1. Expert Reservations Staff
We are committed to providing you with the most authoritative and up-to-date information as possible. We’ve done this by sending our staff on many Quest tours. Recently they have travelled to Antarctica, the Arctic, East Africa, Galapagos Islands, Peru, Cuba, Copper Canyon, Mexico, South Africa, China and India. When you call our office, you will be talking to an expert in both nature travel and Quest’s many international and Canadian destinations.
2. Expert Trip Leaders
We have always said that our strength is our tour leaders. We choose them very carefully, not only for their natural history knowledge, but also for their ability to share it with you. They enjoy being with people, are efficient, skilled travellers and will make sure that you have a great time.
3. Unique, Custom Itineraries
Organizing tours to remote corners of the world is often complex, and requires local expertise and realistic planning. By doing our homework, and fully researching our trip itineraries, we travel to the best places at times when nature is at its peak. With Quest it is possible to travel to “off-the-beaten-track” destinations while still enjoying the good life: comfortable accommodations and good food.
4. Accommodations
On each of our international land tours we use hotels, inns and lodges that are classified as 3 and 4-star properties. At times, we may use 5-star hotels. The rooms, unless clearly stated in the detailed trip itineraries, have private bathrooms and twin beds. For a description of the ships we use on our expedition cruises, please refer to the Expedition Cruise page of this website.
5. Transportation
The vehicles we use on our tours vary according to the country and the size of the group. For example, in East Africa, our 8-passenger safari vehicles have a maximum of 6 participants in each. In Cuba, we hire medium sized air-conditioned buses, some with washroom on board. In Australia and New Zealand, our operator provides comfortable 20-22 seat mini buses. The detailed trip notes for each tour describe the vehicles we plan to use on that trip.
6. All Inclusive Tours
We know that on of the major reasons Quest enjoys a participant repeat rate of over 70% is that all of our tours are as hassle-free as possible. We want our clients to enjoy their holiday with us to the fullest, and we have designed our tours with this in mind.
To help you identify no-hassle tours, we have adopted the all-inclusive tour symbol. 
When you see this symbol it tells you that virtually everything is included in the cost of the tour:
- All accommodations
- All meals
- All gratuities
- All ground transportation
- All listed activities
- All park entry fees
- Services of the Quest leader(s) and/or local guide
Any exceptions to this policy will be clearly stated in the detailed trip notes, which you may download from the trip page.
7. Guaranteed Tour Cost
When we pay our international operators for the services they provide for us, we pay in US$ or Euros, or sometimes in the currency of the country in which we are travelling. This becomes our FIXED CURRENCY and we guarantee the cost of the trip in this FIXED CURRENCY. The fixed currency cost of each tour is listed in red.
All Canadian land tours are subject to 5% GST (Goods & Services Tax). Land tours to Newfoundland, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are subject to the 14% HST (Harmonized Sales Tax).
Please note: We are a Canadian company and we gladly accept Canadian dollars for the Fixed Currency cost, at our current exchange rate at the time of payment(s).
For tours priced in currencies other than USD, we accept payment ONLY in Canadian dollars, at our current exchange rate at the time of payment(s).
Once final payment is made, the cost (with the exceptions noted in the Terms & Conditions under Tour Pricing) is guaranteed and there will be no currency exchange adjustments.
8. Credit Cards Accepted
When you book directly with us, we accept Visa or Mastercard for trip deposits or final payments.
9.Single Travellers
If you wish to be guaranteed single accommodations, the single supplement will be listed in the detailed trip itineraries. If you are travelling alone and you are willing to share, we will attempt to match you up with an appropriate roommate. For most trips, you’ll be guaranteed a single room at no extra cost if we can’t find you an appropriate match. Please note that on certain trips we will not be able to offer this guarantee. In such an event, this exception will be clearly outlined in the detailed trip itinerary.
10. Tipping Included
You have told us that tipping is a major inconvenience and aggravation. We agree! You may relax, as your Quest tour leader will take care of tips for porters, food servers, guides, drivers, etc, on most of our tours. Please refer to the detailed trip itinerary.
11. Smoke-Free Travel
We want your trip to be as smoke-free as possible. Since close to 100% of our participants are non-smokers, our smoking policy is clear. No smoking in the vehicles, at meals, or near the group. If we have placed two participants together in a room, and one is not a smoker, then the room is designated as non-smoking.
Please note: Quest Nature Tours always requests non-smoking rooms at the hotels; however, we cannot guarantee that they will be available when we arrive.
12. Toll-Free Phone Number
Whether it’s to call for information or to check on something after you’ve booked with us, it won’t cost you a dime. Simply call us toll-free at 1-800-387-1483, from anywhere in North America.
13. We’ll Look After You
Once you’ve sent in your deposit, we’ll take care of all the details and send you comprehensive information about your tour. Your final documents will include baggage tags and a final itinerary with emergency telephone numbers.
14. References are Available
We pride ourselves on the number of participants who have enjoyed our tours so much that they travel with us again and again. Many of them are also happy to talk to you about the tours they were on. If you would like to discuss a specific tour with one of our participants, please call us and we will set it up for you.
