Terms, Conditions, and Responsibilities

Age Limitations: Children as young as five years are allowed to participate on day-trips. Camping trips require children to be at least eight years of age, except in the case of custom trips. To paddle in a tandem (two-person) kayak a child must be physically fit and weigh at least 100 pounds. Smaller children will need to paddle in triple-cockpit boats with two other full-size paddlers, including at least one parent or much older sibling. We have a limited number of triple-cockpit kayaks so be sure to request about availability and reserve in advance. Exceptions sometimes can be made by arranging for a custom tour. Parties that desire to include young children are encouraged to schedule custom trips or to participate in expeditions designed especially with families in mind. Call us to discuss this and we can help match your family or group with another of similar interests and ages!

Release of Liability: Each participant is required to complete, sign and return to us a Participant Agreement, Release and Acknowledgement of Risk Liability Release) before being allowed to participate in any trip. This document releases Sea Quest Expeditions and Zoetic Research from liability in the case of accident or injury for any reason. When you register your personal information, please take a moment to read and digitally sign the document. Be sure to complete one for each minor in your party. If you do not do this online, we will present you with a paper version of the Liablity Release when you arrive that must be manually signed. Any minors' must have their parents or legal guardians present to sign for them. As part of the same online registration process, you must complete a questionnaire regarding age, size, health conditions and dietary restrictions to be allowed to participate.

Travel: We are pleased to provide detailed information on our website Travel Info pages to help you get to trip departure points. Although we may assist you with certain arrangements, all travel to and from trip departure points is the sole responsibility of the participant. We are not responsible for expenses arising from the delay, extension, or cancellation of a trip due to weather, airline performance, or other causes beyond our control. To get from the designated trip departure point to the actual boat launching location, it may be necessary for us to employ transportation services such as taxi, float plane, or boat charter. Sea Quest Expeditions and Zoetic Research acts only as agents in regard to that particular part of a trip, and can assume no liability for any actions or defaults of any individual or organization with whom such arrangements have been made.

Cancellations of a Scheduled Trip Due to Lack of Participants or other Business Considerations: Fortunately for everyone, cancellation of a scheduled trip is a rare occurrence as our services are very popular and in steady demand. Nevertheless, we must reserve the right to cancel any trip prior to departure for any reason whatsoever. We will refund any payments received if the cancellation is not due to weather, natural disaster, or other forces beyond our control. The refund of payments received shall release Sea Quest Expeditions and Zoetic Research from any further liability, including expenses incurred by participants in preparation and travel for the trip.

Cancellations or Modifications Due to Weather, Natural Disaster, or Forces Beyond our Control: Our tours operate in any weather, including rain. A few times each year, winds or currents can create sea condtions that force us to modify a tour for safety reasons. This could involve shortening/altering the expected route, a reduction of time kayaking, delays in scheduled times, or other changes designed to keep you safe. Fortunately, this happens only a few times each season and no refunds or rainchecks will be provided in the event of an altered or modified tour itinerary. More rarely, once or twice each year, we are forced to make a last-minute tour cancellation for weather safety reasons, natural disaster, or other forces beyond our control. Only in this situation will you have the option to reschedule your tour, accept a raincheck that expires at the end of the following year, or participate in alternate activities with your guide such as hiking in our parks, exploring tidepools, and/or other outdoor / natural history activities. Travel insurance may help in these situations.

Medical Insurance: All trips are led by guides with first-aid qualifications and communication equipment. However, Sea Quest Expeditions and Zoetic Research assumes no responsibility regarding provision of medical care or evacuation. We advise you to examine your present insurance policy to make certain you possess adequate medical and personal injury coverage for travel in remote areas. Most travel insurance policies will cover this.

Cancelling your Reservation: In order to continue providing the high quality trips that our guests are accustomed to experiencing with us, we need to know that you will honor your reservation. Once you book a trip with us, we protect the spaces that you have reserved. Considerable time, money, and staff preparation goes into creating our great kayak trips. Unlike the airline industry, we do not overbook our kayak tours to hedge against potential cancellations. Due to our much smaller capacity and the brief seasonal nature of our business, late cancellations and "no shows" hit us much harder than the airline and hotel industry. Nevertheless, our refund policy is quite similar to theirs. Therefore, we strongly advise that you purchase travel insurance to protect yourself.

The following refund policy must be adhered to for the reasons stated above. Cancellations must be received in writing to be official, and the refund rates are based on the date of receipt. An administration fee of $50 is applied to all cancellations. More than thirty days prior to departure: full refund minus the administration fee. Sixteen to thirty days prior to departure: refund equal to 50% of the trip fee remaining after the administration fee is deducted. Zero to fifteen days prior to departure: full amount retained.

Trip Cancellation Insurance: We recommend that you purchase trip cancellation insurance to protect your vacation investment. You can purchase this online at our Travel Insurance page in the More Information and Reservations areas of our website.