Important Booking Information

Booking

All bookings are governed by our Booking Conditions not the regulations in place in the different countries where our clients or their tour operators/travel agents come from.

Note: if you want to track gorillas, we recommend that you book your holiday as early as possible (6+ months) when permits are more readily available, so you can book and pay at leisure. Last minute permits can sometimes be found, especially if you are flexible with dates, but there will always be a rush to pay and secure them.

If you would like to book or adapt one of our safaris or tours or if you would like a tailor-made itinerary, please send us an enquiry form telling us about your requirements.

When we receive this we will check the availability of your preferred gorilla tracking permits (for a certain date and forest sector) and your accommodation. If changes are necessary, we will inform you and suggest alternatives.

Unfortunately, there is no system in Uganda for reserving permits, they can only be secured with payment and, once bought, they are non-refundable.

Once your itinerary is agreed, we will send you a booking form and an invoice for the full costs of any international flights, 30% deposit (40% for Rwanda) for gorilla and chimp tracking permits and a 20% deposit on the rest of your holiday. Your deposit is non-refundable but your holiday can be rescheduled. You will be liable for any additional costs. Kindly send us a remittance note so that we know your payment is on the way and, once it is received, we can secure your preferred permits and confirm your booking.

If we are very unlucky and permits have sold-out in the meantime, we will call you to suggest an alternative forest sector or date. Booking early should help to avoid this.

Full payment is due 90 days before arrival. If travel plans are not clear at this point, this payment can be reviewed and paid closer to arrival (at our sole discretion) or the holiday can be rescheduled.

Payments and Cancellation

We charge in US dollars. Payment is by bank transfer into our USD bank account in Uganda.

For bookings from within Uganda, cash can be deposited on our bank account.

Payment instructions are given on our invoices.

If clients are unable to travel and their holiday has to be cancelled (for example if the Uganda Government closes the borders), we will reschedule their holiday, free-of-charge, within 1 year. It may not be possible for us to obtain refunds from our suppliers and therefore we cannot guarantee being able to issue refunds to our clients.

When we book your safari, we have to pay non-refundable deposits on your behalf, for example to hotels. Therefore, we charge cancellation fees as follows:

If you cancel more than 90 days before your arrival date you lose your deposit

If you cancel 90 – 61 days before your arrival date you lose 50% of your total holiday price

If you cancel 60 – 31 days before your arrival date you lose 75% of your total holiday price

If you cancel 30 days or fewer before your arrival date you lose 100% of your total holiday price

We are subject to our suppliers’ cancellation policies. Payments already made to them cannot be refunded to you at any stage.

If one or more group members cancels, the price for remaining members may increase.

Cancellations must be made in writing and acknowledged by Venture Uganda Travel. Charges will be applied based on the date of our written acknowledgement.

We recommend clients include cancellation cover and Covid-19 cover in their travel insurance.

Insurance

AMREF flying doctors provide a medevac service in case of illness or injury during your safari. This costs $30pp for 31 days. We recommend this service and can include it in your package price.

Travel Information

Please see our Travel Information page for information on flights, visas, currency, packing lists, books and field guides, health and safety, emergency contacts and much more general information. If there is anything you cannot find just ask us (Philo@ventureuganda.org).

Responsible Tourism

See our Responsible Tourism pages for information about our approach to tourism and advice on how to travel responsibly.