Important:

Please ensure that all members of your party have been made aware of the following conditions. These Terms and Conditions apply to the transaction detailed on your documentation. Your acceptance of these conditions is a term of supply of the Services. By paying for and accepting supply of the Service, you agree to be bound by these conditions. If you do not accept these conditions you should contact the Australian Ballooning Company immediately and prior to accepting supply of the Service.

1. Definitions
Service refers specifically to the hot air ballooning mentioned on this documentation and generally to the range of products offered by Australian Ballooning Company Pty Ltd trading as Windward Ballooning, including accommodation and customized activities arranged by agreement.

Service Operator refers to Windward Ballooning or any independent contractor supplying/delivering the services to you under the terms of your Agreement with Windward Ballooning.

2. Choosing a flight date
Our weekend dates fill up a long way in advance. If you are having trouble finding a weekend availability, please try a midweek date – these are usually available.

Flights on Public holidays can only be booked using the any-day package. Midweek specials cannot be used on public holidays.

3. Liability
Under no circumstances will Windward Ballooning be liable for direct, indirect, consequential or incidental damages including but not limited to lost or damaged property, lost profits or savings or damages for disappointment.

Windward Ballooning may arrange for the hot air ballooning to be performed under a code-sharing arrangement, i.e. it may subcontract another ballooning company to provide you with your flight. In such instances, Windward Ballooning accepts no liability in connection with such services or for any loss, injury, or damage to or in respect of any person or property. Windward Ballooning reserves the right to alter contents of products and location when deemed necessary. Windward Ballooning does however warrant providing services of equal nature and value.

4. Alterations/Rescheduling and Cancellations to a Booking
Should you need to reschedule or cancel your booking, certain fees and conditions may apply. Windward Ballooning should be notified by telephone or email of any cancellation requests. Please note upon booking that all ticket costs include a non-refundable administration fee of at least $30 per person – this fee is subject to alteration at our discretion for large groups (more than 4 passengers) and special event bookings (eg. exclusive flights for two, corporate events etc), where the non-refundable administration fee is 15% of the total booking cost. Please note any refunds are processed within 28 days.

More than 7 days before the flight departure – a flight may be rescheduled without fees. A cancellation fee of $25 per ticket will apply.

Between 48 hours and 7 days before the flight departure – a reschedule fee of $50 per person will apply to any flight rescheduled. Bookings canceled within 7 days of a flight departure cannot be refunded.

Within 48 hours of the flight departure – No changes or refunds are permitted. We recommend that passengers arrange their own insurance provisions in case of unforeseen circumstances including being unable to fly due to illness.

No Show: Under no circumstances will flights be refunded or rescheduled if passengers cancel or do not turn up on the morning of the scheduled flight. You will not be eligible for any refund in part or in full, and may not reschedule your booking to another date. You may send someone else in your place if you wish – we must be notified of this replacement prior to the flight date.

Please note that you cannot receive a refund on any trips booked with a gift certificate or gift card (see Section 5).

Windward Ballooning will not refund tickets on the basis of a “change of mind” decision, whether prior to the first attempted flight or following multiple cancellations due to inclement weather (see Section 8). All tickets are however transferable to others.

Accommodation, wine, beer & cheese tasting & other tour/experience packages are non-refundable and should the flight be canceled due to inclement weather this does not apply to an affiliated partner of a package and failing to show to the tour/experience will result in forfeiting the booking. Flights may be rescheduled as per our rebooking terms (See Section 7)

Note: Separate cancellation and alteration provisions apply to large groups and customized events including exclusive flights for two/proposal flights. Windward Ballooning reserves the right to amend these fees and notice periods. When special circumstances arise, some of these Terms and Conditions may be superseded by those published on your booking confirmation documentation.

5. Gift Certificates / Gift Cards
All Gift Certificates or Gift Cards are valid for 36 months from the initial date of purchase.

Gift certificates or Gift Cards are valid only when fully paid by the purchaser. Gift Certificates or Gift Cards cannot be redeemed for cash or refunded in part or in full. All tickets are transferable to other individuals and are valid only for the period indicated thereon. Once the certificate has been redeemed (i.e. the trip date has been booked) all other terms relating to Alteration and Cancellation (Section 4) apply, however the value remains non-refundable.

Should you need to extend the validity of your gift certificate beyond the normal 36 months, reinstatement fees apply: 6 month extension – $75 per person; 12 month extension – $100 per person.

6. Discounted Bookings / Promo Codes / Specials

Any form of discounted booking, promo code or special is not recommended for tourists, who may only be available for one specific date as the tickets are non-refundable but can only be rescheduled.

All tickets purchased at a discount to the full retail price are non-refundable. Bookings are transferable to another person and maintain the original validity date. All Alteration/Reschedule/Cancellation terms (Section 4) still apply, however the value remains non-refundable.

Should you need to extend the validity of your flight ticket beyond the normal 36 months, reinstatement fees apply: 6 month extension – $75 per person; 12 month extension – $100 per person.

7. Rebooking your Flight
If your flight has been canceled due to inclement weather conditions, please contact our office as soon as possible to rebook. Payment received for your flight will be held in credit and applied to the rebooking. Rebooking must be done within 36 months of the first canceled flight date. Any bookings not rescheduled within 36 months of a canceled flight date will incur reinstatement fees.

Flight bookings are valid for 36 months from the date of booking. Should you need to extend the validity of your flight ticket beyond the normal 36 months, reinstatement fees apply: 6 month extension – $75 per person; 12 month extension – $100 per person.

8. Safety, Weather, Staffing and Other Conditions
Hot air ballooning relies on suitable weather conditions in order to proceed safely. When conditions are deemed by Windward Ballooning to be unsuitable or unsafe to proceed, flights may not go ahead on the scheduled date. Similarly a trip may be postponed due to less than minimum numbers being achieved. In the unfortunate event that a Service must be delayed, rescheduled or canceled due to any of the above factors, Windward Ballooning will hold payment in credit and offer alternative booking dates. Any request for refund will be treated as per cancellation terms listed in Section 4. Windward Ballooning will not accept any liability for travel, accommodation, inconvenience or other costs incurred or lost through such cancellation. International, interstate and country visitors should factor the possibility of short notice cancellation into their plans. Weather conditions can also affect the duration and route of all flights in all locations. Windward Ballooning endeavors to give each passenger the best ballooning experience possible subject to the daily wind and weather conditions. With our passengers’ safety always at the forefront of pilots’ concern, a flight altered in route or landing earlier than anticipated will be deemed as a completed flight for that day, provided the flight is more than 30 minutes duration.

9. Your Responsibility
(a) It is the responsibility of the passenger to ensure you have received booking confirmation details of your flight; please notify the Windward Ballooning office immediately and prior to your flight date if you do not have this information. You are also required to follow the check-in procedure outlined in the information forwarded to you. If you do not follow the check-in procedure , Windward Ballooning cannot be held liable for any consequences.

(b) In the interests of safety, you undertake to follow the advice of the pilot and ground crew, comply with any local codes of conduct and act sensibly and prudently at all times. You also agree to indemnify Windward Ballooning, its owners, officers and employees for all losses and/or damage arising from any act or default on your part or the part of a member of your party. Under no circumstances at any time during supply of the Services should you or a member of your party be under the influence of drugs or alcohol, nor should you take medication that could affect or impair your judgment at this time.

(c) Check with your medical practitioner if you have a pre-existing medical condition that may be affected by the physical nature of hot air ballooning. You agree to indemnify Windward Ballooning, its owners, officers and employees against any incident related to your health occurring during or after supply of the Services.

(d) Personal belongings taken on board are at your own risk.

(e) Ballooning is an outdoor activity, and Windward Ballooning cannot be held liable for damage to any clothing. Clothing suitable for walking or hiking is highly recommended with enclosed, waterproof shoes. White or light coloured clothing is not advised.

(f) It is the responsibility of the passenger to disclose if they or any member of their group is pregnant at least 7 days prior to the scheduled flight date. Windward Ballooning will not knowingly fly any person who is pregnant. The expiry dates on the tickets of any pregnant passengers and any others on their booking will be automatically extended – for any clarification about expiration dates passengers should contact the Windward Ballooning office. Any cancellations due to pregnancy will be dealt with in accordance with Section 3. In the instance of a pregnant woman flying inadvertently, they fly at their own risk.

(g) Windward Ballooning cannot fly physically disabled/handicapped passengers without permission from our regulator at an additional cost. For any clarification passengers should contact the Windward Ballooning office.

10. Third Party Bookings
Our terms and conditions apply to passengers who book directly with Windward Ballooning. Any bookings made through a third party agent must also adhere to the third party terms and conditions

Australian Ballooning Company Pty Ltd ACN 24 663 217 365

Trading as Windward Ballooning

Terms and Conditions subject to change without notice. August 2023