Считается ли ваш ретрит пакетным туром?
Этот документ опубликован на английском языке.
A plain-English guide for FYDS organisers
This guide is general information to help you ask the right questions. It is not legal advice, and FYDS cannot assess your individual situation. If you are unsure, speak to a qualified adviser — it is usually a short, inexpensive conversation.
The one question that matters
When someone books with you, are they paying you for overnight accommodation plus something else — a workshop, classes, transport, excursions?
If yes, your experience is probably a "package" under UK travel law (and similar laws across Europe). That word carries real legal duties — they exist to protect your guests' money, and they apply to everyone who sells packages, from large tour operators to an artist running one retreat a year.
If no — for example, you run day workshops, or your guests book their rooms directly with the venue — these rules probably don't apply to you. You can stop reading here.
What being a "package organiser" means
Three main things:
- Protect your guests' money. If your business failed before the retreat, guests must get their money back. The law requires you to arrange this in advance — commonly through insolvency protection insurance, a bond scheme, or holding payments in a trust account until after the retreat.
- Give clear information before booking — what's included, the total price, and guests' rights.
- Be responsible for the whole experience — including the parts you buy in, like the venue or a chef.
Most small organisers already do 2 and 3 naturally. Point 1 is the one that surprises people — and it's the one that matters most.
Your two honest routes
Route 1 — comply as a package organiser. Arrange payment protection. For small organisers, the common options are insolvency protection insurance or a bond through a scheme (in the UK, providers such as ABTOT or similar offer small-business schemes), or a trust account arrangement. Costs are usually modest at small scale. Then you can sell the full retreat — accommodation included — with confidence, and say so in your listing. Guests increasingly know to look for this.
Route 2 — restructure so there is no package. Sell only what you deliver yourself — the tuition, the workshop, the guided experience — and let guests book their accommodation directly with the venue, paying the venue themselves. You can still recommend the venue and coordinate dates. If you never take the accommodation money, there is usually no package, and the duties above don't apply. Many small organisers run this way. The trade-off: less control over the guest's booking, and your listing must be clear about what is and isn't included.
What you cannot do is sell accommodation-inclusive retreats and simply hope. If your business hit trouble with guests' deposits unprotected, the personal and legal consequences fall on you — and it is exactly the situation that destroys small creative businesses.
What FYDS asks of you
At onboarding we ask which route describes your experiences, and you confirm that you meet the duties that apply to you. We don't audit you — we trust you, and we build the marketplace on that trust. Your listing must accurately show what's included, so guests always know who they're paying and for what.
Where to get real advice
- A local solicitor or your accountant (one short consultation is usually enough to settle your status)
- UK organisers: guidance on package travel rules at gov.uk (search "package travel regulations guidance")
- Small-operator protection schemes: search "package travel insolvency protection small business"
You created something worth travelling for. This is just the paperwork that lets you sell it safely — and once it's set up, it's set up.