General Information for Riding

Included in Riding Holidays

Accommodation: All riding holidays include accommodation.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner are provided on riding holidays. Soft drinks & alcohol are payable locally. Complimentary water bottles on riding trips.
Guides: Riding and non-riding guides are inclusive.
Horses & tack including saddle bags and water for each ride.
Prices are quoted on sharing a room.

Not Included

Insurance: We request you take out travel Insurance. Ask your local insurance company or travel agent about it. You will not be allowed to participate in the trail ride without having personal travel insurance. See below for more information.
Flights: International and local flights are not included.
Personal expenses
Please keep in mind that Egypt has a strong tipping culture and leaving tips is a way of life. We kindly ask that you factor this in to your budget $100 / £75 GBP to be paid on the first day of arrival. This goes into a tip kitty in order to tip hotel staff, porter, tour guides, riding guides, grooms, drivers, camel guides and boat guides for the week. This rate is quoted pro rata so if you have a longer holiday than a week or over several locations please budget accordingly. We are happy to help if you need further assistance budgeting.
Temples, Museums and Historical Sites all have local fees. We recommend around $80 but of course this can vary depending on the clients interest in visits and history. An upto date pricelist can be found online here: http://www.egyptologyforum.org/MOA/MoA_Ticket_Price_Nov._2018_EN.pdf

Transfers

Hurghada Airport to Luxor: approx. 3.5 hours – £65
Hurghada hotels to Hurghada Airport: approx. 1 hour – £25
Luxor airport to/from Luxor hotels: approx. 1 hour – £25
Cairo Airport to/from Cairo Hotels: approx. 2 hours – £35
Cairo Airport Meet and Greet: £35 per person
Aswan airport to Aswan Hotels: approx. 1 hour – £25

Late Check Outs

All our holidays finish with check out at midday. Breakfast is included, lunch is not. Late check outs are available direct to your hotel before 10am and payable locally.

Passport / Visa / Vaccinations

Passport: Required for all foreigners with a minimum of 6 months remaining
Visa: Payable at Cairo, Luxor, Hurghada and Sharm Airport on arrival $25. Cash only payment. Please be prepared
Vaccinations: Not required in the area where we ride (for other regions consult your physician)

Climate

The climate of Egypt is a subtropical arid climate and the area is officially classed as being ‘hot desert’. Temperatures generally range from averages of 18 – 23C in January to 33 – 37C in August, but it is not unheard of for it to be several degrees higher than this during the summer months. Rainfall is rare and sunshine is pretty much guaranteed all year round.

Despite the hot overall temperatures, you will find that it becomes much cooler at night time compared to in the day, especially when you are travelling in more remote areas or through the mountain regions. For this reason we do recommend that you take a few warmer items to keep you cosy at night time.

After You Have Booked

Once you have booked your holiday we will provide you with a rider confirmation form to complete and send back, plus a comprehensive welcome guide. PLEASE READ IT. It will INCLUDE information such as where your driver will pick you up depending on your arrival airport, clothing suggestions, weather, electricity etc.

Our rider information forms require standard information for flights, diet and riding history, for example:

Experience

Please list as much information about your riding history. Please do not overrate your riding and be honest 😊 We reserve the right to remove you from our holidays if we feel your level is a danger to the group. We accept novice riders, but this must be agreed pre booking.

Saddles

Please confirm you can ride in an English saddle, some areas of Egypt we have Western or Australian Trail Saddles, however not all. You MUST be able to ride in an English saddle to join our holidays.

Medical

Please list any medical information that may be helpful.

Emergency

Please list a contact number and name in case of emergency.

Insurance

Please provide information on your travel insurance. We require that you take out a comprehensive travel insurance policy, including health cover, before you start your trip. Please ensure that your insurance covers unexpected losses or expenses e.g. lost luggage, stolen cash and credit cards or cancelled/missed flights.

You should check any exclusions and that your policy covers you for horse riding and all the activities you want to undertake – you may not be allowed to ride without adequate travel insurance so please do send us your insurance information before you depart.

Please note that some insurance policies specify that you must be wearing appropriate clothing and a riding helmet in order to be covered for horse riding activities. We strongly recommend that you wear a riding hat during the rides (and when handling the horses) but if you intend not to, please make sure that you are still insured and can claim for medical expenses in the event of an accident.

NB. We recommend that you book your insurance as soon as you book your holiday (or as soon after as possible!) and include cancellation cover, as you will need to claim on your insurance should you have to cancel your holiday due to illness, injury or other.

Trip Cancellation Insurance is recommended, in order to protect yourself against unforeseen circumstances interfering with your holiday.