The Himalayan Guru

Terms & cancellation policy

Written in plain language. Every clause comes with a worked example so nothing is hiding in the small print. Last updated 6 May 2026.

How a journey is composed and confirmed

  1. You send an inquiry — by form, email, or WhatsApp. No fees, no commitment.
  2. Within two working days a composer replies with a written outline and an indicative quote.
  3. We refine the journey together. Up to three rounds of revisions are included; further changes are billed at our composer rate.
  4. Once the final itinerary and price are approved in writing, a 30% confirming deposit secures your dates and inventory.
  5. The balance is due 45 days before departure.

What the final price includes — line by line

Every estimate itemises:

The atelier never adds hidden mark-up after the estimate is signed. If a third-party rate moves between booking and travel, we show the delta in writing and pass on cost reductions in full.

Cancellation tiers

The further out you cancel, the less you lose. These tiers apply to the total journey price, less the hard third-party costs we have already paid out (flights, permits, Bhutan SDF, deposits to remote properties).

Days before departure Refund You forfeit What we keep
More than 90 days 100% Nothing* Only non-refundable third-party costs we have paid out (rare at this stage)
90 — 61 days 80% 20% of journey price Composer time + locked supplier deposits
60 — 31 days 50% 50% of journey price Composer time + supplier deposits + permit fees
30 — 15 days 25% 75% of journey price Most supplier inventory is now committed
14 days or fewer 0% 100% of journey price All inventory and services committed

* If the journey involves Bhutan, the Sustainable Development Fee paid to the Royal Government is non-refundable under any tier — this is a regulator-set cost, not an atelier charge.

Worked examples

Example 1. A 12-day Kashmir & Ladakh journey priced at USD 18,000. You cancel 120 days before departure. The atelier has paid USD 400 in non-refundable property holds.

Refund: USD 18,000 − USD 400 = USD 17,600 returned.

Example 2. The same journey, cancelled 45 days before departure.

Refund tier: 50% (you are in the 60–31 day band).

Refund: USD 18,000 × 50% = USD 9,000 returned. Forfeit: USD 9,000 covering composer time and the supplier deposits already paid.

Example 3. A Bhutan journey priced at EUR 14,000 including EUR 2,000 of Sustainable Development Fee. You cancel 20 days before departure.

Refund tier: 25%. Plus the SDF is non-refundable.

Refundable base: EUR 14,000 − EUR 2,000 = EUR 12,000. Refund: EUR 12,000 × 25% = EUR 3,000 returned.

If we cancel — what happens then

Travel insurance — strongly recommended

We require every guest to carry comprehensive travel insurance covering medical evacuation, trip-curtailment, and cancellation. We will not invoice a final balance until you confirm a policy is in place.

The Himalayan Guru is not an insurance broker. Our office can connect you with three preferred providers if you ask.

How to cancel

  1. Write to hello@thehimalayan.guru with your journey reference.
  2. We confirm the cancellation in writing within one working day and issue the refund within five working days.
  3. Refunds return to the original payment method. Card processing typically settles in three to ten further working days depending on your bank.

Disputes

We have built this policy to be plain enough that disputes are rare. If one arises, our first step is a real conversation — by call or video. Should that not resolve it, the governing law is the Republic of India, jurisdiction Srinagar, J&K. EU and UK guests retain their statutory consumer rights under their domestic law.