Civil and legal regulation under a contract for the provision of tourism services

The article concentrates on the study of civil law regulation of the relations under a contract for the provision of tourism services. The theoretical structure of the contract for the provision of tourism services has been analyzed. It has been substantiated that the specified contract is consensual, bilateral, pecuniary, and public. Under a contract for the provision of tourist services, one party (the tour operator, who concludes the contract directly or through a travel agent) undertakes to provide, at the request of the other party (the tourist), a set of tourism services (tourism product), and the tourist undertakes to pay for it. The subject of a contract is an agreement between two or more parties aimed at establishing, changing or terminating civil rights and obligations. Therefore, the subject of the contract for the provision of tourism services is the intangible service itself, that is, the intangible benefit that the customer receives in the process of the performer performing certain actions or carrying out a certain activity. Therefore, the subject of a contract for the provision of tourism services is a tourism service - a certain intangible benefit that a tourist receives from a tour operator or travel agent to satisfy the relevant needs. The contract comes into effect from the moment of its conclusion. The term of a contract is the time during which the parties can exercise their rights and fulfill their obligations under the contract. The contract specifies the essential terms, that is, the conditions for reaching agreement that are necessary for the contract to be considered concluded (Article 20 of the Law of Ukraine «On Tourism»). The price in the contract is set by agreement between the parties. Changing the price of a tourist product after concluding a contract is allowed only if it is necessary to take into account changes in tariffs and transport services, the introduction of new or increasing existing rates of taxes and fees and other mandatory payments, changes in the exchange rate of the hryvnia to the foreign currency in which the value of the tourism product is expressed. Changing the price of a tourist product is possible no later than 20 days before the start of the tourist trip. A tour operator or travel agent has the right to refuse to perform the contract only under condition of full compensation to the customer for losses confirmed in accordance with the procedure established by law (or contract), except if this occurred due to the fault of the tourist. The tourist has the right to refuse to perform the contract for the provision of tourist services before the start of the tourist trip, provided that the tour operator (travel agent) is reimbursed for the actually incurred and documented expenses associated with the refusal. The tour operator is liable to the tourist for failure to fulfill or improper fulfillment of the terms of the contract for the provision of tourism services. It has been emphasized that to achieve the competitiveness of the national tourism product in global market, the country should implement efficient state policy as to support and development of the tourism sector, development of tourism infrastructure, creating conditions to increase attractiveness of the regions for both foreign and domestic tourists, as well as to increase quality of tourism services. Considering this, the institution of tourism in Ukraine requires not only proper legal regulation but also attracting investment in this industry.