Terms and Conditions (Privately Guided)

ITINERARY CREATION REQUEST

Upon your initial contact with New Zealand Awaits, whether by online questionnaire completion or email or phone, a member of our team will call you to discuss your trip desires, dreams, and budget. To create a customised itinerary for you, we require a NZ$300 fee. If you choose to book with us, this non-refundable fee is applied to your deposit. A customised itinerary is then created and sent to you for your review. Changes can be made to the itinerary in consultation with New Zealand Awaits to meet your satisfaction.

RESERVATION AND DEPOSIT

When you are satisfied with your customised itinerary, complete and return our reservation form along with your non-refundable NZ$500 per person deposit. Full payment for any domestic NZ flights is also required at the time of booking and airline terms and conditions apply.

THE BOOKING CONTRACT

A contract exists when New Zealand Awaits or your travel agent issues a written confirmation after receipt of a completed reservation form and deposit. Please read your confirmation for accuracy. Immediately report incorrect or incomplete information to us or your agent. Please ensure your name is exactly as written in your passport.

ITINERARY BOOKING PROCESS

When a booking contract exists, we complete all bookings and send final pricing to you for balance of payment. The balance of your trip payment is due 90 days prior to departure. Bookings made within 90 days will require full payment at time of booking. If the full payment is not received by the required date, services and bookings will be cancelled with forfeiture of full deposit. Certain products may have different payment requirements and these will be advised at time of booking.

PAYMENT

Payments can be made by either:

  • Credit Card: You will be invoiced and directed to make payment with a credit card. A 3% credit card fee applies.
  • United States Dollar bank transfer (Domestic US$ transfer) Contact us for bank transfer details and instructions.

    • PRICES

    Prices are in New Zealand dollars and include New Zealand Goods and Services Tax (GST) of 15%. Prices are subject to change in the event of GST fluctuations and/or supplier increases.

    CANCELLATION POLICY

    Cancellation by Traveller/Group

    Cancellation notice must be delivered to New Zealand Awaits in writing and be acknowledged by New Zealand Awaits in writing. The cancellation fee is determined by the date the written cancellation notice is received by New Zealand Awaits. Cancellation fees will be levied relevant to the amount of notice prior to departure as follows:

    • More than 90 days prior to the New Zealand commencement date – Loss of deposit and any supplier cancellation fees.
    • 90 days or less before the New Zealand commencement date - no refund applies

      • If New Zealand Awaits decides to run a trip in good faith despite any events in New Zealand (acts of nature, strikes, or other events) and you decide to cancel the trip, then the cancellation policy above still applies.
    Cancellation by New Zealand Awaits

    New Zealand Awaits reserves the right to cancel any trip at any time for any reason. If New Zealand Awaits cancels a trip, with the exception of the Force Majeure conditions below, we will offer a full refund. This refund will constitute full settlement. New Zealand Awaits is not responsible for other expenses such as non-refundable or non-transferable air tickets or other unrecoverable travel costs. In the event of a Force Majeure event that occurs prior to or during a trip, such as but not limited to fire, flood, volcanic eruption, earthquake, avalanche, severe weather, power outages, labor disruptions or other events or natural disasters outside of New Zealand Awaits’ control that negatively impacts New Zealand Awaits ability to fulfill any of its contractual obligations, or if New Zealand Awaits believes that the quality of the trip or the safety of its guests would be compromised due to such events, New Zealand Awaits reserves the right to cancel, suspend, or shorten the tour and will be excused and released from its obligation without liability of any kind. We recommend travel insurance to cover such eventualities.

    ALTERATIONS AND AMENDMENTS POLICY

    Alterations by Traveller:
    Before Trip Commencement: Any amendments by you to your itinerary after final payment and prior to departure are subject to a fee of NZ$100 per change, plus any fees applied by suppliers. After Trip Commencement: New Zealand Awaits will not pay any discounts or refunds for missed or unused services (activities, accommodation, meals or any other unused service) which were missed or unused by the Client due to no fault of New Zealand Awaits or its suppliers. This includes any termination of the Client’s participation in the trip due to the Client’s own fault, negligence or breach of these terms.

    Alterations by New Zealand Awaits:
    Before Trip Commencement: If we need to make a major change to your trip, we will inform you of the change as soon as is reasonably possible and will advise of any consequential price increase or decrease. You may choose to accept the change, or cancel and obtain a refund of any money paid to New Zealand Awaits for your trip. After Trip Commencement: Travel by its nature requires patience, tolerance, and flexibility. You may need to allow for alternate routes, schedules, amenities, mode of transport or other unexpected changes. If an itinerary needs to be changed due to unforeseen circumstances, New Zealand Awaits will make every effort to keep the route as close as possible to the original and to use similar high quality accommodation and/or activities. These changes are at the discretion of the Trip leader/guide and any costs incurred as a result will be the responsibility of the traveller. If activities or services are cancelled by the supplier due to weather or safety concerns, these will be refunded in full. Many activities continue in inclement weather in New Zealand, but these will only be refunded if the supplier cancels the activity or service. They will not be refunded if the client chooses not to participate.

    INSURANCE

    It is strongly recommended that you purchase travel insurance for the duration of your trip to protect you financially from unforeseen circumstances that may affect your travel plans.

    PASSPORTS AND VISAS

    It is the responsibility of you, the traveller, to ensure your passport is valid for 6 months beyond your New Zealand departure date. In addition to a valid passport, evidence of onward travel arrangements (eg. a departing air ticket), and sufficient funds for the duration of your travel in New Zealand is required. U.S. or Canadian travellers – if you plan to visit for three months or less you will be granted a Visitor’s Visa upon arrival. British citizens may be granted a Visitor’s Visa for up to six months on arrival. All MUST complete an electronic travel authority online prior to travel. Other nationals, please refer to the New Zealand Immigration website for up-to-date requirements regarding visa requirements: www.immigration.govt.nz New Zealand Awaits cannot be held responsible for individual passport or visa problems.

    AIRFARES

    International airfares are not included in our trip prices. Only domestic airfares specifically listed in trip itineraries are included. We are happy to organise any additional domestic flights for you. Full payment for additional domestic flights is required at the time of booking and airline terms and conditions apply.

    AIRPORT TRANSFERS

    Airport transfers are not included unless explicitly stated in itineraries. If needed, we can arrange transfers at an additional cost.

    HEALTH AND AGE GUIDELINES

    You must agree to complete the medical portion of the reservation form honestly and disclose all relevant medical information to New Zealand Awaits. We reserve the right to deny you permission to participate in any aspect of a trip if the trip guide considers you a danger to yourself or others. There are no age requirements or restrictions on privately guided trips.

    EXCLUSIONS

    The following items are not included in your trip price: international airfare, travel insurance, visa fees, airport transfers outside the trip itinerary, airport taxes, excess baggage charges, telephone, fax, and email charges, laundry costs, drinks, meals and optional activities not specified in the itinerary, alcohol, and souvenirs and personal purchases.