Terms and Conditions

NOTE: Terms & Conditions are subject to change without notice. Use of West Bench or WBA refers to West Bench Adventures.

 

Payment Schedule, Change & Cancellation Fees & Refund Policy

25-50%* of total trip costs shall be collected at the time of the reservation agreement. This amount is outlined on your custom trip agreement. The balance shall be collected 90 days prior to departure.

Payment schedules for certain trips may vary, these exceptions are outlined on your custom trip agreement.

 

Total trip pricing is in US Dollars. All deposits and payments shall be made in US Dollars by Visa, Mastercard, Zelle, check or wire payment.  We will provide you with rendezvous instructions and final trip details approximately 3-4 weeks prior to trip departure.

 

Cancellations and Refunds

90 days or more prior to trip departure: 25% of Trip Cost

89 days or less prior to departure: 100% of Trip Cost

No refunds will be given for unused hotel rooms, meals, or activities while traveling. Cancellation and refund policy applies to the entire Trip Cost, including internal airfare, park fees, permits, and taxes.

Itinerary Modifications

Changes to your itinerary, including trip postponement, can be made up until 90 days prior to departure with no change fees. You may be subject to hotel rate changes. Should you opt to postpone your trip all together, your funds can be held as a future travel credit and can be used toward the same trip for new dates. Your funds may also be used toward a different trip; however, you may be subject to some non-recoverable fees when changing itineraries. We do our best to go to work on your behalf to protect your travel investment and recoup any deposits paid to hotels, but in some cases your funds cannot be applied to a different itinerary. We strongly recommend optional travel protection. Changes made within 90 days of travel are subject to a minimum change fee of $250.

 

Delays

The cost of delays is not included if any trip is delayed due to bad weather, trail conditions, river levels, road conditions, transportation delays, government intervention, quarantine, sickness, border closures or other contingency for which West Bench Adventures or its third party operators cannot make provisions.

 

Travel Protection

We highly recommend optional short-term travel insurance that offers you options to cover baggage, accident / life and/or trip cancellation and interruption. Trip cancellation reimburses you for non-refundable air and lost costs if you must cancel a trip due to a personal or family illness or accident. West Bench Adventures offers several plans and would be happy to provide you with some options for your trip.

 

Assumption of Risk

This Agreement is important. It includes terms and conditions and releases West Bench Adventures from liability. It must be agreed to by all participants.

West Bench Adventures, their owners, directors, officers, employees and affiliates, does not own or operate any entity which is to or does provide goods or services for your trip including, for example, ownership or control over hotels or other lodging facilities, airline, vessel, bus, van or other transportation companies, local ground operators, providers or organizers of optional or included excursions or equipment used thereon, food service or entertainment providers, etc. All such persons and entities are independent contractors. As a result, West Bench Adventures is not liable for any negligent or willful act or failure to act of any such person or entity, or of any other third party. Without limitation, West Bench Adventures is not responsible for any injury, loss, or damage to person or property, death, delay or inconvenience in connection with the provision of any goods or services occasioned by or resulting from, but not limited to, acts of God, acts of government, force majeure, acts of war or civil unrest, insurrection or revolt, strikes or other labor activities, criminal or terrorist activities of any kind, or the threat thereof, overbooking or downgrading of accommodations, structural or other defective conditions in hotels or other lodging facilities, mechanical or other failure of airplanes or other means of transportation or for any failure of any transportation mechanism to arrive or depart timely or safely, dangers associated with or bites from animals, pests or insects, marine life or vegetation of any sort, dangers incident to recreational activities such as scuba diving, zip lining, snorkeling, paddle boarding, surfing, swimming, kayaking, sailing, canoeing, horseback riding, rafting, whitewater rafting, hiking, bicycling, canyoning/canyoneering, fishing, snowshoeing, cruising, camping, helicopter tours, 4×4 Jeep/ATV tours, snowmobiling activities, hot air ballooning, jetboating, mule riding, dogsledding, cross-country skiing, rock climbing, etc., sanitation problems, food poisoning, lack of access to or quality of medical care, difficulty in evacuation in case of a medical or other emergency, illness, the adequacy of medical attention if and when provided; epidemics or the threat thereof including, but not limited to, exposure to COVID-19 by any means of transmission; epidemics or the threat thereof or for any other cause beyond the direct control of West Bench Adventures. In order to partake of the enjoyment and excitement of this trip Participants are willing to accept the risks and uncertainty involved as being an integral part of my adventure. In addition, Participants release West Bench Adventures from its own negligence and assume all risk thereof.

 

West Bench Adventures reserves the right to change the itinerary or program features at any time and for any reason, with or without notice, and West Bench Adventures shall not be liable for any loss of any kind as a result of any such changes.  Hikes, sightseeing events, lodging, itineraries, special programs, etc., are subject to change or cancellation.  West Bench Adventures reserves the right to substitute such features if necessary due to weather, water conditions or levels, other events of force majeure, mechanical or other conditions beyond the control of West Bench Adventures.  West Bench Adventures is not responsible therefor and is not required to compensate passengers under these circumstances. West Bench Adventures may cancel or postpone a program (or an option) for any reason whatsoever.  If so, for cancellations based upon acts of God or force majeure, acts or orders of government, epidemics or the threat thereof, terrorism or the threat thereof, strikes or labor disturbances, demonstrations, riots or civil unrest, criminal activity, supplier default or insolvency, or other similar circumstances, its sole obligation is to issue credits in the full amount of moneys paid to West Bench Adventures to the extent its suppliers are crediting West Bench Adventures with those monies paid by West Bench Adventures to them.  Under no circumstances is West Bench Adventures obligated to refund the cost of any purchased travel insurance.  West Bench Adventures is not required to cancel any program for any reason including without limitation, United States Department of State, Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization or other Warnings or Advisories of any kind. West Bench Adventures is not responsible for fees assessed by air carriers resulting from operational and/or itinerary changes, even if West Bench Adventures makes the flight arrangements or cancels the program.

 

Miscellaneous matters: Participants agree to follow all written and verbal rules of safety presented to me by West Bench Adventures and the independent contractors it employs. Participants understand that West Bench Adventures reserves the right to refuse as a trip participant, or remove from a trip, without refund, any person it judges to be incapable of meeting the rigors and requirements of participating in the activities, or who is abusive or disrespectful to other trip participants, guides or third parties.

 

West Bench Adventures reserves the right to change hotels or other features of the trips itinerary if West Bench Adventures believes it will enhance the safety, comfort or enjoyment of the trip. 

 

Participants are aware that adventure travel such as they are undertaking involves hazardous activities, some in remote areas of the world, with a risk of illness, injury or death which may be caused by forces of nature, animals, insects or flora, the negligence of West Bench Adventures, or other persons and companies known or unknown, or of willful or criminal conduct of third parties.

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Medical & Health

It is vital that persons with medical problems make them known to us well before departure. Hospital facilities are often unavailable, and evacuation can be prolonged, difficult and expensive. West Bench Adventures assumes no liability regarding provision of medical care. You will need to provide us with your medical history and any dietary restrictions as requested in the required documentation.

The State Department www.travel.state.gov and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov periodically issue statements, advisories, and warnings about risks to travelers. These statements are country specific and contain important information. We strongly urge all participants to review any State Department warnings, alerts, advisories, and destination specific information at www.travel.state.gov as well as specific health information for their destination at www.cdc.gov.

 

Voluntary Participation

Participants acknowledge that they have voluntarily applied to participate on the trip designated on this application (or a trip which a participant may change to) and that they have read the description of the trip as it appears in the current West Bench Adventures itinerary, supplements or brochures relating to the trip, together with all information contained in this application. Participants are voluntarily participating in this trip with knowledge of the hazards involved.