Our Refund Policy for Courses & Activities

All bookings for diving courses and day trips are subject to confirmation by Chang Diving Center. We confirm your preferred date (or offer alternatives) based on availability. A booking is confirmed once the customer confirms the date and pays the required deposit (or full payment).

To provide a safe, relaxed, and high-quality diving experience, all our diving activities are carefully planned well in advance. Unlike large-volume dive operations, Chang Diving Center intentionally limits boat capacity to a maximum of 10 divers. These are usually split into small, well-balanced groups — for example certified fun divers and training courses — to ensure personal attention, safety, and an enjoyable pace underwater.

This small-group philosophy requires detailed pre-planning, including reserving limited boat spaces, assembling suitable diver groups based on certification and experience, scheduling instructors and divemasters, preparing equipment in the correct sizes, planning fuel consumption and dive sites, and organizing logistics and fresh meals for the day.

You can learn more about our boat, operations, and sustainable diving concept here: Sustainable Diving at Chang Diving Center.

Deposits for diving courses and activities are non-refundable.
Once a course or activity is booked, this preparation process begins and costs are incurred for materials, eLearning registrations, administration, staff scheduling, and boat operations. These costs cannot be recovered. Additional non-refundable costs include instructor/divemaster fees, fuel, logistics, and staff expenses.

Cancellation Policy:

Cancellations made within 14 days of the scheduled activity will incur a 50% cancellation fee.
Cancellations made within 7 days of the scheduled activity will incur a 75% cancellation fee.
Cancellations made within 3 days of the scheduled activity are non-refundable.
Unused services or no-shows are non-refundable.
A 6% handling fee (plus transaction fees) applies to all cancellations.

Peak Season & High-Demand Periods

The following conditions override the standard cancellation policy during peak season. During peak season and high-demand periods, stricter cancellation conditions apply due to limited availability, high operational costs, and blocked capacity.

Peak season is defined as:

December 15 – January 10
Chinese New Year period (dates vary annually)
Public holidays and long weekends in Thailand

During peak season:

All deposits remain non-refundable
Cancellations made within 14 days of the scheduled activity are non-refundable
Re-scheduling is subject to availability and cannot be guaranteed

We strongly recommend purchasing travel cancellation insurance to cover unforeseen events during peak season.

Travel Advisories & Personal Safety Concerns

Government travel advisories, perceived safety concerns, media reports, or personal travel decisions do not constitute a refundable cancellation. Refunds apply only if force majeure results in official restrictions, port closures, or government orders that prevent normal diving operations on Koh Chang.

In such cases, customers are advised to contact their travel insurance provider. Upon request, Chang Diving Center can provide a non-refundable confirmation letter for insurance purposes.

Insurance Recommendations

Dive Accident Insurance: https://changdiving.com/en/day-trips/insurance/
Travel Cancellation Insurance: If you need to cancel your trip or diving course due to illness, accident, or other insured reasons, a travel cancellation insurance may reimburse your costs.

Tip: Some credit cards (Visa or Mastercard), especially travel-focused or premium cards, may include travel insurance or trip cancellation benefits when you pay for your trip (or a required portion of it) with the card. Coverage, limits, and exclusions vary by card issuer, so please check your card’s “Guide to Benefits” or contact your bank/card provider to confirm eligibility before relying on it.

Force Majeure

Force majeure includes events beyond our control that directly affect operations on Koh Chang, such as severe weather, port closures, official government restrictions, or other events that make diving operations unsafe or impossible.

Chang Diving Center reserves the right to cancel trips due to weather, mechanical issues, or insufficient participants. In such cases, affected customers will receive a full refund or an option to reschedule.

Re-scheduling Policy:

Bookings can be rescheduled once within 6 months of the original booking date.
If you cancel or fail to reschedule within 6 months, the deposit will be forfeited.
If you begin a course/activity and choose to stop for any reason, the full balance is still due. However, you may reschedule within 6 months, paying only the boat fees for the remaining course days.

Equipment & Parts Refund Policy:

Items must be unused, in original packaging, with seals intact.
Customized or personalized items are non-refundable.
Items not purchased directly from changdiving.com are non-refundable.
Returns require prior authorization via email to [email protected].
Return shipping is at the customer's expense and non-refundable.

Refund Processing:

Once returns are received and inspected, refunds will be processed back to the original payment method. Processing times vary by bank; if a refund is delayed, contact us at [email protected].

Exchanges:

Exchanges are only provided for defective or damaged items. Email [email protected] for assistance.