1. Your agreement with JohnBow
JohnBow Tours and Travel Limited, referred to as JohnBow, we, us or our, is based at Kenya Cinema Plaza, 3rd Floor, Room 3-8, Moi Avenue, Nairobi, Kenya. Our services include tailor-made safaris, resident holidays, day trips, beach stays, accommodation, transport, flight arrangements, group travel and destination management services. The services included in your booking are those expressly confirmed in writing.
Your contract comprises these Terms, the accepted written quotation and itinerary, the booking confirmation, any agreed payment plan, and applicable supplier conditions disclosed before you commit. A specifically agreed booking provision takes priority over a conflicting general provision in these Terms. No document overrides rights or duties that cannot lawfully be excluded. A separately signed corporate or travel-trade agreement governs the matters it expressly addresses.
An enquiry, website form submission or request for a quotation does not itself confirm a booking. These Terms become part of a booking when they have been provided or made available to you before you accept the quotation or authorise us to proceed, including by an agreed payment. Website-use provisions apply to your use of the site. Optional marketing and identifiable promotional photography require their own permissions; accepting a booking is not consent to either.
2. The person making the booking
The lead booker must be at least 18 and authorised to arrange the services for everyone named in the booking. The lead booker must give the travellers these Terms, relevant supplier conditions and our Privacy Policy, communicate changes promptly, and provide accurate instructions. We may reasonably rely on that authority until informed otherwise, but may seek confirmation before a material change or disclosure of sensitive information.
Unless we agree another arrangement in writing, the lead booker is responsible for paying the booking price, including amounts due for the other travellers. Each adult traveller remains responsible for their own documents, conduct and compliance with travel requirements. Children must travel with a parent, guardian or appropriately authorised adult and meet the age and supervision requirements of the itinerary and suppliers.
3. Enquiries, quotations and availability
Website itineraries, photographs and advertised starting prices describe the travel offered; they are not a guarantee that a particular room, flight, vehicle, permit or departure is available. A quotation is valid only for its stated period and remains subject to availability until the relevant arrangements are confirmed. Requests for a specific room, guide, vehicle, bed arrangement or dietary provision are not guaranteed unless expressly confirmed.
Before you authorise us to proceed, check names, travel dates, destinations, accommodation, room occupancy, inclusions, exclusions, currency, payment dates and cancellation conditions. Tell us promptly about errors. If there is an obvious pricing or description error, we will explain it and seek your agreement to the correction before confirming the affected service. We will not substitute a materially higher price without your agreement.
4. Confirmation and booking work
A booking is confirmed when we issue written confirmation identifying the accepted arrangements and the required initial payment has been received, unless our written confirmation expressly provides otherwise. A payment acknowledgement, quotation or supplier request is not the same as confirmation. Separate components may be confirmed at different times; a pending component is not guaranteed by confirmation of another component.
When you instruct us to secure services, we may make supplier commitments within the accepted quotation and disclosed conditions. Air tickets, permits and some accommodation may require immediate or full payment. Any separately chargeable planning or reservation service must be agreed before we undertake it. If we cannot confirm a requested service, we will explain the available alternatives and account for money received; we will not retain an undisclosed fee for an unprovided service.
5. Prices, inclusions and changes in cost
Your quotation states the currency and what is included. Unless expressly included, personal spending, gratuities, insurance, visas, travel authorisations, vaccinations, excess baggage, optional activities and additional meals are payable separately. Resident, child or other preferential rates depend on the traveller meeting the stated eligibility requirements and producing any required proof. An incorrect declaration may result in the applicable rate difference or refusal of the concession.
Before confirmation, costs can change with availability, season, occupancy, airfare, hotel rates, exchange rates, fuel, park and permit charges, taxes, levies or supplier pricing. Paying a deposit does not secure components that the quotation expressly identifies as unconfirmed or subject to later ticketing. We will identify those components and explain changes before asking you to commit further money.
After confirmation, we may pass on an external cost increase only where an adjustment basis was expressly included in the accepted booking terms and the increase is lawful, or where you agree a change. We will provide the reason, calculation and available options. These Terms do not give us an unrestricted right to reprice a confirmed booking. Later discounts do not retrospectively alter an existing booking price.
6. Deposits and payment deadlines
The deposit, balance and due dates are those agreed in your quotation, invoice or written payment plan. Different bookings may require different deposits or full advance payment because supplier commitments differ. There is no universal deposit percentage or cancellation schedule under these Terms. A deposit is part-payment of the booking price; whether any amount can be returned is determined under the cancellation and refund provisions below, not by the word deposit alone.
Payment must reach the approved recipient in the agreed currency by the stated deadline. Allow for bank or provider processing time and include the booking reference. A transfer instruction or screenshot is not proof of cleared receipt. We may reasonably verify the payer, transaction and authority to use the payment method before confirming or releasing services.
7. Lipa Pole Pole instalment arrangements
A Lipa Pole Pole plan applies only when agreed with us in writing. The plan must state the total price or agreed price basis, initial payment, instalment amounts, due dates, final balance deadline and which components will be secured at each stage. It is a payment arrangement for the specified booking; it does not by itself reserve every service, fix an unconfirmed airfare or create a revolving credit facility.
Unless the written plan expressly says otherwise, each payment is credited towards the booking price and supplier commitments may be made as funds are received. No interest, instalment surcharge or late-payment charge is imposed by these Terms alone. Any such charge must be separately disclosed, agreed and lawful. If your circumstances change, contact us before an instalment falls due; an extension or revised plan takes effect only when confirmed in writing.
Missing an instalment can put supplier holds and the itinerary at risk. We may pause further commitments, request the overdue amount or cancel affected services under section 9. Cancellation does not automatically make every instalment refundable or automatically forfeit them all: the refund assessment must account for the work delivered, disclosed charges and actual commitments under sections 10 and 11.
8. Approved payment methods and payment security
Use only payment instructions issued or independently confirmed by JohnBow through our official contact channels. We may approve bank transfer, mobile money, a payment link or another arrangement for a particular booking. A booking need not be paid through this website. Any third-party payment service is also subject to its own payment terms, verification requirements and processing times.
We will disclose any fee we charge for the chosen payment method before payment. Your bank, mobile-money operator, card issuer or intermediary may separately apply transaction or currency-conversion charges. A shortfall in the agreed amount remains payable unless we agree otherwise. Do not send payment-card security codes, banking passwords or mobile-money PINs to us. Verify any unexpected change of recipient or payment details by calling an established number on our Contact Us page.
9. Failed payments, outstanding balances and disputes
If payment fails, is reversed or is late, the amount remains outstanding to the extent it is properly due. We may suspend further booking work, withhold unissued travel documents or cancel affected arrangements after notice and a reasonable opportunity to resolve the issue, where practicable. A supplier’s imminent ticketing or release deadline may prevent an extension; we will explain that deadline where it is known. Resulting charges are assessed under the disclosed booking conditions and the cancellation provisions, not as an automatic penalty.
Please contact us promptly about an unrecognised or disputed transaction so that we can investigate. Nothing here removes lawful card, banking or consumer dispute rights. A chargeback does not itself cancel a booking or extinguish a valid payment obligation. We may provide relevant booking and service records to the payment provider and seek amounts properly due, including reasonable, evidenced recovery costs where permitted by law. We will not recover the same sum twice or charge you for our own payment error.
10. Changes and cancellations requested by you
Send a change or cancellation request from the lead booker or another authorised traveller to enquiries@johnbowtoursandtravel.com, quoting the booking reference and affected travellers and services. A cancellation takes effect when received, not only when acknowledged. If travel or a supplier deadline is close, also telephone us and follow up if you have not received acknowledgement. Keep your sent message and any response.
Date changes, name corrections, substitutions, route changes and reductions in party size depend on supplier rules and availability. They may require cancellation and rebooking at current rates, particularly for issued tickets, permits and promotional rates. We will explain known costs and obtain your authority before making a chargeable change. A requested change is not effective until confirmed in writing. A smaller party may alter the per-person price of shared services.
For cancellation, the agreed booking-specific schedule applies, subject to applicable law. Where no schedule was agreed, any deduction must be limited to lawful, reasonable and supportable amounts: services or separately agreed booking work already supplied, non-recoverable supplier payments or binding commitments made for your booking, and reasonable cancellation administration costs. Administrative or professional fees must have been disclosed and agreed before commitment; we cannot invent a cancellation fee afterwards.
11. Refund assessment and settlement
Requesting cancellation, changing your mind or expressing dissatisfaction does not alone create a right to a full refund. We assess the affected services, timing, reason for cancellation, booking-specific conditions, work already performed and amounts recoverable from suppliers. A disclosed non-refundable airfare, permit, room or activity may leave little or no refundable value. Supplier conditions do not remove remedies that the law makes JohnBow responsible for providing.
We will provide a written calculation of any refund or outstanding balance, identifying the relevant deductions and any supplier recovery still pending. We will take reasonable steps to avoid unnecessary cancellation costs and seek recoverable amounts. We will credit recoveries relating to costs previously deducted and avoid counting the same cost both within a cancellation charge and as an additional deduction. Where a cancellation schedule already compensates for an item, it cannot be charged again.
Services properly delivered are not refundable merely because you did not use them or they did not match an expectation that was not part of the agreement. A complaint about an actual service failure will be assessed on its merits, including any remedy required by law. No clause permits us to retain money unlawfully or exclude a remedy for our own breach.
An approved refund is normally returned to the original payer through the original payment route, subject to identity checks and the provider’s requirements. We will communicate the expected processing time and any material delay. Supplier recovery may affect the timing of a pass-through refund where we acted as a disclosed agent, but does not postpone a statutory refund deadline or a refund we ourselves are legally required to fund. Only lawful, disclosed and applicable deductions may be made. Currency conversion by a payment provider can result in a different home-currency amount. A voucher or credit replaces a cash refund only with your agreement or where lawfully required by the applicable arrangement.
12. Changes or cancellation by JohnBow
We may make reasonable operational adjustments to the order of activities, departure times, routes or comparable accommodation where necessary for safety, access or delivery of the agreed itinerary. We will inform you of material changes as soon as reasonably practicable. A named property’s replacement, substantial itinerary reduction or significant change of dates will be treated as a material change, not concealed as a minor adjustment.
If we cannot provide a material confirmed service, we will explain the reason and offer available alternatives, with any price difference, or assess cancellation and refund rights for the affected arrangements. You do not have to accept a materially different substitute simply because it is offered. If we cancel for reasons within our responsibility, we will return amounts due for services not provided and meet any further obligations imposed by law; customer-cancellation charges will not be used to excuse our own failure. Supplier disruption and events beyond reasonable control are addressed below.
A minimum group size applies only if disclosed for the booking, together with any relevant decision deadline. We will not invent a minimum-number condition after confirmation. Independent arrangements you make outside our booking remain your responsibility, subject to any loss for which we are legally liable.
13. Airlines and flight arrangements
An airfare is not guaranteed until the airline’s ticketing conditions have been met and the ticket is issued. Check the passenger name against the travel document before ticketing. Airline rules govern fare restrictions, baggage, check-in, seating, name changes, ticket sequence, reissue, no-shows and refunds. Missing an earlier flight segment may cause the airline to cancel later segments.
Airlines can reschedule, delay, cancel or reroute flights or change aircraft because of operational, weather, airport, security or regulatory circumstances. We do not control those decisions. Where we arranged the ticket, we will provide reasonable assistance with options available through the airline. An airline refund or credit is subject to the applicable fare conditions and passenger rights. We do not guarantee approval or a processing date controlled by the airline.
Check flight updates, allow adequate connection time and reconfirm onward transfers after a schedule change. Tell us about flights you book independently so that we can coordinate the itinerary. Separate-ticket connections may not be protected by either airline. Additional accommodation, meals, transfers or replacement travel are not automatically included because a flight changes; responsibility depends on the cause, the booking, applicable passenger rights and insurance. This does not exclude responsibility for our own error in arranging an agreed connection or service.
14. Independent travel suppliers
Airlines, hotels, camps, lodges, local operators, transport and activity providers deliver many travel components. Their lawful conditions may govern access, operations, cancellation and use of their service. We will identify material supplier restrictions relevant to your booking before commitment or as soon as they become available, and explain whether we are providing a service ourselves or arranging it as agent for an identified supplier.
Where we act only as a disclosed booking agent, the supplier is responsible for performing its service and we are responsible for our own arranging obligations and reasonable care. Where we undertake to supply a package or service as principal, using a subcontractor does not remove obligations that the contract or law places on us. We do not claim a blanket exemption from responsibility simply because another business is involved.
Optional activities purchased directly from an independent provider outside the confirmed itinerary are a separate arrangement. Check the provider’s safety requirements, insurance and terms before participating. A recommendation or introduction does not by itself make that activity part of your JohnBow booking.
15. Passports, entry requirements and traveller information
You must provide accurate passenger names, nationality, travel-document details and any other information reasonably needed for the services. Check confirmations promptly and report discrepancies immediately. Costs caused by incorrect or late information may be payable by you where they are reasonably incurred and not caused by our error.
Each traveller is responsible for obtaining and carrying valid passports, visas or electronic travel authorisations, transit permissions, health documents, residency evidence and parental permissions required for the entire journey. Requirements depend on nationality, route and personal circumstances and can change. Confirm them with the relevant authorities and carriers before payment and again before departure. Assistance from us is not a guarantee of approval, admission or processing time.
Refusal of boarding or entry, an expired document or a late application may result in missed services and supplier cancellation charges. We are not responsible for an authority’s independent decision, but remain responsible for any specific assistance we agreed to provide with reasonable care. Do not make a false declaration or ask us to misrepresent your eligibility for a rate, permit or entry requirement.
16. Health, accessibility and insurance
Before committing, tell us about mobility, accessibility, dietary or other needs relevant to safe participation and accommodation. Provide only the information reasonably needed for that purpose. We will check requested arrangements with suppliers; a request is confirmed only when accepted in writing. Some safari vehicles, remote camps, walking activities and small aircraft have practical access, fitness or baggage limitations that must be considered when selecting the itinerary.
Obtain appropriate medical advice and meet applicable vaccination, health and fitness requirements. Guides may make reasonable safety decisions during travel, including restricting an activity where a material risk cannot be managed. Emergency assistance, evacuation and treatment can involve substantial additional costs. Responsibility for those costs depends on the circumstances, insurance and applicable law.
We strongly recommend suitable travel insurance from the time you commit to the booking, covering cancellation, disruption, medical care, evacuation, baggage and the activities and destinations selected. A policy is included only if expressly stated. Review exclusions, pre-existing condition rules, excesses and claim requirements with the insurer. Insurance does not replace our obligations or guarantee that every cancellation loss is covered.
17. Departures, no-shows and unused services
Arrive at the confirmed meeting point, airport or departure location in sufficient time and keep the contact number supplied with your itinerary available. Tell us promptly if delayed. Drivers, guides and other travellers cannot always wait, and a missed transfer or departure may require alternative arrangements at additional cost.
Late arrival, voluntary early departure, failure to attend or choosing not to use an available service does not automatically reduce the agreed price. Any recoverable value will be assessed under section 11, including applicable supplier no-show conditions. This does not apply to a failure to participate caused by a breach for which we are legally responsible.
18. Conduct, safety and the safari environment
Follow lawful instructions from guides, drivers, carriers, accommodation teams and park authorities. Observe wildlife distances, seat-belt requirements, baggage limits and local restrictions, including rules on drones, photography, protected areas and cultural sites. Wildlife movements, sightings, weather and road conditions are natural or operational variables; a particular animal sighting, migration crossing or photographic opportunity cannot be guaranteed.
We or a supplier may refuse or end participation where conduct creates a serious safety risk, involves harassment, violence, illegal activity or substantial disruption, or breaches a reasonable essential safety instruction. Where practicable, the concern and required corrective action will be explained first. You may be responsible for reasonable additional costs and damage caused by your conduct. Any refund is assessed by reference to unused recoverable services and lawful charges, not an automatic forfeiture of all money paid.
Take reasonable care of your belongings and declare valuable or specialist equipment where a carrier requires it. Safeguard travel documents and comply with secure-storage advice. Responsibility for loss depends on the facts, the relevant supplier obligations and applicable law.
19. Events beyond reasonable control
Severe weather, flooding, natural disaster, epidemic restrictions, war, civil unrest, border or park closure, government action, transport shutdown or comparable events beyond reasonable control may prevent or materially affect travel. A foreseeable ordinary operating cost, lack of funds or avoidable failure by us is not made an external event merely by describing it as force majeure.
The affected obligations may be suspended or adjusted only to the extent and for the period genuinely affected. We will take reasonable steps to reduce disruption, inform you and discuss available alternatives. If the arrangements cannot reasonably proceed, cancellation and settlement will take account of applicable law, services already supplied, lawful unrecoverable commitments and supplier recoveries. There is no automatic promise of a full refund for every external disruption, and no automatic entitlement for us to retain all payments.
We are not liable for loss caused solely by an event beyond our reasonable control to the extent the law permits that exclusion. This does not excuse a failure to take reasonable steps within our control or remove mandatory assistance or refund duties. Additional travel or living costs are allocated according to the booking, cause of disruption, applicable law and insurance; new chargeable arrangements require your authority where it is practicable to obtain it.
20. Photography, video and customer content
Photography or filming may take place during a trip or event. Tell your guide or our team if you do not wish to be photographed. Before using recognisable images, video, voice or testimonials of you for promotion, we will seek specific, informed permission covering the intended use. Booking or joining a group photograph is not, by itself, an unrestricted promotional release. A parent or legal guardian’s appropriate permission is required for a child, with the child’s interests taken into account.
Where you give promotional permission, the agreed use may include our website, social media, advertisements, brochures, campaigns and authorised promotional partners. Subject to that permission, we may crop, format or edit the material for those purposes without materially misrepresenting you. No payment is due unless separately agreed. We will not treat permission for one stated purpose as permission for unrelated use or disclose private travel details merely because an image was authorised.
You may withdraw consent by contacting info@johnbowtoursandtravel.com and identifying the material. We will stop new consent-based use and take reasonable steps to remove material from channels we control. Withdrawal does not make earlier lawful use unlawful. Already distributed print materials and independent third-party reposts may not be fully recoverable, but we will explain the position and act on removal requests within our control and duties. Other travellers’ photography is not automatically controlled by JohnBow; please respect one another’s privacy.
If you supply photographs, reviews or other material for an agreed publication, you confirm that you have the necessary rights and permissions. You retain your ownership; any licence to us is limited to the publication and promotional use agreed with you. Merely sending private trip feedback does not grant an unlimited advertising licence.
21. Privacy and communications
Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle enquiries, traveller details, booking records, supplier disclosures, website information and privacy requests. We may contact you through the details supplied for quotations, payments, itinerary updates, safety notices and support. Keep those details accurate and monitor messages relevant to your journey.
Promotional emails, offers and newsletters are separate from essential service communications. You may decline promotional messages or unsubscribe without losing access to booked services. We do not sell customer personal information. Booking authority for a group does not automatically authorise marketing to every traveller.
22. Website use and intellectual property
You may use the site and supplied itineraries to consider or manage a legitimate booking. Text, branding, photographs, design and other protected materials belong to JohnBow or their respective rights holders. Except as permitted by law or written permission, you may not republish, sell or commercially exploit those materials or present them as your own. You may keep a copy of documents supplied for your booking and exercise lawful review and consumer rights.
Do not misuse enquiry forms, submit fraudulent details, impersonate another person, introduce malicious code, attempt unauthorised access or interfere with the site’s operation. We may restrict abusive access and pursue lawful remedies. External websites, social platforms and payment services have their own terms and privacy practices. A link does not warrant all third-party content. We take reasonable care with site information, but availability and trip details must be confirmed through the booking process.
23. Responsibility and limits of liability
We are responsible for performing our agreed obligations with reasonable care and skill. You must take reasonable steps to avoid or reduce avoidable loss and notify us of a problem so that it can be addressed. Responsibility is assessed by the actual cause of the loss, our role in the booking, any relevant supplier obligations and applicable law.
To the extent permitted by law, we are not liable for loss caused by your breach, an independent supplier’s failure for which we have no legal responsibility, or an event solely outside our reasonable control. We exclude indirect or consequential loss and loss of business, profits or opportunity to the extent lawfully excludable. These descriptions do not exclude a direct, foreseeable loss merely by giving it another name.
For an ordinary contractual claim arising from a service, our aggregate liability is limited, to the extent a reasonable limitation is permitted by law, to the price paid or payable to JohnBow for the affected booking. This limit does not apply to fraud, wilful misconduct, death or personal injury caused by negligence, a statutory refund obligation, a liability under applicable data-protection law that cannot be limited, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted. Mandatory consumer rights and remedies take priority throughout these Terms.
Where your unlawful conduct or material breach directly causes a third-party claim against us, you must reimburse reasonable, proven loss for which you are legally responsible. This obligation does not extend to our negligence, wrongdoing or breach, speculative loss or costs recovered elsewhere. We will give reasonable notice of a claim, allow appropriate participation in its defence and take reasonable steps to limit loss.
24. Complaints and resolving disputes
Raise a service issue with your guide, the supplier or our team as soon as reasonably possible during travel, so that practical remedies can be considered. If unresolved, email enquiries@johnbowtoursandtravel.com with the booking reference, relevant dates, a clear description and supporting records. Prompt reporting helps preserve evidence and reduce loss; it is not an arbitrary short deadline that extinguishes legal rights.
We will investigate, seek relevant supplier information and explain the outcome and any proposed remedy. The parties should first try to resolve a dispute through direct discussion and may agree mediation. Neither process prevents urgent legal relief or access to a regulator, court or other remedy provided by law.
These Terms and the booking relationship are governed by the laws of Kenya. The courts of Kenya have jurisdiction, subject to any mandatory right to bring proceedings elsewhere. No clause requires you to waive a protection that applicable law makes compulsory.
25. Changes to these Terms and other provisions
The version made available when your booking is accepted applies to that booking. A later website update does not retrospectively change an existing contract without agreement or a legally required change. Keep a copy of your accepted quotation, confirmation, supplier terms and payment plan. Material booking changes must be recorded in writing by an authorised representative.
If a provision is unlawful or unenforceable, it is limited or severed only as necessary and the remaining provisions continue to apply. Delay in enforcing a right is not a waiver. You may transfer a booking only with our agreement and any required supplier approval, subject to lawful costs and traveller eligibility. We may use subcontractors while retaining our own obligations; a transfer of our contract must not reduce your mandatory rights.
The booking documents described in section 1 record the agreement about the services, without excluding liability for fraud, misrepresentation or rights that cannot be excluded. Neither party may rely on an undisclosed oral assurance to vary a confirmed booking; ask us to record any important assurance or special arrangement in writing.
26. Contact JohnBow
JohnBow Tours and Travel Limited. Kenya Cinema Plaza, 3rd Floor, Room 3-8, Moi Avenue, Nairobi, Kenya.
Bookings, changes and complaints: enquiries@johnbowtoursandtravel.com. General and privacy enquiries: info@johnbowtoursandtravel.com. Telephone: +254 758 943 291 or +254 794 884 226.
Published office hours are Monday to Saturday, 7.00 am to 8.00 pm, and Sunday, 8.00 am to 6.00 pm, East Africa Time. For an urgent issue while travelling, also use the operational contact supplied with your itinerary; email alone may not reach the team in time for immediate assistance.