Terms & Conditions

1. Who we are

Golden Sardines, Lda, company and registration number 514133180, share capital of € 1.500,00, registered at Rua Ramalho Ortigão, 8200-604 Albufeira, Portugal. We trade as Algarve Moments.

We are licensed as a tourist entertainment operator (RNAAT 1319/2016) and as a travel agency (RNAVT 9292). Contact: info@algarvemoments.pt · (+351) 964 933 799.

2. What we sell, and in what capacity

Not everything on this site is sold in the same way, and the difference is not a formality: it determines who you are contracting with and who answers for delivery. There are four situations, and every experience page says which one it is in.

• Experiences operated by us. We run them ourselves, under our tourist entertainment licence (RNAAT 1319/2016). We answer for delivery, for safety and for insurance.
• Partner experiences that we sell and issue. Here we act as a travel and tourism agency (RNAVT 9292): we are the ones selling you the ticket, taking the payment and issuing it. We answer for issuing and delivering that ticket correctly. The activity is run by the operator named on the page and on the document, and responsibility for delivery, for the premises and for the venue's safety rules is theirs. Where the operator has terms of their own and any of them differs from what is written here, the one more favourable to you applies.
• Experiences booked directly in the partner’s system. Some pages open the operator’s own booking system. Here we are only the channel that makes the experience known to you: the contract is concluded directly between you and the operator, and we are not a party to it. The payment, the document and the terms of contract are theirs, and they may differ from these — in the cancellation deadline in particular — and you should read them before you complete the booking.
• Requests for a quote. Transfers, tailor-made tours, groups and agencies have no fixed price on the site. What exists is a form to ask us for a proposal — that is a pre-contractual step, and the contract only comes into being once you accept the proposal in writing and the payment or deposit agreed in it has been made. See point 5.

3. Information about the experiences

We describe each experience based on the operator’s information: duration, what is included, meeting point and requirements. We work to keep it accurate and up to date.

Some elements depend on conditions nobody controls. Sea routes may be altered by sea state, wind, or by order of the maritime authorities — caves, Benagil included, are not always accessible, and the decision to enter always belongs to whoever commands the boat. Wild animals are seen in their natural habitat and are never guaranteed. Where an experience depends on this, it is stated on its page.

If a trip that has already set out cannot cover part of the route for safety reasons, that is not a cancellation: the experience took place. What happens in that case depends on the operator’s policy, and it is on the experience page.

Ranking of experiences: the listing and presentation of experiences on our site can be filtered or ordered by you on criteria such as geographic proximity, category or alphabetical order. By default, the ordering shown (“Recommended” or “Featured”) is based on an editorial and curatorial judgement of the Algarve Moments team, taking into account popularity, seasonality and customers’ historical satisfaction. No partner operator pays to obtain a privileged or featured position in search results.

Origin and verification of reviews: the customer ratings and comments shown on the site come from independent external platforms (namely Google Reviews and TripAdvisor), through official widgets or direct quotations from the official Algarve Moments profile on those platforms. Algarve Moments does not collect reviews directly on its site, nor does it alter or filter the ratings given by users on those external platforms, leaving verification of the authenticity of opinions to Google’s and TripAdvisor’s own verification mechanisms and policies.

4. Prices

Prices shown are in euros and include VAT at the applicable rate. Unless the experience page says otherwise, they are per person; some experiences are sold per boat, per vehicle or per group, and where that is the case it is stated.

The site may show you prices converted into another currency, for convenience. That conversion is indicative: the charge is made in euros, and the final amount in your currency depends on the exchange rate and on your bank or card terms.

Prices may change at any time. The price that counts is the one confirmed on your booking.

When the purchase is made on this site, our company takes the payment and issues the invoice. When the booking is made in a partner’s system, they take the payment and invoice it.

5. How to book, and when it is confirmed

There are four routes, depending on the experience. In all of them, a booking is only confirmed once you have received written confirmation — check on it the name of the activity, the date, the time, the number of participants and the meeting point. That is the document that counts.

• Buying on this site. You pick the date and the tickets, pay here, and receive the confirmation by email with the ticket or proof of entry. At some parks the ticket is issued by the park itself and that is what we send you; at others the document is ours, carrying the booking reference. The email tells you which is your case.
• Booking in the partner’s system. The page opens the operator’s booking system and that is where you enter your details and pay. The confirmation and the terms come from them.
• Booking on request. Some experiences have no instant online booking. Talk to us by WhatsApp or email, we confirm availability and take care of it — we are a licensed agency and we issue the same day.
• Asking for a quote. Sending the form for transfers, groups, tailor-made tours or agencies is not a booking and does not hold availability. It is a request for a proposal. The booking only exists once we have sent you the proposal in writing, you have accepted it, and the payment or deposit agreed in that proposal has been made.

6. Changes and cancellations

The cancellation policy is set by whoever operates each experience, and therefore varies from experience to experience. Many allow free cancellation up to a deadline before the activity; others have different conditions, and some are non-refundable.

The deadline and conditions that apply to your case are written on the page of the experience you booked, and are given to you again in the booking confirmation, before payment is completed. That is the information that counts — there is no single deadline across the whole catalogue, and we do not advertise one because it would not be true.

If the operator cancels the activity — for weather, for a minimum number of participants not being reached, or for any safety reason — you will be offered an alternative date or a refund of the amount paid.

Where a cancellation leads to a refund and it was this site that charged you, we return the amount paid by the same payment method. Where payment was made in a partner’s system, the refund is handled by them.

The meeting point may change after a booking is confirmed — roadworks, a change of access to the quay, a decision by whoever operates. When that happens we let you know on the contact details you gave us, and what counts is always the point given in the last written message you receive. If the change is a substantial one for you, you may cancel at no cost and we return the full amount paid.

If you need to change a booking, talk to us as early as you can. The earlier it is, the more options we have to sort it out.

7. Right of withdrawal

Contracts concluded at a distance generally carry a 14-day right to withdraw without giving a reason. That right does not apply to most of the experiences we sell: Portuguese law (article 17(1)(k) of Decree-Law 24/2014) excludes services related to leisure activities where the contract provides for a specific date or period of performance, which is exactly what an activity booked for a given day and time is.

This takes nothing away from the previous point: the operator’s cancellation policy still applies, and it is frequently more generous than what the law would require of us.

8. Your responsibilities as a participant

• Arriving at the meeting point at the stated time. Anyone arriving after departure may be unable to take part, and the operator’s no-show conditions then apply.
• Telling us, before booking, of any health condition, pregnancy, reduced mobility or other circumstance that may affect your participation — some activities have restrictions, and it is better to know beforehand.
• Meeting the participation requirements of the experience you booked. They are written on its page — minimum age, height, weight, documents — and anyone turning up without meeting them may be unable to take part, the operator’s no-show conditions then applying.
• Following the safety instructions of the team running the activity. The team may refuse participation to anyone who does not follow them, or who presents under the influence of alcohol or other substances, with no right to a refund.
• Carrying valid identification and, where the activity requires it, a valid driving licence.
• Ensuring supervision of minors. Minors take part under the responsibility of the accompanying adult, and some activities carry minimum ages stated on their page.

9. Insurance

Tourist entertainment activities are covered by the compulsory insurance required by law, taken out by whoever operates the activity. Ours is held with Generali Seguros, S.A., policy no. 0006366442, and the amounts and validity currently in force appear on our entry in the Portuguese National Tourism Register, linked in the footer — that is where they are always up to date.

Our tours carry personal accident insurance and third-party liability insurance, walking tours included. On those, the cover depends on the rules of conduct set out in the Participation Conditions, linked from each experience page. Either way, this is the legal minimum and does not replace personal travel insurance, which we recommend — particularly for medical expenses and for cancellations for reasons personal to you.

10. Your personal data

The data you give us — to buy, to ask for a quote or to write to us — is handled under the General Data Protection Regulation. The Privacy Policy, linked at the end of this page and in the footer, sets out what we collect, what it is for, who it is shared with and how long we keep it.

11. Complaints and dispute resolution

If something goes wrong, tell us first: most situations are resolved quickly when they are raised early. Write to our email with the booking number and what happened.

The Portuguese electronic Complaints Book is available to you. And, as a consumer, you may use alternative dispute resolution: the body competent for our area is CIMAAL — the Algarve Consumer Dispute Information, Mediation and Arbitration Centre. The links are in the footer of this site, where you will also find the European Union’s list of dispute resolution bodies.

12. Ownership of content

The texts, photographs and other content on this site belong to us or are licensed to us by partner operators for this purpose. They may not be copied or reused without written permission.

13. Governing law

Portuguese law applies. Without prejudice to the rights the law gives consumers, in particular the ability to bring proceedings in the courts of their own place of residence, the competent forum is the judicial district of Faro.