Terms and Conditions
These terms apply to bookings made with Belfast Original Tea Tours Ltd (“we”, “us” or “Belfast Original Tea Tours”) through our website or directly with our team. Please read them before booking. By completing a booking, the lead customer accepts these terms on behalf of themselves and everyone included in the booking.
1. About Belfast Original Tea Tours
Our experience combines a guided sightseeing journey through Belfast aboard a classic 1963 Routemaster with afternoon tea served onboard.
The contracting business is Belfast Original Tea Tours Ltd, a company registered in Northern Ireland.
Email: info@belfastoriginalteatours.com
Telephone/WhatsApp: 07919 536666 (outside the UK: +44 7919 536666)
2. Making a booking
A booking is confirmed when we receive full payment and issue a booking confirmation. Please check the date, departure time, ticket quantities and any dietary or accessibility information carefully.
If anything is incorrect, contact us as soon as possible. The person making the booking must be at least 18 years old and is responsible for passing these terms and all joining instructions to everyone in their group.
Bookings are subject to availability. We may refuse or cancel a booking where payment has not been authorised, materially incorrect information has been supplied, or accepting the booking would create a safety or legal concern.
3. Prices and payment
The price shown at checkout is the total price payable for the selected tickets, including any taxes that we are required to charge. Any optional extras will be clearly shown before payment.
Payment must be made using one of the payment methods offered during checkout. Card payments may be processed by a secure third-party payment provider.
If an obvious pricing error occurs, we will contact you promptly. You may either pay the correct price or cancel the affected booking for a full refund.
4. What your ticket includes
Unless the booking page states otherwise, your ticket includes the scheduled Belfast sightseeing experience aboard our Routemaster, live commentary from a local guide, afternoon tea served by our onboard host, and the hot and cold non-alcoholic drinks described on the booking page.
Our menu may occasionally change because of supplier availability, seasonality or operational requirements. Where a significant item is unavailable, we will provide a reasonable alternative wherever possible.
No alcohol is included in the standard experience and customers must not bring their own alcohol onboard.
5. Tour times, duration and route
The experience lasts approximately 60–75 minutes. Journey times can be affected by Belfast traffic, road closures, parades, public events, weather and other circumstances outside our reasonable control.
Our normal route starts on High Street, close to the Albert Clock, and takes in areas and landmarks including the Titanic Quarter, Belfast City Hall, Queen’s University, the Peace Wall and a brief journey into West Belfast, Crumlin Road Gaol and the return to Belfast city centre.
Belfast is a busy and changing city. The exact roads used, order of landmarks and sights visible may change because of traffic, road closures, parades, public events, safety or operational requirements. We cannot guarantee that every landmark will be visible on every departure.
A reasonable route or timing change does not normally entitle a customer to a refund where the main sightseeing and afternoon-tea experience is still provided.
6. Arrival and late passengers
Please arrive at the confirmed meeting point at least 15 minutes before departure. Your booking confirmation will contain the precise boarding location and joining instructions.
The bus must leave at the scheduled time and unfortunately cannot wait for late passengers. If you miss the departure, your booking will normally be treated as a no-show and no refund will be due.
If space is available on a later departure, we may offer to move you, but this is entirely subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed.
7. Customer cancellations and booking changes
Our tours operate on specific dates and at specific departure times. Once booked, tickets are non-refundable if you change your mind or can no longer attend.
If you contact us at least 48 hours before departure, we will normally allow you to move your booking once to another available date or departure time. Changes are subject to availability and any difference in ticket price. A booking that has been moved remains non-refundable.
Requests made less than 48 hours before departure will not normally be eligible for rescheduling or a refund. We may consider exceptional circumstances at our discretion.
You may change the lead passenger’s name by contacting us before departure. Tickets must not be resold for profit or used for unauthorised promotions.
8. If we change or cancel your tour
We may occasionally need to change a departure time, route or other part of the experience for safety, mechanical, staffing, weather, traffic, legal or operational reasons. If a change is significant, we will contact the lead customer as soon as reasonably possible.
If we cancel your tour before departure, you can choose either a transfer to another available date or departure time, or a full refund of the amount paid for the cancelled tour.
If a tour has already started but cannot reasonably be completed, we will consider how much of the experience has been provided and offer an appropriate alternative, credit or partial/full refund depending on the circumstances. Your statutory rights are not affected.
We are not responsible for separate travel, accommodation, parking or other arrangements or costs incurred in connection with your visit, except where the law requires otherwise.
9. Children and supervision
Children are welcome when booked using the correct ticket type. Everyone travelling must be included in the booking so that we can manage seating and vehicle capacity safely.
Guests under 18 must be accompanied and supervised by a responsible adult throughout the experience.
Parents and guardians remain responsible for children in their care, including ensuring that they remain safely seated and follow instructions from our team while the bus is moving.
10. Dietary requirements and allergens
Please provide all dietary requirements during booking and within any notice period shown on our website. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free alternatives may be available when requested in advance.
Guests with food allergies, coeliac disease or medical dietary requirements must contact us before booking. Food is prepared and handled in environments where allergens may be present. Although reasonable care will be taken, we cannot guarantee a completely allergen-free environment or eliminate all risk of cross-contamination.
Customers should not bring their own food or drink onboard unless we have agreed this in advance for a medical or infant requirement.
11. Accessibility and additional assistance
Our 1963 Routemaster is a genuine heritage vehicle and its original design creates accessibility limitations that do not exist on a modern bus. There are steps at the entrance and a staircase to the upper deck. The vehicle is not wheelchair accessible and does not have an onboard accessible toilet.
We want to make the experience as welcoming and accessible as reasonably possible. If you or someone in your group has reduced mobility, difficulty using steps, a disability or another assistance requirement, please contact us before booking. We will discuss the vehicle layout and your individual requirements and consider what reasonable assistance or adjustments we can provide.
We cannot make an adjustment that would make operation unsafe, obstruct an aisle or emergency exit, exceed the vehicle’s legal capacity or otherwise prevent us from operating lawfully and safely.
12. Seating
Seating is allocated by our team according to booking size, table layout and any accessibility information provided to us. We will do our best to seat guests on the same booking together, but particular tables, seats, views or decks cannot be guaranteed unless we have expressly confirmed them in writing.
Some tables may be shared with other guests. Customers must not change seats or move between decks while the vehicle is moving unless instructed by a member of our team.
13. Luggage, prams and personal belongings
Storage space on a vintage Routemaster is very limited. Please contact us before travelling with a folded pram, mobility aid or large item of luggage.
We may refuse to carry an item where it could block an aisle, entrance, emergency exit or service area, or otherwise create a safety risk.
Please look after your personal belongings. We are not responsible for loss or damage unless it results from our negligence or another legal responsibility that cannot lawfully be excluded.
14. Safety onboard the Routemaster
This is a moving heritage vehicle. Guests must follow all reasonable safety instructions from the driver, guide and onboard host, use handrails and remain seated whenever instructed.
Guests must not stand on the stairs, obstruct aisles or exits, lean from the vehicle, interfere with doors or safety equipment, or behave in a way that creates a risk to themselves or anyone else.
Hot drinks are served onboard a moving vehicle. Please take care when handling drinks and follow any instructions from our host, particularly during periods of traffic or vehicle movement.
15. Behaviour, smoking and alcohol
We want everyone onboard to enjoy the experience. We may refuse boarding or require a guest to leave where their behaviour is abusive, threatening, unsafe, excessively disruptive, unlawful or likely to seriously affect the enjoyment or safety of other guests or staff.
No refund will normally be provided where a guest is refused boarding or removed because of their own behaviour.
Smoking and vaping are not permitted anywhere onboard. Alcohol must not be brought onto or consumed on the bus unless we introduce an expressly licensed experience in the future and the booking information specifically states otherwise.
16. Assistance dogs and other animals
Assistance dogs are welcome subject to safe operation of the vehicle. Please contact us before booking so that we can consider seating and space requirements and make appropriate arrangements.
Other pets and animals are not normally permitted onboard.
17. Mechanical problems and replacement arrangements
Our Routemaster is a historic vehicle and is maintained for passenger operation. Despite reasonable maintenance, mechanical problems can occasionally occur.
If a mechanical problem prevents the Routemaster from operating before departure, we may cancel the tour and offer the options in section 8. Where appropriate, we may offer an alternative vehicle or arrangement, but we will make clear if the experience would materially differ and will not treat a substantially different experience as equivalent without giving customers an appropriate choice.
If a mechanical issue occurs during the tour, our first priority will be passenger safety. We will then take reasonable steps to continue, recover or conclude the experience and will deal fairly with any refund or alternative based on the circumstances.
18. Photography and filming
You are welcome to take photographs and personal video during the experience, provided this does not interfere with safety, our staff or the enjoyment of other guests.
Commercial photography, professional filming, organised promotional activity or use of the bus for commercial content requires our prior written permission.
We will not rely on these booking terms alone as permission to use identifiable photographs or video of individual customers for our own marketing. Where we wish to feature guests, appropriate permission will be obtained.
19. Service standards and complaints
We will provide the experience with reasonable care and skill. If there is a problem during your tour, please tell a member of our team as soon as possible so that we have an opportunity to help.
After the tour, complaints can be sent to info@belfastoriginalteatours.com. Please include your booking reference and enough information for us to investigate the issue.
We aim to acknowledge written complaints within 2 working days and, where possible, provide a full response within 10 working days.
20. Our responsibility to you
Nothing in these terms excludes or limits any liability where it would be unlawful to do so, including liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud, or rights and remedies that consumers are entitled to under applicable law.
We are responsible for losses that are a foreseeable result of our breach of contract or failure to use reasonable care and skill. We are not responsible for losses that were not reasonably foreseeable, business losses arising from a consumer booking, or problems caused by incorrect information or instructions supplied by the customer.
21. Events outside our reasonable control
We are not responsible for delays or failures caused by events outside our reasonable control. These may include severe weather, major road closures, parades, public disorder, emergency incidents, official restrictions, unexpected mechanical failure despite reasonable maintenance, or action by public authorities.
We will take reasonable steps to minimise disruption and keep customers informed. Where the tour cannot be provided, section 8 will apply where appropriate.
22. Personal information
We use personal information to manage bookings, process payments, provide the experience, respond to enquiries and meet our legal and safety obligations. Further information is provided in our Privacy Policy.
If you provide dietary, allergy, health or accessibility information about another guest, you confirm that you are authorised to provide it. We may share the minimum information necessary with our caterer, booking provider and relevant operational staff to prepare safely for the booking.
Accepting these terms does not automatically subscribe you to marketing. Marketing preferences will be handled separately.
23. General
If any part of these terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply.
We may update these terms from time to time. The version that normally applies to your booking is the version accepted when the booking was made, unless a later change is required by law or is more favourable to you.
These terms and your booking are governed by the law of Northern Ireland. The courts of Northern Ireland will have jurisdiction, subject to any mandatory consumer rights you may have to bring proceedings elsewhere.
24. Contact us
Questions about a booking or these terms can be sent to:
Email: info@belfastoriginalteatours.com
Telephone/WhatsApp: 07919 536666
Outside the UK: +44 7919 536666
