Booking Conditions – Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd.
Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd offers travel arrangements to Southern Africa and East Africa. When you’re ready to book, please read the following conditions and the General Information section carefully. They will form part of your contract with Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd, South Africa.
Payment and Confirmation Invoice
To book your holiday, you should send us a completed and signed booking form together with the specified deposit per person travelling. If your holiday includes certain safaris or luxury trains, then a greater deposit will be requested from you on your proposal letter. This deposit may be in an alternative currency (e.g. US Dollars) if our suppliers invoice us in this currency.
If you are booking within 90 days of departure, then full payment is required at this time. When we receive your booking form and deposit, we will reserve your chosen holiday and will send you our confirmation invoice. A contract will exist as soon as we issue our confirmation invoice. However, if lack of availability prevents us from confirming you on the exact itinerary requested, we will search diligently for what we consider to be an acceptable alternative, and this may result in a slightly higher or lower price. If there are differences between the proposed itinerary and that which we are able to arrange for you, we will agree this with you before your booking is confirmed. Although we will endeavor to meet, where possible, special requests made in writing on your booking form, no guarantee can be given.
You must pay the balance shown on your invoice at least 90 days before your departure. We do not send out a final invoice unless there is a change to any aspect of your holiday or you ask us to do so. We are very happy to send a reminder, if you prefer. Otherwise, we will expect your remaining payment on or before the due date and we will then send you an acknowledgement receipt. Alternatively you can authorise a credit card debit to be taken 60 days prior to arrival. Non-receipt of the balance by Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd on the date due will result in the holiday arrangements being liable for cancellation.
If you wish to make changes
Once your booking has been confirmed, changes (where possible) will incur an administration fee of not less than R500 per alteration plus any additional charges made by suppliers. Alterations within 60 days of departure may also incur the appropriate cancellation charges set out below. We regret that no refund is possible for any unused services provided in the cost of the holiday. If you decide to alter your travel arrangements whilst abroad, this is your own responsibility and we are not responsible for any extra costs that may arise.
If you cancel your holiday
Should you, or any member of your party, cancel your holiday after confirmation, this cancellation must be confirmed in writing by the person who signed the booking form. A cancellation charge, calculated on the basis set out below, will be payable by the client. Late payment of the balance of the cost of your holiday may also result in cancellation charges being applied. If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges.
Should one or more members of a party cancel, it may increase the per person holiday price of the remaining members. If a member of your party is prevented from travelling, but you wish to transfer the arrangements to another person, cancellation fees will not be charged. However, both the original traveler and his/her replacement will be liable for additional costs incurred in making the changes, reasonable notice must be given.
Occasionally we have to adapt our Deposit and Cancellation Policy for specific bookings eg. For festive season bookings or if we are extensively using a supplier which has very onerous cancellation policies. This will be clearly stated on the final proposal and on the booking form. Please take note of this.
All payments by credit card are converted into South Africa’s currency (Rands) on the day of payment. Any refunds due to cancellation will be the appropriate % refund in Rand converted back (by your credit card company) into your home currency.
Cancellation Costs:
More than 61 days – Loss of deposit
60 and 45 days – 40% of land arrangements (& 100% of flight costs)
44 and 31 days – 60% of land arrangements (& 100% of flight costs)
Within 30 days – 100%
Some costs may be recoverable depending on flights booked.
If we change or cancel your holiday
We aim to make no changes to your confirmed holiday, but we occasionally need to make changes, which we reserve the right to do at any time. Most of these changes are minor, and we will endeavor to advise you as soon as is reasonably possible. In cases where a refund is due, Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd will refund the client within 30 days.
Customer Privacy Policy
Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd shall take all reasonable steps to protect the personal information of users. For the purpose of this clause, ‘personal information’ shall be defined as detailed in the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA). The PAIA may be downloaded from: http://www.polity.org.za/html/govdocs/legislation/2000/act2.pdf
Payment Options Accepted
Payment cay be made by direct bank transfer into the Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd bank account in either South African Rands (for bookings in South Africa) or into our US Dollar account (for bookings in Southern and East Africa), the details of which will be provided on our confirmation invoice.
Travel Documents
On receipt of your final payment, we will email our travel documents to you. Please ensure that you have received your documentation before you leave on your holiday.
It is your responsibility to ensure that you have all the necessary travel documents and tickets in your possession including passport, insurance policy, visas and medical certificates. The onus is upon you to ensure that your passport and visas are valid for the countries visited. The company, its staff and their suppliers cannot be held liable for any visas, etc not held by you. Similarly, the onus is upon you to ensure that you have taken the recommended injections prior to travelling in Southern Africa. We especially draw your attention to the need for anti-malarial prophylactics to be commenced prior to your arrival in Africa if you will be travelling in a malarial area. The name(s) listed on your confirmation invoice will appear on your airline tickets and must match the name(s) on your passport(s). If you are changing your name, please ensure that it is the name on your passport that appears on your flight tickets. Failure to comply may result in amendment fees or the cancellation of your flight tickets.
Your holiday cost
We reserve the right to increase or decrease the price of holidays on this website at any time. The price of your chosen holiday will be confirmed at the time of booking, based on prevailing airfares and exchange rates. Once the price is confirmed upon booking, we will do our utmost to keep to this price. Should increases be forced on us by airlines, exchange rate fluctuations, government action such as an increase in VAT, bed levy or any other Government-imposed increases, we reserve the right to surcharge, without notice, up to a maximum of 10% of the tour price.
Your Holiday and Our Responsibility
Neither Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd nor any person acting for, through or on behalf of the Company shall be liable for any loss or damage whatsoever arising from any cause whatsoever and, without restricting the generality of the aforegoing, shall particularly not be responsible for loss or damage arising from any errors or omissions contained in this website or other literature, loss or damage caused by delays, sickness, theft, injury or death, whether occasioned by negligence or not.
In addition the company shall have the right at any time at its discretion to cancel any tour or the remainder thereof or make any alteration in route, accommodation, price or other details and in the event of any tour being rendered impossible, illegal or inadvisable by weather, strike, war, government or interference or any other causes whatsoever, the extra expenses incurred as a result thereof shall be the responsibility of the passenger. The Company may, at its discretion and without liability to itself at any time, cancel or terminate the client’s booking and in particular without limiting the generality of the aforegoing it shall be entitled to do so in the event of the illness or the illegal or incompatible behavior of the guest, who shall in such circumstances not be entitled to any refund.
The person making the booking will, by the making of such booking, warrant that he or she has authority to enter into a contract on behalf of the other person included in such a booking, and in the event of the failure of any or all of the other persons, so included to make payment, the person making the booking shall by his/her signature thereof assume personal liability of the total price of all bookings made by him/her.
Flight Routings, Timings and Delays
It is sometimes necessary to change the airline, aircraft type or routing. Flight times are supplied by the carriers and cannot be guaranteed as they may be affected by operating conditions such as adverse weather conditions, need for constant maintenance or air traffic control procedures. Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd has no control over these changes. In particular, we shall not be responsible for flight delays or their results, including the consequent amendment or curtailment of planned itineraries. Carriage by air is always subject to the airline’s conditions of carriage and is governed by international convention, which may limit liability in respect of claims for injury, delay and loss of baggage. In the event of delayed departure, the airline will be responsible for making any necessary arrangements. Arrangements for refreshments and, if necessary, for overnight accommodation in the event of a lengthy delay will be the responsibility of the airline concerned. However, if these delays have led to onward flight connections being missed, the carrier is not responsible for any costs involved, or for any unused holiday services, though they will offer a remedy, subject to their conditions of carriage. Airlines occasionally change the aircraft type without advance warning, and flights operated to destination countries may be provided by charter airlines. Where we are advised of such a change then we will endeavor to advise you. We strongly recommend that you take out comprehensive travel insurance which includes some compensation for delays.
Complaints and Problems
We do our best to give you an enjoyable, trouble-free safari but occasionally even the best-laid plans can go wrong. In the event of a problem whilst you are on holiday, please inform the relevant supplier (e.g. hotel manager) and our office in South Africa immediately. This gives us the opportunity to correct the matter so that it does not spoil your holiday. If the matter cannot be resolved immediately, please send details of your complaint to us in writing within 10 days of your return from your holiday. It is therefore a condition of this contract that you communicate any problem to the authority in question whilst on tour. If you fail to follow this simple procedure we cannot accept responsibility as we have been deprived of the opportunity to investigate and rectify the problem.
Seasonal Factors and Resort Facilities
Some factors are not under our control and early and late in the season some tourist facilities may not operate. Likewise, swimming pools have to be cleaned and sometimes emptied and maintenance work can affect the availability of certain amenities. Public holidays and religious festivals throughout the year (particularly Ramadan) may have an impact on the ambience of a destination and the reliability of shops, banks and other facilities.
Wild Animals
Please be aware that on any African safari, you may be taken into close contact with wild animals. Attacks by wild animals are rare, but no safari into the African wilderness can guarantee that this will not occur. Neither Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd, nor its employees, nor its suppliers can be held responsible for any injury or incident on the safari. Please note that many safari camps are unfenced, and animals are able to wander through the camps at all times of the day and night.
Travel Insurance
It is a condition of booking, that the sole responsibility lies with the client to ensure that you carry correct comprehensive travel and medical insurance to cover yourself and any dependents/travelling companions for the duration of your trip to Africa. This insurance should include cover in respect of, but not limited to, the following eventualities: cancellation or curtailment of the safari, emergency evacuation expenses, medical expenses, repatriation expenses, damage/theft/loss of personal baggage, money and goods.
We require you to give the particulars of your travel insurance to us, including the insurance contact phone number. We do not guarantee to check the details of your travel insurance. Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd, including their representatives, employees and agents will not be liable for any costs or losses incurred or suffered by the client with regards to, but not limited to, any of the above mentioned eventualities. You will be charged directly by the relevant service providers for any emergency services that you require and may find yourselves in a position unable to access such services should you not be carrying the relevant insurance cover.
Country of Domicile
This website is governed by the laws of South Africa and Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd chooses South Africa as its domicilium citandi et executandi for all purposes under this agreement, whether in respect of court process, notice, or other documents or communication of whatsoever nature. Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd may, in its sole discretion, change this agreement or any part thereof at any time without notice.
Company Information
This website is run by Safari Experts Africa (Pty) Ltd based in South Africa trading as African Safari Experts with registration number 2019/081595/07.