FAQ

I’m not in the best of shape, are your tours still for me?

Our goal with our hiking tours are to show off the incredible beauty of the Rocky Mountain National Park, near the Estes Park area. We keep things low key, if you can stay on your feet for 2-3 hours our tours are for you! If you aren’t able to be on your feet for that long we also have driving tours where we visit lakes we can park next to, a waterfall with 1/4 mile hike, and amazing overlooks along the roadside! We want EVERYONE to be able to enjoy the magical beauty of Mother Nature so we will plan our tours specific just for you and your friends!

STAR TOURS

Our least physically active tour, we drive to 3/4 locations to view and photograph the night sky at its best. Wear warm layers as we will be standing outside in the night air above 11,000 ft. (i’m personally always cold and never take off my snow pants even in the summers, so layers layers layers!!!!) Most stops are right next to the vehicles, some stops have up to a mile hike, so if you can’t walk that far just let us know so we provide you with the right experience for you!

SUNRISE & SUNSET photo tours!

These hikes take us off the main road and into the mountains on foot. People of all fitness levels have successfully completed these hikes, so don’t be intimidated! We’ve had kids as young as 5 years old, some pregnant ladies, and even a couple people in their 80’s (we go at your pace and take as many breaks as we need! If you can walk 2 miles on flat ground you should be able to do these just fine. Wear good walking shoes or hiking boots depending on the season, and bring a water bottle and snacks. I will send out a packing list once I receive your payment.

A note on altitude sickness:

Altitude sickness is real! It takes time to adjust to the lack of oxygen in the high altitude air. Altitude sickness affects people in different ways but most notably with dehydration. We cannot stress enough the importance of drinking LOTS and LOTS of water as you acclimate to the Colorado air. 3 days prior to your trip, start hydrating more than you normally would, don’t wait until you get here!! When you are cold you tend not to drink as much so you need to be aware! And the dryness in our air also sucks the water outta your skin so you HAVE to be on top of your water intake! You don’t have to be up here for 3 days before you hike if you are on top of your hydrating!!! Start drinking more water than you usually do several DAYS BEFORE YOUR TRIP!!!

What if the weather is bad?

The weather in Estes Park is notoriously unpredictable, so we don’t often reschedule our tours. I do have a favorite saying “there’s no bad weather, only bad gear!” and we will cover what you should be packing to prepare for your adventure. If it’s really bad though, Safety is our first priority so we usually make plans in advance to try for 2 days during your visit so we can switch if need be due to weather. We will contact you about 3 days before your scheduled tour to lock down the exact date due to hourly weather predictions. Sometimes the weather changes in the middle of a tour so we do advise you to bring weather-proof layers.

What is your refund policy?

Once you book your ticket(s) our guides go to work preparing for your tour and therefore your Estes Park Adventure Tour ticket is transferrable but not refundable. We do offer tour credit in two cases:

1. If you are unable to attend and contact us at least 48 hours before your tour

2. If your schedule doesn’t allow you to rebook your tour that was canceled due to weather

In either of these cases you will be offered tour credit for up to one year from the date of your original tour. Submit an official request through email to chelsea@thehikingmermaid.com with the subject “TICKET TRANSFER” and include your original order number. When you are ready to redeem your credit for another tour, send another email and you will receive a code to book your tickets at no additional cost. This offer is valid one year from the date of your original scheduled tour. (If you won’t be back in a year just let us know and we can try and work with you, tickets aren’t transferable to another person.)