Booking Deposit
We ask for a deposit of 25% of the total holiday cost to confirm your booking with Egypt Discovery. It isn't confirmed until your deposit has arrived and we've sent written confirmation.
The deposit is 50% in two cases. First, for departures over peak dates, when our suppliers ask the same of us: Christmas and New Year, Easter, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, the days around the total solar eclipse over Luxor and Aswan in August 2027, and the main holiday weeks of particular markets (Egypt welcomes visitors from all over the world, and their busy seasons differ). Second, where your itinerary includes domestic flights or sleeper-train berths. We book these once your payment reaches us, and once they're ticketed they're completely non-refundable, which is exactly why we need more of the cost upfront before committing to them for you. Occasionally a vessel with limited space will only sell it on full payment at acceptance; that's the supplier's rule, not ours, and we'll tell you so. Whatever applies to your holiday, you'll know while you're still deciding, never for the first time in an email asking for payment.
Balance Payment
Your balance is due a month before you arrive in Egypt. The exact date is on your confirmation, so there's nothing to work out, and we'll send an automatic reminder nearer the time. If you're booking within a month of arrival, the full amount is payable at the time of booking. If a balance isn't paid by its due date we may treat the booking as cancelled and keep the deposit, but we'll always get in touch with you first.
How Long a Quotation Holds
A written quotation remains open for up to 7 days from when we send it. Around busy dates that shrinks, sometimes to just 24 or 48 hours: Christmas and New Year, Easter, Eid, and whichever national holidays affect the countries travelling that month. It's the same for anything genuinely scarce, dahabiyas above all, as each has only a few cabins and they go quickly.
If a shorter deadline applies, we'll tell you what it is and why when we send the quotation, so you'll never find out by missing it. We don't hold quotations beyond 7 days in any case, because after that the rates behind the price are no longer in our hands, and a price we can't honour is no use to you.
Accepted Payment Methods
- Bank transfer by SWIFT/IBAN (we send the details with your confirmation)
- Visa or Mastercard debit and credit cards, via our secure payment page
We don't accept American Express; our payment provider only takes Visa and Mastercard.
Card Fees and Bank Charges
Which is cheaper depends on the amount. For a large balance, a bank transfer usually works out well ahead. For a small deposit, 3% can be less than the SWIFT fees a bank charges for an international transfer, so we'd rather mention it than let you assume a transfer is always the cheaper route.
Currency
Your holiday is contracted and invoiced in pounds sterling (£). If it suits you better, our payment provider can also take US dollars or euros; just ask and we'll send the amount at our own exchange rate. You'll always see the exact figure on the payment page before authorising anything. If you pay by card in a currency that isn't your own, your bank may add its own foreign transaction fee, which we have no control over.
Secure Payment Processing
Card payments are handled by CyberSource, a Visa company. Egypt Discovery never stores your card details, and every transaction is protected by SSL encryption.
If a Price Changes After You Book
Once your deposit is paid, the price of your holiday is fixed, with one exception we'd rather be upfront about. Most Egyptian cruise and hotel contracts allow government rises in fuel, taxes and entrance fees to be passed on. If that ever affects your booking, we'll let you know before anything is added and send you the supplier's notice, rather than just sending a higher bill.