Terms of Service

1. About these terms

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your use of hikelanka.com and the Hike Lanka marketplace (the “Platform”), operated by Harker International (Private) Limited, registration PV 00338032 (“Hike Lanka”, “we”, “us”). By creating an account, listing a trip, booking a trip, or otherwise using the Platform, you agree to these Terms.

2. Definitions

• Platform — the website hikelanka.com, the underlying systems, and any subdomain we operate.
• Vendor — a registered Sri Lankan business or licensed guide who has accepted the Vendor Agreement and lists hiking trips on the Platform.
• Hiker — anyone who books or seeks to book a trip through the Platform.
• Booking — a confirmed reservation for a hiking trip, evidenced by a Stripe payment and the resulting order record.
• Content — text, photos, video, reviews, and other material uploaded to or generated on the Platform.

3. The marketplace

Hike Lanka is a marketplace, not a trip operator. The Platform facilitates bookings between Hikers and independent Vendors. Vendors — not Hike Lanka — design, organise, lead, and deliver the hiking services listed. Hike Lanka is not a party to the booking contract; the contract is between the Hiker and the Vendor.

Hike Lanka acts as a limited agent of the Vendor for the sole purpose of accepting payment via Stripe on the Vendor’s behalf, deducting platform commission per the Vendor Agreement, and remitting the balance to the Vendor.

4. Accounts

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and for all activity under your account. Notify us immediately at info@hikelanka.com if you suspect unauthorised access.

Vendor accounts are additionally governed by the Vendor Agreement, which prevails over these Terms in case of conflict on vendor-specific matters.

5. Vendor obligations

Vendors must comply with the Vendor Agreement, including but not limited to: holding required insurance, maintaining current SLTDA / SLAITO registration where applicable, providing accurate trip descriptions, honouring booked dates, conducting pre-trip safety briefings, and reporting any incidents to Hike Lanka within 24 hours.

6. Hiker obligations

By booking a trip, Hikers agree to:

• Provide accurate fitness, health, and experience information when asked.
• Read and follow the trip’s listed requirements before booking. Useful starting points: trip requirements, essential gear, difficulty scale, etiquette & safety.
• Follow the Vendor’s safety briefing on the trip and the lead guide’s instructions.
• Carry valid travel insurance for the trip’s risk level — see our travel insurance guide.
• Disclose any medical condition or medication relevant to the trip’s exertion or remote location.
• Respect Sri Lankan culture, sacred sites, local communities, and Leave No Trace principles.

7. Bookings & payments

Bookings are confirmed when Stripe authorises the payment and the order status moves to “Processing” or “Completed”. Until that point, the trip slot is held but not reserved.

Prices are set by Vendors. Hike Lanka does not control trip pricing. The displayed price includes the Platform commission; Hikers pay one transparent total.

All payments are processed by Stripe. Hike Lanka does not store full card numbers.

8. Cancellations & refunds

Refund eligibility depends on the Vendor’s published cancellation window, force-majeure events (notably monsoon trail closures, government advisories, landslides, cyclones), and platform-side protections against fraud or vendor no-show. The full policy lives in our Refund Policy.

9. Hiking risk & disclaimer

Hiking is inherently dangerous. Trails in Sri Lanka cross slippery wet-zone forest, exposed ridges, remote backcountry without mobile signal, and weather that changes within minutes. You can be injured, become lost, suffer altitude or heat illness, encounter wildlife, or be killed. By booking a trip you acknowledge and accept this risk.

Hike Lanka does not warrant trail conditions, weather, vendor performance, equipment quality, or the safety of any specific route. We make commercially reasonable efforts to verify vendor credentials, but verification is not a guarantee of outcome.

Trip difficulty ratings on the Platform follow our difficulty scale and are the Vendor’s good-faith estimate, not a binding warranty.

10. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by Sri Lankan law:

• Hike Lanka’s aggregate liability to any Hiker arising from a Booking is capped at the Platform commission Hike Lanka earned on that Booking.
• Hike Lanka is not liable for indirect, consequential, special, or punitive damages, including but not limited to lost wages, travel costs incurred to reach a cancelled trip, or non-refundable bookings made with third parties.
• Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot be excluded under Sri Lankan law, including for fraud or wilful misconduct.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Hike Lanka, its officers, employees, and contractors from claims arising from your breach of these Terms, your violation of any law, your infringement of third-party rights, or — for Vendors — claims arising from your guided activities.

12. Intellectual property

Site content authored by Hike Lanka — trail guides, calculators, editorial copy, brand assets — is © Harker International (Private) Limited and licensed for personal, non-commercial reference only. Vendor listing content (photos, descriptions) remains owned by the Vendor; Vendors grant Hike Lanka a non-exclusive licence to display and promote that content as set out in the Vendor Agreement.

13. Governing law

These Terms and any non-contractual obligation arising from them are governed by the laws of Sri Lanka.

14. Dispute resolution

If a dispute arises, the parties will first attempt good-faith negotiation. If that fails within 30 days, the dispute will be referred to mediation in Colombo. If mediation does not resolve the dispute within a further 30 days, the dispute will be finally settled by arbitration under the Arbitration Act No. 11 of 1995 (Sri Lanka), seat Colombo, single arbitrator, conducted in English. Nothing prevents either party from seeking interim relief from a competent court.

15. Termination

You may close your account any time via the account dashboard or by emailing info@hikelanka.com. Hike Lanka may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms, the Vendor Agreement, or applicable law, with notice where practicable and immediately for safety or fraud reasons.

16. Changes to these terms

We may revise these Terms. Material changes will be announced on the Platform at least 30 days before they take effect. Continued use of the Platform after the effective date constitutes acceptance.

17. Contact

Questions about these Terms: info@hikelanka.com.