Itinerary Section

Day: 01
Your enchanting voyage gets initiated at the state capital of Uttarakhand- Dehradun. Dehradun holds natural beauty, vibrant youth, educational Hub, country’s best defense academy- NDA and a distinguished history. Dehradun, situated on the foothills of the great Himalayas in the Doon Valley, is hugged by the river Ganges from the east and by river Yamuna from East. The city is known for its picturesque landscape and many Heliist points like- “Robbers Cave” and “Sahastradhara”. The literary meaning of the place is – thousand fold spring.

We greet you at this famous and memorable Heliist destination and begin our fantastic journey of Chardham Yatra by Air. The helipad at Sahastradhara is the originating point of the glide.

After you finish your delicious locale breakfast at hotel, you board the helicopter at Sahastradhara at around 07:00hrs. The first of the four (Char) pilgrimage (Dham) - Gangotri, is the genesis of the mighty- River Ganges. To reach Gangotri you first arrive at “Harsil”, the Base pad for Gangotri. It takes just 35-40mins to reach this destination.  
Once you reach Gangotri you are at your leisure and, you may opt to visit:

• Bhagirath Shila: This literary means – The rock of Bhagirath! It is believed that King Bhagirath sat and prayed to Lord Shiva.
• Pandava Gufa: This is the cave which is supposed to be the place where the “Pandavas” rested on their way to Mount Kailash.
• Gangotri Temple: The temple was built by the Nepalese general –Amar Singh Thapa. The origin of the holy river is termed as- Gaumukh. The river here is known as- Bhagirathi, which when meets the river “Alaknanda” at Devprayag is known as- The Ganges!

We return to the Helipad at Harsil by 11am, and then start our journey to – Kharsali. Kharsali is the base for visit to “Yamunotri”, the second of the four pilgrimages to be visited in Char Dham Yatra by Air 2024.

On arrival at Kharsali, which is also known as the home of Goddess Yamuna in winters, you are welcomed at the luxury stay Resort- Yamunotri Cottages. The premium property offers you a luxurious and opulent stay in their wide range of cottages. You may select from a range of – Premium Cottage, Deluxe Cottage to Deluxe Tents. The cuisine is mouth watering and the cottage is located next to the helipad.

You will be served with a flavourful lunch at the cottage, after which you’ll pursue the route to the sacred shrine of Yamunotri. The 6km trek will take around an hour or so, and to make it comfortable and effortless you’ll be riding the “Palki” or “Palanquins”. Apart from the holy temple devoted to Goddess Yamuna, one of the other major attractions is the “Janki Chatti”- the Holy Thermal Springs.

Enjoy the magnificent mountains, the lush greenery and the scenic beauty of the place over the cup of tea and refreshment once you come back from the shrine. This is followed by a lavish dinner and overnight stay at the Cottage. With this you finish day 1 of the Char Dham Yatra Air Package.

Day: 02
The next morning, after a wholesome breakfast at the cottage, you’ll fly to Guptkashi Helipad. Subsequently, you’ll fly to the third Pilgrimage, of the Char Dham Yatra by Air, the Kedarnath Dham. The ancient pilgrimage, which has a mention in the “Skanda Purana”, is believed to the place where Lord Shiva released the holy water from his hairs, and forming the river Ganga.

You’ll walk a distance of 200 meters from the helipad to reach the Kedarnath Temple. Upon reaching the temple, you’ll be provided with VIP Darshan Slips. This will allow you to pay your homage through Special Puja.

Post Darshan and Puja, you fly to Phata helipad and then to the last destination- Badrinath. On arriving at Badrinath Helipad, you’ll be taken to the Badrinath temple for VIP Darshan and Puja. The distance will be covered by either a Car or a Jeep.
Post the darshan, you’ll check-in at Sarovar Portico for lunch. It’s time for us to say you “Adieu” and complete your divine journey. The Helicopter drops you at Dehradun Heliport.

Inclusions

• • Cost of helicopter for chardham sector from Dehradun.
• • Trek by Palki at Yamunotri.
• • VIP Darshans at both temples.
• • Land vehicle at Harsil and Badrinath.
• • One night stay at Kharsali on twin sharing basis at Yamunotri Cottages.
• • All applicable meals.
• • Assistance in Darshan at all temples.

• • Any special puja charges, tips, porter charges & any services of personal nature.

GUIDELINES / TERMS & CONDITIONS -

Chardham / Do Dham / Ek Dham Heli-tours are booked as per desired departure date ex-Dehradun / Haridwar, however, passengers are advised to arrive one day prior to the yatra date in order to be on time and get all briefing done the prior journey. A complimentary one-night stay with/without meals at Dehradun/ Rishikesh (Wherever applicable)is provided on the arrival date and The helicopter tour commences on day 02 from Dehradun. We even strongly advise pilgrims to keep one reserve day after the completion of the yatra in order to cater for any lost day during the yatra owing to bad weather etc.

Flight Timings
This is adaily fixed departure helicopter tour and all departure timings for each destination are pre-planned. Therefore, passengers must ensure to leave the hotel as per the scheduled estimated time of departure each day of the tour, or else the delayed or No show shall be treated as cancelled without any refund.

Helicopter & VIP Restrictions
Helicopters flying pilgrims inthe Chardham sector are mainly single-enginemachines and the maximum seating capacity is 06 passengers + 01 pilot. Single-engine helicopters are debarred from flying the following VIP as per DGCA SOP (Standard Operating Procedures).
• Speaker Lok Sabha
• Dy. Chairperson Rajya Sabha
• Central Ministers of Cabinet Rank
• C J I Supreme Court
• Governors of State
• Chief Ministers of State
• State Ministers of Cabinet Rank
• SPG Protected – Z category only.

Helicopter Weight Limitation
The maximum weight capacity of the helicopter is 450 kgs (excluding baggage weight). Passengers are taken on board depending upon the load and temperature conditions. Pilots’ calls shall be final. The total weight of all passengers on board must be within this limit. Hence, passengers are required to provide us with their exact weights with heavy clothes onat the time of booking in order to shuffle passengers between helicopters to maintain the right weight of the helicopter for safe flying.

Baggage Allowances
Only one baggage weighing a maximum of 5 kg is allowed per passenger. Guests are not permitted to carry suitcases or any other bags in the helicopter due to size constraints of boot space in a helicopter. Therefore, only duffle/handbags are to be carried on the tour. In view of helicopters’ limited weight-carrying capacity, operators reserve the right to shuffle passengers between helicopters to manage the right weight for safe flying in the hills. Therefore, passengers traveling together may not be accommodated in the same helicopter flight at times on way to the same destination

Flight Safety & Discipline
The operator reserves the legal right to deboard passengers, who are unruly, abusive, intoxicated, sick, mentally unfit, or whose boarding is deemed unsafe for the flight. No refund shall be applicable to such passenger(s).

Extra Weight
• Perfect load factor is always maintained by helicopters while flying over mountains for safety reasons and is more adhered to commercial flying. 75 kgs /- per passenger is the prescribed average weight of a passenger along with their handbags while flying within a group of 06 or fewer.Although any passenger beyond 75 kg can be flown by paying extra weight charges and taking up the tour.
• We confirm the full helicopter booking only after receiving weights from passengers and by maintaining the weight below 450 kgs per helicopter. Rs. 3000/- per kg shall be charged for any extra weight beyond 450 kg including handbags before boarding.
• We shall enforce deboarding of passenger/s without any refund if actual weight exceeds much beyond the weights conveyed during booking or shall be allowed after paying applicable extra weight charges. In such excess weight scenarios, the final call shall be of the helicopter pilotand to be accepted.

Note
Guests are strongly advised to disclose the accurate body weight with clothes/shoes/ handbags on at the time of booking and any major variation might lead to the unfortunate deboarding of such passenger without any refund. The Pilot & the operation crew of the aviation crewshall have the final call on the same.

Single Person Supplement
The pilgrims are charged per seat basis on a double/twin accommodation sharing basis at all destinations and the separate single occupancy room if any, shall be chargeable @ INR 35,000/- per person for Chardham 4Nights / 5Days & @INR 15000 per Person for Do Dham 3Nights / 4Days (tax inclusive) over & above the package cost.

Infant / Senior Citizen Policy
Children below 02 years are treated as infants and are accommodated free of charge along with guardians. For verification of the age of the child, ID proof/birth certificate shall be checked before boarding. Children above 02 years flying by helicopters are considered an adultas per DGCA SOP and are thus charged at par with an adult. Moreover, there are no provisions for any discount for senior citizens.

Hotels / Charges
Hotels at all destinations except Dehradun are non-star category but are the best available as of date with all amenities including Western Commode, cozy mattresses& hot running water. The package includesthe accommodation in twin/double sharing &meals (Non-Onion Non-Garlic) only for the nightsmentioned in the final itinerary and any extension beyond the same due to any reason whatsoever, shall be chargeable to the guests on an actual/ direct basis by the hotel.

Land Transfers
Land transfers at Dehradun & Gangotri are by Innova, whereas suitable local cabs are used in Sersi/Phata/Guptkashi (Helicopter bases of Kedarnath) & Badrinath.
Identity Card
Carrying of Aadhar card is a must for an Indian, whereas a passport shall be necessary in the case of foreign nationals &NRI.
Mobile Network
Network connectivity at Harshil & Badrinath is poor and BSNL & Jio are the main telecom services active in the region.

Medication
All temples in the Chardham sector are located at a high altitude of about 10,000 feet and thus the passengers are advised to consult their doctor before commencing the journey and not to forget to carry their personal medication as prescribed. However,the Government of Uttarakhand shall be operating local medical centers’ at Chardham Circuit to attend to any medical emergencies.

Clothing
Guests are advised to carry heavy woolen because the temperature drops drastically during the night. There are no set guidelines for clothing to be worn within temple premises but the formal clothing should be comfortable & trekking-friendly.

COVID Travel Guidelines
COVID-19 protocols shall be followed by the passengers and the operator as well as per prevailing government guidelines. Boarding can be denied to the passengers without refund if found not adhering to the same.

Payment Terms
30 % of the tour package shall be paid in advance to get confirmation of the booking by official mail and Appx 70% is to be paid 30 days prior to the yatra date. The full paymentis to be made 15 days prior to the date of yatra ex-Dehradun (or any other helicopter base). Any delay in payment on the due date shall invite the cancellation of the booking without any refund. Passengers shall not be permitted to board or commence the tour unless full & final payment of the tour is made on the due dates.

Cancellation and Refund Policy
• Any moment after booking with an advance 30 % cancellation and 70% refund of total tour cost. • 30 days or fewer prior to travel date 70% Cancellation and 30% refund of total tour cost. • 15days or fewer prior to the travel date 100% cancellation and No refund of total tour cost. • No show or after commencement of the tour 100% cancellation and No refund of total tour cost.

Note
The cancellation and refund policies are drafted after having carefully catered to the different policies of all aviation companies operating Chardham helicopter tours within Uttarakhand.The cancellation fee is charged to compensate for the loss of seats and revenue due to sudden cancellations resulting in empty orthrow-away cost-priced seats on the entire tour.A full refund minus 15% of the tour cost (Services and flight management charges) shall only be applicable if the entire tour gets cancelled due to bad weather/International/ National / State emergencies or force majeure reasons.

Rescheduling
Request for replacingpassengers or rescheduling the bookingshall be entertained subject to suitability of body weight andthe availabilityof seats but only after payment of 20% extra of the tour cost.No refund shall be applicable if the request for rescheduling / replacing is not processed owing to different reasons within 24 Hrs from its first official notification and the pilgrims don’t wish to fly on previously reserved dates with original passengers.

Cancellation - COVID-19 / National - State Emergency
In case passenger(s) test COVID positive or the yatra gets terminated by the government or any National or State emergency is imposed, there shall be no refunds applicable beyond the refund policies mentioned above. However, passengers shall be provided with a credit voucher against the amount(Applicable refund minus service and flight management charges @ 20% of total cost), which shall remain valid for one year from its issuance, and can be utilized against any other helicopter tours or charter services by the passengers or any of their friends/relatives.

Bad Weather & Force Majeure Disclaimer
• Safe flying in hills is subject to many Force Majeure factors like bad weather, delayed Air TrafficClearances / Permissions, VVIP movements, valley flying by Indian Air Force (NOTAM), a sudden occurrence of technical snag in aircraft, illness to flying crew or even delayed reporting by the passengers at the helipads. Therefore, passengers must be prepared to face any eventuality in such scenarios and cooperate with the crew & operator.
• In case of postponement or cancellation of flight owing to factors mentioned above, the operator & crew shall reserve the sole right to plan a new itinerary keeping in the mind the safety of the machine & passengers. The guests shall be applicable for a due refund for the unutilized services as per the refund/cancellation policy in such circumstances.
• The new arrivals at Dehradun shall have priority over the layover passengers and they shall fly as scheduled, however, the layover passengers shall have options either to continue with the original tour on the next available date, shift to any other tour being operated or cancel the tour completely adhering cancellation/ refund policy.
• In case guests cannot visit any Dham due to bad weather, the company shall refund proportionate money considering the missed services and helicopter journey. The applicable amount would be refunded through the banking network and that would take some time.

Disputes- Disputes as to legality, interpretation, application, or performance of service or any of its terms and conditions shall be governed by the laws of Delhi NCR Jurisdiction.