Our Terms & Conditions

The Rules and Regulations We Live By

Last updated: 31 May 2020

1 - Definitions:

The Mzansi Experience refers to Mzanzi Bus Adventures (Pty) Ltd trading as The Mzansi Experience, a Propriety Limited business entity, established and registered in 2016. Hereafter also referred to as "The Company".

Client means individuals, groups, companies or other legal persons using the services offered by The Mzansi Experience.
Activity means an excursion or adventure ranging no longer than a few hours of a single day. These can range from highly relaxing to an extreme physical level according to the choice of the client. All activities are provided by authorised and accredited third parties.
Tour means the provision of services/activities and/or accommodation and/or transportation and/or meals as offered to the client to purchase, and stretches over more than one day - typically at least 3 days. All tours are provided by authorised and accredited third parties.
Accommodation means the provision of overnight facilities in the form of a dorm bed, private room or camping tent as offered to the client to purchase. All accommodation is offered by reputable and well-screened third parties.
Booking means the confirmation of the selected activity, tour or accommodation enquiry/purchase and thereto acceptance of the terms & conditions of The Mzansi Experience, by the client.
Third Party Supplier means any provider of activities, shuttle services, accommodation and tours other than The Mzansi Experience in a direct manner as purchased by the client.

2 - Your agreement with The Mzansi Experience

By finalising your arrangements with us, you are accepting that the terms of this Agreement (and conditions of any contract made with any Third Party Supplier/s) apply to your booking and your travel arrangements. You also consent to our processing personal information about you and other members of your party. We and the Third Party Suppliers may disclose your personal information to others where directly connected with facilitating your travel arrangements and bookings and the provision of travel services and products. For example, we may disclose your personal information to activity providers, tour operators and accommodation establishment car rental companies in facilitating your travel arrangements.

3 - Bookings / Reservation Policy

The Mzansi Experience reserves the right not to confirm the booking until the full amount set out in the invoice received by client (or presented to the client) is paid and has been received, with clear indication that the general terms and conditions of The Mzansi Experience, as well as specific terms and conditions of the Third Party Suppliers – where applicable – has been agreed to.

Please note that for single clients, the Single Supplement is compulsory on all accommodated tours if there is not another person available to share on the tour. The prices thereof will be indicated on each tours pricing.

3.1 When you make a booking:

You guarantee that you have the authority to accept and do accept for yourself the terms of these booking conditions, and any terms and conditions imposed by Third Party Suppliers.
It is your responsibility to ensure that all of the details on your travel documents are correct and to bring to our attention any errors or discrepancies immediately on receiving this document. The names in your booking must be exactly the same as they appear in the traveller’s passport or South African ID document.
You enter into a legally binding contract to acquire the relevant travel or travel-related products and/or services with the Third Party Suppliers.
If you make a booking on behalf of someone else, you warrant that you have the authority to be bound by The Mzansi Experience’s general terms and conditions and the relevant Third Party Suppliers’ terms and conditions on that person’s behalf.

3.2 Booking Conditions

When making a booking, payment is required in full for a valid ticket any product to be issued, unless arranged otherwise on an original basis with the bookings team. Minimum booking timeframes per product category stated below. All bookings are subject to availability.

Activities and Day Tours: Live Bookings – Pending Availability
Tours: Book online up to 2 days before departure or email us at info@mzansi.travel or phone our office for availability.
Please note: For certain tours, a minimum booking capacity (including the client) might be required. If the minimum booking number is not obtained, the Company or Third Party Supplier reserves the right to cancel the tour and refund the tour price to the client, in which even the client shall (for the avoidance of doubt) have no claim for any damages against the Company.

3.3 If You Change Your Booking

If you wish to change your booking and such a change is permitted and possible, The Mzansi Experience might charge you a service fee to process the change. Please note that all reservation changes are subject to availability and the terms and conditions of the product or service purchased. For changes before departure please contact The Mzansi Experience directly on bookings@mzansi.travel

The Mzansi Experience will charge an administration fee for manual booking changes on a case-to-case basis.

3.4 If You Cancel Your Booking

If you cancel your booking, the cancellation terms and conditions of your Third Party Suppliers will apply as well as The Mzansi Experience fees outlined on your itinerary and receipt. We need to receive from you written notification of cancellation and your original ticket/voucher number before any refund can be considered. Should the reason for your cancellation be covered under the terms of your travel insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim your cancellation charges through your insurer.

The refund will only be issued after your payment has reflected in our bank account – it might take a few business days to clear – especially if paid from a foreign bank account. We will refund on the next business day and it will take between 7 – 14 business days to reflect in the clients business account due to bank regulations and procedures.

Please see specific cancellation terms per service/product below.

3.4.1 Cancellation or changes in accommodation bookings
These are bound to the specific Third Party Provider, so please check your ticket for specific terms. All changes or cancellations are handled on a case-to-case basis, but as an indicative value:

Cancellation charges for less than 48 hours: 100% of Booking Value
Cancellation charges for less than 7 days: 50% of Booking Value plus R150 admin fee
Cancellation charges for more than 7 days: R50 admin fee
No Show: No refund

3.4.2 Changes / Cancellation of Activities / Day Tours
These are bound to the specific Third Party Provider, so please check your ticket for specific terms. All changes or cancellations are handled on a case-to-case basis, but as an indicative value:

Cancellation charges for less than 25 hours before the start time: 50% of full activity amount plus R150 admin fee
Cancellation charges for less than 48 hours before the start time: 25% of full activity amount plus R100 admin fee
Cancellation charges for more than 48 hours before the start time: R100 admin fee
No Show: No refund

3.4.5 Changes / Cancellation of a Tour
These are bound to the specific Third Party Provider, so please check your ticket for specific terms. As an indicative value:

Cancellation charges less than 20 Days in advance: No refund
Cancellation charges between 21-40 days in advance: 50% of full value plus R100 admin fee
Cancellation charges between 41-60 days in advance: 20% of full value plus R100 admin fee
Cancellation charges between more than 60 days in advance: R500 admin fee
Changes in dates/transfer of ownership will be handled on a case to case basis, pending circumstances and type of transfer.

4 - What to Do If You Have a Complaint

If you have a problem during your holiday, please inform the relevant Third Party Supplier (e.g. your hotel/lodge) immediately – no refunds or action will be considered if complaints are only reported after 24 hours of a given incident. Should they be unable to resolve the matter, please contact The Mzansi Experience directly via phone or email at info@mzansi.travel

If you fail to contact The Mzansi Experience within 24 hours of the specific incident/complaint, we will not be permitted the opportunity to investigate your complaint and rectify any error whilst you are away and this may affect your rights under your contract. Please note that the dealing with a complaint by The Mzansi Experience or a Third Party Supplier is done without prejudice and does not imply any fault of any kind on the part of either party.

5 - Payment Options

There is various way to pay for your purchases – depending on how and where you buy them.

5.1 Online Payments
The Mzansi Experience has entered into a partnership with a specialist travel and tourism payment solution called Trust My Travel, an internationally renowned payment platform used by major tour operators around the world.

For your financial protection, The Mzansi Experience is a member of Trust My Travel. All client money, whether by bank transfer or card payment is paid into an independently managed Trust Account held at Barclays Bank in the UK. Barclays Bank is also active in South Africa, therefore a local operating financial entity. This means in the unlikely event of our financial failure you will receive a refund for the services you have paid for. Money is not received by us until all suppliers have been paid and you have completed your trip.

For more information about how your payments are protected please visit www.trustmytravel.com for more information. It supports all major vendors such a VISA, MasterCard and American Express.

5.2 Payments to any of our agents
Payments can be made directly at any of our authorised agents in any form they would accept – please check with them directly. These can include credit card, debit card and cash payments.

5.3 Payments to Third Party Tour Providers (when applicable)
Our tours might have charges payable in cash directly to the Third Party Provider and should be done before embarking on the tour. These include charges for the optional activity packages, single supplement and additional activities which is an optional addition to the itinerary. These payments cannot be made to The Mzansi Experience.

6 - Passport, Visa and Immigration Requirements

It is exclusively and entirely your own responsibility to fulfil the passport, visa and other immigration requirements for your entire itinerary including all transiting and stopover destinations applicable to your itinerary. You should confirm these with the relevant High Commissions, embassies and/or consulates before embarking on your journey.

A helpful guideline of visa entry requirements can be found here: https://www.passportindex.org/comparebyPassport.php

We do not accept any responsibility in the case of you being unable to travel due to not complying with any such requirements. Your passport must be valid for 6 months beyond your return date into South Africa and all South African passport holders are required to have a minimum of three blank pages in their passport excluding the front and back cover to enable entry visas to be issued. If there is insufficient space in the passport, the entry will be denied and the person is likely to be detained pending return to their country of origin. Please ensure that all passports are renewed.

7 - The importance of Travel Insurance (Mandatory as of 01 May 2020)

Comprehensive Travel Insurance is a vital part of your arrangements and a mandatory requirement from Mzansi Experience for all our guests. We are offering a travel insurance option on our website, but you are free to make use of external providers for comprehensive insurance as well. Travel insurance is a mandatory element of our travel arrangements, especially our tours offered and proof thereof needs to be provided at leat 7 days before embarking on your tour. Please note that various credit card companies offer limited levels of travel insurance, which may not be sufficient for international travel – a comprehensive cover is recommended.

Comprehensvie travel insurance must cover personal accident, medical expenses, baggage with cancellation and curtailment. We highly recommend - for your own protection - to also take insurance against high cancellation fees from any provider during your tour. Check with the credit card companies in order to obtain the specific details of the cover they offer.

8 - Travel Advice, Preventative Health Measures and Vaccinations

Vaccinations may be required for some or all of the places you are intending to visit. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have arranged all necessary vaccinations for your itinerary. Health, vaccination and inoculation compliance is exclusively and entirely your responsibility. You should ensure that your physical condition is adequate for the intended itinerary and if you are not sure, you should consult your physician.

A good guide can be found here: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/south-africa

COVID-19 Measures for travel to, inside, and from South Africa will be advised to the guest as information becomes available to The Mzansi Experience from the South African Government. You can read the latest updates here: https://sacoronavirus.co.za/

9 - Baggage / Luggage

The client will be responsible for all baggage and personal effects on tour, and The Mzansi Experience, or any Third Party Supplier, shall not be liable for any loss or damage to such baggage or personal effects, howsoever arising.

The client shall be entitled to one bag or suitcase that weighs a maximum of 20 kilograms, and one smaller bag to carry onboard. Should the client require a larger baggage allowance, this needs to be arranged with The Mzansi Experience before-hand by emailing us on bookings@mzansi.travel

Please note that some tours have specific guidelines for luggage which might differ from the guidelines set out as above by The Mzansi Experience.

10 - Chronic Medical Conditions, Disability and Impairments

It is the policy of The Mzansi Experience that we will never discriminate, nor exclude any guest with a chronic medical condition, disability (e.g. wheel-chair) or impairment (hearing, speech, sight etc). It is however extremely important that the guest be upfront with us right from the beginning, in order for us to best advise if we have the facilities to accommodate them properly. Should we be able to provide a tour/experience to the guest, we will do our utmost to include such guests in activities and tours where it will be SAFE and permitted.

It is, therefore, the policy of The Mzansi Experience that any guest with a chronic medical condition, disability or impairment must disclose it to the bookings team during the bookings process –for our team to evaluate and prepare. Failure to do so during the bookings process (not thereafter) will void any complaint, or any claims against us for not being able to accommodate the guest on certain activities, on these specific grounds should this information was not disclosed to us to make necessary arrangements.

11 - Guest / Passenger Conduct

The Mzansi Experience (and its Third Party Suppliers) may, at its discretion and without any liability or cost to itself, at any time cancel or terminate a passenger's reservation in the event of the illness (delaying a scheduled departure), or the illegal, any disruptive, dangerous (or potentially dangerous) behaviour of the passenger, who shall in such circumstances not be entitled to any refund.

We cannot endeavour such conduct at the expense of other guests' comfort and right to enjoy the service that has paid for and will adhere strictly to the above.

12 - Marketing, Advertising and Promotions

The Mzansi Experience reserves the right to use any photographs and video taken during the tour for use in marketing or any other advertising material, and the Client hereby consents to such use. The client further agrees that the Company will retain copyright over any such photographs and videos taken during the tour and/or used in its brochures and, to the extent necessary, the client hereby assigns copyright in such photographs and/or videos to the Company.

13 - Liability

Neither the Company (The Mzansi Experience) nor persons acting for, through or on behalf of the Company will be liable for any loss or damage whatsoever arising from any cause whatsoever and, without restricting the generality of the before mentioned, particularly not be responsible for loss or damage arising from any errors or omissions contained in its brochure or other literature, late or non-confirmation or acceptance of reservations, loss or damage caused by delays, accidents, sickness, injury or death, whether caused by negligence or not.

14 - Force Majeure

Unforeseen circumstances including but not limited to:

war,
government interventions (e.g. lockdowns),
mechanical breakdowns,
extreme weather conditions,
riots and unrests,
pandemics (e.g. Covid-19),
epidemics,
outbreaks,
any situation arising that might place our guests in harms way,
and other unforeseen reasons beyond the control of The Mzansi Experience ("acts of God')

may cause delays, alterations or in extreme cases the cancellation of the transport, activity, accommodation and/or tour. The Company shall not be held liable in any way for any of these possible occurrences or any consequences, which may arise as a result of these, and it will be understood that any delays, alterations or cancellations will be done for the safety of the client as well as staff on duty.

15 - Website and Online Booking Privacy Policy

The Mzansi Experience is committed to protecting consumer privacy online. By using our website or booking platform, you consent to the terms of The Mzansi Experience's Privacy Policy and processing of personal information for the purposes as described below.

You may be required to register in order to be granted access to certain information, services and/or products at this website. At the time of registration, you may be prompted by one of our online forms to provide certain personal information to us, including your name, ID or Passport number, phone number and email address. This is needed for positive identification when embarking on a trip and eliminates fraud and identity theft to occur on any of our services provided.

Our website uses cookies to help us provide better customer service and to enhance the user experience and deliver personalised content. A "cookie" is a small text file stored locally in the computer used to access your account and contains information relating to your past use of this website. You have the ability to accept or decline cookies through your browser settings. Go to the HELP function of your browser to learn how. Please understand that if you choose to decline cookies, you may not be able to fully experience the interactive features of this website.

To protect the privacy of personal information provided by you, The Mzansi Experience employs industry-standard controls including Internet firewalls, intrusion detection software, and network monitoring. Additionally, only authorised administrators and staff have access to systems containing such information. We urge you to take every precaution to protect your personal data when you are on the Internet.

The Mzansi Experience website may collect certain information about your visit, such as the name of the Internet service provider and the Internet Protocol (IP) address through which you access the Internet; the date and time you access the website; the pages that you access and the Internet address of the website from which you linked directly to our site. This information is used to help improve the Site, analyse trends, and administer the website.

16 - Website Disclaimer & Terms of Use

We endeavour to provide the best possible content and information to our clients. Please note that the following applies:

The content of the pages of this website was created for marketing purposes and should be used for general information only. Content is subject to change without notice.
Your use of any information or materials on this website is entirely at your own risk, for which we shall not be liable. It shall be your own responsibility to ensure that any products, services or information available through this website meet your specific requirements.
This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited other than in accordance with the copyright notice, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
From time to time this website may also include links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience to provide further information. They do not signify that we endorse the website(s). We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s).

17 - Applicable law and jurisdiction

These terms and conditions shall be deemed to have been concluded in Somerset West, Western Cape, Republic of South Africa and shall be interpreted according to the laws of the Republic of South Africa.

The client consents to the jurisdiction of the Magistrates Court of Cape Town in terms of the provisions of Section 45 of Act 32 of 1944 (including all amendments), but it is specifically agreed that The Mzansi Experience at its instance will have the discretion to sue in the High Court if it deems necessary and appropriate.

It is also important to note that the client must at all times comply with the laws, customs, foreign exchange and other regulations of all countries visited on the tour.

The Mzansi Experience Contact details

Mzanzi Bus Adventures (Pty) Ltd
t/a The Mzansi Experience
3 Gardner Williams Avenue, Paardevlei Precinct, Somerset West, Western Cape,
Republic of South Africa

General enquiries: info@mzansi.travel

Bookings and booking changes/cancellations: bookings@mzansi.travel

Phone number: +27 (0) 21 001 0651

Emergency Line 24-Hours: +27 72 867 6926