General FAQs

The minimum age to participate in an Explorica tour is 6 years old at the time of departure. There is no maximum age, but because our prices are based on student rates, participants 23 years of age and older are responsible for paying an adult supplement and a Double/Twin or Single Room Supplement.

Official cancellation requests must be emailed to cancellations@explorica.ca. The parent or guardian of a participant may contact Explorica to inquire about cancellations.

Will my reservations be cancelled by Explorica if I do not make my payments?

If you do not meet the conditions of your payment plan, your reservations will be cancelled and standard cancellation fees will apply.

Explorica's Travel Protection Plan Plus: Cancel For Any Reason Benefit

Explorica’s Travel Protection Plan Plus includes our exclusive Cancel for Any Reason benefit. For more information about benefit rules, timelines and information about how to submit a claim, please see the Travel Protection section of our website.

Adults (23 years of age or older) are automatically placed in twin rooms unless a single room is selected and paid for at the time of enrolment. The adult rooming supplement fee for tours outside the US and CA is $40 per night ($75 per night on ferries and cruise ships) and $80 per night for a single room. For tours within the US or CA, the adult rooming supplement fee is $40 per night or $80 per night for a single room. Single rooms are not available on night trains, cruises and ferries.
Roommates are assigned by your Group Leader and requests should be given to your Group Leader 60 days prior to your departure. The deadline for requests for single room upgrades is 60 days before departure. For more information on accommodations, visit the get ready section of our website.

While on tour, 3-4 students under the age of 23 and of the same gender will be sharing a room. These students will be from the entire group unless otherwise noted. For teacher-led tours, the Group Leaders will assign these roommates. Hotel rooms are furnished with either single or double beds; single beds sleep just one person and double beds may be shared. Participants aged 22 and younger may choose to upgrade to stay in a twin room for an additional $40 per night ($75 per night on cruises and ferries). The deadline for requests for twin room upgrades is 60 days before departure. For more information on accommodations, visit the get ready section of our website.

If your account has an overpayment Explorica will process your refund once all funds have cleared the bank. This usually takes about 2-3 weeks from the time the refund is posted. If your account has been cancelled, any refund due will be processed within 6 weeks of the date of cancellation. If you purchased Explorica's  Travel Protection Plan, you may submit a claim to Trip Mate.

Explorica issues refunds in the same method payments were made, unless paid directly from a chequing account in which case a cheque will be issued. Please note that Explorica cannot refund credit cards that were not originally used for payments, or that exceed the total amount charged to that card. Please contact Explorica at 888.378.8845 with questions concerning your refund.

Students or adults with special needs or physical disabilities are welcome to travel on an Explorica tour. Please let us know in advance of your departure and we will do everything we can to accommodate your needs. Please note: some bus companies and hotels overseas are not wheelchair accessible. We ask that you contact your Program Consultant or a Customer Care Representative with your specific needs. Read more about the Explorica Accessibility Policy.

If you would like to depart or return from a different airport than your group, please indicate this request at the time of your enrolment. Select your desired departure airport from the Alternate Gateway menu on the “Change Selections” page, or include your selections on your paper application. Travellers must depart from and return to the same Canadian gateway. See the Explorica Terms and Conditions for more information.

If you would like to allocate cheque funds amongst group members, please fill out Group Cheque Form. If your cheque is larger than your participants’ total balance, please assign the extra amount to the Group Leader. If you have more than one group cheque to submit, please make a copy of the form and submit a separate one for each.

Please mail this form(s) with your cheque(s), payable to Explorica Canada Inc, to:

Explorica Canada, Inc.
3080 Yonge St., Suite 5052, Box 77
Toronto, ON M4N3N1

Explorica offers a 10% Family and Faculty Discount on the Tour Fee (all other fees apply). This discount applies only to the Group Leader's immediate family members and faculty members working at the school through which the Group Leader is organizing the tour. Those extended this discount are not considered full-paying participants and therefore do not count toward the Group Leader's stipend, free chaperone places, or travel points.

The governments of certain countries require parental consent for a minor to enter. This document needs to be completed prior to departure and taken with the traveller on tour. The forms below must be signed and notarized in order for each student to enter the country. Each traveller must present the form, along with a valid passport, to the airline attendant upon checking in.

Download the Parental Consent Form for Minors Travelling to Belize or for Minors Travelling to Mexico.
Any specific questions or concerns regarding the necessity of these forms or how to complete them should be directed toward the embassy of the country being visited.

Note: The above applies to passengers holding Canadian passports. Those passengers that are not Canadian citizens should contact their local consulate for information regarding traveling out of country as a minor.

Specific details and requirements vary by cruise line so please be sure to research your cruise line's guidelines prior to your departure. The following is a list of helpful information:

The ability to obtain frequent flyer miles will vary depending on the airline; some airlines will credit your account and others cannot do so because you are flying on a group ticket. You will need to contact the airline directly, as Explorica is unable to negotiate frequent flyer miles on your behalf. It may be helpful to retain your boarding passes.

Travel can be unpredictable and arrival times are not guaranteed.

For many of our tours, you may opt to arrange your own airline tickets and join the group at the hotel at their first overseas destination. We will discount your Tour Fee by up to 35 percent. Some tours that include an internal flight do not permit the Land Only option. Please contact a Customer Care Representative for more information.

You may sign up as a Land Only Participant online, by selecting the Land Only box on the “Change Selections” page. Should you wish to mail us a paper application, please mark your application accordingly to reflect this option. This should be requested upon  enrolment and up to 130 days before departure.  Additional fees may apply if requested between 129–90 days before departure. This option is not available less than 90 days before departure.

Please note that all Land Only participants are responsible for their own airline tickets AND airport transfers. You will not be met at the airport by an Explorica representative.  Please keep in mind that you should not make any flight arrangements until you receive your final tour itinerary and departure date from your Group Leader.

Minors may NOT travel Land Only unless one of the following conditions is met:

1. The traveller is accompanied by an adult. If the accompanying adult is not the parent or guardian of the traveller, written consent must be provided by the legal parent or guardian.
2. The parent or guardian of the traveller has signed a consent form acknowledging that the traveller will not be met at the airport and Explorica will NOT supply chaperone or transport service to or from the airport. Forms must be completed at the time of Land Only enrolment and faxed to Explorica at 1.888.378.8846.

You may wish to spend time at your destinations before or after the scheduled tour. The fee for this service is $145 if requested upon enrolment. If requested after enrolment and up to 130 days before departure, the fee is $195. Additional fees may apply if requested between 129–90 days before departure. This option is not available less than 90 days before departure. We will change your airline ticket, and you are responsible for all accommodations, meals, and transfers before and after the scheduled tour. Because we will arrange your airline tickets separately from your group’s, we cannot guarantee that you will share any of the same flights, and additional fees may apply.

You may sign up with an individual stay ahead and/or stay behind online, by selecting the selecting these options on the “Change Selections” page. Should you wish to mail us a paper application, please mark your application accordingly to reflect this option.

All enrolments and reinstatements received less than 99 days prior to departure are subject to a $145 late signup fee and must immediately be paid in full, including the service fee. After late applications have been received, additional charges (for last-minute flight reservations, increased Tour Fees, etc) may apply. You will be notified of these additional fees before any charges are made.

Late applicants will be placed on a waiting list and be marked "pending" while we look into securing hotel and other tour reservations, as well as flight reservations. Over 90% of our wait-listed participants are accepted.

All enrolments and reinstatements received less than 99 days prior to departure (60 days for bus groups) will be subject to a $95 late enrolment fee ($25 for bus groups) and must be paid in full immediately. After late applications have been received, additional charges (for last-minute flight reservations, increased Tour Fees, etc) may apply.

Late applicants will be placed on a waiting list; if no space becomes available we'll refund the full payment minus any reinstatement or previous cancellation fees that may apply. Please be aware that we cannot guarantee that participants whose enrolments are accepted less than95 days prior to departure will share the same flight itinerary as the rest of the group.

Monthly Automated Plan:
Pay your $50 non-refundable deposit and travel protection plan costs by credit card or chequing account upon enrolment, and the balance of your Tour Fee will be automatically charged to your credit card or debited from your chequing account in equal monthly instalments until 35 days prior to your departure date (chequing account) or 65 days prior to your departure date (credit/debit card). If two consecutive payments are returned NSF or declined by your bank or credit card company, we will change your account to the 3-Step Manual Plan. 

Full Payment Plan:

Pay in full at time of enrolment.

3-Step Manual Plan:

Pay your $195 non-refundable deposit and travel protection plan costs upon enrolment, and then pay $600 toward your balance 30 days later. The total remaining balance is due 99 days prior to departure. You must make each payment manually.

Monthly Automated Plan:

Pay your $50 deposit and travel protection plan costs with credit/debit card or chequing account upon enrolment, and the balance of your Tour Fee will be automatically charged to your card or debited from your account in equal monthly instalments until 35 days prior to your departure date (chequing account) or 65 days prior to your departure date (credit/debit card). Please note that you must make all payments by credit card, debit card, or chequing account. If two consecutive payments are returned NSF or declined by your bank or credit card company, we will change your account to the designated Manual Plan.

Full Payment Plan:

Pay in full at the time of enrolment.

Manual Payment Plan (Flights):

Pay your $100 non-refundable deposit and travel protection plan costs upon enrolment, a $300 down payment 30 days after your enrolment is processed, and your tour balance 99 days prior to departure.

Manual Payment Plan (Bus):

Pay $100 non-refundable deposit and travel protection plan costs at enrolment, then the remaining balance is due 60 days prior to departure.

Explorica offers optional excursions on most of our tours to provide flexibility to your itinerary. Any excursion labeled “optional” on the tour description is not included in your tour fee and may be added, for an additional cost, to your itinerary. To find out more about Optional Excursion costs, see the Optional Excursion section of our Terms and Conditions.

While most optional excursions can be booked during your tour, Explorica recommends that you book them prior to departure to ensure availability. Some excursions, such as the optional Versailles excursion or New York City Broadway shows, are pre-book only and must be booked before departure. A minimum of 20 participants is required in order to run each optional activity.

If a participant does not check in for any portion of their air reservation, the airline may cancel the return flight and remaining segments, and no refund will apply. You must travel on all legs of your itinerary. If the airline cancels a segment due to a no-show, the participant will be responsible for any service fees charged by the airlines, which may include the purchase of a new ticket. Similarly, any Explorica traveller who chooses not to participate in any activity or tour inclusion will not be provided a refund.