These Booking Terms and Conditions contain important information. It is necessary that you read and understand them carefully. The Booking Terms and Conditions constitute a legally binding contract between You (participant) and Dev Bhoomi Trails registered under the Dept of Tourism & Civil Aviation, Himachal Pradesh (hereinafter called 'the Company', ’we’, ‘us’ or 'our').
Please note that while booking a trip, you are agreeing to be bound by the Terms and Conditions as well as the cancellation policy and certain limitations of liability. Both parties agree to these Terms and Conditions to resolve any legal or other disputes that may arise during the trip.
1. Booking Procedure
An 'event' refers to any product itinerary or activities that you buy with us including Trekking, Tours, Expeditions, and/or other adventure and tour programs.
Bookings can be made through our website, call, email or through authorized travel agents. The person making the booking must be 18 years old or over and must possess the legal capacity and authority to make the booking. The person should furnish all the necessary personal information required in the booking page. If one person is making the booking on behalf of other people then after the booking of the event, other people will also be required to take the undertaking of accepting the terms and conditions mentioned in this agreement along with the necessary personal information. All international (Non-Indian) participants may also be required to pay for any non- transferable and non-refundable items such as National Park entrance fees and Permits as per the requirements of the particular Park/permits applicable for all international (Non-Indian) participants. When any event is booked through an approved travel agent, all communication/changes/enquiry in relation to the event will only be accepted through the travel agent only. Booking of the event will be on the basis of 100% advance payment. After the acceptance of the booking, the company will issue a confirmation invoice to the participant. The participants are advised to please go through the confirmation invoice carefully and inform the company in case of any discrepancies related to the name or the event. Travel documents/itinerary will be sent or emailed to you well in time before the departure of your tour provided the full payment has been received by the company. Your personal safety is of paramount importance to us and therefore it is imperative that you inform us in writing, at the time of booking, of any condition (medical or otherwise) that needs any special care/attention and that might affect your or other people’s experience during the event. You agree to provide any/all information that may be asked by government authorities / border control / security agencies for the purpose of security and counter terrorism. The information you must provide will include, but not be limited to, full name – as shown in your passport or travel document, gender, age, nationality, travel document type, and number. For Indian nationals, this information may be provided only for the person making the booking (lead booking participant) but for Non Indian nationals, the same might be asked from all participants.
2. Prices, Surcharging and Refund Situations
Prices (for all events) are updated regularly on our website but the company reserves the right to change the prices from time to time. There might be temporary offers & promotions running from time to time and the company reserves all rights to introduce or withdraw any offer or promotion at any time without any prior intimation. However, those who have already booked using any promotion or offer would not be affected.
2.1 Change/Cancellation of Booking by participant In case of cancellation please write to us at devbhoomitrails@gmail.com. We will process the refund manually to your bank account considering the refund policy below. Please note that the replacement would not be applicable on any Volvo/Train transport booked for the original participant. The same would be automatically cancelled. This is simply because the seats booked in such transport mediums are not transferrable.
2.2 Refund Policy: Cash refund is applicable only in case of bookings made without using any promotional offer code or vouchers. Also, the cash refunds would not be applicable in case of shifted batch bookings. The Refund of the amount would be processed as per deduction guidelines outlined below:
- Cancellations up to 45 days prior to departure date - 10% deduction
- Between 45 days to 15 days prior to departure - 50% deduction
- Less than 15 days of departure - No Refund
All cancellation refunds will be processed back to the bank account or the credit card account from which the event fee has been paid. The amount for refund processing would always be calculated basis the net amount paid* for booking the event w.r.t the Base Price of the event (excluding additional components like transport, rent, portage, etc.). Please note that any additional transport bookings are completely non-refundable, be it cash or voucher refund.
2.3 In case of Cancellation or change initiated by Dev Bhoomi Trails Dev Bhoomi Trails reserves the right to cancel your booking or change any of the facilities, services or prices described in our brochures or website. Any changes will be duly intimated to the participant as soon as the changes come in force. However in the field of adventure activities, there are many variables beyond our control like weather conditions, landslides, road situations and any other force majeure conditions. Circumstances amounting to "force majeure" include any event which we or the supplier of the service(s) in question could not even with all due care, foresee or forestall such as (by way of example and not by way of limitation) war, threat of war, riots, civil disturbances, industrial disputes, actual or threatened terrorist activity and its consequences, natural or nuclear disasters, fire, epidemics, health risks and pandemics, acts of God, unavoidable and unforeseeable technical problems with transport for reasons beyond our control or that of our suppliers, closed or congested airports or ports, hurricanes and other actual or potential adverse weather conditions, and any other similar events. In such situations we might be forced to change the itinerary or even cancel an event. In case of a change /cancellation, you will have the choice of either:
- accepting a replacement event from us of equivalent or similar standard and price (at the date of the change), if we are able to offer you one; or
- Cancelling your event, in which case you shall receive a full refund*, including all the components paid by you (transport, base fee, taxes).
2.4 Cancellation due to insufficient number of participants Some of our trips require a minimum number of Clients in order for it to run. If this number is not reached, we reserve the right to cancel the trip. The Company will endeavour to cancel this trip more than 45 days prior to the departure date unless it is necessitated by the late cancellation of other passengers on the trip, in which case it will be cancelled less than 45 (forty five) days prior to the departure date. In each case, the Client will be refunded any money they have paid to the Company and that will be the extent of the Company’s liability.
2.5 In case of changes/cancellation of the event after departure,
- The Company reserves the right to make changes to the trip any time prior to entering the contract. In the event of any aspect of the trip being altered, the Client will be advised at the time of booking.
- The Company endeavours not to make changes to the trip once the contract has been entered into. However, because of the unpredictability of travel in many of the areas visited, changes prior to a trip’s departure may be unavoidable. Where this alteration is significant (i.e. where a major deviation to the itinerary is made) the Company undertakes to inform the Client as soon as possible.
- Due to the nature of the areas that we travel through changes can occur after a trip’s departure, over which the Company has no control. The Company will make alternative arrangements such as, but not limited to, changing the mode of transport and/or the itinerary in the case of Force Majeure, acts of nature, natural calamity, breakdowns, accidents, sickness, etc. The Company cannot be held responsible for compensation or additional expenses incurred due to any such change and they will have to be borne by the Client.
2.6 In case of drop out by the participant in between the event We shall not be liable to make any refund in such situation. The participant would also have to pay additionally for unplanned expenses on planning and executing the retreat of the participant on actual basis. In case suitable arrangements for retreat are not possible, Dev Bhoomi Trails reserves the right to deny such drop out in between the event.
2.7 In case of Emergency Evacuation In the scenario of emergency evacuation we would make necessary and adequate arrangements for your evacuation till the nearest road head that is well connected by road, and would also help you in boarding a vehicle to the nearest Hospital or any other facility so required. Any additional expenses incurred, that of porters, vehicle, ambulance, hospitalization, or any other expense incurred for evacuation, would be covered by the participant.
3. Visa, Health, Passport, Travel Documentation
Where the Company has provided advice and information on travel documents, visas, climate, spending money, clothing, equipment, etc. This advice and information has been set out with reasonable care and is published in good faith, but without responsibility on the part of the Company.
4. Local Laws & Customs
Laws and customs of the areas we visit can be very different to those we are used to. Be aware of your actions to ensure that they do not offend, especially if you are visiting religious areas. It is the responsibility of participant to familiarize and respect local laws and customs. If the participant fails to do so, the company will have no liability to him/her for any cost, loss or damage suffered nor will the company refund the cost of any unused portion of travel arrangements to the participant.
5. Privacy Policy
In order to collect information from you to making a booking through Dev Bhoomi Trails, we ask many questions to obtain the necessary permits etc. No private or personal information that you supply to us when making a booking will be disclosed for any other purposes. The Client must be aware that the Company’s crew, agents and representatives may take photographs and film footage throughout the trip. The Company reserves the right to use such media for marketing purposes without obtaining consent from the Client. The Company also reserves the right to use any Client comments, either verbal or written, for marketing purposes without obtaining consent from the Client.
6. Leader Authority & Behaviour
On any event, it is necessary that you abide by the authority of the leader / guide, who represents the Company. If you commit any illegal act when on the event or if in reasonable opinion of the leader or another person in authority your behaviour is disruptive, threatening or abusive, causes unnecessary inconvenience or is causing or likely to cause damage to property, danger, distress or upset, disturbance or annoyance to others or puts any other traveller or our staff in any risk or danger, on the telephone, in writing or in person, we may terminate your travel arrangements without any liability on our part. Any form of intoxication, by means of alcohol, illicit drugs, weed, or hash, is completely banned on all treks/expeditions. The observation & assessment of the Leader would be final in this regard and any traces/indication found would deem the participant unfit to continue further. The leader has complete authority to terminate your expedition in such a case. In any of these circumstances no refunds or compensation will be paid to you and we will not be liable for any costs or expenses you incur.
7. Accommodation before and after the event
Any accommodation booked should be used by the specific participant only, no transfer of accommodation facility is permitted. All expenses related to the accommodation below the start of the event and after the end of event shall be borne by the participant and paid directly to the property owner.
8. Special Requests
Special dietary requirements are considered based on its feasibility during the event. These requests have to be communicated by the participant well in advance (at least 2 weeks)
9. Participation Requirements
The nature of the Company’s trips may involve an element of personal risk and potential hazard not normally associated with holiday tours. The participant must accept these risks and hazards. The participant must accept that safety standards of suppliers of accommodation, local transport and other operators in most of the countries visited will not be of the same standard as in their home country. The participant must make themselves aware through the various government agency warnings and advisories (e.g. British Foreign & Commonwealth Office, US Department of State) with regard to the safety of countries and areas through which they’ll be travelling and to make their own decisions accordingly. The participant must arrange suitable adventure travel insurance with benefits that cover personal accident, medical expenses including repatriation and loss and damage to personal effects. It is suggested insurance is also taken out to cover any expenses related to the cancellation or curtailment of any trip. Should the Client not have adequate travel insurance, they may not be allowed to join the trip. The participant is to get professional medical advice before travelling and to take all necessary health precautions and preventative measures. The participant is responsible for informing the Company, at the time of booking, of any known disabilities or medical conditions, or, if not known at the time of booking, as soon they become known. Any Client found to have failed to disclose this information, may be directed to leave the trip. No refund whatsoever will be forthcoming and the Client will be responsible for all expenses incurred as a result of having to leave the trip. The Company’s crew have authority to make difficult decisions. Should the participant present a medical condition, the crew may insist they seek medical advice. If the participant refuses to act upon this advice, thereby putting the other members of the trip in danger or at risk, the Client may be asked to leave the trip. This includes physical, mental and behavioural conditions. No refund whatsoever will be forthcoming and the Client will be responsible for all expenses incurred as a result of having to leave the trip. The participant must check the documents issued for trips and services booked through the Company and should there be any mistakes, immediately notify the Company of such. The participant must adhere to the trip joining instructions given to them. For expeditions that involve road journey or travel, participants are advised to take utmost care of the road safety norms. Any indiscipline regarding road safety or risky riding/driving by the participant may force our team to restrict/suspend/terminate the participant’s ride/drive. All equipment issued to the participants at the start of any expedition should be maintained and responsibly used by them at all times during the expedition. Any damage or loss of equipment issued by Dev Bhoomi Trails to the participant shall make the participant liable to compensate for the loss/damage. As lawful consideration of, and as part of the payment for, the right to participate in the trek, and as part of the payment for the services arranged for me by Dev Bhoomi Trails, I HEREBY EXPRESSLY AGREE TO RELEASE, DISCHARGE AND HOLD HARMLESS FOREVER Dev Bhoomi Trails, their owners, employees, affiliated entities, employees, agents, representatives, officers, directors, associates, volunteers, successors and assigns from and against any liability, actions, causes of actions, debts, suits, claims and demands of any and every kind and nature whatsoever which I now have or which may hereafter arise out of or in connection with my trek with Dev Bhoomi Trails. I AGREE THAT THE TERMS OF THIS AGREEMENT SHALL SERVE AS A COMPLETE RELEASE AND EXPRESS ASSUMPTION OF RISK for myself, all members of my family and all minors travelling with me, my and their heirs, successors, assigns, and legal representatives. It is my intention to fully assume all risks associated with this trek and to release Dev Bhoomi Trails from any and all liability to the maximum extent permitted by law.
10. Law & Jurisdiction
If any dispute or difference(s) of any kind whatsoever shall arise between the parties hereto in connection with or arising out of this agreement the parties hereto shall in good faith negotiate with a view to arriving at an amicable resolution and settlement Any/all legal proceedings with regard to any matter, claim, differences and disputes arising out of this agreement, will be governed by the Indian laws and the courts of Kullu, Himachal Pradesh shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any claim arising out of it.