1. Delivery process
There is no universal turnaround promise. The transaction-specific delivery date is confirmed before payment. If required information is supplied late or the request changes materially, a revised date or scope must be agreed.
If Homeground expects a delay, it will explain the reason and offer a revised date or another remedy available under the service confirmation and applicable law.
Submit a trip brief at no charge.
Homeground checks scope and fit.
Receive a written service confirmation before payment.
Work begins only after payment and all required materials are complete.
The deliverable is sent to the agreed email in the format stated in the confirmation.
2. Cancellation and refund stages
Before payment
No payment has been taken, so the traveller may stop without charge.
After payment, before work begins
The traveller may cancel by email. Any consultation fee already received will be refunded.
After personalised work begins
Any refund is assessed against the work already completed and the written confirmation. A non-refundable stage or amount cannot be introduced after payment if it was not disclosed beforehand.
If Homeground cannot deliver
Homeground will refund the fee paid for the undelivered consultation.
3. Corrections and changed travel plans
The agreed scope was materially missed
Contact Homeground promptly. A clear error or omission within scope will be corrected first. If a material problem cannot reasonably be corrected, an appropriate partial or full refund will be considered under the written confirmation and applicable law.
The traveller changes the trip
A later change to dates, destinations, party or priorities may require a new scope, price or delivery date. It is not automatically a failure of the original service.
Third-party information changes
A later change in fares, availability, opening rules, weather or third-party operations is not by itself a delivery failure when the information was accurately dated or marked for rechecking.
4. Requesting a refund or correction
Email hello@homegroundchina.com from the contact used for the transaction where possible. Include the order reference, service purchased and a concise description of the issue.
Approved refunds are returned to the original payment method where possible. The processing estimate will be confirmed when the refund is approved. These rules do not limit rights that apply mandatorily under law.
5. Attraction reservation service
Delivery means sending you the attraction's booking record for each traveller, by the email or chat used for the confirmation. Reservations for attractions in a confirmed Homeground private-tour itinerary carry no service fee.
Before payment
A reservation request is free. Nothing is charged until you accept the written confirmation of the attractions, dates, service fee (CNY 45 per person per attraction) and official face value.
After payment, before booking
You may cancel by email before we complete the reservation; the service fee and ticket money received are refunded in full.
Request, payment and passport details 8+ days ahead
Guaranteed booking: if the request, the payment and complete passport details for every traveller all reach Homeground at least 8 days before the visit date, Homeground guarantees the reservation. If we fail to secure it, the service fee and the ticket money for that attraction are refunded in full.
Request, payment or passport details later
If the request, the payment or any traveller's passport details reach Homeground later than 8 days before the visit, the booking is attempted but not guaranteed. If a slot cannot be secured, the service fee for that attraction is refunded in full, together with any ticket money not spent.
After a ticket is issued
Changes and cancellations follow the attraction's own rules. The service fee for an issued ticket is not refundable; any ticket refund the attraction allows is returned to you.
6. Private tours
Deposit and balance
A 30% deposit confirms your private tour, and you pay the rest after you arrive in China. We add no fee of our own; card payments through VBill carry a 4% fee charged by VBill.
Cancelling 60 days or more before departure
We keep 10% of the tour price for planning and booking, and refund the rest of what you paid us.
Cancelling 30–59 days before departure
We keep 20% of the tour price and refund the rest of what you paid us.
Cancelling less than 30 days before departure
The deposit is not refunded.
Costs we cannot recover
If costs already paid out and not refundable, such as a non-refundable hotel, are higher than the amount above, we keep the actual cost instead.
Card fee
The 4% fee VBill charges on card payments is not refunded in any case; refunds cover what you paid to us.
Visa refused
Send us the official refusal notice and we treat the cancellation as 60 days or more before departure: we keep 10% of the tour price.
Changing dates, travellers or the route
We re-price the trip first. Any loss already incurred, such as hotel or ticket change fees, is charged at cost for each change.
If we cannot deliver
If a confirmed hotel, guide, vehicle or ticket falls through on our side, we arrange an equivalent or better alternative. If that is not possible or you do not accept it, we refund that item in full.
Forbidden City and Tiananmen
On private tours that include Beijing, if we cannot book the Forbidden City or Tiananmen, we refund everything you have paid us, provided we have your passport details at least 8 days before the Forbidden City visit.
7. Small groups
Small groups
Each small-group tour page states its own deposit, minimum-numbers check, date-change and cancellation terms.