| Frequently Asked Questions |
| What is the recommended baggage requirement for
the airlines? |
|
Always best to check with your designated airline
carrier for baggage requirements. Most airlines require two (2) bags
per person weighing no more that 50 pounds each.
|
| What inoculations are required? |
| No inoculations required. Malaria
prophylactics will be needed. |
| What caliber of guns and ammo are recommended? |
| We recommend bring two rifles.
One should be in the .270 to .300 caliber range that you are familiar
with and shoot with confidence. Scopes should be should be of good
quality. The second rifle should be of .375 caliber or larger again
with good quality variable power scope that you are comfortable with
and shoot well. If you wish to do any significant amount of bird
hunting then you would need to consider bringing a shotgun as well.
There is a maximum of 3 firearms that may be brought into the country. |
| How much ammo can be taken? |
| This is primarily controlled by
airline regulations, which allows a maximum of 11 pounds of ammo per
passenger. Based on the length of safari as well as the overall number
of species the client wishes to hunt, we suggest bringing good quality
soft point ammo calculated at 2 rounds per specie to be hunted or a
maximum of 60 rounds of soft point ammo. For the heavier caliber, we
suggest calculating 3 rounds per specie that you would plan to use the
heavier rifle for a maximum again of 60 rounds. This will normally keep
you within the airline regulations. The technical allowance for all of
the African countries is a maximum of 100 rounds per firearm but we
have never in 20 years had a client utilize this amount of ammo and the
stricter airline regulations we do not recommend exceeding this 11
pound allowance to avoid possible “hassles” at the
departure airport. |
| What are the recommended gratuities? |
| In general, on all safaris, we
have established a guideline of $700 per week to cover all the camp
staff/trackers. For the government game scouts we work on $100 per
week. For the professional hunters, it varies widely, but over the
years, the average seems to work out to an average of $250 per day. For
the “Meet and Greet” staff member we suggest $100 per
person, covering arrival and departure. It must be noted that
the above are only suggestions and all gratuities are totally at the
discretion of the client. |
| What are the “meet and greet”
services that are provided? |
| “Meet and Greet”
services are done at the beginning and conclusion of the safari where
we have a trained staff member to assist with all airport, customs and
immigration formalities. They will help clear clients through
immigration then assist with the collection of baggage and firearms,
handle clearance of firearms with the Authorities and then transport
clients to hotels, charter lights or hand them over to the professional
hunters as the program dictates. At the conclusion of the safari our
staff person will assist with the check in procedures, clearance for
firearms outbound as well as any airport tax payments and departure
matters. |
| Is there electricity in camp to be able to charge
batteries, etc? |
| All camps have generator power to
recharge batteries. It is also recommended to consider bringing a small
power inverter that plugs into a cigarette lighter to invert 12V DC
Power to 110V AC for recharging in the hunting vehicle. Generators in
most camps are run during the morning and evening hours only but can be
run at other hours by request. |
| What are the site-seeing opportunities? |
| Consider a visit to Victoria
Falls. Recently, a brand new, excellent Sun International Hotel has
been built which offers first class accommodations. |
| Is there trip cancellation insurance available? |
| Yes, trip
cancellation/interruption insurance is available and highly
recommended. Rates vary based on the cost of the trip and age of the
individual. This can be handled directly through our Texas office. |
| Is there access to Medjet? How much is it? |
| Access to Medjet for hospital of
choice medical evacuation & repatriation membership protection is
available. Visit www.medjet.com
for more info or to enroll. Discounted annual rates of $215
(Individual) and $335 (Family) along with short-term rates are
accessible through this link or by calling Medjet at 1-800-527-7478
referring to Swanepoel & Scandrol Plan #665. |
| What are the charter expenses? |
| Charter expenses vary from
country to country and are based on the size of the aircraft required,
length of flight and availability. In some cases charter flights are
optional to save valuable hunting time and for comfort/convenience
purposes. On other safaris such as the Cameroon Bongo hunt, the charter
is required as distances are significant. On many safaris no charters
are required or optional. On many safaris where charters are required a
specific quotation will be provided. We always try, where possible, to
combine charter flights to reduce the costs to individual clients. On
safaris were charters are optional, the cost for these optional flights
will be quoted so clients can make individual decisions. |
| What is the hunting season? |
| There is no set season but
safaris are generally conducted from June through November. |
| Is there someone we can contact for videography
of the safari? |
| We have several videographers
that have been hired by our clients and worked well with us in the
past. Here are a few of the companies/people that we have used: Travis
Simpson, Mike Rogers Jr., Glen Lamprecht of Savage Moon Productions and
The Osprey Filming Company. |
| |
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