Terms & Conditions

Deposit and payment.

A refundable deposit is required at the time of booking to secure space. Full payment is required 30 days prior to your departure date.

Cancellation policy.

Because of the COVID‐19 pandemic, we have temporarily adjusted our cancellation and transfer terms to give you flexibility when making travel plans. Should we elect to revert to our standard policy in the future, we will notify all travelers and provide a commercially reasonable grace period before it takes effect.

Updated cancellation and transfer policy (In effect until further notice).

Travelers may transfer or cancel their reservation without penalty within 30 days of departure should they no longer feel comfortable proceeding with their planned departure due to the COVID‐19 outbreak.

Standard cancellation and transfer policy (Currently inactive).

If you decide to cancel your trip, the following fees apply and are due when we receive notice of your cancellation:

91+ days prior to departure = $0
61 to 90 days = Initial Deposit
31 to 60 days prior to departure = 50% of the total trip cost is non‐refundable
0 to 30 days prior to departure = 100% of the trip cost is non‐refundable
If you instead transfer to another trip, the following fees are due at the time of the request:
61+ days prior to departure = $0
31 to 60 days = Initial Deposit
0 to 30 days prior to departure = 100% of the trip cost is non‐refundable

To protect your investment, we recommend that you purchase travel insurance.

Full details on our cancellation policy (see below).

Your responsibilities.

A. Medical considerations:
If you have any medical or psychological conditions, it’s very important you let us know well before departure so that we can make extra arrangements, if necessary. Trip leaders have the right to disqualify anyone at any time during the trip if they feel the trip member is mentally or physically incapable to continue and/or if a trip member’s continued participation jeopardizes the group’s or his/her own safety. Under these circumstances, refunds are not given. Winding Road Tours is not a medical facility and therefore has no responsibility regarding medical advice, medications, or inoculations that you or your doctor deem necessary for your safe participation. Hospital facilities for serious problems are often unavailable, and evacuation can be prolonged, difficult, and expensive. Winding Road Tours assumes no liability regarding provision of medical care. By signing the Liability Release and Assumption of Risk Agreement, you agree to pay for emergency evacuation and emergency medical care.

Your obligations as a trip member.

By participating in a Winding Road Tours trip, you assume certain obligations to Winding Road Tours and the other trip members. It is your responsibility to:

Understand the conditions implied in the Activity Level rating of your selected trip
Select a trip that is appropriate to your interests and abilities
Prepare for the trip by familiarizing yourself with the trip itinerary and trip preparation materials sent by Winding Road Tours
Bring appropriate gear and clothing as advised by Winding Road Tours
Obtain all necessary visas
Follow considerate standards of personal hygiene in order to reduce risk of contracting diseases
Follow considerate social behavior with other trip participants and respect their habits
Act in an appropriate and courteous manner befitting the customs of countries you visit
Complete the trip itinerary as scheduled (or as adjusted by your trip leader as necessary)
Respect the countries we visit by using environmentally safe products, staying on established routes of travel and not littering.

Winding Road Tours reserves the right to decline to accept or retain any person as a tour participant should such person’s behavior, health, or mental condition impede the operation of the trip.

Our legal limitations ‐ PLEASE READ CAREFULLY.

Winding Road Tours may contract with independent contractors to provide transportation, guide services and/or all other related travel services. We assume no responsibility, however caused, for injury, loss or damage to person or property in connection with any service provided by an independent contractor or resulting directly from the following: negligence caused by the independent contractor ‐ acts of God ‐ detention ‐ annoyance ‐ terrorism ‐ thefts ‐ pilferage ‐ force majeure ‐ civil disturbances ‐ government restrictions or regulations ‐ strikes ‐ delays and expenses arising from quarantine ‐ failure of any means of conveyance to arrive or depart as scheduled ‐ discrepancies or change in transit or hotel services over which we have no control.

We reserve the right to make reasonable changes in the itinerary where deemed advisable for the comfort and well‐being of trip members. By advancing deposit to Winding Road Tours, the depositor thereby agrees to be bound by the above terms and conditions.

Cancellations.

If you decide to cancel your trip, the following fees apply and are due to Winding Road Tours at the time (prior to departure) we receive written notice of your cancellation.

61‐90 days Initial Deposit
31‐60 days 50% of trip cost
0 to 30 days 100% of trip cost

To protect your investment, we recommend that you purchase trip cancellation insurance.

Transferring trips.

If you decide to transfer your reservation, the following fees apply and are due to Winding Road Tours at the time (prior to departure) we receive written notice of your intention to transfer.

61 or more days $0
31 to 60 days Initial Deposit
0 to 30 days 100% of trip cost

To protect your investment, we recommend that you purchase trip cancellation insurance.

Travel insurance.

Should you have to cancel your trip because of illness, injury or death to you or an immediate family member, this insurance protects all your deposits and payments for both air and trip costs. We strongly recommend the purchase of trip insurance.

If we cancel a trip.

Winding Road Tours reserves the right to cancel all or a portion of a trip for force majeure or any other circumstances beyond our control and, in the event of such cancellation, full or partial refunds, if any, will be at Winding Road Tours’ sole discretion. We also reserve the right to cancel any trip if sign‐up is inadequate to make the trip economically feasible for us to operate, and in this event, we give a full refund of the trip price. However, Winding Road Tours is not responsible for additional expenses incurred by you in preparing for the trip (e.g., non‐refundable air tickets, visa fees if applicable, gear or medical expenses).

Fewer than required number of participants.

Each trip requires a minimum number of participants for departure. If we sign up enough participants to run a trip but unexpected cancellations drop the number of participants below the required minimum, we will run the trip at an additional charge of $300 per person. If additional participants join and the required number of participants is re‐attained, the surcharge will be refunded.

Refunds.

Winding Road Tours does not give any refunds for unused hotel rooms, meals, sightseeing trips or trek arrangements. Trip price is quoted as a package; credits are not given for services not used.

Release of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Indemnification Agreement.

All participants must acknowledge the following Release of Liability, Assumption of Risk and Indemnification Agreement. A copy of this form will be included in your online traveler profile.

A. Trip and Associated Risks: I have chosen to participate in the above-referenced trip (hereinafter referred to as “the Trip”) of my own free will volition and accord without duress or apprehension of any kind whatsoever, which is organized by Winding Road, Inc., doing business as Winding Road Tours (hereinafter referred to collectively as “Winding Road Tours”). I understand that:

The Trip involves activities that are inherently hazardous and dangerous, including those described in the separate document for the Trip, “Activity Level and Risks and Hazards,” which has been provided to me and which I am also signing and returning;
During the Trip, I may be exposed to dangers and hazards, including equipment failures and negligence by others;
As a consequence of these risks, I may be seriously hurt or disabled or may die from the resulting injuries, and that my property may also be damaged;
Hospital facilities, qualified medical care, and emergency medical evacuation may be limited or unavailable during portions of the Trip and, where available, may be expensive