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  1. Our contract 

All itinerary bookings are made with Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris.  By booking a trip with us you are deemed to have agreed to these Booking Conditions (which constitutes the entire agreement between you and us) and your booking will be accepted by us on this basis. The services to be provided are those referred to in your booking confirmation.

  1. Deposit requirement

Once you have completed and returned the required Booking Form to Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris and read thoroughly and accepted these Booking Conditions, your booking will be deemed to be set in place. You will be required to pay, at the time of booking, a non-refundable deposit of $1,500 per person per trip for your booking to be confirmed.

** The exception to the above is our “Gorillas & Game Drives” tour of which we require the NZ$1,200 gorilla permit to be paid together with the deposit – this is due to the fact that only 8 permits per gorilla family are issued per day so of course it’s essential we book these permits at the time of booking the tour.

  1. Acceptance of booking and final payments   

If we accept your booking we will issue confirmation, a receipt for your deposit, a full itinerary and Guest Information Sheet.  A contract will exist between us from the date we issue the confirmation.  Upon receipt of deposit, Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris will provide details regarding final balance payments.  If this balance is not paid on or before the due date specified, we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled.

  1. Your details  

In order for us to confirm your travel arrangements you must provide all details as and when they are required by Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris.  Necessary details include full name as per passport, date of birth, nationality, passport number, passport issue and expiry date, dietary requirements and allergies, next of kin, emergency contact details and any pre-existing medical conditions you have which may affect your ability to complete your travel arrangements.

  1. Cancellation by the traveller  

Cancelled bookings will incur charges. These charges can be up to 100% of the cost of the booking regardless of whether travel has commenced. As a minimum, our cancellation charges are 20% of the total booking value, plus any applicable supplier fees or penalties. The amount of each suppliers’ cancellations fees or penalties is beyond our control and payment is solely your responsibility. No refund is available for cancellations after commencement of travel or on any unused services.

You are strongly advised to take out cancellation insurance at the time of booking which will cover cancellation fees.  If you leave a trip for any reason after it has commenced we are not obliged to make any refunds for unused services.  If you fail to join a tour, join it after departure, or leave it prior to its completion, no refund will be made. The above cancellation fees are in addition to fees which may be levied by accommodation providers, travel agents or third party tour and transport operator fees.

  1. Cancellation by us

We may cancel a trip at any time prior to departure if, due to terrorism, natural disasters, political instability or other external events it is not viable for us to operate the planned itinerary. If we cancel your trip, you can transfer amounts paid to an alternate departure date or receive a full refund.  In circumstances where the cancellation is due to external events outside our reasonable control refunds will be less any unrecoverable costs.  We are not responsible for any incidental expenses that you may have incurred as a result of your booking including but not limited to visas, vaccinations, travel insurance excess or non-refundable flights.

  1.  Inclusions  

The price of your trip includes:

  • Itinerary only
  • Accommodation as listed in the Trip Information and Itinerary
  • Transport as listed in the Trip Information and Itinerary
  • Sightseeing and meals as listed in the Trip Information and Itinerary
  • The services of Tour Operator
  1. Exclusions 
  • International flights
  • Airport taxes and excess baggage charges
  • Meals other than those specified in the Trip Information and Itinerary
  • Visa and passport fees
  • Travel insurance
  • Optional activities that do not form part of the itinerary and ALL personal expenses
  1. Age

Minimum Age:  18 years (with the exception of the Family Memories itinerary)

  1. Passport and visas 

You must carry a valid passport and have obtained the appropriate visa documentation for Kenya.  Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months beyond the duration of the trip. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are in possession of the appropriate Kenya visa and health vaccinations required for entry and exit of Kenya.   We are not responsible if you are refused entry to Kenya because you lack the correct passport, visa, health vaccinations or other travel documentation.

  1. Travel insurance

COMPREHENSIVE Travel insurance is mandatory for all our travellers and should be taken out at the time of booking.  Your travel insurance must provide unlimited cover against personal accident, death, medical expenses and emergency repatriation.  We also strongly recommend it covers cancellation, curtailment, personal liability and loss of luggage and personal effects.

Please note:  You must provide a copy of your travel insurance document to the Tour Operator prior to departure on the tour.

  1. Flexibility

You appreciate and acknowledge that the nature of this type of travel requires flexibility and you should allow for alternatives. The itinerary provided is representative of the activities, but it is understood that we reserve the right to change an itinerary, schedules, amenities and mode of transport due to terrorism, natural disasters, political instability or other events where it is not viable for us to operate the planned itinerary.

  1. Prices, Taxes & Currency Fluctuations

Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris cannot be held responsible for any changes that may occur and reserves the right to increase the price of any travel arrangements up to the date of departure. This includes adjustment for devaluation, fuel surcharges, airfare increases as well as international exchange rates. The air content of tours is based on airfare applicable as at date of publication. As airline costs are constantly changing, it may be necessary to impose an air surcharge any time up to departure. Passport and visa fees, insurance, excess baggage charges, extra meals, laundry, drinks, souvenirs, items of a personal nature, including medication, departure taxes and porterage are not included in the price of your holiday.  Entrance fees to venues detailed in the itinerary will generally be included unless specified in the itinerary

  1. ​Authority on tour  

Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris trips are run by the Tour Operator.   The decision of the Tour Operator is final on all matters likely to affect the safety or well-being of any traveller, crew member or contractor participating in the trip, including respect for the culture of any traveller, crew member or contractor participating in the trip.    Under NO circumstances will any form of racism, abuse or belittling of any traveller, crew member or contractor participating in the trip be tolerated.   If you fail to comply with a decision made by the Tour Operator, or interfere with the well-being or mobility of the group, the Tour Operator may direct you to leave the trip immediately, with no right of refund.  You must at all times comply with the laws, customs, foreign exchange and drug regulations of East African countries and all countries visited en-route.

  1. Acceptance of risk

You acknowledge that the nature of the trip is adventurous and participation involves a degree of personal risk. You will be visiting places where the political, cultural and geographical attributes present dangers and physical challenges greater than those present in our daily lives. We use information from government foreign departments and reports from our own contacts in assessing whether the itinerary should operate. However it is also your own responsibility to acquaint yourself with all relevant travel information and the nature of your itinerary. You acknowledge that your decision to travel is made in light of consideration of this information and you accept that you are aware of the personal risks attendant upon such travel.

  1. Limitation of liability

Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris contract with a network of local individuals to assist in the running of our trips as agent for these third parties.  We are not responsible for the acts and omissions of these third parties.

To the fullest extent permitted by law:

– any liability for any loss, death, injury or damage which you may suffer (directly or indirectly) in connection with or arising out of your participation in a trip, or any breach of the Booking Conditions, is excluded;

– you release us and our officers, contractors, agents and representatives from any liability and expressly waive any claims you may have against us arising out of or in connection with your participation in a trip; and

– any condition or warranty which would otherwise be implied by law into these Booking Conditions (Implied Warranty), is excluded.  To the extent an Implied Warranty cannot be excluded, our liability in respect of the Implied Warranty is limited to (in our absolute discretion): (i) the provision of a similar trip to an equivalent value; or (ii) a refund of the total amount received by us from you in connection with your booking.

Any claim by you is excluded to the extent that it is for indirect or consequential loss, loss of profits or economic loss, however it arises, or for indirect, special, punitive or exemplary damages.

  1. Optional activities

Optional activities not included in the trip price do not form part of the trip or this contract. You accept that any assistance given by your Tour Operator or local representative in arranging optional activities does not render us liable for them in any way. The contract for the provision of that activity will be between you and the activity provider.

  1. Claims & complaints

If you have a complaint about your trip please inform the Tour Operator at the time in order that they can attempt to rectify the matter. If satisfaction is not reached through these means then any further complaint should be put in writing to us within 30 days of the end of the tour.

  1. Severability

In the event that any term or condition contained in these Booking Conditions is unenforceable or void by operation of law or as being against public policy or for any other reason then such term or condition shall be deemed to be severed from this contract or amended accordingly only to such extent necessary to allow all remaining terms and conditions to survive and continue as binding.

  1. Photos and marketing

You consent to Helping Hand African Tours & Safaris using images of you taken during the trip for advertising and promotional purposes in any medium we choose.  You grant us a perpetual, royalty-free, worldwide, irrevocable license to use such images for publicity and promotional purposes.

  1. Privacy policy

Any personal information that we collect about you may be used for any purpose associated with the operation of the trip.  The information such as health issues or dietary requirements may be disclosed to our service providers or other suppliers ONLY if that information is deemed necessary for the relevent purpose.  We will otherwise treat your details as strictly private and confidential.

  1. Governing Law

This agreement is covered by the laws of New Zealand. Any claim or legal action against overseas suppliers is likely to be subject to the terms of your contract with them, and may be governed by the laws of other countries