1. THE MATTHEW OF BRISTOL CANCELLATION AND REFUND POLICY
1.1 The Matthew of Bristol reserves the right to cancel any public or private trips at our discretion: Although we aim to run all of our public and private hire trips as planned, sometimes we are unable to do so. We may need to cancel a trip for a number of reasons, including, but not restricted to, severe or extreme weather conditions (public and private trips) or insufficient passenger numbers (public trips).
1.2 All scheduled public and private hire trips will go ahead in the event of rain: Trips will not be cancelled due to inclement weather. However, in the event of severe or extreme weather, The Matthew of Bristol may not be able to sail for the safety of passengers, the crew and the ship. The Captain will make the final decision on the day of the trip if there are any safety concerns due to the weather conditions. If we do need to cancel your trip, we will endeavour to let you know as far in advance as possible. However, if you have not heard from us (either by phone or email), you should assume that your trip will be going ahead and arrive for boarding 10 minutes before your trip’s scheduled start time.
1.3 Cancellations due to severe or extreme weather: The Matthew of Bristol will make every effort to run your trip as a static event. Where a static option is not appropriate, every effort will be made to find a suitable alternative date. If this is not possible, a full refund will be issued to your original payment method. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account. Gift vouchers used as full- or part-payment for a public trip will be reinstated to their value at the time of booking and with the original expiry date for use at a later date.
1.4 Cancellations for other reasons: If The Matthew of Bristol has to cancel a trip for any reason other than severe or extreme weather, every effort will be made to find a suitable alternative date. If this is not possible, a full refund will be issued to your original payment method. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account. Gift vouchers used as full- or part-payment for a public trip will be reinstated to their value at the time of booking and with the original expiry date for use at a later date.
1.5 Any ticket holder or private hire booker who wishes to cancel their booking due to their perception of the weather when The Matthew of Bristol has deemed it safe for a trip to proceed will not be eligible for a refund, reschedule or transfer under any circumstances. There are no exceptions.
1.6 Any passenger who does not arrive in time for their public or private trip’s scheduled start time for any reason will not be eligible for a refund, reschedule or transfer under any circumstances. There are no exceptions.
1.7 The Matthew of Bristol is not responsible for passengers’ private transport or accommodation under any circumstances. There are no exceptions.
2. PRIVATE HIRE: CUSTOMER BOOKING, CANCELLATION AND REFUND POLICY
2.1 Hiring The Matthew of Bristol for a private event
2.1.1 You must complete The Matthew of Bristol’s online booking form and agree to these terms and conditions. An invoice for your trip will be issued when The Matthew of Bristol office receives your completed booking form.
2.1.2 The ship hire charge is a flat fee that remains the same for any number of people up to a maximum of 40.
2.1.3 If you book a private hire 40 days or more in advance, a deposit of 25% of the total cost (ship hire + catering, if applicable) is payable on receipt of your invoice to secure your booking. The remaining balance is due 30 days before your trip date.
2.1.4 If your trip date is less than 40 days away, the full invoice amount is due on receipt of your invoice to secure your booking.
2.1.5 Private hire bookings are not fully confirmed until full payment has been received. Your booking may be cancelled without notice if any part of your payment is late or delayed for any reason. If you are unable to comply with the terms of your invoice, please contact The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk immediately.
2.2 Cancelling or rescheduling your private hire booking
2.2.1 Please contact The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk for all private hire booking cancellation requests. All cancellation requests are effective from the date of your email.
2.2.2 Cancellations requested 31 days or more before your trip date: You will be issued a full refund of any payments made. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
2.2.3 Cancellations requested between 10 and 30 days before your trip date: You will be issued a partial refund. The Matthew of Bristol will retain your 25% deposit as a cancellation fee. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
2.2.4 Cancellations requested 9 days or less before your trip date: You are not entitled to a refund or reschedule for a request made at short notice.
2.2.5 Reschedules requested 10 days or more before your trip date: If you need to reschedule your private hire booking for any reason, you may do so 10 days or more before your trip date, subject to availability. If your booking can be rescheduled, the private hire cancellation policy will no longer apply and any further rescheduling or cancellation request will be treated as a short-notice request (2.2.4). If your booking cannot be rescheduled, the private hire cancellation policy will continue to apply.
2.3 If The Matthew of Bristol has to cancel your private hire booking for any reason, you will be offered an alternative date where possible or a full refund of the total amount you have paid to date. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
2.4 The Matthew of Bristol has a maximum passenger number of 40 people for all private hires with a sailing element. For static hires, the maximum passenger number is 50 people. Additional passengers will not be permitted to board under any circumstances.
2.5 All passengers in your party should arrive at The Matthew of Bristol ready for boarding up to 10 minutes before the agreed trip start time. Your trip may be cut short if we are delayed in leaving our mooring. Refunds will not be issued if your trip is cut short due to the late arrival of you or your guests. There are no exceptions.
2.6 The Matthew of Bristol is not responsible for passengers’ private transport or accommodation under any circumstances. There are no exceptions.
3. SCHOOL TRIPS: CUSTOMER BOOKING, CANCELLATION AND REFUND POLICY
3.1 Hiring The Matthew of Bristol for a school trip
3.1.1 You are required to complete an online booking form and agree to these booking terms and conditions. An invoice for your session(s) will be issued when The Matthew of Bristol office receives your completed booking form.
3.1.2 School trips are one-hour-long and cost a flat rate per session. This rate remains the same for any number of people up to a maximum of 40 people for sessions with a sailing element or a maximum of 50 people for static sessions.
3.1.3 For school sessions booked 40 days or more in advance of the trip date(s), invoice terms are full payment due within 30 days of the invoice date.
3.1.4 For school sessions booked less than 40 days in advance of the trip date(s), invoice terms are full payment due on receipt.
3.1.5 All school trip bookings must be paid in full and in advance of the agreed trip date. Payments must be received by the due date stated on the invoice. If you are unable to comply with the terms of your invoice, please contact The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk immediately.
3.1.6 School trip bookings are not confirmed until full payment has been received and may be cancelled without notice if your payment is delayed for any reason and you have not contacted The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk.
3.2 Cancelling or rescheduling your school trip booking
3.2.1 For all school trip booking cancellation requests, please contact The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk as soon as possible. All cancellation requests are effective from the date of your email.
3.2.2 Cancellations requested 31 days or more before your trip date: You are entitled to a full refund of all payments made. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
3.2.3 Cancellations requested between 10 and 30 days before your trip date: You are entitled to a partial refund. The Matthew of Bristol will retain a cancellation fee of 25% of the cost of each cancelled session. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
3.2.4 Cancellations requested 9 days or less before your trip date: You are not entitled to a refund or reschedule for a request made at short notice.
3.2.5 Reschedules requested 10 days or more before your trip date: If you need to reschedule your school trip booking for any reason, you may do so 10 days or more before your trip date. All rescheduling requests are subject to availability. If your booking can be rescheduled, the school trip booking cancellation policy will no longer apply and any further rescheduling or cancellation request will be treated as a short-notice request (see 3.2.4). If your booking cannot be rescheduled, the school trip booking cancellation policy will continue to apply.
3.3 If The Matthew of Bristol has to cancel your school trip booking for any reason, you will be offered an alternative date, where possible, or a full refund of the total amount you have already paid. Refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
3.4 At least one adult must be present for every 5-6 children on all school trips on The Matthew of Bristol. For trips with a sailing element, the maximum passenger number is 40 (maximum ratio of 34 children and 6 supervising adults); for static sessions, the maximum passenger number is 50 (maximum ratio of 42 children and 8 supervising adults).
3.5 The teachers and other supervising adults in your group are responsible for the children's supervision, safety and behaviour at all times. It is the responsibility of those adults to ensure all the children in your group take appropriate care at all times.
3.6 School groups must arrive at The Matthew of Bristol ready for boarding by the agreed start time for their session. The Matthew of Bristol may not be able to accommodate late arrivals – if we have another school’s booking scheduled after your session, your session will be cut short. You will not be entitled to a refund or reschedule if your session is cut short due to your group’s late arrival. Make sure to allow plenty of time for your journey and to find suitable parking for your coach. See How To Get Here for travel information.
3.7 The Matthew of Bristol is not responsible for the private transport or accommodation of school groups under any circumstances. There are no exceptions.
4. PUBLIC TRIPS: CUSTOMER BOOKING, CANCELLATION AND REFUND POLICY
4.1 Public trip tickets and gift vouchers booked online in advance are available only from The Matthew of Bristol website (powered by BookingHound.com) and will be subject to a booking fee, payable at the point of purchase. Tickets for public trips may also be purchased on board The Matthew of Bristol on the day of the trip, subject to availability.
Tickets purchased from any other source (social media, etc.) are invalid and you will not be permitted to board the ship.
4.2 Please contact The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk for all public trip booking cancellation requests. All cancellation requests will be effective from the date of your email.
4.3 Cancelling your public trip booking – credit/debit card bookings
4.3.1 Cancellations requested 31 days or more before your scheduled trip date: Your tickets can be transferred to the same trip on another date (subject to availability). If there are no suitable dates available, a face-value refund of your tickets will be issued to the card you used to make the booking. Any booking fees paid are non-refundable. Credit/debit card refunds may take 5-10 business days to reach your account.
4.3.2 Cancellations requested between 8 and 30 days before your scheduled trip date: Your tickets can be transferred to the same trip on another date, subject to availability. If there are no suitable dates available, you will be issued a voucher for the equivalent value of your tickets to use towards another booking (valid for two years from the date of issue). You are not entitled to a cash/card refund.
4.3.3 Cancellations requested 7 days or less before your scheduled trip date: Cancellations are not available for any short notice requests. You are not entitled to either a refund of your ticket costs or a transfer to a trip on another date under any circumstances. Short notice is seven days or less before the scheduled trip date.
4.4 Cancelling your public trip booking – gift voucher redemptions
4.4.1 Cancellations requested at least 8 days before your scheduled trip date: Your tickets can be transferred to the same trip at a later date (subject to availability). If there are no suitable dates available, your voucher(s) will be reinstated to their value at the time of booking and with the original expiry date.
4.4.2 Cancellations requested 7 days or less before your scheduled trip date: Cancellations are not available for any short notice requests. Your voucher will not be reinstated, neither are you entitled to a refund of your ticket costs nor a transfer to a trip on another date.
4.4.3 If gift vouchers were redeemed to pay for your booking, a cash/card refund is not available under any circumstances.
4.5 If you miss your trip for any reason: Transfers to a trip at a later time/date, ticket refunds, or voucher reinstatements are not available under any circumstances. This includes, but is not limited to, ticket holders who request a cancellation at short notice, ticket holders who arrive late and miss their sailing, or ticket holders who miss their trip due to illness. There are no exceptions.
4.6 You are not entitled to a refund, a voucher reinstatement or a transfer of your booking after your scheduled trip has taken place. There are no exceptions.
4.7 Tickets you purchase are for personal use only. If you can no longer use the tickets, you and your party must not re-sell (or seek to re-sell) the tickets. However, you are permitted to give the tickets to a friend or family member to use instead under the following conditions:
You MUST contact The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk to update the passenger details. You will need to supply the full details of your booking (order number, trip date & time), and the amended passenger name(s) and contact details. Ticket holders will not be permitted to board if their details do not match our passenger list.
Any food orders attached to the booking cannot be changed at short notice. Short notice is 7 days or less before the scheduled trip date.
Any breaches of these conditions will entitle The Matthew of Bristol to cancel your tickets without prior notification, refund, compensation or liability.
5. BOOKING RESTRICTIONS
5.1 Tickets for all trips on The Matthew of Bristol must be purchased by an adult aged 18+.
5.2 All under-18s must be accompanied on board by a responsible supervising adult aged 18+.
5.3 Some of our public trips may not be suitable for very small children. Where applicable, this will be stated on the trip booking page.
5.4 Group booking restrictions
5.4.1 The Matthew of Bristol does not accept groups of more than ten people on any public trip and reserves the right to cancel without notice any group bookings or individual bookings as part of a larger group that exceeds this number. Booking fees are non-refundable under these circumstances. There are no exceptions.
5.4.2 Groups of eleven or more people will need to book a private trip. Visit the private hire page on The Matthew of Bristol website for more details.
5.5 Stag and hen party restrictions
5.5.1 The Matthew of Bristol does not accept bookings for stag or hen parties on any public trip. All stag and/or hen party bookings will be cancelled without notice. Booking fees are non-refundable under these circumstances. There are no exceptions.
5.5.2 The Matthew of Bristol does not accept private hire bookings for stag and/or hen parties.
5.6 Private hire bookings
5.6.1 Private hire bookings must be made by an adult aged 18+.
5.6.2 All under-18s must be accompanied on board by a responsible supervising adult aged 18+.
5.6.3 All private hire bookings are taken at the discretion of The Matthew of Bristol.
5.7 School trip bookings
5.7.1 School trip bookings can only be made by an adult aged 18+ who represents the school (e.g. office staff or class teacher).
5.7.2 At least one supervising adult (aged 18+) must be present for every 5-6 children on all school trips on The Matthew of Bristol.
5.7.3 All school trip bookings are taken at the discretion of The Matthew of Bristol.
6. GIFT VOUCHER TERMS & CONDITIONS OF USE
6.1 Gift vouchers are valid for two years from the date of purchase and must be redeemed on a trip taking place before the expiry date.
6.2 Gift vouchers are non-refundable. All gift voucher sales are final.
6.3 Gift vouchers can be redeemed against a public boat trip advertised on The Matthew of Bristol website and taking place during The Matthew of Bristol’s sailing season, subject to availability. The sailing season runs from early April to mid-October each year.
6.4 All tickets booked by redeeming a gift voucher must be booked online in advance. We cannot accept vouchers for tickets purchased in person on the day of the trip.
6.5 Gift voucher expiry dates cannot be extended – vouchers must be redeemed within their two-year validity period. Expired gift vouchers cannot be used, and refunds of any unused funds cannot be claimed. There are no exceptions.
6.6 Gift vouchers have no cash redemption value and cannot be exchanged for cash under any circumstances.
6.7 Gift vouchers are not replaceable if lost or stolen.
6.8 Gift vouchers are available as downloadable digital vouchers or pre-printed posted vouchers. Additional postage costs apply for posted vouchers at £3.00 for UK delivery or £5.00 for international delivery. The stated delivery times for posted vouchers are estimated – The Matthew of Bristol is not responsible for any late delivery of posted vouchers.
6.9 If the recipient chooses a trip that costs more than the value of their voucher, they must pay the difference when booking their trip. This includes any future trip price increases and any associated booking fees.
6.10 If the gift voucher holder chooses a trip that costs less than the value of their voucher, The Matthew of Bristol does not issue credit notes or cash refunds for the difference.
6.11 Gift vouchers issued for particular trips (e.g. an Avon Gorge Cruise - Adult voucher) can only be redeemed against the specific ticket type. Please select a Cash Gift Voucher if you would like the recipient to be able to choose their trip type.
6.12 Gift vouchers can be redeemed as full or part payment for public trip tickets purchased in advance only. Vouchers may not be used to pay for purchases made from The Matthew of Bristol bar, including all refreshments and merchandise available on board.
6.13 Trip cancellations
6.13.1 If you redeemed your voucher against a trip that we subsequently cancelled, The Matthew of Bristol Cancellation and Refund Policy will apply.
6.13.2 If you cancel your booking, the Public Trips: Customer Booking, Cancellation and Refund Policy will apply.
7. PASSENGER BEHAVIOUR AND BELONGINGS
7.1 The Matthew of Bristol reserves the right to refuse admission to any person who appears to be abusive, disorderly or intoxicated. You are not entitled to a refund under these circumstances.
7.2 Supervising adults aged 18+ are responsible for the safety and behaviour of any under-18s in their care at all times. All children must be supervised for the full duration of their time on the ship. An operational ship can be a dangerous place, whether moving or static, so it is essential that all adults and children adhere to the safety information provided by the crew.
7.3 All visitors enter and board The Matthew of Bristol at their own risk and are advised to take particular care when told to do so by the Captain or members of the crew or where warnings and signs are displayed. The Matthew of Bristol accepts no responsibility or liability for any accident or injury suffered by visitors whilst on board The Matthew of Bristol.
7.4 The Captain or members of the crew will step in if the behaviour of any passenger of any age poses a risk to either their own safety or to the safety of others on board. Dangerous or inappropriate behaviour may result in your trip being cut short and you and your group being asked to leave the ship. Refunds are not available if you have been asked to leave a trip due to your (or a member of your group’s) dangerous or inappropriate behaviour.
7.5 All passengers are responsible for their own belongings. The Matthew of Bristol accepts no responsibility for any loss, theft or damage of personal property.
8. FOOD AND ALCOHOL
8.1 The Matthew of Bristol has a licensed bar on board. Visitors and passengers are not permitted to bring their own alcohol aboard.
8.2 Any alcohol purchased from the bar must be consumed on board during your allocated trip time.
8.3 The onboard bar takes cash payments only. Card payment facilities are not available, and gift vouchers are not redeemable against any purchases made on board. Passengers on a trip where the bar is open should bring cash if they would like to purchase a drink.
8.4 Allergen information for all trips that include food: Meals may contain wheat, soya, nuts, peanuts and/or sesame. Non-vegan meals may also contain dairy and/or egg. The Matthew of Bristol does not offer allergen-free options (including gluten-free foods).
8.5 If you or a member of your group has food allergies, please discuss the options with The Matthew of Bristol office BEFORE booking your public trip ticket or when booking your private hire trip. Neither The Matthew of Bristol nor our outside caterer will be liable for any allergic reaction or illness resulting from attendees with allergies consuming food or being close to food supplied by either party.
8.6 If you or a member of your group is booked on a trip that serves food but cannot consume any of the available options (for example, due to allergies), please check with The Matthew of Bristol office at info@matthew.co.uk before bringing your own food on board. Food is only permitted to be brought on board at the discretion of The Matthew of Bristol crew.
9. UPDATES TO BOOKING TERMS AND CONDITIONS
The Matthew of Bristol may update these Terms and Conditions from time to time and will post any and all updates on this page. Please check periodically for updates.
This version of the Booking Terms and Conditions was last reviewed and updated on February 19 2025, and supersedes any and all previous versions in print or online.