Booking conditions and process

Terms and Conditions

Payment Schedule

For guided programs, a non refundable 25% deposit is required upon booking. For most guided trips, the balance is due 30 days before the trip starts. For avalanche courses, a 100% payment is required upon booking. For week long programs, a non refundable 50% deposit is required upon booking, the balance is due 120 days before the trip starts. Canadian based programs are subject to 5% goods & services tax. All payments are non-refundable and non-transferable. See cancellation policy below.

Payment Options

We accept Canadian funds by E-transfer, credit card payment through SQUARE, WAVE or PayPal service and Canadian checks if booking 30 days ahead of a program. Summit Mountain Guides is not responsible for covering any service fees associated with transferring money. E-transfer is our preferred payment method for folks with a Canadian Bank account, as there are no extra fees. Credit card payments are processed securely via Square, PayPal or Wave. All of these incur a 4% surcharge. Canadian checks incur a $20 charge. If sending a check, please address to Summit Mountain Guides and mail to 1106 Hall Mines RD, Nelson, B.C. V1L 1G6.  Please note, checks that have non-sufficient funds (NSF) will be charged a $50 bank fee. Canadian-based programs are subject to 5% goods & services tax. For any international currency payments, a wire transfer is ideal. This service costs us to receive, please add $40 CAD to your total payment and contact us for bank details. International credit card payments are also possible, they are processed securely via Square, PayPal or Wave. All of these incur a 4% surcharge. All credit card payments must be done online. We do not process credit card payments over the phone.

Fitness, Skills & Mountain Conditions

Programs offered by Summit Mountain Guides are designed to meet the specific skills, interests and prior experience of each guest. Each participant must take responsibility to accurately assess their background and physical condition to ensure they meet the prerequisites of the program they are enrolling in, especially group programs. Summit Mountain Guides reserves the right to deny participation to unprepared individuals at any time before or during the trip.  If a participant is not sufficiently prepared or does not meet the physical fitness or skill level required for the program, Summit Mountain Guides is not responsible for achieving the intended objective(s). Similarly, if the weather or mountain conditions limit safety or trip goals, Summit Mountain Guides reserves the right to change the location of a program, timeline or to reschedule a program. We are not responsible for meeting advertised objectives should the traveling conditions limit safety.

Cancelled Programs

Once we confirm your booking, we guarantee your trip departure. However, we do reserve the right to change guides, particular lodging, or the itinerary should unforeseen circumstances force us to do so. Summit Mountain Guides will do everything possible to make modifications to your trip to avoid cancelling. If we cancel a program for any reason, we will offer all paid participants a 100% credit towards a similar in-house program to be used within a calendar year. You may be eligible for a full or partial refund if you prefer. If a cancellation is made by Summit Mountain Guides up to 7 days prior to the start of your program due to insufficient enrollment, we will offer you a full refund. For last minute cancellations made by us less than 6 days ahead of a scheduled program due to dangerous avalanche conditions or dangerous weather conditions, we will offer our guests the option to reschedule at a later time within one calendar year or provide a 75% refund. For any cancellations made by Summit Mountain Guides within 7 days of a scheduled program due to unprecedented situations, a world crisis, a ban on international travel or a pandemic, we will provide a 50% refund to all participants. In the event of cancellations made by Summit Mountain Guides, we are not responsible for any additional expenses incurred by guests as a result of the cancellation. Should the physical condition, skills or equipment of participant(s) limit an ongoing program, Summit Mountain Guides reserves the right to make changes to an advertised itinerary or cancel the program for the safety and protection of the group. We do not offer any refunds to unprepared participants.

Guest Cancellations

Please contact us if you need to cancel a booking. Cancellations must be made in writing via email and refunds will be processed according to date received. If a cancellation is made 60 days or more in advance of the program, you will receive a full refund less a 25% administration fee.  For cancellations made between 60 and 30 days before the program start, 50% of the total program fees will be refunded. Cancellations made 30 days or less before program start are not eligible for a refund. Whether you are cancelling for family issues, health issues, travel issues, transportation issues, world crises, unprecedented situations, pandemics or otherwise, we treat all cancellations equally as above. Trip cancellation insurance is advised in the event that you have to cancel your trip for personal and unforeseen reasons.

Guest Insurance

Summit Mountain Guides is not responsible for the loss of your program fees for any reasons other than those mentioned in the terms & conditions. Once we confirm your booking, we enter into financial obligations on our side and we cannot refund payments or release you from your contractual obligations. This is why you have to purchase trip cancellation and interruption insurance to cover your losses in the case that you can’t join the trip or have to interrupt your trip for any reason. Similarly, we are not responsible for the medical or rescue expenses arising from an accident, injury or illness requiring medical support or evacuation on our programs. Medical, emergency rescue and evacuation insurance for adventure travel is required. We would be happy to refer you to a travel insurance provider who offers adventure travel insurance packages. Generally, you will receive the best benefits if you purchase your insurance within 10 days of the booking confirmation. Coverage should be for the mountain activities and locations specific for the trip you are registered for. If you already have insurance, please make sure that you are covered for “roped travel” for technical trips. Read the fine print of your policy or call us if you have any questions. On our Resource Page, you will find a link to recommended insurance companies we have worked with before.

Liability Waiver

All of our programs have inherent associated risks. Our team of experienced certified guides and instructors (ACMG/CAA) will greatly reduce the risks and maximize safety on all of our programs. Nevertheless, it is important for all participants to realize that there will always be a certain level of risk. Before commencing a program with Summit Mountain Guides, all participants are required to read & sign a liability waiver. This industry standard procedure is an agreement between the clients, Summit Mountain Guides and all relative professional associations. Below is a link to the ACMG waiver to familiarize yourself ahead of time. All underage participants require a parent/guardian to sign this waiver. The adult waiver will be provided by Summit Mountain Guides and signed before the first day of your trip. This is the same for youth participants partaking in a program while being accompanied by a parent or guardian. For youth groups where parents may not be taking part in the activity, the ACMG consent & acknowledgement of risk form will be sent out to you via the group organizer ahead of time.