Farbound Travels Refund & Cancellation Policy
This policy explains how cancellations, refunds, and changes work for Farbound private journeys. It applies to every booking unless your invoice/confirmation states stricter supplier terms for specific items.
How Farbound bookings work
Farbound journeys are confirmed after:
you approve the itinerary and quote in writing, and
full payment is received, and
Farbound issues written confirmation.
Once confirmed, Farbound begins securing hotels, transport, guides, flights (where included), permits, and timed entries. Many of these become non-refundable immediately or reduce in refundability as the travel date approaches.
Key definitions
“Trip Price” means the amount paid to Farbound for the trip services listed on your invoice/confirmation (excluding any international flights you book independently).
“Confirmed Services” means any trip components Farbound has already reserved, ticketed, paid, or contractually committed for your booking.
“Special Components” means items that commonly carry strict or non-refundable terms, including (examples): domestic flights, India–Nepal sectors (if included), wildlife safaris and park fees, permits/restricted-area permissions, special access, charters, festival/event tickets, and peak-season/strict-term hotels.
The refund principle (how refunds are calculated)
Because Farbound pre-books services upfront, refunds are limited to amounts that are both:
not yet committed to suppliers, or
recovered from suppliers under their cancellation terms,
minus any non-recoverable fees and costs already incurred.
In practice:
Some items may be partially refundable if cancelled early.
Many items become non-refundable once confirmed.
After services are committed, Farbound may be unable to recover meaningful amounts even if you cancel far in advance.
Refundability timeline (simple rule)
Up to 90 days before Day 1 (departure from the trip start city):
Farbound will refund only the portion of your Trip Price that has not been committed and/or can be recovered from suppliers.
This typically includes items that are still unbooked or refundable (if any), such as certain guide fees, some transport components, and certain entry tickets not yet issued.
Any Confirmed Services and any Special Components follow supplier terms and may be non-refundable.
Within 90 days of Day 1:
Farbound treats the Trip Price as generally non-refundable because most services are already committed.
If Farbound recovers any amounts from suppliers after cancellation, Farbound will pass those recoveries back to you (net of non-recoverable costs and fees), where feasible.
No guarantees: Recovery depends entirely on supplier terms, seasonality, availability conditions, and how far the booking has progressed.
Special Components (strict supplier terms)
Special Components may be non-refundable from the moment they are booked or ticketed, regardless of how far you are from travel. Examples include:
flights (domestic and any in-itinerary international sectors),
national park safaris/permits/fees,
restricted-area permits,
charters and special access,
festival/event tickets,
strict-term hotels and peak-season allocations.
If your itinerary includes Special Components, Farbound will flag them in your proposal and/or confirmation where possible. Supplier rules still apply even if not flagged.
Cancellation by you (how to request)
To cancel, email support@farboundtravels.com
with:
booking reference / invoice number,
lead traveler name,
cancellation request (clear statement),
reason (optional),
any supporting documents (optional).
Farbound will acknowledge receipt and begin supplier recovery checks. Refund amounts, if any, are confirmed only after supplier responses.
Changes by you (dates, route, traveler details)
Farbound handles changes case-by-case and will aim for a traveler-friendly outcome where feasible. All changes are subject to supplier availability and may trigger repricing.
Date change / route change:
If suppliers allow amendments, Farbound will apply the revised supplier cost plus any fare differences (flights) and any non-recoverable costs already incurred.
If suppliers do not allow amendments, the change may need to be treated as a cancellation and rebooking, applying the refund principle in Section 3.
Name correction:
Minor spelling corrections are usually possible.
Full traveler substitution depends on supplier rules, permit rules, and flight ticket rules. Some components cannot be transferred.
Upgrades/downgrades and add-ons:
Allowed where feasible; price changes apply.
Some upgrades (e.g., certain hotels, special access, safaris) may require immediate commitment and may become non-refundable.
If Farbound cancels / force majeure
If Farbound cancels your trip for internal operational reasons (not force majeure), Farbound will offer either:
a rebook/transfer to revised dates or an alternative itinerary, or
a refund of amounts paid to Farbound for the affected services, subject to what has already been committed and what is recoverable from suppliers.
Force majeure includes events outside reasonable control (examples): government restrictions, natural disasters, widespread disruption, security incidents, strikes, or supplier shutdowns. In force majeure scenarios:
Farbound will prioritize rebooking and route adjustments.
Refunds, if any, remain limited to what is recoverable from suppliers, minus non-recoverable costs.
Refund method, currency, and timing
Method: Refunds are issued to the original payment method where possible.
Currency: Refunds are issued in the original payment currency where possible. Banks/payment providers may apply FX at the time of refund; Farbound does not control FX outcomes.
Fees and taxes: Payment processing fees, bank charges, and any non-recoverable taxes or government fees may be deducted where they are not recoverable by Farbound. GST handling follows applicable law and invoice structure.
Typical processing flow (indicative, not guaranteed):
Acknowledgement: within 1 business day
Supplier recovery confirmation: depends on supplier response times
Refund initiation (once confirmed): within 3 business days
No-show and missed services
If you miss a service due to late arrival, no-show, incomplete documents (passport/visa/permits), or personal choice, that service is non-refundable.
Travel insurance
Travel insurance is highly recommended. Insurance may cover certain cancellation scenarios depending on your policy. Farbound does not provide insurance and cannot guarantee that any claim will be approved by your insurer.
Policy hierarchy
If your invoice/confirmation states stricter terms for any component, those stricter terms override this policy for that component.
Group tours
These terms apply to our small-group tours with fixed dates. Private journeys follow the policy above.
Your booking
- A deposit secures your place. The amount is shown at checkout.
- The balance is due 60 days before departure, unless the tour says otherwise. If you book later than that, you pay in full.
- We remind you 14 days before the balance is due, on the day, and 3 days after. If it is still unpaid 7 days after the due date, we may cancel your booking, and the charges below apply.
If a departure doesn't fill
- Each departure needs at least 4 guests. We confirm 75 days before departure.
- If a date has fewer than 4 guests, you choose: a private trip on the same dates (we quote the price), another departure, or a full refund.
If you cancel
| When you cancel | Charge |
|---|---|
| More than 60 days before departure | Your deposit |
| 60 to 31 days before | 50% of the total price |
| 30 to 15 days before | 75% of the total price |
| 14 days or less, or a no-show | 100% of the total price |
Please cancel in writing, by email. Your travel insurance may cover these charges.
Changes
- You can move to another departure once, free of charge, up to 60 days before departure, if there are seats.
- You can change a traveller's name up to 30 days before departure, if our suppliers allow it. Any supplier fee is passed on.
If we change or cancel
- We may make small changes, such as a hotel of the same standard or a different order of visits. Festival dates can move by a day.
- If we must cancel because of events outside our control, such as severe weather, unrest or official travel advice, you choose: a credit for the full amount, valid for 18 months, or a refund of everything we can recover from our suppliers.
- If we cancel for any other reason, you get a full refund.
Travel insurance, health and children
- Travel insurance is required. It must cover medical treatment, evacuation and cancellation. For high-altitude trips, such as Ladakh, it must cover the altitude.
- Please tell us about any medical condition when you book. For high-altitude trips, we ask you to fill in a short health form.
- Children of any age are welcome, travelling with a parent or guardian on the same booking.
- We need passport details 60 days before departure, or 120 days for tiger safari tours, because of park permits.
Refunds
- Refunds go back to your original payment method within 14 days.