LEGAL

Travel Conditions

Travel conditions of de Gaay Fortman Advies, trading as Discover Your Wild Self, for the Discover Your Wild Self trail in Botswana. Version 30 October 2026.

These travel conditions apply to every booking for a Discover Your Wild Self trail. The trail is a package travel arrangement, and you have all the rights that Dutch and EU law give travellers on a package.

1. Organiser

1.1. We are de Gaay Fortman Advies, trading as Discover Your Wild Self, Schermerstraat 10 Zw, 2013 ES Haarlem, the Netherlands, KvK 68958870 ("we", "us"). Contact: hello@discoveryourwildself.com, +31 6 5883 7096.

1.2. We are in the process of joining the Vereniging van Kleinschalige Reisorganisaties (VvKR) and the STO Garant guarantee scheme. We will publish our membership and participant numbers here as soon as we are registered. We do not accept any payment for the trail before our STO Garant participation is in place.

1.3. In these conditions, "you" means the person who books a place on the trail and takes part in it. "The trail" means the package described in the programme on our website and in your booking confirmation.

2. Package travel

2.1. The combination of travel services offered to you is a package within the meaning of Directive (EU) 2015/2302 and Title 7A of Book 7 of the Dutch Civil Code. You therefore benefit from all EU rights applying to packages. We are fully responsible for the proper performance of the package as a whole.

2.2. The standard information form for package travel contracts is shown on our booking page before you book, and sent again with your booking confirmation.

2.3. Mandatory law always prevails over these conditions. If a provision of these conditions is less favourable to you than the law, the law applies.

3. Booking and confirmation

3.1. Before you book, we recommend a free discovery call with Rick to check together whether the trail suits you.

3.2. You book by submitting the booking form on our website (discoveryourwildself.com/book). This is a binding booking request: by submitting it, you accept these travel conditions.

3.3. Within 5 working days, we confirm or decline your booking in writing. The contract is concluded when we send that written confirmation, together with the total price, the payment schedule and the information the law requires. There is no 14-day withdrawal period for package travel: from our confirmation, the cancellation fees in article 9 apply.

3.4. You must be 18 or older to book. You must provide complete and correct information, including relevant health information, before the trail.

3.5. Once your booking is confirmed, we send you the participant form. It asks for your passport details, insurance details, medical information and emergency contact, which we need to prepare the trail safely. You return it by the date the balance is due (see article 6).

3.6. Before the trail, you have a 1:1 intake session with Rick to explore your intentions. After the trail, you have a 1:1 integration session. Both are included in the price.

4. Price and payment

4.1. There are two prices. If you book as a private person, the price includes VAT. If you book through your employer or business, the price excludes VAT and we add VAT on the invoice. Your booking confirmation shows the total price you pay, including all compulsory charges. The price covers the services listed in the programme. Flights to and from Maun, travel insurance and personal purchases are not included.

4.2. We will not increase the price after we have confirmed your booking.

4.3. You pay a deposit of €750 within 14 days of the confirmation. You pay the remaining balance by the date in your confirmation (for the trail of 18–26 April 2027: by 1 March 2027). If you book after that date, you pay the full price at once.

4.4. All payments are made to the escrow account of STO Garant, as explained in article 5. Payments made in any other way are not covered by the guarantee.

4.5. If you do not pay on time, we send you a reminder with 14 days to pay. If you still do not pay, we may cancel your booking and charge the cancellation fee in article 9.

5. Guarantee: STO Garant

5.1. To meet the legal requirement to protect travellers against our insolvency, we use STO Garant, a guarantee scheme recognised by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). Once we are registered, you can check our participation on www.sto-garant.nl.

5.2. You do not pay us directly. You pay into the escrow account of STO Garant's foundation for third-party funds, a payment service provider registered with De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB). Your money stays there until the trail has ended and is released to us the day after.

5.3. If we become unable to perform the trail because of insolvency before or during the trail, STO Garant uses your payment to refund you or to arrange your return.

5.4. Your booking is covered once you have received the confirmation e-mail from STO Garant that your payment is held in escrow. The STO Garant fee per booking is shown separately on your invoice.

6. Travel documents, health and insurance

6.1. You need a passport valid for at least 6 months after your return, with at least two blank pages. We give you general information on visa requirements, vaccinations and malaria prevention before you book. Arranging these is your own responsibility.

6.2. Travel insurance and medical insurance are mandatory. Your cover must include medical treatment abroad, emergency evacuation by air and repatriation, and must not exclude walking safaris or wildlife activities. We strongly recommend cancellation insurance. You send us proof of insurance, including the insurer's 24-hour emergency number, by the date the balance is due.

6.3. You complete the participant form, including the medical questionnaire, before the balance date. If your health changes after that, you tell us before departure.

6.4. If you have not provided proof of insurance or the participant form by departure, we may refuse your participation. Article 9 then applies as if you had cancelled.

7. Nature of the trail and risks

7.1. The trail takes place in an unfenced wilderness area in the Okavango Delta. You walk on foot among wild animals, including elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard and hippo. You travel by vehicle and mokoro (dugout canoe), and sleep in small tents in open camps.

7.2. The lead guide is a licensed Botswana professional guide and carries a rifle for protection, to be used only as a last resort. Medical facilities may be several hours or more away, and evacuation depends on weather, light and the availability of aircraft. The area is a malaria zone.

7.3. We take reasonable safety measures, including a safety briefing before every walk, experienced guides, small groups, satellite communication and an emergency evacuation plan. Even so, some risks cannot be removed completely. By booking, you confirm that you understand these risks.

8. Transferring your booking

8.1. You may transfer your booking to another person up to 30 days before departure. You inform us in writing.

8.2. The replacement must meet all conditions of the booking. This includes a conversation with us, the participant form, proof of insurance and travel documents in time. We may refuse a replacement who does not meet these conditions.

8.3. We charge only the actual costs of the transfer, such as name-change fees charged by our local partner. We show you these costs. You and your replacement are jointly liable for the remaining balance and the transfer costs.

9. Cancellation by you

9.1. You may cancel at any time before departure. You do so by e-mail. The date we receive your e-mail is the cancellation date.

9.2. You then pay the following cancellation fee, as a percentage of the total trail price:

9.3. We refund anything you have paid above the fee within 14 days of your cancellation, via STO Garant.

9.4. You pay no cancellation fee if unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances at or near the destination significantly affect the trail or travel to it, such as armed conflict, a natural disaster or a serious outbreak of disease. You then receive a full refund within 14 days. You are not entitled to further compensation.

9.5. Instead of cancelling, you can transfer your booking under article 8.

10. Changes by us

10.1. Nature sets the pace on a wilderness trail. The guide may change the daily route, campsite, timing or activities for reasons of safety, animal movements, water levels or weather. Such minor changes are part of the trail and do not give a right to compensation.

10.2. If before departure we must significantly change a main characteristic of the trail, we tell you without delay. You may then accept the change or cancel without paying a fee. If you cancel, we refund everything you have paid within 14 days.

11. Cancellation by us

11.1. We may cancel the trail if fewer than 4 participants have booked. We tell you at least 20 days before departure.

11.2. We may also cancel if unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances prevent us from performing the trail. We tell you without undue delay, before departure.

11.3. In both cases, we refund everything you have paid within 14 days. We owe no further compensation.

11.4. In any other case, we refund everything you have paid and you may be entitled to compensation under the law.

11.5. Please do not book your flights to Maun until we have confirmed that at least 4 participants have booked. We let you know by e-mail as soon as the minimum is reached. If you book flights before that, you do so at your own risk.

12. During the trail

12.1. You must follow the instructions of the guides and of us immediately, especially during walks, near water, in camp and at night. You stay with the group and do not leave camp alone.

12.2. Consuming drugs, or alcohol in a way that affects safety, is not allowed during walks and activities.

12.3. If your behaviour or physical condition puts yourself or others at risk, or seriously disrupts the trail, the guide or we may exclude you from (part of) an activity or from the trail. Costs that result, such as transport back to Maun, are for your account. There is no refund for the part you miss.

13. Liability

13.1. We are responsible for the proper performance of all travel services in the package, including services performed by our local partners.

13.2. We are not liable if a lack of conformity is caused by you, by a third party unconnected with the services in the package and in a way that was unforeseeable or unavoidable, or by unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances.

13.3. As Dutch law requires for package travel, our liability for personal injury, or for damage we cause intentionally or through negligence, cannot be limited. This does not make us liable for every incident: we are only liable if the trail was not performed as agreed, as set out in 13.1 and 13.2.

13.4. For other damage, our liability is limited to three times the total price of your trail.

13.5. If you contributed to the damage, for example by not following a guide's instruction, your compensation may be reduced accordingly.

13.6. We are not responsible for services you book yourself outside the package, such as flights to and from Maun or extra hotel nights.

14. Assistance

14.1. If you get into difficulty during the trail, we give you prompt and appropriate assistance. This includes help with medical services, local authorities, consular assistance, communication and alternative arrangements.

14.2. If you caused the difficulty intentionally or through negligence, we may charge you the reasonable costs of that assistance.

15. Complaints

15.1. If something is not as agreed during the trail, tell the guide or us straight away, so we can put it right on the spot.

15.2. If the issue is not resolved, send us a written complaint, preferably within 30 days after the trail. We reply within 14 days.

15.3. If we cannot resolve your complaint together, you can use the VvKR mediation procedure (www.vvkr.nl) once our membership is in place.

16. Applicable law and disputes

16.1. Dutch law applies. If you live in another EU country, you keep the protection of the mandatory consumer law of your home country.

16.2. A dispute can be brought before the competent court in Haarlem. If you are a consumer, you can always bring proceedings in the courts of the country where you live.

17. Personal data and photos

17.1. We process your personal data to perform the trail, as described in our privacy policy. We share your name and passport details with our local partner and the hotel in Botswana, outside the EU, only as needed for the bookings, permits and your safety.

17.2. We only process your health information with your explicit consent, given on the participant form. We share it only with the guides and, in an emergency, with medical services.

17.3. We only use photos or videos in which you are recognisable for our website, social media or publicity if you have given separate consent on the participant form. You can withdraw that consent at any time.

18. Final provisions

18.1. The version of these conditions that applies is the version at the time of your booking. Later changes do not apply to your booking unless you agree.

18.2. If a provision is invalid, the rest of these conditions remain in force.

Nederlands