Booking Conditions

Please understand that we do not allow our tours to be directly re-sold or individually offered via any 3rd party travel agency or booking aggregator, but it is possible for travel agencies to utilize our services for inclusion in their specialized travel products, and/or to reserve individual tours for their bespoke clients on a case-by-case basis, and/or create a customized tour itinerary based on any specific needs or requests. The following conditions apply:

Reservations

We generally take reservations up to 6 months in advance for our tours, but with travel agencies we would allow a longer window for making reservations. However, if reserving before 6 months, any quoted fee at that time will be an estimate based on our predicted future costs, and we can only confirm the final fee once it becomes within 6 months of the reserved tour date.

Pricing

Tour prices for travel agencies are set in accordance with the posted tour prices shown on our website. Any customized itinerary shall be billed as a Custom Tour. We do not give discounts, commissions, or kickbacks to travel agents.

If developing a unique customized itinerary (particularly if seeking service beyond the Iya Valley area) and/or if making special requests beyond typical tour services, depending on the situation then an additional Travel Planning fee may be included, and this will be determined during the consultation process.

**For all travel agent reservations (whether for a standard tour or a custom tour), a Billing and Processing fee of ¥3,600 yen will be added to the total price.

All tour prices as well as the added Billing and Processing fee include Japanese Consumption Tax.

For all travel agency reservations, advance payment via bank transfer is required at least one month prior to the scheduled tour date. We do not accept advance payment by credit card or other online transfer services (such as PayPal). Any fees associated with any bank transfer shall be paid by the travel agency. When the final invoice is issued, the bank transfer details shall be explained.

With our tours, the customer is usually expected to pay their own entrance fees and pay their own lunch fee directly when on the tour themselves, as well as pay for the guide's entrance fees (when necessary) and pay for the guide's lunch. But if requested by a travel agency, the entrance fees and/or the lunch fees can be included in the arranged billing price so that the tour is all-inclusive for the customers. Please let us know whether you wish for any of these additional costs to be included in the total billing price, or if the customers shall be paying these fees themselves while on the tour.

Travel Insurance

Customers are expected to have their own travel insurance to cover them in the event of any illness, injury, or mishap which occurs accidentally during the tour (such as injury from slipping on a walking path, or reimbursement for items lost outside of the vehicle, etc). We will assist however possible if an issue happens, but we can take no responsibility for any incidents which occur that are not specifically related to our vehicle operation.

Unplanned Issues and Overtime

In the event of an unforeseen situation, such as a customer arriving particularly late and/or needing to alter the date or time of the tour on sudden notice such that more time than planned is required to accomplish the tour, an overtime fee may be charged in such a case. The overtime amount will be based on the specific situation and shall be paid by the travel agent upon completion of the tour. However, please understand that due to our own scheduling it may not always be possible to extend or change the tour time on short notice, but all efforts shall be made to provide the customer with a satisfactory experience.

Travel Agent Cooperation

It is our goal to make the best tours possible for our customers so they can have an enjoyable Iya Valley experience. To do so, we make efforts to determine the optimum conditions and itinerary based on the customers' needs and desires.

However, it has been the case that when 3rd party travel agencies make tour arrangements (such that we do not have direct client interaction) we have sometimes found that some agencies do not always give the attention to detail and personalized service preferred by both ourselves and the customers. Furthermore, we have also found that some travel agents can be a bit aloof with how to actually do their job, so we truly hope that in working with you this will not be the case.

Additionally, some travel agents do not properly understand the remote conditions of the Iya Valley and the challenges that this can create (particularly agents who have never traveled to here before) including issues with the weather, rough roads and road repair situations, the necessary driving times and distances between places, a general lack of services available due to Iya's remote location, and consideration about certain customers' physical limitations, such as with walking up/down stairways and pathways while on the tour. So please let any customer know that the conditions of the Iya Valley are certainly different than Tokyo or Kyoto, and please let us know if any customer requires special assistance.