Frequently Asked Questions

(aka FAQ and How IT Works)

Is your tour instantly available? How can you pay? Problems with checkout? Want to list your tour? You might want to browse through our FAQ.

Is theTravelPorter a travel agency or tour operator?

None of the above. theTravelPorter is an online platform which connects professional hosts (Vendors) with travellers (Users)! We make it dramatically faster -and cheaper- for hosts to reach travellers (like you) and for you to join extraordinary experiences with reliable hosts. We do not endorse any of the Activities listed nor we host any of the Activities. We are not a party to any agreement between the Vendor and a User and this does not make us a travel agent, an insurer nor gives us any control over the conduct of Vendors. At the same time, all hosts and activities featured on theTravelPorter have been carefully vetted, tried-and-tested to make sure the featured activities are run in a professional manner by reliable hosts; nothing random or opportunistic, truly hand-picked. In this context, Vendors are liable for the information they list on theTravelPorter platform and liability on the information provided and their conduct lies solely with them. At the same time, theTravelPorter is not liable for any act or omission on the side of the User. Therefore, while both Users and Vendors are requested to cooperate through theTravelPorter to solve any dispute in good faith, in the unfortunate case of a dispute arising, every responsibility lies directly with Vendors and Users to solve such dispute and to reach an agreement, without liability on the side of theTravelPorter.

I have made a booking on the website - what’s next? Is my booking confirmed?

Once you Add to Cart/Book Now and provide your personal and payment details as requested and proceed with checkout, you will firstly receive an e-mail with an Order Confirmation stating that “we will contact you shortly regarding the services you have requested.” Within 24 hours you will receive a confirmation that the Activity you have booked has been confirmed and will be available to you. Otherwise, we may come up with a suggestion of an alternative -similar- Activity, either from the same or another Vendor. Some Activities are instantly confirmed and available.

Do I receive a ticket or voucher which I need to present to a Vendor?

Unless clearly stated in the final confirmation you receive from theTravelPorter, you don’t need to present to the Vendor a voucher or print-out page of the purchased/booked Activity. As a general rule, it’s nice to be prepared with a print-out or evidence on your mobile phone (such as the confirmation e-mail), but we strive to keep things effortless and paperless!

What if I need to cancel my booking?

If as a User you cancel your booking BEFORE you receive confirmation (that is within the first 24 hours you requested the activity, but before you receive a final confirmation), then you are entitled to full refund. If you cancel AFTER you have received confirmation, refunds are subject to every Vendor’s cancellation policy stated in each Activity Listing. You should therefore check the Listing and/or your booking confirmation to see which is the applicable cancellation policy. In cases of illness, extreme weather conditions or other force majeure, we strive to provide full or partial refunds for cancellations. Please note that in the case of refund, non-refundable fees may apply (such as credit card processing fees and refund fees by our payment processors Stripe and Paypal).  

What if a Vendor cancels an Activity I have booked and confirmed?

Then he/she is required to give you an alternative you are happy with. Otherwise, theTravelPorter can provide you an alternative choice available from the same or other Vendor. If you are not happy with the alternatives then you can get your money back, always subject to the cancellation policy of each vendor, but we try to be fair. That means that the Vendor may be subject to penalties. In any case, always please refer to the applicable Cancellation & Refunds policy by every Vendor, listed in each Activity Listing.

As a Vendor, how do I make Listings?

For a start, you need to complete the form requesting to List Your Activities on the Site. Thereafter, we will contact you for further details. You will need to agree with the Terms of Use of our Site and Privacy Policy and will have to agree to a Vendor Agreement. Thereafter, we will either request you to provide us with all the details and information, including pictures and cancellation policy, regarding your Activities for us to list, free of charge, on our Site, OR -where applicable- you may be requested to proceed with such input yourself. Bear in mind that you are solely responsible for the information featured on our Site regarding your Listing, so you need to inform us of any changes yourself. As said, at the moment, listings are free of charge but we reserve the right to ask for a fee -for which you will be notified of course. Also, if you wish, we can provide a photographer to shoot Verified Images of your Activity, in which case we charge a fee. Feel free to contact us for any clarification or assistance.

As a Vendor, how do I receive bookings?

Once a User has proceeded with checkout on a purchased Activity we will contact you via a designated e-mail and/or sms -as agreed- with the booking request, indicating name, contact details, dates, number of persons and other useful information required from your side, as specified to theTravelPorter. You will have 24 hours to respond to the request, after which the request is automatically cancelled. Alternatively, you can update your availability with theTravelPorter and your bookings can be confirmed instantly, so you are free of the hassle to respond every time. It’s up to you! In any case, you can decide which reservation requests to accept or decline, however if you decline many or most of the requests you get, your listing’s placement in search results may be negatively impacted.

As a Vendor, how do I get paid? 

Once an Activity is purchased, we receive payment of activities super-securely through our payment processor, Stripe. Upon completion of the Activity and once everyone is happy, you will receive at your designated account the Net Activity Fees (that is the Activity Fee you have designated minus the Vendor Fee which is determined by the Commission Rate you have agreed with theTravelPorter on your Vendor Agreement). You will receive funds in your designated account as specified in your Vendor Agreement. As of December 2016, we also accept payments through Paypal. 

So, do the activity providers (Vendors) and travellers/Users speak directly?

After booking/payment and confirmation of availability, vendors and users will have their contact details available so they can communicate directly for any further details and guidance. While theTravelPorter is here to facilitate this relationship if required, we encourage direct communication with each other.  However, as we hate spammers and need to keep things simple, vendor should refrain from contacting users for purposes of marketing or selling tours, activities or other travel-related destination services and/or products or for any other purpose other than to fulfil the Activity purchased or to answer a User request or complaint.

What about privacy and payments?

Security is of prime importance to us, that’s why we use the third party payment processor called Stripe to ensure personal and sensitive credit card information is securely handled and stored. Our Payment Service Processor Stripe is fully PCI compliant. theTravelPorter or the Vendor has no access to your credit card information. As of December 2016, we also accept payments through Paypal. 

What other obligations do I have as a Vendor besides providing the Activities?

Among your obligations as Vendor in line with the Vendor Agreement and the Terms, in our continuous effort to vet the Activity Listings, you are required to provide Activities free of charge to theTravelPorter, as reasonably requested and strictly for the purposes of vetting and marketing/promotion of the Site. This means that it may be theTravelPorter or another party, such a blogger, attending this Activity. However, this does not mean under any circumstances that theTravelPorter does or will endorse such specific Activity or Vendor. For more on no endorsements please read the Terms.

Finally, theTravelPorter recommends, but does not require, that Vendors  obtain appropriate insurance for their Activities. theTravelPorter does not act as an insurer or as your contracting agent. If a User requests a booking of your Activity and uses  your Activity, any agreement you enter into with such User is between you and the User and theTravelPorter is not a party to it. Therefore, ultimately you are responsible for what you do, and we hope you do great!

what about Low Price Guarantee?

We ask Vendors to be fair to theTravelPorter and ultimately the users and act upon a Low Price Guarantee. Shopping around is not our style and we want to establish a stable and honest relationship among all parties. 

my credit card is not accepted. what can i do?

There may be a list of reasons why this is happening but as a first step make sure that the Billing Address matches the specific credit card. This information is required by our payment processor and it's only made for your own credit cards safety. In any case, feel free to contact us and we will happily guide you through it.