Payment, Deposit, and Refund Policy for Training, Boat/Bus Charters, Lodge, and Packages
Training Courses: $100-$400 non-refundable deposit required at time of booking depending on the course, if included with a diving and accommodation package (100% payment required if booked individually). Balance due prior to commencement of training*. No refunds on training courses cancelled or rescheduled by students. If there is a cancellation due to weather conditions, we will try to reschedule the best we can onto another course of the same type, but any change in course type will require additional fees.
Boat & Bus Charters (Diving, Whale Watching, Sightseeing, BBQ, etc.): Non-refundable 25% deposit (for diving packages) or full payment (for all other tours and programs) required at time of booking. Balance due prior to departure for diving packages as per terms of package.* No refunds for charters cancelled or rescheduled by customers. If Ocean Quest cancels charter due to weather conditions, we will try and reschedule you for another tour. If you cannot be rescheduled, the deposit paid will be available as store credit and may be applied to other charters or products, subject to availability, within 3 months of the original date at the discretion of Ocean Quest.
Accommodation & Activity Packages: Non-refundable 25% deposit required at time of booking. Balance due upon arrival*. The deposit refund policy for packages and accommodation is as follows:
- Any cancellations made by the customer – 50% deposit amount may be applied to an equivalent package on alternative dates up to 1 year from cancellation date, subject to availability or 50% of the deposit amount may be applied to other Ocean Quest products or services.
*Deposits may be paid by cash, credit card, or e-mail money transfer. However, deposit payments must be cleared or authorized before a booking is confirmed. Additionally, a valid credit card number is required to secure bookings or courses held with a deposit, regardless of the payment type used. Balances due will be applied to the credit card at the relevant time unless another form of payment is received from the customer. Any outstanding balance for services and/or products inadvertently missed by the customer or Ocean Quest staff due to unforeseen circumstances (e.g. early departure from the lodge outside normal resort opening hours) will be applied to the relevant credit card.
Single Traveler Supplement: Call for detail - 709-722-7234
Group Bookings of 8 or more persons for Diving & Accommodation Packages booked directly with Ocean Quest will receive a 10% discount on the package price. This discount will also apply to groups which were originally smaller than 8, but which increase. The discount applies to ‘add-ons’ such as double cylinders, additional tours, courses, etc. requested at the time of booking, but does not apply to add-ons requested after the initial booking has been made and a deposit has been received. This group booking discount does not apply to bookings made through third parties, e.g., travel agents.
Non-Diving Partners & Family Members Call for details - 709-722-7234
General Information
Equipment: Our dive packages include use of cylinders and weights only (type varies depending on the package booked, i.e., 80 cu ft aluminium for basic or 100-130 cu ft steel for technical), unless other arrangements have been made at the time of booking. We have an extensive range of rental equipment available, including dry suits, BCDs, regulators, double cylinders, pony bottles, rebreathers & cylinders, computers, and cameras. These items can be booked in advance or rented on an availability basis and are charged locally unless reserved at the time of booking. If you are bringing your own equipment, make sure it is serviced and in good working order before you travel.
Weather: The weather in Newfoundland & Labrador can be extreme, especially during the winter months but, although diving is generally a weather-dependent activity, divers are very active all year round here. Winter temperatures are well below zero and summer temperatures can be scorching, providing for a wide range of weather conditions which, in our opinion, only enhance the experience of visiting the province. However, our ‘core’ period for diving packages is between May and October as this time provides consistently reliable and excellent weather conditions for diving in our main area of operation, Conception Bay. As with anywhere in the world, the weather can sometimes be unpredictable and on such occasions we may reschedule the diving itinerary to alternative times and/or sites or, as a last resort, suspend diving altogether. Whilst every effort will be made to ensure the number of dives booked on a package is accomplished during a diver’s stay with us, no refunds will be made if the diving itinerary is suspended or altered in any way due to weather conditions. For reference, a total of only 10 diving days were lost due to weather for divers on packages at Ocean Quest during the whole of the 2011, 2012 & 2013 seasons.
Insurance: We strongly recommend you have comprehensive insurance to cover all travel eventualities such as Trip Cancellation, Curtailment, Medical Treatment, Diving Accidents, Delayed or Lost Baggage, etc. It is important you are covered for incidents which may occur whilst diving and ensure any policy you have does not specifically exclude any of the activities you will be participating in, e.g., diving beyond particular depths, wreck diving, night diving, boat travel, etc.
Diving Certifications: Please make sure you bring along your certification card(s) or record(s) and log book, if you are participating in diving activities, so we can verify your experience and qualifications. Our main diving sites are the Bell Island wrecks (55-160ft/18-50m depth), which we consider unsuitable for newly certified divers. It is company policy that all divers on Ocean Quest Charters to the Bell Island wrecks are able to show proof of deep training (i.e. a minimum of SDI, PADI Advanced Certification with a minimum of 30 dives) or a minimum of 100 logged and verified dives including deep dives, unless under instruction for deep diving, due to the possibility of inadvertently straying into deeper water as 100ft/30m is achievable on all the wrecks. Please see the safety items in our Resources section for more details. Complete training with an instructor is available for those who do not meet the required certification (ie. Deep Adventure Dives, Advanced Course, etc.)
Scuba Reviews: If a diver has been inactive for a long period, it is strongly recommended that a skills review is conducted prior to diving on the Bell Island wrecks. Although they are in a sheltered area and tide or current are generally negligible factors when diving there, they are still in deep water and possess many of the usual hazards associated with shipwrecks, so Ocean Quest considers them potentially challenging for divers who have not been active for some time. A review of scuba skills with an instructor, including two shore dives, can be arranged upon request and either counted as a day’s diving from the package or paid for separately as an ‘add-on’.
Safety: The safety items in our Resources section contain information considered essential to divers planning to dive in Newfoundland & Labrador. Our safety requirements and recommendations are designed to enhance a diver’s experience with us and we strongly recommend viewing these pages well in advance of arrival to help ensure adequate preparation for diving here.
Medical: As part of our company safety policy, Ocean Quest require medical statements from participants in charter boat or guided scuba diving activity with us and our Resources section contains a blank statement that can be downloaded (any RSTC Standard Medical Statement is acceptable). Your signature on this statement confirms that you have read and fully understood its contents, including the medical history section and that, to the best of your knowledge, you are medically fit to participate in scuba diving activity with Ocean Quest. If any of the items in the medical history section apply to you, we must request that you consult with a physician and obtain written clearance to participate in scuba diving activity with Ocean Quest. This written permission must be presented to Ocean Quest on the Physician’s Sign-off form available in our Resources section (any RSTC Standard Physician’s Certificate is acceptable). Participants may be required to confirm with Ocean Quest, by initialing and re-dating the signature box, that there have been no changes to their medical status since the original date of signing.
Liability Release, Assumption of Risk, and Safe Diving Practices: Prior to participation in charter boat or guided scuba diving activity, Ocean Quest requires signed Liability Release, Assumption of Risk, and Safe Diving Practices forms from all divers. These forms are available for download from our Resources section.
Solo Diving: Ocean Quest does not permit solo diving from their charter boats unless divers:
- are carrying a redundant air source (e.g. pony bottle, twin cylinders w/isolation, or independent doubles), a delayed surface marker buoy & reel, a dive knife, and a surface audible signal device;
- they must also be able to prove a minimum of 100 logged dives, and have a recognized certification as a Solo Diver, Full Cave Diver, Advanced Nitrox & Decompression Procedures Diver, or Trimix Diver;
- and they have signed a solo liability waiver.
Age of Majority: The age of majority in Newfoundland & Labrador is 19 years old. Any person under age 19 participating in activities with Ocean Quest will require any relevant liability releases, waivers, etc. to be signed by their parent or legal guardian.
Website Terms of Use
The information, software, products, and services published on this website may include inaccuracies or errors, including pricing errors. In particular, Ocean Quest and the affiliated, co-branded and/or linked website partners through whom we provide service (collectively, “Ocean Quest affiliates”) do not guarantee the accuracy of, and disclaim all liability for any errors or other inaccuracies relating to the information, software, products, and services published on this website.
Ocean Quest and its respective suppliers make no representations about the suitability of the information, software, products, and services contained on this website for any purpose, and the inclusion or offering of any products or services on this website does not constitute any endorsement or recommendation of such products or services by Ocean Quest. All such information, software, products, and services are provided “as is” without warranty of any kind. Ocean Quest and its respective suppliers disclaim all warranties and conditions that this website, its servers or any email sent from Ocean Quest are free of viruses or other harmful components. Ocean Quest and its respective suppliers hereby disclaim all warranties and conditions with regard to this information, software, products, and services, including all implied warranties and conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and non-infringement.
In no event shall Ocean Quest be liable for any direct, indirect, punitive, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising out of, or in any way connected with, your access to, display of or use of this website or with the delay or inability to access, display or use this website (including, but not limited to, your reliance upon opinions appearing on this web site; any computer viruses, information, software, linked sites, products, and services obtained through this website; or otherwise arising out of the access to, display of or use of this website) whether based on a theory of negligence, contract, tort, strict liability, or otherwise, and even if Ocean Quest has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
Website Privacy Policy
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California Online Privacy Protection Act Compliance
Because we value your privacy we have taken the necessary precautions to be in compliance with the California Online Privacy Protection Act. We therefore will not distribute your personal information to outside parties without your consent.
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Changes to our Privacy Policy
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Contacting Us
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This policy was last modified on June 24, 2014