In the event of weather-related cancellations and you wish to re-book an alternate date for your charter, it’s important to note that any payment held must be utilised within six months. Failure to do so may result in the payment becoming void. It’s advisable to promptly reschedule or make alternative arrangements to ensure the payment remains valid.

It is your responsibility to reschedule a booking with Epic.

If you cancel within 2 weeks of your charter date the deposit is Non-refundable, but the charter date is transferable to an alternate date.

If we cancel due to a mechanical or staff event, your deposit is refundable.

The New Zealand coastline can produce some harsh weather and due to Whitianga’s geographical position, any weather systems involving an easterly aspect can result in a cancelled charter. The decision to cancel a charter is the skippers decision and is done so for your safety. The skippers decision is final and will be communicated to you the day before your charter.

We ask our overseas clients to bear this in mind when booking charters with tight time schedules. Ideally, if booking from overseas please allow some flexibility to move dates.

We will make all efforts to contact you the day prior to your trip.  However, experience shows we often have difficulty reaching some customers. This is especially common with overseas customers. Please make sure you have given us a working contact number for New Zealand.

If you have not heard from us by 6pm the day before your booking, you must call us on +64 21 886 223 to make sure your trip is still going ahead.

All terminal tackle and bait required is included in your cost.

Jigs will be charged for if lost due to bad form, lack of care or stupidity at a current cost of $40.00 each.

You are welcome to bring any of your own gear if you choose.

The customer is liable to pay costs, as determined by Epic Adventures Limited, for any accidental or deliberate damage, or loss, caused by you, to our gear.

Avoiding Damage to Rods and Reels

Some common causes are noted below.

“High Sticking” - This is when you lift the rod above an angle of approximately 90° and you have a fighting fish on the other end. The rod can easily snap.

“Rod Holder Placement” - The rod should not be placed in a rod holder whilst you are fishing.  It’s equivalent to “high sticking” if a fish takes the bait.

“Touching the Edge” - This can happen when you are bringing in a large fish and the rod touches the side of the boat. It’s similar to breaking a stick across your leg. The rod will respond to the pressure point in the same way and often snaps.

“Rod & Reel Loss” - Luckily it isn’t a common occurrence. However, if a fish manages to pull the rod and reel overboard, and you are the person using it at the time, you are liable for the replacement cost.

“Unattended Rod & Reel” - Rod’s and reels left lying around the boat without proper attention are liable to loss or damage.

Make sure you prepare for a range of weather conditions and bring enough clothes to stay dry and warm.

In winter, thermals, rainproof jackets and beanies are recommended.  Waterproof leggings are also recommended for winter.

In all seasons bring a hat, sunglasses and sunscreen. For safety reasons we do not advise the wearing of gumboots.

Epic Adventures supports sustainable fishing practices. Fishing is our life and we want future generations to be able to enjoy it as much as we do. We encourage all our customers to release what they catch, especially the large breeding stock. Should you wish to keep a Kingfish we have a limit of ONE KINGFISH PER PERSON/DAY. Ultimately we want to make sure you get a photo of a big Kingfish in your arms.

For other species of fish such as Snapper please call us to discuss limits. Generally speaking it is 7 snapper/person/day but we do encourage putting the large breeding stock back unharmed.

Fish filleting and fish smoking are additional costs – please let your skipper know at the time of your departure.

Epic Adventures staff may take photos and/or video of you fishing. These are the property of Epic Adventures and we can use them on any medium to promote our business such as on our web site or in social media. You will need to contact us in writing prior to the trip if you do not want pictures of yourself used on any medium.

We are not responsible for photos and/or videos taken by our other customers. You will need to manage this circumstance yourself should you not want your image recorded.

Epic Adventures take an enormous amount of photos/videos on a daily basis. We cannot guarantee that your photos will be made available on a social media site such as Facebook or retained in our systems following your trip.

We do not email these photos out to individuals.

You are welcome to take as many photos/videos as you like for your own collection.

Your privacy is important to us. This privacy policy is intended to give you confidence in the privacy and security of the personal information we obtain from you. All information collected from you, by us, will remain private and confidential to Epic Adventures Ltd.

We can use your personal information to allow us to provide our charter service, and to improve the services we offer. We may occasionally carry out market research and send you details of exclusive Epic Adventures Limited offers we think may be of interest to you. If you do not wish to receive such information, please email us at info@epicadventures.co.nz or, alternatively, when we send you a newsletter it will contain a provision for you to opt out of receiving any further information from us.

We do not store any of your credit card details. When you book with us via our website we are not party to the full details. Should you provide your credit card numbers to us by phone they will be immediately entered into our secure online system, managed by Payment Express, and are only accessible for payment or refund of your invoice.

We may provide information about you to our employees or contractors in order to provide our charter services to you. We will not disclose your personal information to any third party unless you have consented to such disclosure or where we are required to by law. Should you breach our Terms and Conditions or if we are under a duty to disclose or share your personal data in order to comply with any legal obligation, we may disclose your information to a relevant authority. This may include exchanging information with other companies and organizations for the purpose of fraud protection and credit risk reduction. Any disclosure of personal information will be strictly controlled and made fully in accordance with New Zealand law.