Terms and Conditions
The following Terms and Conditions (“T&Cs”), along with our Privacy Policy and any other written materials provided to you before you confirm your booking, constitute the foundation of your Agreement with Alchemist Travel SG Pte. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Alchemist”, “we,” “our,” or “us”), a private limited company registered in Singapore under the company registration number 202309816C, STB TA03626, IATA 96148920.
Please take the time to read and understand our T&Cs set out below as they outline the rights and responsibilities for both parties involved. In the subsequent T&Cs, “you” and “your” pertain to all individuals listed on the booking, including those added or substituted later.
Prior to booking a trip with us, we strongly recommend that you carefully read all information relating to your trip in your itinerary to ensure that you understand the itinerary, level of comfort and demands of the trip you are undertaking. Upon making a booking and submitting a deposit for each person in the trip, the primary person named on the booking (hereinafter referred to as the “lead client”) acknowledges, on behalf of all persons mentioned in the booking, that they have read and accepted these T&Cs.
The lead client also provides consent for the use of personal information as outlined in our Privacy Policy and is authorised to disclose personal details, including any pertinent special categories of data (such as health conditions, disabilities, and dietary requirements), on behalf of all individuals listed in the booking.
The lead client confirms that all persons on the trip or holiday assumes financial responsibility for all other individuals named in the booking. If a person is under 18 years of age, that person is deemed a minor and bookings can only be made on the minor’s behalf by his/her parent or guardian.
Alchemist’s booking conditions only apply to the trip or holiday arrangements which you book with us and which we agree to make, provide or perform (as applicable) as part of our agreement with you. All references in these booking conditions to “trip”, “booking”, “contract” or “arrangements” mean such trip or holiday arrangements unless otherwise stated. References to “departure” mean the start date of these arrangements.
OUR CONTRACT
a. All bookings made are with Alchemist. By booking a trip with us in writing, by telephone, electronically (online), or in person, you are deemed to have agreed to our booking terms and conditions (which constitutes the entire agreement between you and us) and your booking will be accepted by us on this basis. The services to be provided are those referred to in your booking confirmation invoice. It is your responsibility, as the customer, upon receipt of an invoice/confirmation, to check that the information on it is complete and correct. Any inaccuracies must be immediately reported to Alchemist. Costs resulting from a failure to report shall be borne by the customer.
b. Services which are not arranged or provided by Alchemist are governed by the terms and conditions of carriage and the general terms and conditions of the service provider concerned.
VALIDITY
a. Dates, itineraries, and prices are only valid for a limited period. The booked services are valid only for the dates indicated in the invoice/confirmation.
b. Validity of flight tickets: Flight tickets are generally valid only for transport on the airlines for which they were purchased. Transfers of bookings to other airlines and changes in itineraries or additional stopovers are no longer possible during your trip. Flight tickets must be fully used in the booked order. Failure to use certain flight routes may result in the loss of your right to travel on all booked flights, or in the airline re-invoicing the ticket price. This may be higher than the price of the originally booked flight tickets.
BOOKINGS, DEPOSITS AND BALANCE PAYMENTS
a. Bookings:
i. To book a trip or holiday, you must first speak to or contact an Alchemist consultant to discuss your proposed itinerary for your trip or holiday. Once you are satisfied with the quotation we provide to you, you must sign and return the online booking form. The online booking form may be completed by you and/or the lead client for a group of people and/or by a parent or guardian of a minor
ii. After you have completed and submitted the online booking form, you must pay the deposit quoted within forty-eight (48) hours. If the deposit is not received within this time frame, Alchemist reserves the right to deem the booking as cancelled.
iii. You must check all confirmation and invoice documents carefully as soon as you receive them. Alchemist is under no obligation to provide a breakdown of the fees or costs involved in a trip or holiday and all quotations are subject to availability and changes in circumstance.
iv. Contact your Alchemist consultant immediately if any information appears to be incorrect or incomplete as it may not be possible to make changes later. We cannot accept any liability if we are not notified of any inaccuracies (for which we are responsible) in any document within ten (10) days of our sending it out. You must ensure that the name of each person given to us at the time of booking matches the name exactly as it appears on that person’s passport used for travel on the booking.
b. Deposit: The deposit, as specified in our quotation to you, is non-refundable and will be treated as part payment of the trip or holiday. You are required to pay the specified deposit for each person per trip or holiday. Once we receive your deposit in full, we will issue you a written confirmation of the booking, at which point a binding contract is formed between you and us.
c. Balance Payments:
i. In addition to the deposit paid, full or additional part payment may sometimes be required before the standard balance due date (such as for flights). Where this is the case, we will advise you of this requirement prior to you making your booking. We reserve the right to return your deposit and decline to issue a booking confirmation at our absolute discretion.
ii. Once we are able to confirm all elements of your trip or holiday booking, which we will endeavour to do as soon as possible, we will send you a confirmation invoice including details of the balance payment due and the due date of payment.
iii. The remaining balance payment that is due must be received at least ten (10) weeks prior to the commencement of your trip or holiday. If there is less than ten (10) weeks prior to your departure, then the remaining balance payment is due at the time of the booking. If we do not receive all payments due (including any surcharge where applicable) in full and on time, we shall assume that you wish to cancel your booking. In certain circumstances, due to the terms of certain third-party service providers or suppliers, we may need your balance payment prior to ten (10) weeks before your trip or holiday. You will be informed of this at the time of confirmation.
iv. Your details: In order for us to confirm your travel arrangements, you must provide all requested details. Necessary details include full name as per passport, date of birth, nationality, passport number, passport issue, and expiry date, and any pre-existing medical conditions you have which may affect your ability to complete your travel arrangements. Your booking cannot be confirmed without the provision of these details.
d. Cancellations:
i. Obtaining confirmation of all elements from our suppliers or service providers may take two (2) weeks or more. In some cases, it may not be possible to confirm all elements as requested and changes may need to be made. Occasionally, we may have to cancel a booking prior to issuance of the confirmation invoice, for example where we are unable to confirm all key elements of the trip or holiday and/or are unable to offer suitable alternative arrangements. If we have to cancel your trip or holiday prior to confirmation or the arrangements confirmed at the time the confirmation invoice is issued varies significantly from the arrangements you requested and therefore are no longer acceptable to you, we will refund the booking deposit you have paid to us within ten (10) business days.
ii. For avoidance of doubt, should you choose to cancel your booking for any other reason deemed not valid or acceptable to us, prior to receiving your confirmation invoice, you will be subject to our standard cancellation charges. Since bookings can only be accepted on the basis of the T&Cs set out herein, no compensation will be payable to you where your booking is cancelled by you for no valid and acceptable reason, or where there were significant changes to your itinerary, and you had accepted those changes.
AGE REQUIREMENTS
a. Minimum General Policy: Alchemist does not have a minimum age requirement. However, all travellers under the age of eighteen (18) must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, or in lieu of a legal guardian, by an escort over the age of eighteen (18), appointed by their legal guardian. The legal guardian or their designee will be responsible for the traveller under the age of eighteen (18). If a legal guardian elects to designate an escort in their lieu, they will be required to complete and sign a relevant document, to delegate their authority.
b. Maximum General Policy: For the majority of our trips or holidays, we have no upper age limit though we remind you that some of our trips can be physically demanding and passengers must ensure that they are suitably fit to allow full participation.
PRICING AND CURRENCY EXCHANGE
a. All prices are quoted in either SGD or the currency of the local supplier or service provider we are working with. At the time of booking, you will have the choice to pay in the local currency, as long as Alchemist has an account in this currency, or in SGD at the day’s average exchange rate. This does not fix the exchange rate for your balance payment. Your balance payment will be subject to the prevailing exchange rate at the time it is paid.
b. We reserve the right to alter the prices of any of our trips or holiday packages. You will be advised of the current price of the trip or holiday package that you wish to book before your contract is confirmed.
c. The price of your trip is based on the costs we are aware of when at the time of booking and the rates that applied at that time. The price of your trip shall include all the elements of the trip as proposed by Alchemist in the itinerary and/or quotation provided to you. The cost can only change if certain costs go up after you have made your booking, including, but not limited to, transportation expenses (including fuel and airfares), taxes (including GST), and fees for services, or if exchange rates change in a way that affects our costs.
d. You will be notified if any of these costs increase by more than 2% of the total cost of your trip or holiday, and we reserve the right to charge you the extra amount. However, if the increase is more than 10% of the total cost of your trip, you have the option to cancel your trip within fourteen (14) days after we inform you of the increase. After that, if the increase is still over 10%, we may add a surcharge to your trip price.
INSURANCE COVERAGE
a. A booking with us is conditional on you and/or each person in the group of persons in the trip obtaining sufficient insurance coverage for personal liability, medical emergencies, and holiday cancellations. This insurance should be effective and valid from the time our contract is formed until your trip or holiday concludes. When obtaining travel insurance, it is essential that you inform the insurer about your travel type, destination, and any potentially high-risk activities you plan to engage in, such as skiing, scuba diving, white water rafting, light aircraft travel, paragliding, kite surfing, wind surfing, safaris, mountain trekking, and/or similar activities.
b. You are responsible for ensuring your insurance coverage includes the maximum cancellation amount. You must provide us with your insurer's details and policy number for our records before the departure date of your trip or holiday. We may need this information in case of an accident. Failure to arrange this coverage may lead to Alchemist’s discretion to refuse your booking or cancel your holiday. Regardless, we will not be liable for any expenses, losses, or damages you incur due to your non-compliance with this Clause or as a result of your travel insurance policy's requirements. Please carefully review your policy details and carry them with you during your trip or holiday. Ensuring that your insurance coverage is appropriate for your specific needs is your responsibility.
c. In addition, the Singapore Tourism Board encourages outbound consumers to purchase travel insurance that insures them against travel agent insolvency. Such insurance should insure them against any failure or disruption in the provision of the travel product arising from travel agent insolvency. A list of current insurers can be found here: https://www.stb.gov.sg/content/dam/stb/documents/industries/travel-agent/TInsurers-2.pdf .
VISAS, PASSPORTS & HEALTH REQUIREMENTS
a. You and/or the lead client hold the responsibility of ensuring that you and/or all group of people travelling together have the required travel and health documents before the departure date. You and/or the lead client must ensure that you and/or all group of people have a valid passport (with at least six (6) months validity), the relevant visa(s), inoculation certificates and other necessary travel documents as may be required and conforms to the health regulations required for entry into the corresponding destination. It is also your responsibility to check in for your flights by the correct time and to be in the right place at the right time for ground travel arrangements. We do not accept liabilities if you fail to do so, and no credits or refunds will be given for lost or mislaid air tickets or other travel documents.
b. You are responsible for covering all expenses associated with obtaining these documents. Alchemist cannot assume any responsibility if you are denied entry to transportation or a country because you failed to carry or produce the necessary documents such as passports, visas and/or medical documentation (as may be required). In cases where your failure to have the necessary documents results in fines, surcharges, or financial penalties, you will be required to reimburse us accordingly.
c. We are able to provide details on mandatory health requirements; however, we are not medical experts. It is your responsibility to ensure that you obtain proper and detailed medical advice at least two (2) months prior to travel for the latest health requirements and recommendations for your destination.
CHANGES
a. Once a booking is confirmed, if you wish to make changes to the dates or other details, we will do our best to accommodate your request, although we cannot make any guarantees. Any changes in bookings must be requested by you or the lead client in writing.
b. For changes, there may be an administration charge of 2% of the total trip or holiday booking cost. If we can make the requested changes, we will provide you with a revised quote, which includes any costs from us or our suppliers or service providers.
c. If you want to reduce the size of your group, do note that the “per-person” price for remaining members might increase significantly.
d. If you or anyone in your group cannot travel and would like to transfer the booking to another person, we are able to assist with this. We need at least seven (7) days' notice, and there will be a SGD150 transfer fee, along with any additional charges imposed by suppliers or service providers. The person taking over the booking must accept these terms and conditions herein and provide his/her travel insurance details.
e. For any changes made during your trip, or should you choose to abandon any arrangements made by us, there will be no refund for any unused services. Changes in travel arrangements that result in additional monies owed due to price differences, re-issuance fees on tickets, hotel upgrades or any other changes are due and payable to Alchemist at the time of the changes.
f. No changes are permitted to your booking within ten (10) days of departure.
CANCELLATIONS BY YOU
a. If you decide not to proceed with the original booking or if we cannot assist with changes to your booking as outlined in Clause above, this shall be considered a cancellation on your part, and you will incur applicable cancellation charges as outlined in our booking terms and conditions.
b. To cancel, you or the lead client must notify us in writing as soon as possible.. Your cancellation is effective once we have received and acknowledged the written notice. Since we incur costs from the time of booking, cancellation charges shall apply. If our suppliers or service providers have higher cancellation charges, their terms will prevail. As you may be aware, some arrangements, once booked or confirmed, cannot be amended, transferred, or cancelled.
c. Deposits paid are non-refundable. Alchemist shall endeavour, using reasonable efforts, to obtain a refund of any fees or payments made but nothing is guaranteed. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the necessary travel insurance that covers any possible cancellation of a booking. We cannot guarantee any flight refunds.
d, In the event of a ‘no show’ for a trip, Alchemist reserves the right to retain the full amount paid.
CANCELLATIONS BY US
a. While we strive to provide your trip or holiday as agreed, it is possible that we may need to make changes which are unexpected or beyond our control. This is because we often plan our trips several months in advance, and circumstances can evolve. We have the absolute right to make the necessary changes and inform you of these changes.
b. Minor Changes: For minor changes, we will notify you as soon as possible before your departure. However, we will not be liable to you for these changes, and this does not give you a valid reason to cancel your trip or seek compensation from Alchemist. Minor changes may include, but are not limited to, alterations to your flight departure/return by less than 24 hours, changes in aircraft type or carrier, or switching your accommodation to a comparable or higher standard.
c. Significant Changes: On rare occasions, we might need to make significant changes, such as downgrading your accommodation, altering your departure time by more than 24 hours, skipping one or more destinations in your confirmed itinerary, or changing the destination entirely. In such cases, you have these options:
i. Accept the changes and absolve Alchemist of any compensation claims related to the changes made.
i. Choose another holiday of a similar standard. If the new holiday costs less than the original one, you will get a refund for the difference. If it is more expensive, you will need to pay the difference.
ii. Cancel the booking and receive a full refund of all payments made.
COMPENSATION
No compensation will be provided, and the options mentioned above will not be available if we cancel your trip due to your failure to meet any requirements outlined in these T&Cs that give us the right to cancel (such as not paying on time), or if the change is minor in nature.
FORCE MAJEURE
a. In very rare situations, we may be compelled due to “force majeure” to modify or end your holiday after it has begun but before its scheduled conclusion. While this occurrence is highly unlikely, should it happen, we regret to inform you that we cannot provide refunds (unless we receive refunds from our suppliers or service providers or experience cost reductions on our part as a result), compensate you, or cover any expenses you may incur.
b. Unless otherwise explicitly stated in these T&Cs, we also regret that we cannot assume liability, offer refunds (unless we receive refunds from our suppliers or service providers), compensate you, or cover any damages, losses, or expenses that you may experience as a result of “force majeure” affecting our ability to fulfill our contract with you.
c. “Force majeure" in these T&Cs refers to events that neither we nor the supplier or service provider could have foreseen or avoided, even with the utmost care. These events may include, but are not limited to, political conflicts, acts of war, war threats, civil unrest, terrorist activities (real or threatened), border closures, labor strikes (real or threatened), technical issues with machinery (including aircraft), transportation, or equipment, government interventions, global pandemics, natural disasters, fires, explosions, adverse weather conditions, and acts of God.
ACCEPTANCE OF RISK
You acknowledge that the nature of some trips or holidays is adventurous, and participation involves a degree of personal risk. In the event that you might be visiting places where the political, cultural and geographical attributes present dangers and physical challenges greater than those present in our daily lives, we use information from government foreign departments and reports from our own contacts in assessing whether the itinerary should operate. However, it is also your own responsibility to acquaint yourself with all possible relevant travel information and the nature of your itinerary. You acknowledge that your decision to travel is made in light of consideration of this information and you accept that you are aware of the personal risks upon such travel.
COMPLAINTS
In the unlikely event that you have any reason to complain or experience any problems with your trip whilst away, you must immediately inform your trip guide or our local agent (if we have one) and the supplier or service provider of the service(s) in question. Any verbal notification must be put in writing and given to our trip guide / local agent and the supplier or service provider as soon as possible. If any complaint or problem is not resolved to your satisfaction by the trip guide, local agent or supplier or service provider, you must contact us in Singapore using the contact details we have provided you with during your trip, giving us full details and a contact number. Until we know about a complaint or problem, we cannot begin to resolve it. Most problems can be dealt with quickly. If you remain dissatisfied, however, you must write to us within fourteen (14) days of the end of your trip giving your booking reference and full details of your complaint. For all complaints and claims which do not involve death, personal injury or illness, we regret we cannot accept liability if you fail to notify the complaint or claim entirely in accordance with this Clause. In the unlikely event you have a complaint which we cannot amicably resolve, you may, as an alternative to bringing a claim in the courts or through mediation or arbitration.
LIABILITY
a. We shall endeavour to make sure that the trip arrangements we have agreed to make, perform or provide, (as applicable) as part of our contract with you, are made, performed or provided with reasonable skill and care.
b. Alchemist will not be liable for any injury, illness, death, loss (including loss of possessions and loss of enjoyment) damage, costs (including legal costs), charges, expenses, actions, proceedings, claims and demands which you or any other person may at any time sustain or suffer in connection with the non-performance by Alchemist of its services in the event such non-performance is:
i. as a result of fraud, wilful misconduct, wilful concealment or negligence on your part;
ii. attributable to an act or omission on your part;
iii. attributable to an act or omission on the part of a third party unconnected with the provision of the services contracted for;
iv. due to unforeseen or unusual circumstances beyond Alchemist’s control, the consequences of which could not have been avoided even if due care had been exercised;
v. any political disputes, industrial action, climate or other matters of a similar nature and any other force majeure; or
vi. due to any other event which Alchemist, having acted with due care could not foresee or avoid.
c. In all cases, Alchemist specifically excludes all liability for indirect or consequential loss or expense, including loss of profits.
d. Alchemist accepts responsibility for its suppliers and local service providers, provided that such suppliers and local service providers have acted at all times within Alchemist’s authority and in accordance with Alchemist’s instructions.
e. It is your responsibility to show that reasonable skill and care has not been used if you wish to make a claim against us. In addition, we will only be responsible for what our employees, agents and suppliers or service providers do or do not do if they were at the time acting within the course of their employment (for employees) or carrying out work we had asked them to do (for agents and suppliers or service providers).
f. We cannot accept responsibility for any services which do not form part of our contract. This includes, for example, any additional services which any supplier or service provider agrees to provide or arrange for you where we have not agreed to provide or arrange these services as part of our contract. Such additional services will include any activities which do not form part of your contracted trip arrangements which a supplier or service provider agrees to provide or arrange for you while you are away.
CONFIDENTIALITY
Alchemist will consider every transaction as confidential matter and not disclose any information without your permission unless as required by law.
DATA PROTECTION
For processing your booking and making the necessary trip arrangements for you and/or group of people, your personal information may be provided to relevant suppliers or service providers. We will not provide your personal information to any person who is not responsible for your trip or holiday arrangements. We have set out further details in our Privacy Policy.
GOVERNING LAW
These T&Cs shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Singapore, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. Any disputes in relation to these T&Cs shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Republic of Singapore.
SEVERABILITY
In the event that any term or condition contained in these T&Cs is unenforceable or void by operation of law or as being against public policy or for any other reason, then such term or condition shall be deemed to be severed from this contract or amended accordingly only to such extent necessary to allow all remaining terms and conditions to survive and continue as binding.
CHANGES TO T&Cs
The T&Cs which apply to your trip or holiday are those as featured on your booking documentation at the time of booking and on this website, as well as any other terms notified to you in writing before departure. We reserve the right to update these T&Cs from time to time. Any such updates shall take effect immediately upon posting on our website.
NO VARIATION OF CONDITIONS
These T&Cs shall not be amended or waived except by written agreement between you and Alchemist.
CONTACT
For any questions or problems relating to our services and/or Website and/or these T&Cs, you can contact us via email at hello@alchemisttravel.com.