If you have questions about any of the following, please call us at 1-800-800-2SUN. Thank you.
1. Avoiding Reschedule/Cancellation Fees. You are welcome to change or cancel your reservation at no charge by notifying us either within 7 days of placing your reservation, or at least 30 days before your field trip date. If you ask us to change or cancel a reservation with less than 30 days to go before your field trip date, and it has also been more than 7 days since the date you placed your reservation, this will not allow us enough time to book another school on your tour date, and an automatic cancellation fee will apply. Please note that charter bus deposits and other field trip invoices paid in advance are not refundable except as specified below in the 'Refunds' section.
2. Amount of Cancellation Fee. If you change or cancel your reservation less than 30 days before the field trip date, and it has also been more than 7 days since you made your reservation, a cancellation fee must be paid on or before your reserved field trip date. If you change/cancel your trip 15 to 29 days before your field trip date, a cancellation fee of $3 per student booked in the original reservation will be charged. If you change/cancel your trip 14 or fewer days before your field trip date, a cancellation fee of $5 per student booked in the original reservation will be charged. (For tours booked using our charter buses, the number of students will be computed as equal to the maximum capacity of the charter buses reserved for that day.) Due to the special supplies which are ordered in advance for Deluxe Field Trips, EcoCamps and Mini-EcoCamps, the cancellation fee for such a program is equal to the full cost of the program. Interest at the rate of 1.5% per month will be charged if a cancellation fee is paid late. There will never be a cancellation fee charged as long as you cancel or change your reservation within 7 days of making your reservation or at least 30 days before your reserved field trip date. Any amounts prepaid for field trips and/or charter bus fees, however, are not refundable and can only be applied as a credit to the original or a future alternate field trip date.
3. Proof of Change/Cancellation. If you reschedule or cancel your reservation, you must get a cancellation number emailed to you in order to prove the date you called to cancel. If you simply leave a phone message or email us, but fail to get a cancellation number, a cancellation fee will still be charged.
4. Rescheduling Because of Weather. Tours still take place in the event of rain showers, light snow or light rain on the tour date. The only time tours are rescheduled without charge are if any of the following conditions apply in Oconee County, Georgia on the tour date: a severe thunderstorm watch, a tornado watch or a winter storm watch/warning. In the event that constant, very heavy rain is forecast on the tour date, we may also reschedule without charge. In the event that severe weather is in the forecast, please call the nature center the day before your field trip to discuss rescheduling options. Even if the trip is rescheduled due to weather, the school is still responsible for mailing payment in full for the field trip on the original field trip date, and scheduling a new alternate date to visit the center within 12 months. Please note the organic farm is located within a low lying area and may not be included on some field trips due to flooding, even if the weather is good on your field trip date. If the school fails to reschedule the field trip and pay for the field trip by the original trip date, the school will be responsible for a $5 per student cancellation fee.
5. Unexpected Severe Weather. If unexpected severe weather occurs during your tour, forcing it to be cut short to less than 60 minutes, the school will be allowed to schedule a new, free field trip for the same number of students on an alternate date within 12 months. The school will still be responsible for paying in full for the original field trip. (Note: The cost of buses is not covered in any "free" field trip provided to the school.)
6. Grants. If you received a grant to pay for part of the cost of your field trip, this amount will be paid to the nature center directly by World Environmental Organization. This grant cannot be applied toward cancellation fees. As a condition of being awarded a grant, school must send students
home with an official nature center handout before the trip, and allow interested students to purchase items such as carnivorous plants or educational solar kits from the educational nature center store. Failure to do so will void grant and cause grant amount to be owed.
7. Refunds. If the number of students, parents or teachers decreases, school can pay for for up to 50% fewer students, parents or teachers taking the trip (this policy, however, does not apply to Deluxe Field Trips, Charter Packages, EcoCamps, Mini-EcoCamps, or field trips rescheduled with less than 30 days notice). Refund checks are mailed approximately 90 days after the trip date. If less than 50% of the number of students originally reserved take the trip, the school is still resonsible for paying for 50% of the original number. The amount of any grants may be affected by the number of students taking the trip. If the school prepays any portion of an invoice in advance, but later cancels the trip entirely, the amount paid is not refundable, but can be applied toward a future field trip. Charter bus deposit fees are not refundable and can only be applied toward the originally scheduled date.
8. Special Terms for Deluxe Field Trips, EcoCamps and Mini-EcoCamps. Any payments made for Deluxe Field Trips, EcoCamps or Mini-EcoCamps are not refundable under any circumstances. In the event a Deluxe Field Trip, EcoCamp or Mini-EcoCamp program needs to be changed or cancelled due to severe weather such as a tornado watch, severe thunderstorm watch, or winter weather warning on the day of the trip, it is the school's responsibility to book another available date. If carnivorous plants are ordered for students as part of the program, the camp should be rescheduled within 7 days, or the school should pickup the plants ordered for the program within 7 days.
9. Notifications. Upon making a reservation, an email invoice is sent to the email address provided by the person making the reservation. In order to make sure the school administration is aware of the field trip and the associated terms and conditions, a fax copy of the invoice is later sent to the attention of the school principal. Further, additional field trip information will be sent by email to the person making the original reservation, and a follow-up phone call made to the person making the reservation prior to the field trip date. Georgia Nature Center is not responsible if the school fails to receive any of these communications due to school representative providing incorrect email addresses and/or fax numbers, or if certain communications are not read due to the use of spam filters and/or improper relaying of fax communications.
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