Our Company Policies
Blackwater Tours will adhere to the Rules and Regulations set forth by local governing entities.
Blackwater Tours reserves the right to change policies listed on this page as long as it does not violate the Rules and Regulations set by the local governing entities. Policies and Regulations listed or sited on this page may be subject to change without notice.
Fees & Our Tour Pricing
Per the local governing bodies’ policies, entrance fees cannot be added to our rates. Applicable sales taxes; local, state, and booking partner fees will be calculated at checkout.
Cancellation Policy
A 50% fee of the reservation subtotal will be charged for all and ANY KIND of cancellation made by the customer. This includes; national emergencies U.S, European, or globally, etc., such as; travel restrictions, road closures, personal reasons, weather related incidents, etc., outside the Monument Valley park.
Sales taxes and booking fees cannot be refunded.
A no-show without any contact at least 24 hours in advance will NOT be eligible a refund of any kind. Reservations that could not be remedied by a reschedule will be considered a cancellation made by the customer, and will not be eligible for a refund.
No charges will be made if your reservation is rescheduled or converted into a gift card on the booking platform.
We depart wind, rain, or shine. If Blackwater Tours defaults before tour for reasons beyond our control; impassible roads in Monument Valley due to weather conditions, emergency Monument Valley Park closures, local government shut-downs, etc., you will be contacted as soon as possible and given a full refund.
Any tours already initiated will not be refunded due to any condition; *unintentional conveniences, weather, impassible road, personal reasons, etc. Unless forfeited by Blackwater Tours and or due to park; restrictions, evacuations, closures, etc.
Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park
The Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park is managed by The Navajo Nation Department of Parks & Recreation.
The park does not accept U.S. National park passes.
The park only accepts credit cards for park entry fees. Due to Navajo Nation and park policies and or laws the entrance or any fees imposed by the park cannot be added to any third party operators including ours at Blackwater Tours as stated above.
The park has full autonomy, the park has it’s own rules and regulations and follows the laws and or policies of The Navajo Nation Department of Parks & Recreation and The Navajo Nation itself.
Tours may be affected without warning in some cases if any closures applied by the park due to; emergencies, evacuations, Navajo Nation events, etc.
Children
Toddlers and infants under 4 years of age do not list on our reservation system. After booking please contact us at (435) 727-3312 or email us with your booking number and name to add the number or toddlers or infants accompanying you on the tour.
Due to new park safety regulations, your child’s safety seat will need to be installed on our vehicle and a waiver form completed before departure. Infant seats must be installed in the inner most part of the open vehicles or in the front cab of the vehicle is applicable.
Waiver Form
Due to local regulations, all participants are required to sign a waiver form prior to departure. Our tour coordinator will collect the completed form from your party before the tour begins.
Single Persons & Booking
The Fareharbor booking system automatically rejects single person bookings. The system will open a tour date for single bookings if two or more persons has booked the same tour your are trying to request. Single persons trying to book a tour by adding a child to bypass the system will require Blackwater Tours employees to confirm your child to be present before departure. If the booked child is not present upon departure, your tour will be cancelled without a refund.
Discount 6 Or More Person Booking
Group of 6 persons or more discount available. Please note all persons “6 minimum” must be on tour. If the minimum of 6 persons are not present upon arrival, full price per person for the tour will be paid before departure.
Recording Notice on Navajoland
Though Monument Valley is a major tourist attraction and we are in the 21st century, many Navajo (Diné-The People) respect sacred beliefs and adhere to Diné religion. This includes our guides and surrounding locals, many still prefer not to be included in; photographs, video, and or any kind of recording.
Please be considerate. Ask and confirm permission before taking their picture or recording anyone in any way.
***Drones of any kind are not allowed in the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park***
Meeting and Pick-Up
We meet and pick-up at the Monument Valley Park parking lot on the west center circle. We do not pick-up at The View Hotel due to its management’s request. It is best to show up earlier than the departure time so we may depart on time.
Early Departure
Schedules are set for the day, guides and vehicles are assigned for specific tours before they leave our office, requests to depart before your reserved tour time changes our scheduling. If your early departure request is possible, your reservation will be changed to a “Private Tour”, a $100.00 fee will be due upon the request and no one will accompany your party on the tour.
Missed Tour Departure
Please arrive at the time you have booked your tour for, our guides will wait no longer than 10 minutes maximum. There may be availability at a later time, and if you still wish to take a tour contact us right away. If there is no availability for the day the cancellation policy will apply.
Unintentional Inconveniences
While on tour there are many coincidences that may happen, please be aware we will do the best we can to alleviate any of “unintentional inconveniences”. Of these we will list some of these:
Vehicle breakdowns – Engine trouble, flat tires, etc., we will put your party on another vehicle passing by whether our company or another tour company completing the same tour. Our tour guide may accompany you through the rest of the tour, leaving the broken vehicle behind to be towed back to our company headquarters later.
Stuck vehicle – 4×4 vehicles do get stuck in Monument Valley, due to very sandy or muddy road conditions. Since many vehicles use the same trail or dirt roads, the condition of the road may become unknown to the guide and the vehicle may become stuck. In this case the guide will do his or her best to get the vehicle out from being stuck, or catch a ride on another vehicle whether our vehicle or not. Your guide will accompany you through the rest of the tour tour, leaving the stuck vehicle for our mechanics or staff to retrieve it later.
Persons; Injured, health problem, etc – In some instances we have had persons that did not follow our guide’s instructions; they might become injured by climbing and falling off rocks, walking away from the tour into unpredictable terrain, or have tormented a wild animal and got kicked, bitten, pierced or scratched. Some have had health problems; heart complications, breathing complications, heat stroke, etc. In these circumstances we will cancel the remaining tour and go directly back to the Monument Valley Park visitor center, in severe cases medical help will be called, any medical services will be at your expense.
Tour refunds will NOT be given for any of these instances, ANY kind medical services; first aid, ambulatory, medical flights will be at your expense.
We operate wind, rain, snow, or shine, in some circumstances severe weather conditions may be unforgiving, and your tour may have to be cancelled due to safety risks. Also, in rare cases the park management and or the local governance may issue a park closure that overrides all operations in the area.
The local governance have full autonomy over policies and local laws. Park closures may happen at any time, sometimes without warning. If an emergency closure is declared and your tour reservation has not started yet, we may be obligated to cancel any tour and refund in full.
The park management closures are usually due to; impassable roads due to; weather conditions, emergencies, accidents, etc, in Monument Valley. This will result in cancellations of reservations, tours, or any activity within the Monument Valley Park. Tours already in progress will be completed.
Tour Duration
Some operators include from and to travel time from outside the Monument Valley Park, for example, the road that you have to drive on your way to the Visitor Center. On other websites and ads, this makes it seem like tours are longer and you will see more, not really the case. Our tour duration may go a little over or under depending on; customer participation, road conditions, park activities, maintenance, and or congestion. Our tours are based on the Monument Valley Park’s route identification, these are based on an approximation of how long it takes to complete the tour route(s).
The park’s identification for routes are: 1.5 Hour Route, 2.5 Hour Route (Back-Country), Mystery Valley route.
Tour Time Approximation
Our tour time starts at the Monument Valley drive entrance, not the pick-up area. The 1.5 hour, 2.5 hour, and Mystery Valley routes identified by the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park and can be affected by reasons listed below:
**Time and length of tour is based on the route taken for the tour reserved. Times are approximate and may be shortened or lengthen due to:
Participation – A party may choose not to exit the vehicle or stop at a location designated by the tour guide or our company itinerary, this lessens the tour time. The tour route is still taken, thus is still the tour; length, route, type reserved.
Weather Conditions – Weather may become a factor. Rain, wind, snow, etc., may slow a tour, the usually lengthens a tour.
Congestion/Traffic – During the peak tourism months May through August, tour routes may become congested, this also lengthens tour time.
Park Activities – The Monument Valley Park has full autonomy, and sometimes holds events for the public or local government. In the event of this happening, our tours will be re-routed to other tour routes, these deviations usually do not affect tour times or lengths.
Unintentional Inconveniences – Vehicle breakdowns, stuck vehicles, persons injured or health related conditions that happened on tour. See “Unintentional Inconveniences” above this policy.
Reservations Are A Must
Arrival without a reservation may result in higher fees due to an agreement set by the local tour operators and the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park.
Printed rates from this site will not be honored upon your arrival without a reservation made from this website, booking partner, telephone call to our office, or on-site coordinator in advance. Without a reservation, prices, rates, etc., established at the Monument Valley tribal park will be applied.