Terms and Conditions

Last updated: 8 November 2026.

These terms apply to every trip you book with South America by Kata Travels. Please read them before you confirm a booking. If anything is unclear, write to us and we will explain it in plain words.

1. Who we are

South America by Kata Travels is a brand of Kata Travels. Your trip is organised and sold by Insight Vacations S.R.L., a travel and tourism company registered in Argentina (CUIT 30-71809845-5), Av. Maipú 2931, 3A, Olivos (CP 1636), Buenos Aires, Argentina. Travel agency licence: EVT Legajo No. 18685. Contact: hello@katatravels.com · +54 11 7079-0567.

We plan your journey and book it with local partners we have selected in each country: hotels, guides, drivers, airlines and other service providers. In these terms, “we” and “us” means Insight Vacations S.R.L.; “you” means every traveller named in the booking.

2. Your quote and your booking

• Every trip starts with a personal proposal and a written quote. A quote is free and does not commit you to anything.
• Your booking becomes binding when you have accepted the quote, we have received your deposit and we have sent you our written booking confirmation. From that moment these terms form the contract between you and us.
• The person who makes the booking confirms that they are authorised to accept these terms on behalf of everyone named in it, and that all travellers have read them.
• Please check your confirmation carefully. Names must match passports exactly; tell us straight away if anything is wrong.

3. Prices and payment

• Your quote states the price, the currency, what is included and what is not. Anything not listed as included (for example international flights, insurance, most meals, tips and personal expenses) is not part of the price.
• Prices of services outside Argentina are quoted in foreign currency (normally US dollars), as Argentine regulations allow.
• The deposit and the date by which the balance is due are shown on your quote and your booking confirmation. If you book close to departure, full payment may be required at once.
• You can pay by bank transfer or by card (Visa, Mastercard or American Express). Bank, transfer and card charges are paid by the traveller unless your quote says otherwise.
• If the balance is not received by the due date, we may treat the booking as cancelled by you, and the cancellation charges below apply.
• By paying the deposit you accept the services and the price set out in your confirmation. The total can go up or down if you ask for upgrades or changes, or if a service becomes unavailable and has to be replaced; we always confirm any difference in writing first.
• Our prices are built on confidential agreements with hotels and local partners. For that reason we quote the trip as a whole and do not give a line-by-line breakdown of each service.
• Flights are quoted separately and must be paid in full when the tickets are issued (see the Flights section).
• Until you have paid in full, prices can change if a supplier, airline or authority changes its price; we will tell you before anything changes. Once you have paid in full, the price of your confirmed services will not change, except for new taxes or fees imposed by governments, park authorities or airlines.

4. Changes you ask for

You can ask to change your trip at any time, in writing. We will always try to help, but changes depend on availability. Any extra cost, and any charge our suppliers make for the change, will be added to your price, and we will confirm it before we make the change. Names on airline tickets usually cannot be changed once tickets are issued.

If you want to pass your booking to another person, tell us in writing as early as possible. The new traveller must meet all the conditions of the trip. Supplier charges and an administration fee of up to 10% of the price may apply.

5. If you cancel

• Cancellations must be sent to us in writing (email is fine). They take effect on the day we receive them.
• If you cancel, we refund what you have paid minus: (a) the costs that our suppliers charge us or will not refund under their conditions, and (b) an administration fee of 10% of the price of the cancelled services.
• Some services have stricter conditions, for example airline tickets once issued, cruises and expedition boats, certain lodges and parks, trains and site tickets with fixed entry times, and travel over Christmas, New Year, Carnival and Easter. We tell you about these conditions in your quote, before you book.
• If only some travellers cancel, the others may have to pay extra, for example single-room supplements or a higher price per person for private services.
• Refunds are made in the currency and by the method you paid, as soon as our suppliers have released the money.

6. Special conditions for some services and dates

Some services and travel dates follow their suppliers’ own payment and cancellation rules, which can be stricter than our standard cancellation terms (for example a higher deposit or a non-refundable payment). This applies in particular to:

• expedition cruises, ship and boat journeys (for example in Patagonia, the Chilean fjords, the Galápagos and the Amazon) and Antarctic voyages;
• remote and all-inclusive lodges, camps and refuges, and trekking circuits with limited places (for example in Torres del Paine and on the Inca Trail);
• permits and tickets with fixed dates and entry times, such as Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail and some national parks;
• peak dates: Christmas and New Year (20 December to 4 January), Carnival, Easter and major local festivals, when minimum stays and special package rules often apply.

When your trip includes any of these, we tell you the exact conditions in your quote and confirmation, before you pay.

7. Group trips

Private trips for groups of 8 or more travellers may have their own conditions, which we send with the quote. For group journeys of 15 or more travellers, unless your group contract says otherwise, these cancellation charges apply per traveller:

• from booking until 91 days before departure: USD 250 plus 3% administration costs;
• from 90 to 61 days before departure: 30% of the price plus 3% administration costs;
• 60 days or less before departure: 100% of the price.

Group airline tickets cannot be changed or refunded once issued. Changes to a group (names, numbers or dates) must be sent in writing at least 15 working days before departure.

8. If we have to change or cancel your trip

Travelling across a continent sometimes means adapting. Weather, road and park closures, strikes, airline schedule changes or local conditions can make a change necessary. Where we can, we will replace a service with one of the same standard. Small adjustments (such as a different hotel of the same category or a change in the order of visits) may happen without notice.

If we have to make a major change before departure, or cancel your trip, we will tell you as soon as possible and you can choose between accepting the change, taking an alternative trip, or cancelling and receiving a refund of the affected services.

We cannot be held responsible for events beyond our control and that of our suppliers (“force majeure”), such as natural disasters, extreme weather, epidemics, war, civil unrest, terrorism, strikes, government decisions, closures of airports, roads, borders or parks, and flight cancellations or delays. In those cases we will do everything reasonable to help you and to recover what our suppliers allow.

9. Flights

• Kata Travels is IATA-accredited and can issue airline tickets directly. Flights are subject to the airline’s own conditions of carriage and fare rules, which we give you before you book.
• An airfare is only guaranteed once the ticket has been paid in full and issued. Until then airlines may change or withdraw fares.
• Flight times can change. Please check your tickets as soon as you receive them and the latest times before each flight. Changes made by airlines are not a change to your trip by us.
• If you book your own flights, make sure arrival and departure times fit your itinerary; we are not responsible for missed services caused by flights we did not book.

10. Itinerary, accommodation and nature

• Itineraries on this website and in your proposal show the intended route and pace. Your final travel documents, sent before departure, contain the confirmed details.
• Hotels are confirmed by name in your booking. Room types follow local standards; triple rooms are often a double room with an extra bed. Travellers on their own, or who prefer a room to themselves, pay a single supplement.
• Wildlife, weather and natural events (whales, penguins, condors, clear views of a peak, the Uyuni mirror effect and so on) depend on nature and cannot be guaranteed.
• Small planes, boats and some trains have strict luggage limits, which we tell you in advance. Extra luggage charges are paid by the traveller.
• Tips for guides and drivers are not included and are at your discretion.

11. Activities, safety and children

Some experiences, such as hiking, trekking at altitude, horse riding, rafting, boat trips or glacier walks, carry risks that cannot be removed completely. By taking part you accept those normal risks and agree to follow the instructions of guides and local partners, who may change or stop an activity for safety reasons. Some providers will ask you to sign their own waiver or rules before an activity.

Travellers under 18 must travel with a parent or legal guardian unless agreed otherwise in writing. Age and height limits set by providers apply to some activities.

12. Passports, visas and health requirements

Each traveller is responsible for having a passport valid for the whole trip (most countries require at least six months’ validity), any visas or entry permits, and any vaccinations or health documents required by the countries visited, including those needed to travel between countries. We are happy to point you to official sources, but entry rules change and the official information always prevails. If you are refused boarding or entry because of missing documents, our cancellation charges apply.

Minors travelling without one or both parents may need specific authorisations. Please ask us early.

13. Health, fitness and special needs

Some trips include high altitude, long travel days, hiking or boat trips. Please tell us at the time of booking about any medical condition, disability, pregnancy, allergy or dietary need, so that we can plan suitable arrangements. We recommend that you consult your doctor before travelling, especially about altitude. Local partners may refuse to provide an activity if they believe it is unsafe for a traveller. If a condition that affects your ability to take part is not disclosed and a service has to be refused for safety reasons, our cancellation charges apply to that service.

14. Travel insurance

Travel insurance is required for every traveller. It should cover at least medical treatment, emergency evacuation and repatriation, and preferably cancellation and lost luggage. Insurance is not included in our prices; please take it out when you book, so that you are covered if you have to cancel. We can recommend providers on request.

15. Our responsibility

We are responsible for arranging the services described in your booking confirmation with care, and for choosing reputable local partners. Each service provider (airline, hotel, transport or activity company) remains responsible for its own services under its own conditions and the law of its country. We are not responsible for losses caused by you, by third parties not involved in providing your services, or by force majeure events. Where liability for a service is limited by international conventions (for example for air travel) or by the provider’s conditions, those limits also apply to us.

Nothing in these terms limits any rights you have under Argentine consumer protection law (Law 24.240) or under mandatory rules of your country of residence.

16. During your trip and if something goes wrong

If something is not as it should be, please tell your guide, our local partner or us immediately, so that we can put it right on the spot. Our team is reachable by phone, email and WhatsApp throughout your trip. If a problem cannot be solved during the trip, please send us a written complaint within 30 days of your return, with as much detail as possible. We reply to every complaint in writing. Telling us at the time matters: if we do not know about a problem during the trip, we cannot fix it, and any compensation may be reduced.

Please respect local laws, customs, communities and nature. Guides and partners may exclude a traveller whose behaviour puts others at risk or seriously disrupts the trip; in that case no refund is due.

17. Photos, privacy and your data

We use your personal data only to plan, book and run your trip, as explained in our Privacy Policy, in line with Argentina’s Personal Data Protection Law (Law 25.326). To book your services we share the necessary details with the suppliers involved. We never use your photos or comments publicly without asking you first.

18. Governing law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the Argentine Republic. We will always try to resolve any disagreement with you directly first. Consumer disputes may also be submitted to Argentina’s National Consumer Arbitration System (Sistema Nacional de Arbitraje de Consumo) or to the arbitration tribunal of the Argentine Federation of Travel and Tourism Companies (FAEVYT). This does not affect any mandatory consumer protection rights you have in your country of residence.

19. Using this website

• The text, photos, logos and design of this website belong to Kata Travels or its licensors and are protected by copyright and trademark law. You may not copy, republish, frame or use them commercially without our written consent.
• Itineraries and information on the website are given in good faith to inspire your trip; your written quote and booking confirmation are what count. Details such as opening times, park rules, prices of third parties and entry requirements can change without notice.
• Links to other websites are provided for convenience and do not mean we endorse them; we are not responsible for their content.
• You must not try to access parts of the website or our systems that are not intended for you, test them for weaknesses, or interfere with their operation.
• To the extent permitted by law, we are not liable for losses caused by the use of, or the inability to use, the website, or by unauthorised access to data sent through it.
• We may update the website and its content at any time.

20. General

• These terms are available in several languages. If the language versions differ, the interpretation most favourable to you as a consumer applies.
• We may update these terms from time to time. The version published on the date of your booking confirmation applies to your trip.
• If any part of these terms is found invalid, the rest remains in force.

21. Contact

Insight Vacations S.R.L. (Kata Travels) · Av. Maipú 2931, 3A, Olivos (CP 1636), Buenos Aires, Argentina · hello@katatravels.com · +54 11 7079-0567.