Terms and Conditions

Any travel or experience booked by Joining Journeys Pty Ltd (ACN 677 001 642) trading as Backpackers World Travel or one of its subsidiaries (we, us, our) is booked the basis of the following terms and conditions. 


The ticket(s) ("voucher(s)") for your travel or experience are booked by us on your behalf with various Service Providers. Each Service Provider may have their own terms and conditions applying to your travel. It is important that you read the relevant and corresponding brochure for each of your bookings in order to understand all applicable terms and conditions. If you require additional information to that contained in the brochure then we recommend that you contact the Service Provider for further clarification. 

BOOKING CONFIRMATIONS 

Your responsibilities: Open tickets: You must book your travel dates in advance with the individual Service Provider as per details provided on your voucher.

Tickets with booked dates: It is your responsibility to ensure you redeem your vouchers on the dates booked. If you wish to change these dates you must organise it with the Service Provider directly, with adequate notice. You must reconfirm all booked dates 48 hours prior to travel (minimum guide only) or in the manner stated on your voucher. If applicable, dietary requirements should also be confirmed at this time.

CANCELLATIONS and REFUNDS 

Credit card fees, and additional fees paid to us for deposits of accommodation, transport and luggage storage are not transferable or refundable.
Please note that deposits on bookings are also non-refundable but may be used as credit towards future bookings. 

Cancellations by service providers

If a service provider cancels your booking for any reason you WILL NOT be charged any cancellation fee and will be entitled to a full refund (other than any amount we are charged on your behalf by the service provider).  ALL TRANSPORT AND ACCOMMODATION is NON-REFUNDABLE, in some cases it may be transferable

Cancellations by you outside of 14 days from the date of travel

Where you provide us with at least 14 days’ notice that you wish to cancel your booking for any reason, you will be charged a 10% cancellation fee and will be entitled to a refund (in addition to any amount we are charged on your behalf by the service provider) or can transfer, with no fee, any balance (in addition to any amount we are charged as a cancellation fee on your behalf by the service provider) to a new booking or credit voucher. ALL TRANSPORT & ACCOMMODATION is NON-REFUNDABLE, in some cases it may be transferable

Cancellations by you within 14 days of the date of travel

Where you provide us with less than 14 days notice that you wish to cancel your booking for any reason, you will be charged a 30% cancellation fee and will be entitled to a refund ( in addition to any amount we are charged on your behalf by the service provider) or can transfer, with a $30 per product transfer fee, any balance (in addition to any amount we are charged as a cancellation fee on your behalf by the service provider) to a new booking or credit voucher. ALL TRANSPORT & ACCOMMODATION is NON REFUNDABLE, in some cases they may be transferable

In addition, if a Service Provider charges us for the cancelled travel you must also pay us the amount that we are charged on your behalf by the Service Provider. It is, therefore, possible your cancellation fees could be up to 100% of the cost of the booking, regardless of whether travel has commenced (for example cancellations made within 24hrs of travel or certain flight bookings). The Cancellation Fee will apply in all cases where a tour is able to run. For example, if you are unable to reach a tour due to an "act of God" (for example a road is cut off due to flooding) the normal Cancellation Fee will apply if the tour still runs in your absence or would have run but for your absence. If a tour or other travel service is cancelled by the Service Provider, we will refund you in full the amount paid for the tour or other travel service. This full refund is subject to a fully refundable amount being given to our agency from the supplier who is cancelling. We highlight here that all suppliers have different cancellation terms.

All refunds will occur in the local currency and will be refunded to the same card that payment was made with. If your credit card uses a different currency, the amount refunded may differ from the original amount paid due to exchange rate fluctuations. We are not liable for these fluctuations, or any fees your bank charges.

Please note that in the case of natural disasters (eg flood, fire, cyclone, etc) many Service Providers do not offer any refund and we may therefore be unable to provide a refund to you. We strongly recommend that you take out travel insurance to cover this situation. The 10% or 30% agency cancellation fee does not apply to Dive Courses where you fail a Dive Medical test; or Skydives cancelled by the Service Provider within 3 days of booking due to weather, and a full refund will apply. Where a refund or other payment applies, you may choose to transfer the whole cost of the tour to another tour. However, we may charge you a transfer fee of $30. Whilst we normally attempt to process refunds swiftly, situations (such as natural disasters) may result in delayed processing time, due to high volume. By purchasing a cancellation insurance policy at the time of entry into these terms and conditions you can reduce all risk of being subject to various fees and unexpected costs as a result of unforeseen circumstances and changes. You may be able to claim up to 100% of the associated costs/ fees incurred through the insurance provider, dependent on the terms of the policy purchased. Cancellation Fees can vary from 20% to 100% for tour and bus bookings.

Please act responsibly and with respect on your travels. All Service Providers reserve the right to cancel bookings based on the recommendation from another provider due to misconduct/misbehaviour during another stage of their trip. We will treat this as any normal cancellation and charge the Cancellation Fee as mentioned above, plus any Service Provider fees.

TRAVEL INSURANCE

We endorse the recommendation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade that all travellers take out travel insurance. It is your personal responsibility to purchase your own travel insurance to cover any liability which may be incurred to us or a Service Provider and other travel misadventures that you wish to be insured against. We recommend that you source travel insurance with a low excess payment, to make claiming on cancelled tours worthwhile. 

SERVICE PROVIDERS

We endeavour to package tours that will meet your expectations. However, we take no responsibility for any matters that arise with regard to or during individual tours or arrangements with individual Service Providers. We appreciate your feedback, whether complaints, compliments or suggestions. However, to the extent permitted by law we will not be responsible to you for any loss, expense or damage that you may suffer during any particular tour, accommodation or travel, no matter the cause. These matters are the responsibility of each individual Service Provider and you agree that you will not hold us liable in any such circumstance.

TOUR DETAILS

The inclusions, departure details and itinerary points of each tour and activity listed on our websites are current as of the last product update. We endeavour to reflect up-to-date information on all website pages but will not be held accountable for changes from suppliers which are yet to be reflected on-site. Upon booking, we ask that you review the details listed in your vouchers as these will be the most reliable.

PRICES

We endeavour to package the best value tours available at the best prices. However, we take no responsibility for price fluctuations arising from changes in the prices charged by Service Providers occurring before final payment. The price of your travel is subject to change until such time as you pay for the travel in full. 

EXTRA COSTS

Many tours have extra costs and you should be aware that there may be added expenses. These expenses will differ for each Service Provider but some of the more usual extras may include: EMC Tax, Stinger suit Hire, Luggage storage, Sleeping Bag Hire, Linen Hire, National Park Fee, Food, Insurance, Accommodation, Equipment Hire, Petrol Levy. We will alert you to extra costs to the extent reasonably practicable. However, you must also check with each individual Service Provider when you confirm your voucher. 

PASSPORT and VISAS

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have valid passports, visas and re-entry permits that meet the requirements of immigration and other government authorities. Any fines, penalties, payments or expenditures incurred as a result of such documents not meeting the requirements of those authorities will be your sole responsibility. All travellers must have a valid passport for international travel and many countries require at least 6 months of validity from the date of return and some countries require a machine-readable passport. Transfers between tours may incur a $30 administration fee.

By proceeding with a purchase via our Call Centre or Website you declare that you have read, understood, acknowledge and agree to the terms and conditions of this booking and if your booking is accepted, you will be bound by these terms and conditions.