Nairobi to Cairo
Transport whilst on tour
Camping equipment: tents + sleeping mattresses on board
Campsite fees
Services of professional crew
The main sites listed in the trip dossier
Food – 2 meals a day whilst traveling (breakfast + dinner)
International flight transfers and taxes
Pre and Post tour Accommodation (can be arranged at time of booking)
Lunches & meals out
Items listed in ‘Optional activities’ section
Items of a personal nature & spending money
Travel Insurance and Visas
Local Tour Payment
Local Payment & Tour Cost - The tour cost and local payment includes transport in a fully equipped expedition vehicle, road taxes and tolls, services of the driver-leader, use of camping and cooking equipment, campsite fees, entrance to game parks as specified and two meals a day while on the truck. So in towns or places where the vehicle will be parked up, although the kitchen will be available for you to cook with, food during this time will not come out of the Local Payment. This normally happens in places where we are for a few days; for example, Arusha, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Victoria Falls, Okavango Delta, Swakopmund, Cape Town and Johannesburg.. At these places cheap food is available at, or near, the places we stay. Generally at lunchtimes we eat at small cafes or restaurants where you can try cheap and tasty local food. If no local food is available you eat on the truck.
Local Payment - Payable in £ English Pounds Sterling cash but you can pay in $US dollars or Euros cash at the current cross exchange rate on date of departure, check with the driver for the rate. Please pay this to the driver on departure. Travelers cheques, cards, Scottish Pounds or other forms of payment are not accepted.
As we will be camping and traveling for an extended period of time, you must be
prepared for an adventurous challenge. It can be hot and dusty, and will
sometimes be out of contact from the rest of the world. This means no
telephones, shops or any other mod cons. You need to participate and work
with all members of the expedition. For the Nile Trans tours, sturdy purpose-built
vehicles are used for these rugged off-road conditions.
There are times when long
drives in order to cover big distances, but on most days that you travel, you
only move for half the day. The African landscape and people you pass are never
boring and most find it hard to put their head down and read whilst on the
road, for fear of missing something. Most evenings you pull into camp and you
and your tent partner will put up your tent, then either relax with a cool drink or get involved in a local activity. Breakfast is usually cereal, toast, tea,
and coffee, with the occasional cooked breakfast. Lunch, if you eat on the truck
is cold.
Camping
Tents
are provided and all have sewn in floors and mosquito netting. You will need to
bring with you a sleeping bag and a msleep sheet. Bring a
mosquito net only if you want to sleep outside of your tent, these can be bought
in
Africa.
All
campsites have ablution facilities & bars, and some have restaurants, shops
and internet facilities. Also, about half the campsites we visit offer the
facility to upgrade to hut or cabin accommodation for an extra charge. Washing - Most of the time you can wash every day and at camp sites you
can do your laundry or often have it done quite cheaply.
Participation
Participation
is essential. A successful and smooth tour depends very much on
everyone taking part in the duties that arise i.e. cooking, vehicle
cleaning and food shopping. With this in mind your crew will organize
groups on a rotating roster. The most successful tours are those where
everyone becomes involved as much as possible. These are not luxury
tours, so join in! In the end the more you put in the more you get out.
As a general rule US$ are the easiest to change anywhere and travelers cheques are hard to change. Credit cards are good to have for withdrawing cash but can be problematical.
Travelers cheques - while keeping your money safe,are often hard to change. They are only easy to change in;
i)Southern Africa (Namibia. South Africa, Botswana and Zambia
ii) Turkey and Egypt
They are harder to change but changeable in;
East Africa (Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda)
Syria and Jordan
They are difficult to change in;
Sudan
Ethiopia
Currency - It is easier if you have cash in US Dollars or Euros. US Dollars are accepted everywhere. Bring US$ cash in new notes from year 2000 onwards. The bigger notes US$50 and $100 give you a better rate of exchange.
To travel safely but with some inconvenience It is best to carry a third each of:
i) US$ for everywhere else,
ii) some money either in US$ travelers cheques or on your credit/debit card
For general spending $15 - $45 a day is a good start, excluding side trips. Depending on how much you drink, eat out and the souvenirs you buy.
Credit/debit cards - bring at least two to five credit/debit cards as they can be rejected by the cash machine. Tell your bank before you travel to stop them blocking your card. In East and Southern Africa ATM machines are available about every three days. Visa credit and debit cards are better than MasterCard/American Express/ Maestro/Cirrus for acceptability.
If coming from UK don't bring Scottish money.
The average number of passengers on an Africa tour is normally between 12 - 18, with a maximum of 26 and minimum of 8.
Although it is our intention to finish the trip on the finishing date, in case of delays en route you should allow a couple days at the end of the trip before you fly out. Ensure when you buy your flight that you don't go just on price. Also check conditions and flexibility. Take into consideration that you may be buying your flight well ahead of time and the nature of your trip you are doing. It may be worthwhile paying more to have a flexible flight with a better airline that flies frequently to your destination. We can obtain competitive fares for you, please ask when booking your trip.
We can book pre tour accommodation at our departure hotel/hostel for you if you provide us with your arrival details. You will need to pay for your room upon arrival. Post tour accommodation can be booked en-route with the help of your crew.
The tour departs from Karen Camp in Nairobi
Karen Camp
Marula Lane
Off
Karen Road,
Karen Nairobi.
Tel.
+254 (0) 733 703510, +254 (0) 723 314053, +254 (0) 20 883475
Email: booking@karencamp.com
Deluxe Double en-suite-$80.00 USD
Double / twin en-suite-$50.00 USD
Single en-suite-$40.00 USD
Double / twin share facilities-$40.00 USD
Dormitory
(Per Person)-$20.00 USD
*Prices are subject to change
If you would like the security of an airport pickup provide us with your flight details at the time of booking - cost $US30 per taxi, payable locally. As you exit customs on the right hand side is Planet Safaris where you will meet the driver. You pay for the taxi when you arrive at camp. For your safety and convenience use this service. Make sure you reach the Planet counter ignoring taxi touts who will over charge and may not know where you want to go.
Visas are not included in the tour price or recommended daily spending money. If you have dual nationality you should use only one passport. Visas are required for most countries visited on this trip.
Bring 10 passport photos with you for visas. If you run out of photos there are photo shops to get more. Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months with 10 clear pages.
Visas cost and where to get them
Kenya - on route US$50
Ethiopia – you need to get this visa in your country of residence before you join the trip
Sudan – on route US$100 & USA $200 plus registration $40 & exit tax $20
Egypt – on route US$15 to $60
Please be aware that visa prices can change at a moment's notice and the above costs are advisory. Check what visas you need before departure with the relevant consulates or with www.embassyworld.com
You have to be vaccinated against Yellow Fever and will need an International Vaccination Certificate to prove this when we cross borders. It is also advisable to be vaccinated against Typhoid; Rabies; Hepatitis A; Hepatitis B; Tetanus; Polio and Meningitis. If possible start your vaccinations two months, but as late as two weeks before departure. Your GP can also inoculate but may take a while to get to get the vaccine in. Medical centre with their own travel educated Doctors can supply up-to-date medical advice and also administer vaccinations.
The risk of contracting malaria in the areas we visit is high. You should be aware that malaria tablets offer only partial protection against malaria and that you should couple taking the tablets with mosquito bite avoidance. The malarial mosquitoes come out at night that is from the beginning of sunset onwards, so from this time you should cover up in long sleeves, jeans or track suit pants plus socks - mosquitoes tend to bite around the feet and ankles. You must also use insect repellent containing Deet, bring some you will need it. The use of repellents and covering up can be as effective as the use of tablets, so by coupling both methods of protection together you should be malaria free. Whatever type of prophylactic you choose to use you should try a sample of it well before you go as adverse reactions can occur. This often happens with the Larium or Mephloquine type of drug. In Africa buy a can of fly/bug spray to clear your tent of mosquitoes and bugs before you go to bed.
You must be insured against personal accident, medical expenses and repatriation expenses. We only carry passengers on the understanding that, in most African countries through which we travel no passenger or vehicle liability is available whatsoever. You should take out insurance when you pay your deposit for the tour or for flights so that you are insured against cancellation (for medical or family reasons, for example). Bring your policy with you. If you travel without insurance and need to get home urgently due to ill health or family problems, you or those responsible for you could incur huge expense. The medical coverage is the most important part of the insurance policy, loss of belongings less so. For UK, Australian and NZ residents, we can point you in the right direction for insurance if you contact us. For other nations, it is best to search online - there are some good online insurance companies catering for US, Canadian and European residents.