Nepal Pilgrimage 2027 — Terms and Conditions
March 20 – 31, 2027 • Kathmandu and the Langtang Valley

These Terms and Conditions govern your participation in the Nepal Pilgrimage 2027 ("the Pilgrimage"). By completing your purchase, you confirm that you have read these terms in full, that you understand them, and that you agree to be bound by them.

1. About this Agreement

This Agreement is between you, the individual purchasing a seat on the Pilgrimage, and Bronwyn Ayla, an individual ("Bronwyn Ayla," "I," "me," or "my"). The Pilgrimage is led by Bronwyn Ayla in partnership with our licensed ground operator in Nepal.

2. The Pilgrimage

The Pilgrimage is a 12-day guided cultural and ceremonial journey in Nepal, departing Kathmandu on March 20, 2027 and concluding in Kathmandu on March 31, 2027. The itinerary includes time in Kathmandu, an overnight at Hotel Neydo in Pharping, and an eight-day trek into the Langtang Valley via the Sherpagaon route, with Kyanjin Gompa as the spiritual anchor of the trek. The maximum altitude reached is approximately 4,200 metres (13,780 feet) at Kyanjin Ri, on an optional acclimatisation day.

The itinerary may be modified due to weather, road conditions, force majeure, or any operational reason that affects the safety, integrity, or feasibility of the experience.

3. What's Included

Your seat on the Pilgrimage includes all ground transfers in Nepal, all city and trek accommodation on a twin-share basis, all meals during the eight trek days, all trekking permits, the services of a licensed lead guide, assistant guide, and porters, purified drinking water throughout the trek, and the full ceremonial program including the opening sound healing at Avata Wellness Center, Holi celebration, Buddhist teaching and Lama blessing at Hotel Neydo, and the closing session at Avata.

4. What's Not Included

Your seat does not include international airfare, Nepal visa fees, comprehensive travel and medical insurance (which is required — see Section 6), helicopter evacuation costs, tips for guides and porters, meals in Kathmandu and Pharping other than those expressly named in the itinerary, alcoholic beverages, personal expenses, the optional city single-room supplement, or any cost arising from your personal decision to leave the Pilgrimage early or take services outside the group program.

5. Required Travel Insurance

You are required to obtain and maintain, at your own cost, a comprehensive travel insurance policy that covers, at minimum:

Trip cancellation and trip interruption,
Emergency medical care and hospitalisation in Nepal, with coverage of at least USD $100,000,
Emergency evacuation, including helicopter evacuation from high-altitude terrain, with coverage of at least USD $250,000,
Coverage for trekking up to 5,000 metres (16,400 feet) — you must confirm this with your insurer, as many standard policies exclude high-altitude trekking,
Repatriation of remains.

You must provide proof of insurance — policy number, insurer name, and 24/7 emergency contact number — no later than 60 days before departure. Failure to provide proof of insurance is grounds for cancellation of your seat under the Refund Policy.

I am not your insurer and will not cover medical, evacuation, repatriation, or trip-interruption costs on your behalf.

6. Your Physical Fitness

By accepting these terms, you represent that:

You are in good general health and have no medical condition that would make trekking at altitudes up to 4,200 metres unsafe for you.
You are, or commit to training to be, capable of walking five to seven hours per day on uneven mountain trails, with elevation gains of up to several hundred metres per day, for eight consecutive trek days.
Before departure, you will consult a physician, disclose your intention to trek at altitudes up to 4,200 metres in Nepal, and obtain their clearance for this activity.
You understand that altitude sickness can affect anyone regardless of fitness level, and that severe altitude sickness can be life-threatening.

7. Your Honest Health Disclosure

You agree to disclose to me, in writing and no later than 60 days before departure, any medical conditions, medications, allergies, dietary restrictions, mental-health considerations, or other factors that could affect your safety or the safety of the group during the Pilgrimage. This includes (without limiting the list) cardiovascular conditions, pulmonary conditions, prior altitude sickness, pregnancy, recent surgeries, eating disorders, history of severe anxiety or panic, and any condition for which you carry rescue medication.

I will treat this information as confidential and will share it only with the assistant guide, our ground operator, and emergency medical personnel as needed for your safety.

Failure to disclose, or material misrepresentation about, your health is grounds for removal from the Pilgrimage at your own cost, without refund.

8. Risks You Accept

You understand and accept that travel and trekking in Nepal involve inherent risks that cannot be eliminated. These risks include:

Altitude sickness, including acute mountain sickness (AMS), high-altitude pulmonary oedema (HAPE), and high-altitude cerebral oedema (HACE), any of which can be fatal.
Slips, falls, sprains, fractures, and other injuries on uneven, steep, rocky, snowy, or icy terrain.
Hypothermia, frostbite, sunburn, dehydration, and exposure to extreme weather.
Helicopter or ground evacuation under demanding conditions, including delays caused by weather.
Foodborne and waterborne illness, including gastrointestinal infections common to travel in Nepal.
Vehicle accidents on mountain roads.
Natural hazards including earthquakes, landslides, avalanches, and flooding.
Political instability, strikes, road closures, and other civil disruptions in Nepal.
Loss, theft, or damage to personal property.
Emotional, psychological, or spiritual material that may arise in a ceremonial container.

You voluntarily accept all of these risks and any other risks inherent in international travel, high-altitude trekking, and ceremonial group practice.

9. Release of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you, on behalf of yourself, your heirs, and your personal representatives, release, waive, and discharge Bronwyn Ayla and any of her agents, contractors, assistants, and associated business entities (the "Released Parties") from any and all claims, demands, causes of action, liabilities, costs, and expenses, including reasonable attorneys' fees, arising out of or related to your participation in the Pilgrimage, including any claim arising from the ordinary negligence of the Released Parties.

This release does not apply to gross negligence, willful misconduct, or any liability that cannot be released as a matter of law.

The Released Parties do not include our ground operator in Nepal, its guides, porters, or hotel and lodge providers, each of whom is an independent third party. I make no representation or warranty, express or implied, regarding the services provided by these independent third parties, and I am not liable for their acts or omissions.

10. My Role During the Pilgrimage

I am a Licensed Acupuncturist (L.Ac.) and a licensed primary care provider in the State of California. During the Pilgrimage, however, I am serving as your tour leader, teacher, and ceremonial guide — not in any clinical, medical, or primary care capacity. Nothing I say or do during the Pilgrimage constitutes medical advice, diagnosis, prescription, or treatment under any licensure I hold. You remain responsible for your own healthcare decisions and for travelling with any medications, prescriptions, or medical equipment you require.

11. Photo, Video, and Testimonial Release

During the Pilgrimage, I and other group members may take photographs and video footage of the group and of you. By accepting these terms, you grant me the perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free right to use your image, likeness, voice, and any unsolicited testimonial you provide, in any medium now known or later invented, for marketing, educational, and editorial purposes related to my work and future offerings.

If you do not wish to be photographed or filmed, you must opt out in writing before departure by emailing info@bronwynayla.com. I will make a good-faith effort to honour your opt-out, but I cannot guarantee that you will never appear incidentally in group images.

12. Code of Conduct

By accepting these terms, you agree to:

Treat fellow participants, guides, porters, lodge staff, and local people with respect and care.
Honour the sacred sites, religious customs, and cultural practices of Nepal, including dress, behaviour, and offerings at temples, monasteries, stupas, and shrines.
Refrain from the use of illegal drugs at any point during the Pilgrimage.
Use alcohol and any other intoxicants moderately, and never in a way that compromises the safety or container of the group.
Follow the reasonable safety instructions of me, our assistant guide, and our ground operator's staff at all times.
Take responsibility for your own pace, hydration, layering, and acclimatisation.

I reserve the right to remove any participant from the Pilgrimage, at the participant's own cost and without refund, for conduct that compromises the safety or integrity of the group.

13. Group Confidentiality

The Pilgrimage is a ceremonial container. What is shared in circle, in ceremony, or in private among participants stays among participants. You agree not to disclose, publish, or repeat to anyone outside the group any personal, emotional, spiritual, or private content shared by another participant during the Pilgrimage, without that participant's express written consent.

This confidentiality obligation survives the end of the Pilgrimage indefinitely.

14. Force Majeure

I am not liable for any delay, cancellation, or modification of the Pilgrimage caused by events outside my reasonable control, including without limitation: earthquakes, landslides, avalanches, floods, severe weather, fire, pandemic or epidemic, government action, travel restrictions, visa or border closures, war, terrorism, civil unrest, strikes, or road closures. Force-majeure consequences are addressed in the separate Refund Policy.

15. Governing Law

This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of California, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-laws provisions. You acknowledge that the Pilgrimage takes place in Nepal and that local Nepali law may apply to services provided in Nepal by our ground operator and other independent third parties.

16. Dispute Resolution

Any dispute arising out of or relating to this Agreement will first be addressed through good-faith negotiation between you and me. If we cannot resolve the dispute within thirty (30) days of written notice from one of us to the other, the dispute will be submitted to confidential mediation in Berkeley, California, before a single mediator we both agree on. Each side bears its own costs of mediation, and we split the mediator's fee equally.

If mediation does not resolve the dispute within sixty (60) days of its commencement, either of us may pursue resolution by binding arbitration in Berkeley, California, under the rules of the American Arbitration Association. The arbitrator's decision is final and binding. Each side bears its own costs in arbitration; the prevailing party may seek recovery of its reasonable attorneys' fees from the arbitrator.

We both intend that court litigation be the option of last resort.

17. Entire Agreement

This Agreement, together with the separate Refund Policy, is the entire agreement between you and me regarding the Pilgrimage and supersedes any prior or contemporaneous communications, proposals, or agreements, oral or written. No amendment is valid unless made in writing and agreed to by both of us. If any provision of this Agreement is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in full force and effect.

18. Your Acceptance

By completing your purchase, you confirm that you have read these Terms and Conditions in full, that you understand them, and that you agree to be bound by them.

Nepal Pilgrimage 2027 — Refund Policy

When you reserve your place on the Nepal Pilgrimage 2027 (March 20 – 31, 2027), your booking secures your seat, holds your accommodation, and begins the work of permits, ceremony arrangements, and ground logistics with our partner operator in Nepal. The following refund policy reflects that real-world commitment of resources from the moment you book.

If you cancel
$1,000 of your trip price is non-refundable from the moment of purchase. This protects the operational and administrative work that begins immediately when you reserve your seat. Beyond that, the following tiers apply based on when you cancel:

More than 90 days before departure (on or before December 20, 2026): You receive a full refund of anything you have paid above the $1,000 non-refundable amount.

Between 90 and 30 days before departure (December 21, 2026 through February 17, 2027): 50% of the trip price is forfeited; the remaining 50% is refunded to you.

Within 30 days of departure (February 18, 2027 onward): 100% of the trip price is forfeited. No refund is available.

The cancellation policy above applies regardless of the reason for cancellation, including personal or medical emergencies. This is why we require every participant to carry comprehensive travel insurance with trip cancellation coverage — your insurance is the appropriate path for recovering costs in the event of an unforeseen personal circumstance.

Force majeure

If the Pilgrimage is cancelled or materially altered because of an event outside our reasonable control — natural disaster, government travel restrictions, pandemic, civil unrest, or similar — the amount you have paid will be rolled forward as a credit toward a future Bronwyn Ayla pilgrimage or a future trip with our partner operator in Nepal. Force-majeure credits are valid for 24 months from the original departure date. Cash refunds in force-majeure situations are not guaranteed.

If we cancel

If we cancel the Pilgrimage for any reason in our sole discretion the full amount you have paid will be refunded, less any non-recoverable third-party costs already paid on your behalf. We are not responsible for any non-refundable airfare, visa fees, travel insurance premiums, or other costs you may have already paid to third parties.

How to request a refund
Email info@bronwynayla.com with the subject line "Nepal Pilgrimage Refund Request." Include the name your seat is booked under and a short note about what's happening. We respond within five business days.