How to Book
- Verbal Confirmation; Once we receive verbal confirmation for the Private Charter, we will
raise a Booking Form and Deposit Invoice, which must be returned within 7 days. - Booking Form; No Private Charter can be confirmed until a completed and signed copy of
the Booking Form indicating acceptance of these Terms and Conditions has been
received. By booking a Private Charter with Thames Cruises London Ltd, any person
named on the Booking Form shall be considered the Hirer. You are bound by the Terms
and Conditions of the Operating Company and shall be liable for all charges. At the time
of booking the Hirer must state as accurately as possible the nature of the function and
expected number of guests. The Operating Company may in its absolute discretion and
without giving any reason refuse to accept the Private Charter. Bookings can only be
accepted by persons over the age of 21. - Deposit; The Hirer is in addition required to pay a non-refundable Deposit of the Private
Charter to confirm the booking. The Deposit is non-refundable and non-transferable to a
different Boat or date. - Right to Release; If the Booking Form and Deposit are not received within 7 days from the
date of issue, we reserve the right to offer the Boat to other interested parties. - Confirmation; Once we have received both a completed and signed Booking Form and
Deposit payment, the Boat will be confirmed for the Private Charter. - Piers
- Piers are owned and managed by external Companies.
- All Pier slots are subject to availability.
- Once the Private Charter is confirmed, we will request the Pier slots with the Pier owners.
- No Pier slots are guaranteed until the Pier owners have confirmed back in writing.
- Once Pier slots have been confirmed, any changes made by the Hirer will incur a fee.
- If the requested Pier slots are unavailable, we will endeavour to find the nearest available.
- The Hirer and their guests will not be permitted to board the Boat more than 15-minutes
prior to the embarkation time. - Once the Boat departs, it cannot return to the Pier to collect late passengers. We will not
be responsible for guests missing the boat and no refund will be offered. - The Boat will return to the Pier 15-minutes prior to the end of the Private Charter.
Passengers will have 15-minutes to finish drinks and disembark. All passengers must have
disembarked by the end of the Private Charter. Passengers delaying the end of the Private
Charter will incur additional hourly charges which will be billed to the Hirer. - Final Event Details
- Final event details must be confirmed no less than 21 days prior to the date of the Private
Charter. These include but are not limited to: - Final Number of Guests (once confirmed we cannot reduce the number of guests, however we can
increase up until 7 working days prior)- Menu Choices
- Bar Requirements
- Entertainment
- Balance
- A Balance invoice based on the final event details will be raised for payment and must be
paid within 7 days of issue. - If the Balance is not paid within 7 days of issue, the booking may be cancelled and the
deposit will be retained as an agreed level of compensation for such cancellation. In
addition, the Hirer will be liable to pay the costs of any catering, contracted artistes or
attractions booked on their behalf.
Payments - Payment of invoices can be made by bank transfer, debit or credit card.
- Payments must be in cleared funds in our account by the due date.
- If any invoice is not paid by the dates shown, we reserve the right to charge interest on the
amount due at the rate of one per cent (1%) per month until the date of payment.
Extras - Extra guests can be added up to 7 days prior to the date of the Private Charter.
- An extras invoice will be raised accordingly and due for immediate payment.
- Cancellation
- If the Hirer cancels the booking the Deposit in not refundable in whole or in part.
- Should the cancellation occur within 42 days of the date of the Private Charter then the
Hirer will be liable to pay the balance cost of the Private Charter if the Boat cannot be relet. In addition, the Hirer will be liable to pay the costs of any contracted artistes or
attractions booked on their behalf. - Should the cancellation occur less than 21 days before the date of the Private Charter then
the Hirer will in additional be liable to pay all catering and any other costs incurred in
connection to the event. - At the time of booking, the Hirer must state in the Booking Form as accurately as possible
the nature of the function and number of guests expected to attend. In the event of an
under/over-statement prejudicing in the Operating Company’s reasonable opinion their
ability effectively to perform the Private Charter, the Operating Company may without
notice cancel the booking and the Hirer will be liable for all costs incurred. - Charges
- The Operating Company reserve the right, from time to time, to request additional
deposits against damages/breakages. If in its absolute discretion, the Operating Company
considers that security services are required for the Private Charter, these will be
organised by the Operating Company at the Hirer’s expense. No refunds can be given in
respect of such expense. - The Hirer agrees to reimburse the Operating Company for any additional expense for
cleaning or repairs as a result of the use or misuse of the Boat by the Hirer or any guest,
before, during or after the Private Charter, fair wear and tear excepted. - The Hirer will be liable for any additional charges incurred during the Private Charter
(including but not limited to unauthorised alcohol, delay to the end of the Private Charter,
loss or damage to the Boat, equipment or furnishings, the discovery that information
given about the nature of the function is in any way false, unscheduled pier stops, security
call-out). - In the event of litigation all costs will be recovered from the Hirer.
- Loss or Damage
- No liability will attach to the Operating Company in respect of any loss or damage or
personal injury to the Hirer or any guest or anything brought onto the Boat by any such
person. - The Hirer will be liable for all loss or damage to property upon or brought on to the Boat
and for any injury to any person or thing caused or in consequence of any negligent act or
omission on the part of the Hirer, its servants or agents or independent contractors
and/or any guest of the Hirer, and the Hirer will keep the Operating Company
indemnified in respect of any such loss, damage or injury. - Changes
- The Operating Company reserves the right to substitute another Boat and, if necessary,
for reasons beyond its reasonable control, to cancel or amend the booking in any way, but
the Operating Company will not in such circumstances be liable for any loss, damages or
other expenses whatsoever incurred by the Hirer due to such substitution, or cancellation
or amendment. - During the Private Charter, the Boat will remain under the complete control of the
Captain. If for weather, tide or any other reason whatsoever the Captain considers it
necessary to vary the Private Charter in any way whatsoever, his decision will be final and
the Operating Company shall be under no liability whatsoever for any such decision. - All prices may be subject to change without notification.
- Complaints
- If the Hirer has any comments during the Private Charter the Captain or Boat Manager
will be happy to discuss these with the Hirer at any time. Any complaints must be notified
to either the Captain and/or Boat Manager at the time of the Private Charter and then restated in writing to the Operating Company no later than 3 working days after the Private
Charter. Failure to comply with these requirements will relieve the Operating Company
from any liability whatsoever in respect of the said complaints. - Not Permitted on-board
- Nothing shall be affixed to any part of the Boat by the Hirer or any guest by any means
whatsoever without prior consent in writing to the Operating Company. Nothing should
ever be used that will leave residual marks. - The Hirer is not permitted to take on-board any beverages or food for use during the
Private Charter, unless by prior written agreement of the Operating Company. All
beverages and/or food brought onboard, by arrangement or otherwise, will be subject to a
corkage and/or handling charge. - Any unauthorised beverages or food will be confiscated and the Captain reserves the right
to terminate the Private Charter. - No animals or birds may be brought upon the Boat without the written permission of the
Operating Company. - Age Policy; if more than 5% of passengers are under 21, please contact the office at the
time of booking for details of the under 21’s policy. Failure to do so may result in the
cancellation of the Private Charter. - The Captain reserves the right to refuse passage to any person or persons and the reasons
for such refusal need not be stated. - The following are not permitted on-board: party poppers, silly string, confetti or table
confetti or similar. Dry ice, smoke or bubble machines. Lit candles, sparklers, fireworks or
similar. Chewing gum. Strobe or laser lights. - Filming, Advertising and Branding
- All filming activity (and all commercial still photography) on the tidal Thames requires a
filming licence from the Port of London Authority. The Hirer is responsible for attaining
this prior to the Private Charter. - Any banners or decorations need to face in-towards the boat and cannot be advertised to
the public. - During a Private Charter, photography and filming for our own use may take place.
- Smoking, Behaviour, Drug
- Smoking is permitted on designated outside deck only.
- We operate a zero-tolerance policy on drugs and towards violent and abusive behaviour
on-board the Boat. Failure to comply with this policy would result in termination of the
Private Charter and notification to the relevant authorities. - Accessibility
- We request that you inform us of special needs or disabilities at the time of booking.
- Most Boats do not have step-free access and the Piers can be very steep at certain times of
the day. - Bathrooms are not fully accessible.
- Areas of the Boat may only be accessed via stairs and no lift is available.
- These Terms and Conditions shall be governed by English Law and any dispute or other matter
arising out of or in connection with them shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the
English Courts.
