Booking & Weather Policy

2. Confirming a booking and paying

A website or WhatsApp enquiry does not reserve a boat. A booking is confirmed when the required deposit has been received and we send written confirmation. We provide the quote and booking terms before asking for payment. If we cannot confirm the agreed trip, we return any payment in full.

The deposit is 30% of the confirmed trip price on standard dates and 50% for departures from 20 December through 20 January, inclusive. The remaining balance is due on or before departure as stated in the confirmation. No unpaid trip balance becomes due if the booking is cancelled.

Use the payment instructions supplied through our confirmed booking contact. If you receive unexpected or changed bank details, check them with us using the contact details above before paying. We do not request payment-card details in the website planner.

The lead guest must have legal capacity to make the booking and authority to arrange it for the group. Please check the confirmation and share these terms and the Privacy Policy with the other passengers. A group booking does not give consent to optional marketing on anyone else's behalf.

5. Meeting time, the boat and the route

The confirmation gives your pickup or meeting time, departure pier and return arrangements. Please tell us promptly if you are delayed. A late arrival may shorten the trip because the boat's return time cannot always be extended. A delay caused by AquaTour or our included transfer is not treated as a guest no-show.

If we propose a change to the agreed boat or itinerary before departure, we explain it and seek your agreement. If you decline the changed trip, you can receive a full refund of the payments made, without cancellation deductions.

During the trip, the captain may take immediate action for safety or to follow an authority's instruction. Other itinerary changes require your agreement. Section 9 explains the refund rules when a trip is changed or shortened.

6. Cancelling your booking

Send a cancellation or date-change request by WhatsApp or email using your booking contact. It takes effect when AquaTour receives the written message. For an urgent problem, call us as well. Notice is counted back from the confirmed departure time using Phuket local time.

On cancellation, you do not owe an unpaid trip balance. This applies on standard and peak dates, including when only the 50% peak-date deposit has been paid. The rules below determine the refund of payments already made.

Within 14 days on standard dates, the deposit is retained. The 50% and 25% refunds cannot exceed what you paid above that deposit. If you paid only the deposit, there is no contractual refund and no further trip balance to pay.

For departures from 20 December through 20 January, inclusive, cancellation with fewer than 14 days' notice has no contractual refund. With at least 14 days' notice, all payments are refunded, less only eligible third-party costs. The one-time date-change option in Section 7 also applies to peak dates.

We do not deduct bank fees, payment-processing fees, agent commissions or an administrative cancellation fee from a refund. A third-party cost can be deducted for a guest cancellation only if it was disclosed and agreed in advance, was incurred specifically for the booking and cannot be recovered. We provide the amount and supporting evidence. The same cost is not deducted again if covered by money already retained under the cancellation rules. A deduction cannot create an additional payment obligation.

A no-show, or an arrival more than 30 minutes after the agreed meeting time without prior notice, is treated as a cancellation with less than 48 hours' notice. This does not apply to a delay caused by AquaTour or our included transfer.

Refunds go to the original payment method unless we agree another method with you. We confirm the calculation and processing arrangements and make the refund without undue delay. Mandatory refund rights take priority over these contractual rules.

7. Changing the date or group

You may request one date change at least 48 hours before the confirmed departure, subject to boat availability. There is no rebooking fee. A request received later may be accepted if arrangements allow; an accepted change follows the same no-fee and price rules.

The new trip must take place no later than three calendar months after the original departure date. If that final month has no corresponding day, the deadline is its last day. We confirm the new date and this deadline in writing. An earlier available date can also be agreed.

All payments already made carry forward to the new date. The original price stays the same for the same boat, route, package and agreed group, including a move into peak dates. There is no seasonal supplement or charge for moving the date. The original unpaid balance is due only if the trip goes ahead.

If no suitable new date is agreed and you cancel, Section 6 applies using the time we received your first written date-change request. If you cancel after a new date has been confirmed, the refund cannot exceed what was available when you first requested the change; any smaller refund due under the rules for the new date also applies. Moving the date does not restart the cancellation window. No unpaid trip balance is charged after cancellation.

If you do not use the retained payment for a trip within the three-month period, it expires without a contractual cash refund, subject to mandatory legal rights. If AquaTour cancels a confirmed replacement trip, Section 8 applies: you can choose a full refund. An operator cancellation does not use up your one guest-requested change.

Reducing the group or downgrading the route within 7 days of departure does not reduce the confirmed price. A larger group is subject to capacity. A different boat, route or extra service you request requires a separate agreement on availability and price.

8. If AquaTour cancels before departure

We may cancel or postpone a trip if safe operation cannot be ensured, including because of unsafe weather, sea conditions, an authority's instruction, a technical problem or an event beyond our reasonable control.

You can choose another available date at the original price for the same package, or a full refund of all payments, including the deposit. No unpaid trip balance is charged. We make no deductions for national park fees, the included transfer, bank or processing fees, or other cancellation costs. You do not have to accept another date or a retained payment instead of a refund.

We explain the reason and available options as soon as reasonably possible. If AquaTour cancels an agreed replacement trip, the same full-refund choice applies.

9. Weather and changes after departure

The Operations Manager and captain assess forecasts, authority instructions and conditions on the day. Strong winds, waves, lightning, poor visibility or navigation restrictions can require a change, suspension or early return. Guests must follow the captain's immediate safety instructions.

A shortened trip does not automatically give a full refund of the entire charter. A proportionate refund is due for a changed itinerary unless we can show that delivering the changed trip cost the same or more. We explain the calculation and relevant costs. Simply leaving the pier does not remove your refund rights.

A safety decision does not waive claims for a service failure or breach of our duties. If AquaTour cancels before departure, the full-refund choice in Section 8 applies.