Payments

Paying for your trip should feel calm and clear. First we send you a personal quote for your exact plan. When you accept it, we send an invoice that states the amount due, the due date, the currency and a payment reference. Nothing is hidden in the small print, and you always know what you are paying and why before any money moves.

Payment usually happens in two parts. A deposit confirms your booking, and the balance follows before you travel. The size of the deposit and the date of the balance are set for each trip, so you will find them written in your quote and invoice rather than on this page. If anything looks different from what you expected, ask us before you pay.

We confirm the payment methods available for your booking when we send the invoice. Our website itself does not take card details, and we never ask you to share them by email or message. The sections below walk through each step, including how to pay safely and how to keep a clean record of everything you send.

Your invoice arrives by email as a private link, signed so that only the people we send it to can open it. It sets out the amount due, the date by which we need it, the currency and the payment reference. These four details are the heart of the invoice, and they are the ones to check first each time you pay.

The amount due may be your deposit or your balance, and the invoice says which. The currency is always stated, because quotes are usually in US dollars but not always. The payment reference is a short code that lets us match your money to your booking, so please keep it exactly as written and quote it whenever you pay.

Once an invoice has been issued, we do not change it quietly. If something needs to change, you will receive a new or corrected invoice, and it will be clear which one replaces the other. If two invoices ever seem to disagree, tell us before you pay and we will confirm which one is correct.

The deposit confirms your booking. Once we receive it, we can begin holding your arrangements with the lodges, camps, guides and vehicles your plan relies on. For safaris and Kilimanjaro climbs, the best places and the best dates are taken early, so a confirmed booking gives you a real advantage over an open enquiry, and it lets us plan with confidence.

The deposit is not the same for every trip. It is set for your journey in the quote and in the invoice, and it reflects what we need to commit on your behalf. You will see the exact figure and the date it is due before you pay anything, so there is no need to guess or to work it out from a rule.

If you are unsure about the amount, ask us. We are glad to explain how it fits into the whole cost of your trip, and what happens to it if your plans change. The cancellation terms in our booking terms describe how charges work, and your quote states the schedule that applies to your trip.

The balance is the rest of the amount for your trip, and it is due before you travel, on the date shown on your invoice. We ask for it ahead of departure so that we can settle our suppliers in good time. Lodges, camps, park authorities, mountain crews and drivers all need to be arranged and paid so that everything is ready when you arrive.

You will not be surprised by the date. It appears on your invoice, and we are happy to remind you as it approaches. If you can pay earlier than the date shown, that is welcome, and it leaves you one fewer thing to think about in the weeks before you fly. Either way, please use the reference on your invoice.

If you think you may struggle to pay on the date shown, please tell us early and in writing. We can often talk through the options, and an early message is always easier to work with than a late one. Please do not wait until the day itself, because arrangements may be affected if a balance is still outstanding.

Bank transfer is the most common way to pay. Open your invoice and use only the account details printed on it. Copy them exactly, and do not take details from an old email, a forwarded message or a conversation. If you are not sure the details are right, stop and check with us before sending anything.

Include the payment reference from your invoice in the transfer, so that we can match your money to your booking straight away. After you send it, email us a copy of the transfer receipt. It helps us find your payment quickly, and it gives you proof that you paid if a bank delay ever causes confusion.

Please allow time for the money to travel between banks, especially if you are sending from another country. Do not leave the transfer until the last day. You are responsible for any bank charges, so make sure the full invoiced amount arrives with us. If your bank deducts a fee on the way, the shortfall will need to be made up.

Where it is available for your booking, we may offer a secure payment link as another way to pay. We confirm the methods that apply to your trip when we send the invoice, so you will know whether a link is on offer. If the invoice does not mention one, there is nothing to look for, and a bank transfer will be the route to use.

Our website does not take card details, and we will never ask for your card number, expiry date or security code by email or message. If someone does, please treat it as suspicious and tell us. A genuine payment link takes you to a secure page of its own, and that is the only place where card details should ever be entered.

Before you pay, take a moment to look at the address in your browser. Check that it matches the link from the invoice we sent and that the page shows the amount and reference you expect. If anything looks odd, close the page and contact us using the details on our website. A short pause now is far better than a payment sent in error.

Quotes are usually in US dollars, but the currency is always stated on your quote and on your invoice. Please pay in the currency shown. Paying in the stated currency means the amount we expect and the amount you send are the same, and it avoids confusion when we match your payment to your booking.

If you pay from an account in another currency, your bank or card provider may convert the money and may add exchange fees or other charges. These are set by them, not by us, and we cannot see or control them before the payment is made. It is worth asking your bank how they will handle an international payment before you send it.

You cover the bank charges, so that the full invoiced amount arrives with us. If a fee is taken from the money on its way, the amount received may be short of what the invoice states, and we would then ask for the difference. Sending a little extra for fees, or asking your bank to cover them at its end, avoids this.

Fraud aimed at travel payments is real, and a little care keeps you well protected. The most important rule is this. We will never ask you to change bank details by email or message. If you receive a message that says our account has changed, treat it as fake, even if it looks like it came from someone you know at Lemala.

If you are ever unsure, check before you pay. Call or message us using the contact details on our website, not the ones in the message you received. Use your invoice, opened from the private link we sent, as your guide to the correct amount, reference and payment details. We would much rather answer a question than see a payment go astray.

Please tell us straight away if you receive anything suspicious that mentions our name, even if you did not act on it. Reporting it helps us warn other guests. If you have already sent money to an account you doubt, contact your bank at once, and then contact us, so we can help you with the next steps.

We record every payment against the invoice it belongs to. When your money reaches us and has been matched to your booking, your account reflects it. If you would like confirmation, ask us and we will send it. You do not need to wait until the end of the process to be sure that a payment has been seen.

You can ask for a receipt for any payment, or for a statement that shows what you have paid and what remains. Many guests find a statement useful for their own records, for travel insurance claims, or for a company that is reimbursing the trip. Tell us what you need and we will prepare it.

It helps to keep your payment reference, your invoices and your transfer receipts together in one folder or email thread. If a question ever comes up, having them to hand makes it quick to resolve. Your private invoice links stay in your email, so a search for the reference will usually bring everything back in seconds.

If a payment is going to be late, please tell us before the due date. We would rather talk it through than guess. A late payment can affect the arrangements we are holding for you, so an early conversation protects your trip. Our booking terms explain what may happen if a payment stays outstanding, and we will always contact you first.

If the amount of your trip changes, for example because you add a night or change the number of travellers, the change reaches you as a new or corrected invoice. We do not alter an issued invoice quietly. You will see the new amount, the date it is due and the reference, and you can ask us about any line that is unclear.

Where a refund is due, it goes back to the person or account that paid, in the original currency where possible. Banks and providers set their own timing, so it may take a little while to reach you. How cancellation charges work, and what can and cannot be refunded, is explained in the cancellation section of our booking terms.

Payments for travel agents and trade partners are set in their own terms, and they may differ from the steps described on this page. If you book through an agent, your agent will tell you who to pay and when. If you are an agent working with us, your terms and your invoices will state how and when payment is made.

Group bookings can also be arranged differently, because several people may be paying for one trip, or one person may be paying on behalf of everyone. The way a group pays is set out in the quote and invoice for that booking, so everybody knows who pays what and by when. If you are organising a group, tell us how you would like it to work.

If you are not sure which arrangement applies to you, just ask. Tell us whether you are booking directly, through an agent, or for a group, and we will explain the payment steps that fit your booking. A short conversation at the start is the easiest way to keep everyone paying the right amount at the right time.