Air and rail tickets - Members 3 H " " " " Air travel - other persons 3 H T " " " " " Charters - Strasbourg 3 H T Rail travel 3 H " Hotels - Brussels 3 H Hotels - Strasbourg T Hotels - other cities " " " " " Leisure travel 3 H " Accounts 3 H " CWT-Parliament (Luxembourg) KAD building Tel Transport 5 G Leisure travel " CWT-Manager : CWT-Manager@europarl.eu.int CWT-Members : CWT-MEP@europarl.eu.int CWT-Transport : CWT-Transport@europarl.eu.int CWT-Hotels :CWT-Hotels@europarl.eu.int CWT-Strasbourg : CWT-Strasbourg@europarl.eu.int CWT-Luxembourg : CWT-Voyages-PE-LUX@europarl.eu.int NT\ doc PE /Quaest.