Cancellation Policy- Holistic Surf Coaching Sessions & Retreats

When you book a surfing experience with Mindful Waves, we guarantee that an instructor will show up to the session on time. We reserve a specific 1.5-2 hour time slot for you, which means we have to turn down others requesting that same lesson date and time. Therefore, in order to best serve our Wavemakers, Mindful Waves holds a firm cancellation policy outlined below:

1/ All cancellations and rescheduling requests must be made at least 24 hours before the scheduled lesson. 

You must  notify us in writing via email at hello@mindfulwaves.com or WhatsApp at +506 8531 0462 (no voice notes accepted).

A Mindful Waves staff will write back with a confirmation.

2/ There is a $40 US Dollars reprocessing fee for all cancellations and rescheduling requests, no exceptions.

In case of cancellations, the fee will be deducted from the final refund.

In case of rescheduling, the same fee applies and must be paid before the lesson can be rescheduled. 

This policy applies to package holders as well, who will not be allowed to reschedule and thus forfeit the value of the lesson until the fee is paid. 

During the high season (December to April), there is a chance we may not be able to reschedule, in which case the rescheduling request will equal a cancellation request and will be subject to the $40 US Dollars cancellation fee.

3/ Cancellations and reschedules made within 24 hours of the scheduled lesson will be charged in full for the lesson.

No show = no refund. 

Exceptions apply for medical emergencies only, in which case we request a medical note from a doctor’s office and will charge a $40 US Dollars late cancellation fee.

4/ We reserve 20 minutes for late arrivals. After 20 minutes, attendance is marked as no-show. 

Lessons that start late due to late student arrivals will not be rescheduled and will end at the originally scheduled time. 

5/ No partial refunds will be granted on any remaining lessons of a multi-lesson package.

However, lessons are transferable to other students as long as they are used within a 1-month period.

6/ Group cancellations made within 1 week of your scheduled session are not eligible for refunds. 

7/ Mindful waves do not provide insurance, your insurance should cover unforeseen incidents that prevent travel or completion of activities with mindful waves such as Covid, natural disasters, road/airport closures etc

RETREATS CANCELATION  POLICY

Mindful Waves Retreats — Terms & Conditions

1. Booking & Payments

By booking a retreat with Mindful Waves, you agree to the following terms:

• You may reserve your space by paying a 50% deposit at the time of booking.

• The remaining balance is due 60 days before the retreat start date 

•  (90+ days prior): Cancel and receive a refund minus a $600 non-refundable deposit.

•  14 days or fewer: No refunds or credits available. Thank you for understanding our commitment to honoring all retreat logistics and costs.

• Bookings made after this date require full payment.

• Room selections (King, Queen, Shared, etc.) are available on a first-come, first-served basis and cannot be guaranteed until the deposit is received.

Prices are listed in USD and are locked in once your full payment is received.

ADDITIONAL RETREAT TERMS 

• Transferring Your Spot: If you can’t attend, you may transfer your booking to another participant with our approval and completion of required forms. Please notify us as soon as possible.

• Payment Plans: If you cancel before completing payments, refunds/credits are based on the full retreat cost. You remain responsible for any outstanding balance. Failure to complete payments without formal cancellation results in forfeiture of the booking without refund.

• Refund Processing Fees: Any refunds may be subject to non-recoverable payment processing fees charged by our provider.

• Cancellation by Mindful Waves: If we must cancel due to unforeseen issues, we cannot reimburse travel costs. You may transfer 110% of your deposit to a future retreat or receive a full deposit refund. Notifications are given at least 45 days in advance.

• Changes by You: Contact us ASAP for booking changes or transfers; while we’ll try to accommodate, changes aren’t guaranteed.

• Travel & Insurance: You are responsible for your own travel, visas, and insurance. We highly recommend travel insurance covering retreat costs, medical needs, and trip interruptions.

• Health & Responsibility: By joining, you confirm you’re physically and mentally able to participate in all activities and accept full responsibility for any risks.

• Assumption of Risk & Waiver: You assume all risks and waive claims against Mindful Waves and its partners. This is governed by Costa Rican law.

• Contact: Questions or support? Email us at hello@mindfulwaves.com

The Mindful Waves staff is a team of professionals who have expertise in ocean knowledge and surf conditions.

They will only schedule lessons in safe and adequate conditions, depending on each student’s unique skill level. 

The ocean is constantly changing – sometimes the waves are very calm and other times they are on the rough side. Welcome to surfing! 

We assure you that our instructors will keep you safe and show you a good time, no matter how strong the waves are. 

A lesson will only be canceled if the conditions are deemed unsafe by a professional lifeguard.

That being said, we surf rain or shine! 

If you are unhappy with the surf conditions and desire to end the lesson early, we will not be able to issue a refund. 

We make our lessons 1.5 hours long to give everyone plenty of time to practice on the beach (if needed) and to catch waves in the water. 

It is up to you if you choose to end the lesson early, but we cannot reschedule the remaining time of the lesson for a different day.

Lastly… Mindful Waves reserves the right to cancel and/or reschedule lessons and events as we see fit. For any unexpected weather-related emergencies, we do not provide refunds, but we will issue a credit that can be applied to a future booking. Mindful waves do not provide insurance, your insurance should cover unforeseen incidents that prevent travel or completion of activities with Mindful Waves such as Covid, natural disasters, road/airport closures etc

While this happens extremely rarely, if it does it is typically in response to ever-changing ocean conditions.