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General Info
Coming to Africa
Passports & Visas | Insurance | Flights, International and safari charters | Luggage/baggage | Transport on safari | Money, currency and the use of credit cardsPassports & Visas
It is the responsibility of our clients to ensure, before they travel, that they have their passports and any visas that might be necessary. Visas are the responsibility of the guest travelling. It is up to you to have secured the necessary documentation and paid for it yourself.
Please ensure that you do have all the necessary visas prior to departure (unless available on entry) as neither the African Bush Camps group of companies, their staff, their agents nor their operators can be held liable for any errors. Visa requirements can change from country to country so please double-check this information with your agent or nearest embassy/consulate again before departure.
Guests who are not permanent residents of the Republic of South Africa (R.S.A) and travelling through R.S.A. must make sure that they carry either an onward ticket from South Africa or sufficient funds to purchase such ticket in order to comply with South African immigration regulations. Please note that you must bring your ticket with you on safari or you may be refused re-entry into South Africa. South African citizens travelling on a foreign passport require an exit permit to leave South Africa. Please note that any passengers requiring a visa for South Africa, regardless of residence status, must carry a re-entry visa to get back into the R.S.A.
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Insurance
Guests travelling with African Bush Camps must have fully comprehensive insurance cover, including full medical, emergency medical air evacuation, and repatriation cover. Please ensure that you have yourself and your belongings adequately insured before your departure. African Bush Camps and its agents and associates cannot be held responsible or liable for loss, damage, or theft of personal luggage and belongings, nor can they be held liable for personal injury, accident or illness.
In the event of you having to cancel or curtail your safari due to unforeseen circumstances we regret that we cannot make any refunds. Consult your insurance before you travel.
It is advisable to take out baggage and money insurance, especially if you are carrying large amounts of cash or expensive and valuable camera equipment. (We recommend that you should always carry such equipment as "carry-on" luggage).
If you anticipate having to make an insurance claim upon your return home, be sure to document as accurately as possible any accident, injury or loss. Doctor's notes and police reports will aid any claim.
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Flights, International and safari charters
The cost of international flights is not included in the price of our safaris. Clients pay for their own international travel up to the point when they are met at the airport/hotel by our representatives. When travelling on normal scheduled airline flights, the luggage limit is 20kgs per person. Airport taxes are not included in our pricing.
Please check in early at all airports as flights are occasionally overbooked. Please ensure that all your onward flights are reconfirmed at least 72 hours prior to flying. If you are in a lodge or in a hotel ask them to confirm your flights.
The cost of air transfers during the course of the safari is included in our price. There are a number of things we would like to draw to your attention regarding these flights.
- We offer two types of air transfer: either a private charter where you have sole use of the aircraft, or a scheduled air transfer based on a "seat-in-plane" basis where you share the aircraft with other guests and thereby benefit from the lower cost. Unless specifically requested, we will automatically schedule your booking onto a scheduled air transfer.
- All the flight times between camps are arranged a few days before the flights take place so that there are not endless schedule changes. The camp where you are staying will be advised of your departure time the day before and will have you at the airstrip on time. At certain times of the year it may be necessary, for safety reasons, to transfer you from camp to camp during the cooler times of the day, in early morning or late afternoon. Once the departure times have been set they cannot be changed unless additional costs are paid.
- Please advise us at the time of booking if any one guest travelling alone weighs more than 100kgs, or if two guests travelling together weigh more than 180kgs. All weight limits are due to safety factors involved in the light aircraft transfers. Kindly note that should these limitations be exceeded, it may be necessary to charge for an additional aircraft.
Luggage/Baggage
We have a regular client who has arrived on international flights without his luggage on three occasions. Take his advice: make sure you have a small bag, taken as hand luggage, packed with essentials such your toiletries, a change of underclothes, spare shirt/shorts etc., as well as binoculars and camera(s).
It can take many days for your belongings to catch up with you once you have gone into the bush. Our problem is that luggage that goes missing on scheduled flights is beyond our control and often that of the airline as well. If your stowed luggage does not to arrive you will have essential items to see you through the first few days while we try and recover your baggage.
On light aircraft transfers there is a 12 kg per person limit on luggage. This is for safety and space reasons. Please note that this 12 kg includes any cameras, camera bags and associated equipment. We insist on a soft carry-on (instead of a suitcase) with the following maximum dimensions: 80 cm by 30 cm. If it is necessary to bring extra baggage, we can usually “sell” you an extra seat, allowing you to bring an additional 70kgs (154lbs). The cost of this extra seat varies depending on your safari. The luggage limit is taken very seriously by charter companies. Additional luggage can result in an extra aircraft being used and charter companies reserve the right to charge at least US$600 per person.
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Transport on safari
Game drives and land transfers are conducted in reliable open four-wheel drive Land Cruisers or Land Rovers. For your safety and comfort, these have been custom-built by specialists and each vehicle is canopied, most of the vehicles seat seven passengers and are fitted with padded individual bucket seats.
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Money, currency and the use of credit cards
While in the bush, in our camps, you will not require any money, as our safaris are fully inclusive. However, if and when you stay in a lodge then there may be some charges for some premium alcoholic drinks and you may need cash for the purchase of souvenirs. It is advisable to consult your itinerary or confirm with your agent the specific details of what is included at lodges visited on your safari. Drinks in other operator's camps may or may not be included in the cost. Drinks in hotels and in major centres are not included.
Tipping is at the sole discretion of the guests and is not compulsory. Tipping should only be done if you have received good service. However, guests often want to know what is appropriate, so we have included a brief guideline to assist you. (a) Guides: We recommend that if they have done a good job, then about US$5 or more per guest per day is a recommended tip. If you have a specialist guide who accompanies you all the way, this could increase to US$10 per guest per day. (b) Camp Staff. We recommend about US$3 per guest per day. This should be placed in a communal tipping box for distribution equally amongst all the staff. (c) In Restaurants and Hotels 10% is customary but only if you are satisfied with the service.
Zimbabwe restricts the import of their own currency to a maximum of Z$500 in cash. You may also only take Z$500 in cash out of Zimbabwe; however this is not recommended as you cannot exchange Zimbabwe Dollars outside of Zimbabwe. MasterCard is usually accepted throughout Zimbabwe, but American Express and Diners Club are often not accepted. Generally only the large hotels will accept credit cards and even then it is recommended that guests use cards for emergencies only.
For those passengers flying out of Zimbabwe, there is a US$20 (UK citizens US$50) airport departure tax that is not included in the cost of the safari. Please ensure you have the exact amount of US Dollars in cash before you leave your home country. You cannot get any US$ in Zimbabwe so bring them with you. Large denomination bills such as U$50 or US$100 bills are not accepted.
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