TERMS & CONDITIONS

These “Booking Conditions”, together with our privacy policy and where your sailing trip is booked via our website, our website terms of use (if any) together with any other written information we brought to your attention before we confirmed your booking, form the basis of your contract with EU Tours Limited, a company registered in New Zealand, with company number: 8865529 and registered office address of Suite G3, 27 Gillies Avenue, Newmarket, Auckland, 1023, New Zealand, trading as Yacht Getaways (“we”, “us”, “our”) and includes our directors, employees and any person acting on our behalf.

Please read these Booking Conditions carefully as they set out our respective rights and obligations. In these Booking Conditions references to “you” and “your” include the first named person on the booking, all persons on whose behalf a booking is made and any other person to whom a booking is added or transferred.

These Booking Conditions prevail over any other terms and conditions, or any other form of contract, despite any indication to the contrary by any person acting or apparently acting on our behalf, unless agreed in writing by an authorised officer of ours.

The first named person on the booking must ensure that they and all persons named on the booking, and any other person to whom a booking is added or transferred (and where such a person is a minor, their parent or legal guardian), have read, understood and accepted these Booking Conditions. By making a booking, the first named person warrants to us that they have complied with this requirement and that they have the authority to agree to these Booking Conditions on behalf of all persons on the booking.

By making a booking, the first named person on the booking agrees, personally and on behalf of all persons detailed on the booking, that:

they have read these Booking Conditions and agree to be bound by them;
they consent to our use of personal information in accordance with our privacy policy (as published on our website and updated from time to time) and agree to disclose their personal details to us, including, where applicable, special categories of personal information (such as information on health conditions or disabilities and dietary requirements);
they have arranged adequate insurance pursuant to clause 3;
they are (or as at the departure date will be) over 18 years of age and, where placing an order for services with age restrictions, declares that they are of the appropriate age to purchase those services; and
they accept financial responsibility for payment of the booking and any other payment obligations detailed on the booking.

1. Booking & Paying For Your Arrangements

A booking is made with us when you pay us the required deposit (or full payment if you are booking within 90 days of departure) and we issue you with a booking confirmation. Unless advised otherwise, the deposit is non-refundable. We reserve the right to return your deposit and decline to issue a booking confirmation at our absolute discretion. A binding contract will come into existence between you and us as soon as we have issued you with a booking confirmation that will confirm the details of your booking and will be sent to you. Upon receipt, if you believe that any details on the booking confirmation or any other document are wrong, you must advise us immediately as changes cannot be made later and it may harm your rights if we are not notified of any inaccuracies in any document within ten Working Days of our sending it out.

Your payment schedule will be as follows:

1) Deposit of €449/per person, due not less than 3 days after your booking confirmation; and

2) Full payment of the balance, due not less than 90 Days before departure.

If we do not receive payment for your booking (including any applicable surcharge and all bank fees) in full and on time, we reserve the right to treat your booking as cancelled by you in which we will retain your deposit payment as a cancellation charge.

Payments made under these Booking Conditions can be paid to us by direct credit to our nominated bank account or may be collected, receipted, and processed on our behalf by a third-party payment processing entity (such as ‘Stripe’). By booking with us and making payment to our third-party payment processing entity, you acknowledge and agree to the third-party payment processing entity's terms of use and privacy policy (which will be made available as part of such payment process). Any personal or financial information provided during the payment process will be subject to the privacy practices and security measures of the third-party payment processing entity.

2. Your Booking

Your booking confirmation will detail what is included in your booking such as your accommodation aboard the relevant yacht, a skipper and certain meals. you acknowledge that the sailing of the yacht and any occasional water transfers that we may provide, are ancillary to your accommodation aboard the yacht, and do not constitute carriage of passengers, transport or a travel service in their own right.

You will likely also be able to book shore excursions that are provided by third-party operators and are not included in your booking. We do not offer the ability to book these excursions at the same time as your sailing trip booking. We will contact you closer to your departure date to see if you wish to book any shore excursions. Whilst we may offer to facilitate booking such excursions for you, your contract for these excursions will be with the relevant operators providing the excursions (on whose behalf we may act as a booking agent). You acknowledge and understand that the shore excursions do not form part of your sailing trip booking with us and we recommend that you seek to obtain a copy of the terms and conditions associated with each excursion you book from the operators of these excursions.

3. Insurance

Prior to commencing your sailing trip, you must take out comprehensive travel insurance. By making a booking, you warrant that you have obtained adequate insurance cover for the entire duration of your sailing trip. You should be satisfied that your insurance fully covers all your personal requirements including pre-existing medical conditions, cancellation charges, medical expenses and repatriation in the event of accident or illness, personal belongings and money. We reserve the right to request to see a copy of your insurance policy and you must take a copy of your insurance policy with you on the yacht. We will not be liable for any losses howsoever arising, in respect of which insurance cover would otherwise have been available.

4. Pricing

We reserve the right to amend the price of advertised bookings prior to the issue of a booking confirmation and correct errors in the prices of confirmed bookings at any time.

Furthermore, the price of your confirmed booking is subject at all times to changes arising from government action such as changes in GST or any other government-imposed changes, and changes in the exchange rates of currency, and we reserve the right to pass on to you any increases in the price of your confirmed booking as a result.

We endeavour to ensure that all the information and prices both on our website and in our itineraries and the marketing material are accurate; however occasionally changes and errors occur, and we reserve the right to correct prices and other details in such circumstances. You must verify the current price and all other details relating to the arrangements that you wish to book before your booking is confirmed. We take no responsibility for any loss or damage resulting from your failure to complete this verification.

5. Jurisdiction and Applicable Law

These Booking Conditions and any agreement to which they apply are governed in all respects by the laws of New Zealand. We both agree that any dispute, claim or other matter which arises between us out of or in connection with your contract or booking will be dealt with by the Courts of New Zealand only.

If any provision of these Booking Conditions is or becomes invalid or unenforceable then that provision will be deemed to be deleted. However, that provision will not affect the remainder of the contract which will remain in full force and effect subject to any modifications which are deemed necessary by the deletion of the invalid or unenforceable provision(s).

6. Curtailment

If you are forced to return home early, we cannot refund the cost of any arrangements you have not used. If you cut short your booking or return home early in circumstances where you have no reasonable cause for complaint about the standard of accommodation and services provided, we will not offer you any refund for that part of your arrangements not completed, or be liable for any associated costs you may incur. Depending on the circumstances, your travel insurance may offer cover for curtailment and we suggest that any claim is made directly with them.

7. If You Change Your Booking

If you wish to change any part of your booking after our booking confirmation has been issued, you must inform us in writing as soon as possible. This should be done by the first named person on the booking. Whilst we will do our best to assist, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to meet your requested change. Where we can meet a request, all changes will be subject to any costs and charges incurred by us and/or incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers in making this change. You should be aware that these costs could increase the closer to your departure date that changes are made and you should contact us as soon as possible. Where we are unable to assist you and you do not wish to proceed with the original booking, we will treat this as a cancellation by you. A cancellation fee may be payable in accordance with clause 8.

Important Note: Certain arrangements may not be amended after they have been confirmed and any alteration could incur a cancellation charge of up to 100% of that part of the arrangements.

8. If You Cancel Your BookingBefore Departure

If you or any other member(s) of your party decides to cancel your confirmed booking, you must notify us in writing. Your notice of cancellation will only come into force when it is received in writing by us at our offices and will take effect from the next Working Day from the date on which we receive it. Should one or more member of a party cancel, it may increase the price per person of those members proceeding with the booking and you will be liable to pay this increase.

Since we incur costs in cancelling your arrangements, you will have to pay the cancellation charges as follows:

Cancellation made more than 90 days prior to your departure date - Deposit only;
Cancellation made 89 or fewer days prior to your departure date - 100% of your booking cost.

If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges.

Where possible, we will deduct the cancellation charge(s) from any monies you have already paid to us.

We will comply with our obligations under Consumer Law in relation to the services provided, and nothing in these Booking Conditions should be interpreted as attempting to exclude, restrict or modify the application of any such rights which you may have thereunder.

9. If We Change or Cancel

If due to circumstances beyond our control it becomes necessary to substitute a yacht or supplier, or make any other alterations to your booking or the itinerary, we will notify you of the changes as soon as possible.

We reserve the right to make any such substitutions or changes where reasonably necessary. We will use reasonable endeavours to ensure that the replacement product or service will be of equal or higher quality, but this may not always be possible. Depending on the circumstances, you may have to pay an additional cost due to such changes. If the changes are, in our view, so substantial as to significantly alter your booking and you are unwilling to accept such changes then you may cancel your booking and we may offer a refund of all money you have paid to us. If you do not cancel your booking within the earlier of 5 Working Days of us notifying you of the changes or the date falling 2 Working Days prior to the commencement of your sailing trip, you will be deemed to have accepted the changes. A cancellation fee may be payable in accordance with clause 8 for cancellations made after the applicable cancellation deadline.

We may in exceptional circumstances be required to cancel your booking, in which case a full refund of all monies paid may be made to you. We regret we cannot meet any expenses or losses that you may incur as a result of change or cancellation. You may be able to claim such expenses or losses under your insurance policy.

Very rarely, we may be forced by “Force Majeure” (see clause 10) to change or terminate all or some of your arrangements after your booking has been confirmed or after departure. If this situation does occur, we regret we will be unable to make any refunds, pay you compensation or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result, except where we manage to recover the same from our suppliers. You must direct all claims to your travel insurance.

10. Force Majeure

Except where otherwise expressly stated in these Booking Conditions we will not be liable or pay you compensation if our contractual obligations to you are affected by “Force Majeure”. For the purposes of these Booking Conditions, “Force Majeure” means any event beyond our or our supplier’s reasonable control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken. Examples include warfare and acts of terrorism (or threat thereof), civil strife, significant risks to human health such as the outbreak of serious disease at the travel destination or natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes or weather conditions which make it impossible to travel safely to the travel destination or remain at the travel destination, the act of any government or other national or local authority including port or river authorities, industrial dispute, labour strikes, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, chemical or biological disaster, unavoidable technical problems with transport and all similar events outside our or the supplier’s reasonable control.

Due to the types of arrangements being provided, your booking may be affected by weather conditions and other such factors outside our and our suppliers’ control. Accordingly, we will not be liable and will not pay any refunds or compensation where your stay is affected by such factors, including where this results in an alteration to your itinerary, including a reduction in the number of nights of your stay, or where this otherwise affects the enjoyment of your stay.

11. Special Requests

Any special requests must be advised to us at the time of booking, including any health or physical limitations, dietary requirements or allergies. You should then confirm your requests in writing. Whilst reasonable efforts will be made by us to try and arrange your special requests, we cannot guarantee that they will be fulfilled and under no circumstances do we accept any liability or responsibility if they are not fulfilled. The fact that a special request has been noted on your confirmation invoice or any other documentation or that it has been passed on to a supplier is not confirmation that the request will be met. Failure to meet any special request will not be a breach of contract on our part unless the request has been specifically confirmed by us. We do not accept bookings that are conditional upon any special request being met.

12. Disabilities and Medical Problems

We are not a specialist disabled travel company, but we will do our utmost to cater for any special requirements you may have. If you or any member of your party has any medical problem or disability which may affect your booking, please provide us with full details before you make your booking so that we can try to advise you as to the suitability of your chosen arrangements. We may require you to produce a doctor’s certificate certifying that you are fit to participate. Acting reasonably, if we are unable to properly accommodate the needs of the person(s) concerned, we will not confirm your booking or if you did not give us full details at the time of booking, we will cancel it and impose applicable cancellation charges when we become aware of these details.

13. Complaints

We make every effort to ensure that your arrangements run smoothly but if you do have a problem during your sailing trip, please inform your skipper immediately who will endeavour to put things right. If your complaint is not resolved locally, please contact us via email at [email protected] or our website contact page.

If the problem cannot be resolved and you wish to complain further, you must send formal written notice of your complaint to us at our office within 28 days of the end of your sailing trip, giving your booking reference and all other relevant information. Please keep your letter concise and to the point. This will assist us to quickly identify your concerns and speed up our response to you. Failure to follow the procedure set out in this clause may affect our and the applicable supplier’s ability to investigate your complaint and could affect your rights under this contract. Any complaints in relation to privacy should be made in accordance with our privacy policy.

14. Your Behaviour

All our customers are expected to conduct themselves in an orderly and acceptable manner and not to disrupt the enjoyment of others. If in our opinion or in the opinion of your skipper or any other person in authority, your behaviour or that of any member of your party is causing or is likely to cause distress, danger or annoyance to any other customers or any third party, or damage to the yacht or other property, or to cause a delay or diversion to any transportation, or is acting in a manner that is contrary to any relevant laws or regulations, we reserve the right to terminate your booking with us immediately. In the event of such termination our liability to you and/or your party will cease and you and/or your party will be required to leave the yacht and your accommodation or other arrangements immediately. We will have no further obligations to you and/or your party. No refunds will be made, and we will not pay any expenses or costs incurred as a result of termination.

You and/or your party may also be required to pay for or otherwise account for any costs, loss and/or damages caused by your actions. We will hold you and each member of your party jointly and individually liable for any damage or losses caused by you or any member of your party, and by accepting these Booking Conditions you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless against any such costs, damages or losses, including (without limitation) all costs, damages or losses (whether direct or indirect) arising from any third-party actions taken against us in connection with your participation on one of our stay. Unless we agree otherwise, full payment for any such costs, damages or losses must be paid directly to us prior to you leaving the yacht, and we may require that a bond or credit card details be retained to cover any such costs, damages or losses, and by accepting these Booking Conditions, you authorise us to make any deductions from the same as may be required to cover any such payment. If you fail to make payment, you will be responsible for meeting any claims (including legal costs) subsequently made against us as a result of your actions, together with all costs we incur in pursuing any claim against you.

Most of our yachts operate a “Bring Your Own” alcohol policy. You are advised to consume alcohol responsibly whilst aboard the yacht and alcohol consumption is entirely at your own risk. We do not accept any responsibility for any accident, act or omission which occurs as a result of excessive or irresponsible alcohol consumption by you or any member of your party.

We cannot be held responsible for the actions or behaviour of other guests or individuals who have no connection with your booking arrangements or with us.

We reserve the right to change our alcohol policy at any time and the right to impose individual-specific restrictions when, in our sole discretion, we conclude that an individual's alcohol consumption may jeopardises their own safety or that of others aboard the yacht.

15. Our Responsibilities

Our services to you are providing the booking, packaging the various goods and services that comprise your booking (including those provided by other third-party operators and suppliers) and generally facilitating your sailing trip. We will comply with our obligations under Consumer Law in providing our services.
Other than as specified in these Booking Conditions, and to the extent permitted by law, all warranties, conditions, liabilities or representations in relation to the quality, fitness for purpose or specifications of the services offered by us or any third party (other than any being or giving rise to non-excludable rights under any Consumer Law) are excluded and we will not be liable for any claim for loss or compensation or any other remedy (of any nature, including under contract or in negligence) by you or any other person.
In relation to third-party operators or independent suppliers of the goods and services included in, or offered in addition to, your booking, we will endeavour to select them with reasonable skill and care. Except as may be prescribed by Consumer Law or Health and Safety Law, we have no liability to you for the actual provision of the goods and services any third parties may provide, and you acknowledge and accept that we are not responsible or in control of any goods and services provided by third parties or independent suppliers. All liability for any loss, damage, omission or acts, negligent or otherwise, committed by third parties and suppliers used in connection with our sailing trips are expressly excluded. You are expected to make your own enquiries in respect of any risks associated with the sailing trip and you are deemed to take part in the sailing trip at your own risk.
We will not be responsible or pay you any compensation for any injury, illness, death, loss, damage, expense, cost or other claim of any description if it results from:
- the acts, omissions and/or failure of the person affected; or
- the acts, omissions and/or failure of a third party unconnected with the provision of the services contracted for under these Booking Conditions; or
- any act, omission and/or failure by any employee(s) if they were not acting in the course of their employment carrying out the duties they were contracted to do with us; or
- any act, omission and/or failure by another member of the public who is on one of our sailing trips; or
- Force Majeure (as defined in clause 10).
If, despite this clause, we are held to be liable to you under these Booking Terms for loss of any nature (including under contract and in negligence) then, to the extent permitted by law, we limit the amount of compensation we may have to pay you as follows:
- loss of and/or damage to any luggage or personal possessions and money: the maximum amount we will have to pay you in respect of these claims is an amount equivalent to the lesser of $500 or the excess on your insurance policy which applies to this type of loss per person in total because you are required to have adequate insurance in place to cover any losses of this kind; and
- claims not relating to luggage, personal possessions or money, and which don’t involve injury, illness or death: the maximum amount we will have to pay you in respect of these claims is up to twice the price paid by you. This maximum amount will only be payable where everything has gone wrong and you have not received any benefit at all from your booking.
Notwithstanding any other provision contained in these Booking Conditions, our total liability shall not under any circumstances include damages for indirect or consequential loss of any kind, howsoever caused.
It is a condition of our acceptance of liability under this clause that you notify any claim to us and our supplier(s) strictly in accordance with the complaints procedure set out in these conditions.
Where any payment is made in respect of a claim, the person(s) receiving it (and their parent or guardian if under 18 years) must also assign to us or our insurers any rights they may have to pursue any third party and must provide us and our insurers with all assistance we may reasonably require. You must co-operate fully with us and/our insurers should we or our insurers wish to enforce those rights which have been assigned to us by you.
If you make a claim against us which is covered by your insurance policy, you agree to pursue the claim through your insurer either in addition to, or in substitution for, your claim against us (if any).
Please note, we will not accept any liability for any damage, loss or expense or other sum(s) of any description which on the basis of the information given to us by you concerning your booking prior to our accepting it, we could not have foreseen you would suffer or incur if we breached our contract with you.
We will not accept responsibility for services or facilities which do not form part of your booking as specified on your booking confirmation. For example any excursion you book whilst away, any additional activities (regardless whether or not it is booked through us) or any service or facility which your accommodation or any other supplier agree to provide to you directly and this includes but is not limited to water taxis, road taxis, bus/coach journeys and any other transport which you use whilst on the sailing trip.

16. Excursions

Excursions, tours or activities that you may choose to book or pay for during your sailing trip are provided by independent third-party suppliers and operators and do not form part of your contract with us. Your contract for any excursion, tours or activities that you book (regardless whether or not it is booked through us), will be with the supplier or operator of the excursions, tours or activities and not with us. We are not responsible for the provision of the excursions, tours or activities or for anything that happens during the course of their provision by the supplier or operator.

You acknowledge that we are not responsible or liable in any way for any such excursions, tours or activities, including any injuries or loss of any kind whatsoever that arises from your use of these services whilst on sailing trip.

17. Conditions of Suppliers

Many of the services which are included within your booking are provided by independent third-party suppliers. Those suppliers provide these services in accordance with their own terms and conditions. Some of these terms and conditions may limit or exclude the supplier’s liability to you, usually in accordance with applicable International Conventions. Copies of the terms and conditions associated with these services are available on request from us or the supplier concerned. By booking with us you acknowledge that you will comply with those terms and conditions as they relate to your booking.

18. Passport, Visa and Immigration Requirements & Health Formalities

It is your responsibility to check and fulfil the passport, visa, health and immigration requirements applicable to your itinerary. We can only provide general information about this. You must check requirements for your own specific circumstances with the relevant Embassies and/or Consulates and your own doctor as applicable.. Requirements do change and you must check the up to date position in good time before departure.

Most countries now require passports to be valid for at least 6 months after your return date. If your passport is in its final year, you should check with the Embassy of the country you are visiting.

Non-British passport holders, including other EU nationals, should obtain up-to-date advice on passport and visa requirements from the Embassy, High Commission or Consulate of your destination or country(ies) through which you are travelling.

You acknowledge that we are not responsible if you cannot travel, or incur any other loss because you have not complied with any passport, visa, immigration requirements or health formalities. You agree to reimburse us in relation to any fines or other losses which we incur as a result of your failure to comply with any passport, visa, immigration requirements or health formalities.

19. Local laws and policies

You are responsible for making yourself aware of the laws and other requirements of the countries in which your sailing trip will take place, as well as any advice in regard to the safety of the countries and areas in which you will be travelling, and to make your decisions accordingly. Advice from a Government Agency to avoid or leave a particular country may constitute Force Majeure. (See clause 10).

You are required at all times to comply with any policies or instructions in relation to the countries and areas you will be travelling, and failure to do so will be deemed a breach of these Booking Conditions.

20. Marine Insurance

We provide sailing trips and facilitate the hiring of experienced skippers and the use of vessels/yachts that are insured against potential risks and liabilities.

We do not assume direct liability for losses or damages incurred by you during the sailing trip. Our liability is limited to the facilitation and arrangement of the sailing trip and the selection of skilled skippers and well-maintained vessels/yachts.

The skipper's and vessel/yacht's insurance policies may be available to you on request.

21. Marketing

We use real people on our sailing trips for any images we may have on our website, brochures, advertising materials, promotional materials and general publicity. If you have an objection to any photographs or videos of you on your sailing trip being used by us in this manner, please make your objection known to us before or during the sailing trip. Unless you make such objection known to us, by accepting these Booking Conditions you will be deemed to have consented to our Yacht Getaways Crew or Representatives taking photographs and video of you while you are on a sailing trip and to any photographs or videos of you being used by us in such a manner, free of any consideration or restriction, but otherwise in accordance with our privacy policy.

Any photographs or videos on our website, brochures or other advertising or promotional material are examples only. Unless explicitly stated otherwise (and subject to clause 9), we make no guarantee that your sailing trip will involve any of the same yachts, accommodation, vehicles, landmarks or activities that may be depicted in those photographs or videos.

22. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and to hold us harmless (and our directors, officers, employees, agents and authorised representatives) against all loss, damage, liability, actions, proceedings, claims, demands or prosecutions, costs, damages and expenses of any kind or nature suffered, incurred, brought or commenced against us (and our directors, officers, employees, agents and authorised representatives) as a result of your fraud, gross negligence or wilful failure to comply with these Booking Terms. For the purposes of section 12 of the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017, this clause is intended to create a benefit in favour of, and be enforceable by, each of our directors, officers, employees, agent and authorised representatives.

23. Definitions and Interpretation

“Consumer Law” means the applicable consumer law(s) of New Zealand, including the Fair Trading Act 1986, the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 and the Contract and Commercial Law Act 2017 (or any legislation in substitution for those Acts).

“Data Protection Requirements” means the data protection requirements under the Privacy Act 2020 and the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679).

“GST” means tax charged under the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985.

“Health and Safety Law” means the health and safety law of New Zealand, includes the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

“Working Day” means any day, other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday in Auckland, New Zealand, on which banks are generally open for business.

Unless stated otherwise, all monetary amounts are stated in Euros.

The singular includes the plural and vice versa.

24. Miscellaneous

To the extent permitted by law, we may vary these terms from time to time with the variation becoming effective as soon as we provide you with notice of the variation.

The termination, expiry or completion of your booking or contract with us does not operate to terminate any rights or obligations under these Booking Conditions which are, by their nature, intended to survive termination or expiration, including without limitation, rights or obligations in relation to loss, damage and indemnity.