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General Travel Information

Flying Longhorns Group Travel Program   

Exotic Places, Familiar Faces

If you love UT and you love to travel, the Flying Longhorns program is a great way to get out and see the world. As the official travel program of the Texas Exes, the Flying Longhorns take action-packed tours both domestically and abroad.

Education indeed continues long after you have received your diploma, and one of the ways you can continue that progression is by participating in a Flying Longhorns trip, as more than 23,000 alumni and friends have done since 1960.

Take a look at the tours we have planned for you for the rest of 2008 and in 2009. Select from a variety of destinations, trip lengths, prices, and modes of travel. The schedule features many tried-and-true favorites and a few exotic thrills. Keep in mind that some tours have more space than others, and reservations are made with a paid deposit on a first-come, first-served basis. The list is ordered chronologically under the "Travel" menu item to your left - just click on "Find a Trip".

All Flying Longhorns trips include tour guides, historians, and/or naturalists to help you interpret what you experience - and sometimes a UT professor, as well.

When you travel with the Flying Longhorns, it’s nice to know that our trips are arranged by reputable international tour companies. A tour director from the tour provider - as well as a representative from the Texas Exes when possible - accompanies the group throughout the tour.

Contact Jere Davis at (800) 594-3938 or (512) 471-3822 for more Flying Longhorns travel information.

General Travel Info

Things to Know Before You Go

Eligibility  
Flying Longhorns trips are open to all Texas Exes members. Our travel program is a benefit of membership, and we do ask for current membership from at least one member of each family traveling with us. We encourage all alumni to join, and we also are happy to make Association membership available to non-graduate friends of UT. So bring your friends and neighbors on Flying Longhorns trips with you - but warn them that they'll have to join The Texas Exes, even if they're Aggies!

Tour Schedule

Our tours are compiled from proposals presented by the finest specialized tour operators. If we select a tour, it means that the trip has met our stringent criteria for financial responsibility, established reputation, professional staff, quality operations, and all-around dependability. If an operator fails to live up to our travel standards on their first attempt, we won’t work with them again. We want you to relax and feel fully cared-for on our trips.

Expectations

Group travel includes many advantages, but may also be subject to minor changes, delays or mishaps that can occur in any kind of travel, whether it be group or individual. While program and tour operator management strive to fulfill the individual needs of travelers, the primary concern must be the welfare of the group as a whole.

Travel Arrangements

Dates, itineraries, program details, and costs are given in good faith, based on current information provided to the Texas Exes, and are subject to change and revision. All trip prices are per person, based on double occupancy. Airport taxes/VAT/fuel surcharges/airport departure or port taxes, etc. may or may not be included in the price -- please check each trip brochure for details. Every effort will be made to carry out the program as planned.

Single Travelers

All programs offer a limited number of single-occupancy slots. Travelers who request a single room are charged a "single supplement". Once confirmed as a single, you must remain a single, unless double rooms remain available and you find a roommate. Likewise, if you join the trip with a friend who consequently must cancel, you'll become a single occupant and likely will be required to pay the "single supplement".

Physically-Challenged Travelers

To enjoy the Flying Longhorns experience, participants need to be in good physical and mental health. In fact, we ask that participants be able to walk a mile in 30 minutes because most trips require considerable walking, and often on uneven surfaces. Any physical constraints must be reported at the time of registration. Participants who require extraordinary assistance must be accompanied by a helper who is capable of and totally responsible for providing the required assistance. Helpers cannot and will not be provided by the tour operator or The Texas Exes. We do encourage people with a disability to participate in our travel program, but we recommend that you call to discuss any special needs so that we can advise you of the physical requirements of the trip and tell you about the accessibility in the area that you plan to visit. Many countries do not offer the same level of access as the USA.

Refund Policy

Refund policies vary by program and tour operator, but generally are as follows: Written cancellations up to 90 days prior to departure receive a deposit refund (minus an administrative tour operator fee); within 90 days of departure, refunds vary according to the policies of the relevant tour operator -- and can be up to 100% of trip cost penalty. Please read the cancellation clauses on each brochure very carefully for your specific trip. We urge trip participants to purchase trip insurance that includes not only cancellation but also other coverage.

Travel/Cancellation Insurance

We strongly recommend that you purchase travel insurance that covers trip cancellation and/or interruption, baggage loss or damage, emergency medical coverage and evacuation, and all accidents that might take place while traveling. We will send insurance information with each of our confirmation letters. Please pay close attention to stipulations about insuring a pre-existing condition within 15 days of initial trip deposit payment. Click here to buy insurance online.

Reservations Process

We accept reservations in three forms:

1. By mail or fax, using the specific trip brochure reservation form
2. By mail or fax, using the Alcalde travel catalog generic reservation form
3. Calling in a reservation by talking to a member of our office staff.

It is perfectly acceptable to send in a deposit for a trip for which the brochure has not yet been printed. Be advised that this is a common practice, and the reason why many trips are sold out rapidly.

2008-09 Flying Longhorns Photography Contest

Participants in Flying Longhorns trips scheduled during all of 2008 and until September, 2009 can enter this contest. There are four categories and great prizes! Details can be found here. You can download the entry form here.

2009 Trip Schedule
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