National Attractions – Terms & Conditions

The following information provides a general overview of Book Canberra Excursions (BCE) requirements for:

booked group entry to participate in onsite programs at Canberra’s national attractions
where relevant, booked group participation in online programs.

Refer to booking confirmations issued by attractions for specific information relating to excursions to Canberra and participation in online programs.

Information regarding venue-specific programs, services and policies is available on each attraction’s website.

Bookings

No booking request submitted through the BCE system is confirmed until an attraction approves the request for attendance at their venue.
Tour Organisers must provide accurate student/teacher numbers and teacher contact details when confirming bookings.
A 3rd party making bookings on behalf of a school must:
- obtain the consent of a school before making a booking
- provide a valid school email address when submitting bookings, and ensure this address is updated to a Teacher’s email address at least 4 months prior to an excursion’s start date
- provide a valid school mobile number when submitting bookings, and ensure this number is updated to a Teacher’s number at least 1 month prior to an excursion’s start date.
A school staff member making bookings on behalf of a school must:
- provide a valid school email address when registering to use the BCE system
- provide a valid school email address when submitting bookings, and ensure this address is updated to a Teacher’s email address at least 4 months prior to an excursion’s start date
- provide a valid school mobile number when submitting bookings, and ensure this number is updated to a Teacher’s number at least 1 month prior to an excursion’s start date.
On-the-Day Teacher contact details are critical for attractions to exercise a duty of care with regard to health, safety and educational outcomes for students
Contact with Teachers is an integral part of the NCETP’s COVID-19 response, as outlined in the School Excursion COVID-19 Guidelines - Frequently Asked Questions.
Attractions must be able to contact teachers quickly on or before the day of a visit, including with regard to emergencies, lost property, lost students, or program specific needs.
Tour Organisers who do not provide On-the-Day Teacher contact details in a timely manner may have their Trips and Bookings cancelled.
Contact details may be provided to the Department of Health or other authorities in compliance with COVID-19 regulations for contact tracing purposes, as required.
Attractions allocate minimum and maximum participant numbers to ensure the quality of available programs and services.
Larger groups should book multiple sessions to ensure all students receive a quality experience through participation in program activities
- However, to enable fair access for all BCE system users, overbooking of simultaneous sessions is not permitted.
- Users who deliberately overbook simultaneous sessions may have their BCE system access privileges revoked.
When a desired session is unavailable a waiting list request may be made at some attractions.
- Sessions becoming available due to cancellations will be reallocated through the waiting list.
People making bookings are responsible for allocating sufficient travel time between venues to ensure students receive a full program experience.
- Back-to-back bookings are not recommended.
Attractions allocate appropriate facilitator-to-participant ratios and provide a safe, inclusive and effective environment for people experiencing their programs and services.
Program materials, resources and curriculum links for students and educators are available on each attraction’s website.
Automatic excursion email reminders to Tour Organisers are generated 3 months, 6 weeks and 3 weeks prior to scheduled Canberra arrivals.
Automatic excursion email reminders to On-the-Day Teachers are generated 3 months and 3 weeks prior to scheduled Canberra arrivals.
Nominated On-the-Day Teachers are sent an email 23 days before an excursion starts, to confirm their email address is correct.
On-the-Day Teachers are sent an email 10 days before an excursion starts, containing a link to a declaration form which requires them to agree to undertake a number of COVID-safe actions.
On-the-Day Teachers are sent text messages to nominated mobile phones, to aid administration of excursions.
An automatic email reminder is provided 2 weeks prior to a scheduled online program.

Canberra Programs – Rules of Entry

Teachers and Tour Organisers must agree to comply with the [2023 School Excursion COVID-19 Guidelines][guideline].
Teachers and supervising others have a duty of care and should accompany students at all times while visiting attractions, as they are responsible for their student’s conduct.
Attractions do not accept responsibility for the negligent acts or omissions of visitors.
Shoes should be worn at all times, except when signposts or instructions from venue staff encourage their removal.
Venues offer little or no secure storage for student bags.
- Bags and personal items should remain in vehicles to ensure they are safely secured.
All visitors are responsible for the safekeeping and security of their valuables and personal belongings while inside venues.
- Each attraction’s liability is exclusively limited to loss and damage caused by a negligent act or omission by that attraction.
Unless otherwise advised, food and drink are not permitted inside venues and exhibitions.
All attractions are non-smoking venues, with outside signage indicating designated smoking areas.
Please refer to booking confirmations for clarification on venue-specific photography restrictions.
- Unless advised otherwise it should be assumed photography is not permitted in exhibition spaces, due to conservation and copyright concerns.
People entering each venue should assume responsibility for their personal safety and the safety of others.
- In accordance with the Work Health & Safety Act 2011 visitors are to:
  1. take responsible care of their own health and safety
  2. take reasonable care to ensure they do not adversely affect the safety of others
  3. comply with all instructions given by attraction staff, so far as they are reasonably able to.
Attractions retain the right to refuse entry to any patron if these conditions (or other venue-specific conditions) are not followed.

Canberra Programs – Admission

Admission prices are GST-exempt, unless otherwise advised.
Admission prices are applied at the discretion of each attraction and are subject to change without notification.
Advance payment is not accepted, due to fluctuations in final numbers on scheduled days of entry.
Entry cannot be guaranteed for groups without confirmed bookings.
Bookings are required for all Canberra Programs and should be made at least 14 days prior to arrival.
- Additional charges may apply for bookings made within 14 days of an intended visit.
Final student numbers are to be confirmed at least 14 days prior to a scheduled visit.
- Numbers are needed so attractions can roster staff on appropriately.
- Later changes to numbers may incur costs – See the individual Terms & Conditions of each attraction for details.
Admission may be refused, or an alternative program substituted, when student numbers exceed the scheduled booking total.
A minimum charge exists for some programs, regardless of the number of participants.
- Please refer to information about individual program charges when making a booking.
Others with a Carer Card who accompany a student are free of charge.
Others accompanying a student with a Companion Card are free of charge.
At the discretion of each attraction access to group admission prices may be dependent on the presentation of home school certification or proof of registration.
Costs quoted at the submission of a booking request are indicative only, and subject to change based on a variety of factors, including final student numbers and possible price movements.
Price movements apply to all bookings, existing or new, from the date at which a price increases:
- e.g. if a price increases from $5.00 to $6.00 on 1 July 2022 all visits from that day on will attract the new price, whether already booked or not.
Each attraction determines when to change its prices, however attractions endeavour to give 6 months’ notice of changes.
Following a visit schools are invoiced for the total number of students and paying others.
- Teachers and others are offered free-of-charge admission based on applicable supervisor-student ratios.
- Refer to attraction websites for information regarding free-of-charge ratios.

Canberra Programs – Cancellation/Non-Arrival

Attractions will, when necessary, cancel bookings held by schools located within states or territories where government entities have advised against excursions.
- A cancellation will occur 14 days prior to a booked program date, if a school or a school’s agent has not cancelled a relevant booking.
Attractions reserve the right to, at their discretion, cancel bookings held by school or social groups.
Please contact each attraction at your earliest convenience if you require changes to a booking.
Groups arriving later than 5 minutes after a scheduled booking time may not receive a full program.
Groups arriving later than 15 minutes after a scheduled booking time may have their program cancelled.
- Please refer to each attraction’s booking confirmation and website for further information.
Eligibility for the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate may be affected by groups arriving late at an attraction for a scheduled program.
Booking alterations and/or cancellations require a minimum of 14 days’ notice prior to a scheduled visit – charges may result and are applied at each attraction’s discretion.
A surcharge may apply to group bookings scheduled for weekends or public holidays (ACT and national).
- Please refer to each attraction’s booking confirmation and website for further information.

Online Programs – Participation/Cancellation/Alterations

Bookings are required for all Online Programs and should be made at least 14 days prior to program delivery.
An attraction may Decline an Approved booking if a School does not complete a successful scheduled test connection prior to a scheduled program.
Booking alterations and/or cancellations require 14 days’ notice prior to a scheduled program.
Cancellations fewer than 14 days ahead of a scheduled program may result in a program cancellation fee.
If a School fails to connect for a digital excursion at a booked time charges may result; are applied at each attraction’s discretion.
Participants in Online Programs agree not to:
- Impersonate any person or entity, or falsely state or misrepresent an affiliation with a person or entity.
- Post or upload misleading, deceptive, false, defamatory or libellous content.

Transfer of Booking Ownership

Please review booking confirmation information carefully and advise relevant attractions of any required changes.
Bookings can only be changed by a teacher identified in a booking or by a 3rd party acting on behalf of a school.
Should there be a need to change ownership or custody of an existing booking, either a representative of the school or a 3rd party acting on behalf of the school should download a Transfer of Ownership form from the BCE website.
- This should be emailed with an accompanying school letterhead, as proof of identity, to Support@bookcanberraexcursions.com.au.
- The NCETP will transfer booking ownership within the BCE and notify relevant parties of the change.

Offers

Promotional offers are subject to the terms and conditions.
- In the event of any ambiguity or inconsistency these Terms & Conditions prevail.
- Offers are subject to change without notice and are not valid in combination with any other offers, discounts, coupons or prior purchases.

Working with Vulnerable People

Attractions comply with legislation outlined in the ACT’s Working with Vulnerable People (Background Checking) Act 2011, as it applies to staff and volunteers working in the cultural institutions sector.

The purpose of the legislation is to reduce the risk of harm to vulnerable people, including children, young people and others with a disability, by establishing mandatory background checking and risk assessment systems for people working with vulnerable people.

Under this legislation all attraction staff and volunteers who work with vulnerable people have completed a Working with Vulnerable People background check and a National Police Check prior to engagement.

Surveillance Cameras

Surveillance cameras are installed at most venues:

to monitor and record venues and exhibits
to ensure internal quality monitoring
to ensure the safety and security of staff and visitors
for use in conducting visitor research.

For the purposes listed above attractions may pass some or all of the information collected by their surveillance cameras to the ACT Emergency Services Agency, law enforcement bodies, or other agencies or individuals, as per their agency’s procedures.

Information collected by surveillance cameras will not be used for any other purpose or disclosed to any other person or organisation unless such a use or disclosure is authorised by or under the Privacy Act 1988 or any other laws.

BCE System Usage Terms & Conditions

2023 School Excursion COVID-19 Guidelines

School Excursion COVID-19 Guidelines - Frequently Asked Questions

Feedback

All general enquiries and feedback about these Usage Conditions, or requests for access or correction, should be directed to the NCETP.


Phone:	02 6162 4460
Fax:	02 6162 4461
Email:	admin@ncetp.org.au
Mail:	PO Box 1148 Dickson ACT 2602 Australia

For other enquiries about the Book Canberra Excursions website please visit canberraexcursions.org.au.

These terms and conditions were last updated on 1 July 2024