Booking & Cancellation Policy
Effective Date: 1 January 2026 · Version 1.0
This policy governs the booking flow, cancellation rights, and refund obligations for tour and experience listings on the Vyete Tour Service. It applies to Tour Operators and Customers alike.
1. Booking Flow
- Customer selects an experience, date, and number of participants and pays through the Platform.
- Tour Operator receives a booking notification and has 2 hours (or until tour departure, whichever is sooner) to confirm or decline.
- Confirmed bookings are added to the Tour Operator's booking ledger in the Dashboard.
- Customer receives a booking confirmation containing experience details, meeting-point information, and the Tour Operator's emergency contact.
If you do not respond within the acceptance window, the Platform automatically cancels the booking and initiates a full refund to the Customer.
2. Minimum Cancellation Policy
Vyete requires all Tour Operators to apply a cancellation policy that meets at minimum the following standards:
| Cancellation Timing (before tour start) | Minimum Customer Refund | |---|---| | 72 hours or more | 100% of booking value | | 24–72 hours | 50% of booking value | | Less than 24 hours | At Tour Operator's discretion (may be 0%) | | Tour cancelled by Tour Operator | 100% of booking value + KES 200 Vyete courtesy credit per adult participant |
Tour Operators may offer more generous policies but not less generous than the above. Your policy must be displayed on your listing before a Customer books.
3. Customer Cancellations
Customers cancel through their Vyete account. The refund amount is determined by how far in advance the cancellation is made relative to your listed policy (subject to the minimums above). Vyete processes the refund within 3–5 business days of cancellation confirmation.
4. Tour Operator Cancellations
4.1 Permitted Grounds
Tour Operators may cancel a confirmed booking only for:
- Weather or safety conditions that make the experience genuinely unsafe (must be documented).
- Force majeure (natural disaster, civil unrest, government prohibition).
- Minimum participant threshold not met, only if this condition was stated in the listing.
4.2 Prohibited Cancellations
Cancellations for operational convenience — including overcommitment, staff absence without safety grounds, or equipment failure where an alternative was available — are not permissible and will attract penalties under the Performance Standards policy.
4.3 Notice Requirement
You must notify affected Customers at least 6 hours before departure for weather-related cancellations. For safety emergencies or force majeure, notify as soon as practicable.
4.4 Refund on Tour Operator Cancellation
Where you cancel a confirmed tour, the Customer receives a 100% refund plus a KES 200 Vyete courtesy credit per adult participant. The corresponding payout to you for the cancelled booking is withheld or clawed back.
5. Refund Processing
Vyete processes all refunds. Refund timelines by payment method:
| Payment Method | Typical Refund Credit Time | |---|---| | M-Pesa | 1–2 business days | | Visa / Mastercard | 3–7 business days | | Airtel Money | 1–2 business days |
6. Group Bookings
For groups exceeding your listed maximum participant count, Customers must contact you via the in-platform messaging system to arrange a custom quote. Custom group bookings are confirmed through the standard booking flow once a quote is agreed. The cancellation policy applied to a custom group booking is the same as your published policy for that experience unless a specific custom policy is agreed in writing via the Platform.
7. No-Show Policy
If a Customer does not appear at the confirmed meeting point within a reasonable time after the scheduled start (typically 15 minutes, or as stated in your listing), you may treat the booking as a Customer no-show. A no-show may be treated as a less-than-24-hour Customer cancellation for refund purposes. You must record the no-show in the Platform to protect yourself in any subsequent dispute.