Whitehawk Birding Terms & Conditions

Before your birding day trip or extended tour, please review our Whitehawk Birding Terms & Conditions for important information regarding our policies for payments, cancellations, and refunds. 

PANAMA (HALF AND FULL) DAY TRIPS

Unless otherwise specified in itinerary details, all half and full-day trips include:

  • A private, bilingual bird guide
  • Private transportation for the duration of the trip
  • A fully customized itinerary based on client interests
  • Pick-up and drop-off at your hotel within Panama City proper and a few select outlying areas
  • All National Park entrance fees
  • Cold water 
  • Snacks (half day) or a light lunch (full day)
  • A list of all birds seen emailed to you or shared via eBird

To reserve a day trip, we will ask for a US$100 non-refundable but transferable deposit to hold the reservation. If Whitehawk must cancel this tour for any reason, the customer will be entitled to a full refund. However, if the client cancels the tour after the deposit has been paid, Whitehawk will be unable to refund this payment. However, we do offer a grace period in which customers will have 12 months to put this money toward any other available trip with Whitehawk.

Final payment for day tours must be paid 48 hours or more prior to the tour by credit card. For balances over $1600, the payment can be made by bank wire transfer. If paid with a credit card, a transaction fee will be charged. We cannot accept cash payments for tours.

If this payment is not received within 48 hours from the start of the tour, and we receive no confirmation from the client, we will need to cancel the tour.

MULTI-DAY BIRDING TOURS

Unless otherwise specified in individual tour itinerary details or specific tour information, all travel packages include the following:

  • Pick-up at the airport in the city chosen as the starting point for the trip. If you are in another part of town on the day of the pick-up, please inform us and we will make every effort to pick you up wherever you are. If for any reason this is not possible, you will need to find your own way to the hotel where the group will be staying.
  • Welcome package with itinerary, travel information, and checklist of the birds of the region.
  • All ground transportation, including travel in our own vehicles, bus, or train; or any other means of ground transportation that we will use during the course of the trip (see note on internal flights below**)
  • Accommodation starting on the first day of the trip until the morning of the last day of the tour.
  • Full board from dinner on the first day of the tour to breakfast on the last day of the tour. Sometimes breakfast or lunch may consist of a packed meal in order to spend as much time as possible in the field.

**The cost of internal (national) flights is not included in tour pricing on the website but will be reserved and invoiced at the time of booking based on airfare rates at the time.

The trip itinerary will be restricted to that published on the website and the information provided to the client. However, it is subject to last-minute changes if the guide or the directors of Whitehawk believe that these changes are necessary due to unforeseen circumstances or for the benefit of the trip and clients.

The following is not included in your payment:

  • Round-trip ticket from your hometown to the starting location of the tour
  • Internal/national flights in-country (see note above)
  • Personal trip insurance
  • Extra Drinks/alcoholic beverages
  • Personal items, toiletries, and medicines
  • Any visa requirements for entering into the country
  • Any immunizations recommended for travel to certain countries
  • Tips for Whitehawk guides/tour leaders
  • Charges incurred because of circumstances beyond the control of Whitehawk Birding (delayed flights that require changes to the itinerary/lodging, serious weather events, etc.)

Additional booking fee

We are happy to make any additional hotel, tour bookings, or transportation arrangements for you outside of the tour you have booked with us. For any additional arrangements made, there will be a one-time booking fee of $25.

Insurance
The customer is responsible for acquiring his or her own travel health insurance. The purchase of this insurance is mandatory for participation in any Whitehawk tour and must be confirmed before the start of the tour. We recommend also purchasing trip insurance that includes payment refunds in case you have to cancel the trip due to sickness or other major events.

Reservation and Payment
All tour prices are quoted in U.S. Dollars.

Once we receive your reservation form we will contact you immediately to confirm your reservation. At that time, a deposit of US$800 per person (non-refundable but transferable) will be required for us to secure your booking. This can be paid by bank wire transfer or by credit card. We require that the remaining balance be paid to Whitehawk at least 120 days prior to the start of the scheduled trip. If payment has not been made within the allotted time, we will be forced to cancel the reservation and the deposit will not be refundable. However, you will have the option to use the deposit with Whitehawk within twelve months of the cancellation.

If booking a tour less than 120 days before the start of the trip and places are still available, we will ask the customer to pay the total cost of travel when booking a tour.

Final tour payments can be made by bank wire transfer. The information needed for the transfer will be provided on the invoice at the time of booking. Please ensure we receive the full amount owed by covering all transaction fees on your end.

Payments by credit card
We can accept one-time payments by credit card up to an amount of $1600. Any credit card payments over $1600 will be subject to a transaction fee, including if dividing the tour costs or remaining balances into multiple credit card payments.

We cannot accept payments by Paypal, personal checks, or bank-based apps (Venmo, etc.).

CANCELLATIONS – DAY TOURS

If the scheduled guide for a day tour is unable to guide due to illness or other emergency conditions at the last minute, we will do our best to find a replacement guide for the tour and inform you of the change as soon as possible. If no other guide is available, then we will reschedule the tour date if possible based on the client’s schedule. If Whitehawk must cancel a tour for any reason, the customer will be entitled to a full refund of their deposit.

However, if the client cancels the tour after the deposit has been paid, Whitehawk will be unable to refund this payment. However, we do offer a grace period in which customers will have 12 months to put this money toward any other available trip with Whitehawk.

CANCELLATIONS – MULTI-DAY TOURS

If for any reason Whitehawk is forced to cancel a tour due to events outside of our control, you will be refunded the full amount paid to Whitehawk as of the cancellation date, minus any related bank fees, taxes, or any other non-refundable purchases already made (i.e. domestic flights, national park reservations, etc.).

If Whitehawk cancels a tour due to insufficient sign-ups, we will refund the full amount (in U.S. dollars) received by Whitehawk as of the cancellation date.

If the client cancels the reservation 121 days or more before the start of the tour date, 100% of the money – less the deposit – will be refunded. If the client cancels the reservation between 120 and 91 days before the start of the trip, 75% of the money – less the deposit – will be refunded. For cancellations occurring between 90 and 61 days remaining prior to the tour start date, 50% of the total trip cost – less the deposit – will be refunded. Customers will not be entitled to any refund if the cancellation occurs 60 days or less prior to the tour start date.

All refunds will be paid in US Dollars. If you have paid for your tour with a different currency, we cannot be held responsible for fluctuations in exchange rates between the payment date and the refund date, which might increase or decrease the final amount received.

As an alternative to refunds, we can hold the full amount paid for any tour, minus any related bank fees, taxes, or any other non-refundable purchases already made (i.e. domestic flights, national park reservations, etc.). We offer a grace period in which customers will have 12 months to put this money toward any other available trip with Whitehawk (booked within 12 months and executed within 2 years).

If at any time you have questions about our trips, payments, or other topics related to Whitehawk Birding Terms & Conditions, please feel free to call us at +1 208 473 2473, or contact us via e-mail at info@whitehawkbirding.com.