Reservations and bookings
Bookings and reservations are made by filling out our on-line booking request form or by calling or visiting us. One of our representatives will contact you as soon as your booking request is received to confirm availability & prices and define the procedures following this step. All participants booking a regular or tailor made tour must read and fully understand our policies and general conditions.

All bookings must be accompanied by a non-refundable 30% deposit payment. The balance must be entirely paid 45 days prior to the tour departure. To guarantee a booking made 45 days or less before the departure the full payment is required. IF INCLUDED: International flights and/or travel insurance packages must be paid in full upon booking / purchase.

Any person booking tour(s) on the behalf of one or more other traveller(s) ensures that he/she has received full authority and permission to do so from the traveller whose name appears on the booking form.

Upon reception of your booking request, we may transfer your dossier to your local retail travel agency (international bookings). In such an event, the agency will contact you to finalize the booking procedure directly with you.

Procedures and deadlines summary:
1. We receive your booking request and send you a booking confirmation and invoice.
2. You send us your initial deposit (30% of tour price and 100% of flights and/or insurance if booked through us).
3. You send us your final payment 45 days prior to your tour departure.
4. We send you your travel documents by express courier 30 days (or before) prior to your tour departure.
All payments received are confirmed by our accounting dpt. the next day with an updated account statement sent by email.

Cancellation
In the event of a cancellation by the traveller 45 days or more prior to the tour departure, the participant's deposit will be kept to the traveller's credit to be applied on a different departure date and/or tour within a 12 month period starting on the originally planned departure day. In such an event, a booking change fee of a minimum of 200 $US / traveller will be charged. Passed the 45th day preceding the tour departure, there will be no refund.

If we are in the obligation to cancel a trip for any given reason, the participants will be fully refunded within a 48 hour delay without any possibility of further indemnity. Interruption of a trip made by the traveller does not entitle him/her to a refund of any kind. The date of cancellation is the date on which Amerika Venture receives a written notice of cancellation by the traveller who has made the booking.

ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS MAY APPLY FOR SPECIAL TOURS AND GROUP PACKAGES, please consult your documents and booking confirmation before sending your initial payment.

Health questions, accessibility of our tours and equipments
Our expeditions are accessible and designed for all persons in good health condition, they do not require an exceptional physical condition or any technical or special knowledge (unless specificaly indicated so), but the travellers must be ready to (and willing to) provide a reasonable physical effort in relation with the tour selected. Guided tours are directed from beginning to end by professional guides and we provide all the necessary equipment (with the exception of personal effects such as binoculars, backpacks, flashlights...). The travellers must inform the agency or its tour leaders and/or representatives of any known illness, allergies or medical condition prior to travel or during the travel (as soon as possible). Travellers under medical prescription must have at all times during the tour their medication within immediate reach and should inform the guide of their condition. If the health or conduct of a participant appears to endanger the safe and sound progress of a tour he/she may be excluded from the tour.

IT IS COMPULSORY FOR ALL TRAVELLERS TO HAVE PERSONAL TRAVEL INSURANCE. This policy must cover medical and repatriation expenses as well as trip cancellation / interruption. We may require you to provide a proof of insurance before or during your tour.

First aid
We carry on our tours first aid kits that contain all the necessary equipment to administer first aid to a person requiring it. This content surpasses the recommendations (combined) in this respect of the Canadian Red Cross Corporation and the French Red Cross Corporation. It does not include medical products or materials that are not directly required for giving first aid. Travellers must obtain and keep themselves all medical products such as antibiotic, cream, lotion and prescription. Our first aid kits do not constitute a pharmacy for the traveller.

Laws and authority
Participant must be in possession of a passport with at least 6 months of validity at departure and all visas, permits and certificates required for the whole of their journey. At all times the decision of the company's tour leader or representative will be final on all matters likely to endanger the safety and well being of the tour. The traveller must at all times strictly comply with the laws, customs, foreign exchange and drug regulations of all countries visited. Should the traveller fail to comply with the above, or should he interfere with the well being of the group, the tour leader or company representative may order the traveller to leave the tour without recourse to any refund*.
* To this day, since the beggining of our operations in 1996, this situation has never happened.

Responsibility
1) We may act in some occasions as an intermediate agent between the customer and the service provider (transports, hotels, local tour-operators etc....) and thus should not be confused with the later who, in any case, remains first responsible for the services provided and the conditions surrounding those services. Moreover, if unforeseen events or forcible circumstances implying the security of the traveller impose it, we reserve the right, before the departures and during the tour, directly or via our representatives, to modify the dates, the schedules or itineraries anticipated. In this case the customer cannot claim any kind of repayment. Considering the particular character of our tours, each participant must conform to the instructions given by the tour leader representing the agency, which cannot be held responsible of the incidents, accidents or physical injuries resulting from any imprudent personal initiative of the traveller.
2) We cannot be held responsible for the consequences of delays or cancellations due to a transport company. We also decline any responsibility as for the damage ensuing from a governmental act, from political unrest, from strikes or fortuitous acts or for damage undergone by a traveler for disease, loss, wound or discomfort.
3) Once the tour has started, no refunds will be made under any circumstances for premature return or for any unused part of the tour.
4) Our responsibility ensuing from the defect to supply a service or an advantage described in the documents supplied to the traveller is limited to the cost of such service or favor.
5) It is possible that bad weather, technical problems or other unforeseen event force us to modify the program / schedule or route of a tour. When in our opinion in the interest of safety or for the satisfactory continuation of the tour it is necessary to incur extra expenses, we may do so and recover the same from the clients.
6) We cannot accept responsibility for the actions, lacks or errors of a traveller.

Risks
Our tours may by their very nature involve an element of risk for the traveller not normally associated to holiday packages. The client must accept these attendant risks and also be aware that safety standards of providers (hotels, tours, transports) are not of the same standard as in his/her home country.
Due to political and cultural differences as well as generally tougher physical conditions, travel to many destinations we offer involve risks others than those we take in our daily lives. The client must be aware of this fact and should make his travel decisions accordingly.

Insurance
The traveller, together with all his personal belongings, is traveling on his own risk. It is therefore a booking condition that the traveller subscribes to a personal travel insurance covering personal accidents, medical expenses, air ambulance, loss or damage of effects, injury, personal liability, illness or death, cancellation of travel and interruption of stay. IT IS COMPULSORY FOR ALL TRAVELLERS TO HAVE PERSONAL TRAVEL INSURANCE.

International flights
Amerika Venture does not include pre-tour / post /tour international flights with its regular tours & trips.
If a TAILOR MADE TOUR (customized tour) includes international and/or domestic flight(s) our responsibility is limited to providing the appropriate travel documents and accurate information and coordinate land transfers accordingly. The carrier remains sole responsible for the services he provides and the conditions surrounding that service.

Photos and comments
Travellers should be aware that our tour leaders and representatives may take photographs, videos and films of them while on any of our tours and that we reserve the right to use such material for any publications or marketing uses. If the client is against this practice he must notify us in writing before the tour.

Prices & exchange rates
At any time, until the 10th day preceding the tour, if a major change occurs in the exchange rates (5% or more) between the US dollar and the currency used to bill the traveller, our prices can be modified accordingly. To avoid any possibility of rate change before your departure, please request your trip to be billed in US dollars..

Customs & immigration fees, visas and airport taxes are never included in our tours and prices, any related fees are the responsibility of the traveller.

NOTE: Additional conditions may apply at the time of booking.