We strongly recommend that all travelers are fully vaccinated and boosted. This will help create the safest possible environment for you, your fellow travelers, and our trip leaders and support staff. Yet, anytime we choose to travel, we must acknowledge the risk of contact to disease—COVID-19 or otherwise. Learn more about the current CDC guidelines for COVID-19, HERE.

Governmental COVID policies—both domestic and international—remain fluid, and rules can change on short notice. Requirements for many countries, locations and local trip suppliers may still include proof of vaccination on entry, prior testing before arrival, testing after arrival, or mandatory quarantine in the absence of it. It is the duty of enrolling trip participants to check any requirements which need to be fulfilled before travel—which includes transit stopovers—on the destination country’s government websites. Our trip cancellation policy remains in effect should you decide you are unable to comply with changing COVID regulations.

As US and international requirements for travel have relaxed during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, and as COVID has brought on pandemic fatigue throughout the world, our collective vigilance for maintaining important precautions to avoid contracting and spreading this highly communicable disease has greatly diminished. Therefore, we urge our trip participants to wear face masks whenever appropriate, or when required by local ordinance, and to be extra vigilant when traveling to the trip start point in airports, on planes and while using public transportation like airport shuttle buses, light rail, or other shared conveyances—no matter what the current relaxed rules allow!

All tour leaders will receive instructions to review and discuss our COVID-19 protocols with our office before embarking on their tours, how to implement them and steps to take should someone begin to show signs/symptoms while on the tour. For the protection of others on the tour, we will follow the relevant government health recommendations for testing positive to COVID-19 which, as soon as detected, could involve isolation or removal from the tour depending on circumstances on the ground at the discretion of Joseph Van Os Photo Safaris, Inc. All healthcare fees and costs, as well as any quarantine arrangements, transportation, repatriation costs and other COVID-related expenses are the responsibility of the trip participant.  There is no refund for any unused portion of the tour due to COVID-related circumstances.  We strongly recommend purchase of a comprehensive travel insurance policy—one that also provides coverage for trip interruption and cancellation costs should you contract COVID-19, and a forced isolation period or exclusion means you are unable to continue to participate on the tour. “Cancellation For Any Reason” policies may also include this provision. Purchase a policy from us, your travel agent, or online.

Make a claim with your insurance company for unrecoverable costs. Familiarize yourself with your policy which may require seeing a doctor as specified in the policy.

The tour will continue as planned with the affected participant removed or isolated from the tour, as soon and best as practical depending on the group’s location and logistical circumstances, after indicating a positive test.

 Trip participants will be requested to bring at least 4 self-administered rapid test kits with them  to avoid unnecessary trips to distant health facilities in the event of mild illness of any kind. Trip participants must bring a personal supply of face masks to comply with local mask mandates, or when the tour leader deems it necessary. Flu shots are strongly recommended. 

Meals in restaurants will be managed according to the protocols in place per local, state and/or federal (country) guidelines. Each situation will require unique management and will be dealt with to the best of our ability for the comfort of all our guests.

Communication with our travelers is important to us and we will strive to keep you up to date as conditions change. We encourage you to give us a call during our normal weekday office hours with your questions, or send us an email to info@photosafaris.com and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

We look forward to a return to normalcy! In the meantime, keep up to date with the availability of new and updated booster vaccines as they continue to develop.  Get a flu shot!