Practical info

A revisited classic, an original or an exclusive journey?

We know that you choose Secret Planet for the immersion it proposes in a unique spirit of adventure, nature, and expedition travel. To help you find your dream journey or understand in the blink of an eye the type of program you’ve chosen, we have classed our journeys into three categories:

• “Essential” journeys: these are programs that propose, in addition to our specific content, those highlights that can be considered essential for travelers to that destination: major tourist sites in an adventure journey or, for trekking countries, those “must-do” treks. These journeys mainly target travelers discovering a country or region for the first time or who are not sure they’ll come back, in order to give them an all-round view.
   
• “Exclusive” journeys: these are programs that we are the only francophone agency to propose and confirm, once we have set them up. Should other agencies propose these programs at a later date, we will class them in the “Original” category. These journeys target travelers seeking programs resolutely off the beaten track and groundbreaking.
   
• “Original” journeys: these are programs which, by design, are neither essential nor exclusive. They account for the majority of our treks and adventure journeys. They are a perfect reflection of our philosophy through their high standards and degree of immersion, and the originality and rarity of the places we visit.  These journeys target travelers wishing to focus on one region or one theme for their first discovery of a region or who are seeking a second experience to further their knowledge of a place that has particularly moved or inspired them. 

 

The program details: the key to immersion in your journey

For each journey, trek or expedition that we propose, there are systematically the “program details” in which the program is presented in detail: the main activity, the guide(s), the day by day description of the itinerary, transfer times and activity times (in particular for hiking), the level of physical and technical difficulty, the maximum altitudes reached during the day, and the altitude at night (altitude at the end of the day), the meals, the accommodation, the logistics, the carbon footprint, the price and supplements, what is included in the price and what is not, the list of collective and individual equipment, the consular and health formalities, and so on. Accompanied by your on-line booking or your booking form and the general and particular terms and conditions of sale, the program details form your “contract” with us. 

 

Customize or privatize your journey, trek or expedition

Our area managers are particularly experienced. We have a longstanding network of experts all around the globe. We place at your service our creativity, our culture of a region, and our local knowledge, to customize your journey or prepare a unique tailor-made program for you. We can privatize any departure in any of our programs if at least one participant has signed up for it.

 

Extensions to complete your experience of a region

For many years now, our experience has shown us that our travelers often focus on our offer of original and exclusive journeys, sometimes missing out on those must-see tourist sites. With this in mind, we have created for most of the destinations we propose, extensions of one to several days, confirmed as from one or two people, with the aim of discovering the must-see sights of a region. These extensions particularly target travelers who do not plan to return to the country in question. They are described in the program details and in the “Extension” tab of the journey. You can select them when you book your journey.

 

 

Accommodation

For each program we propose, we determine an average level of comfort to allow you to quickly assess whether it fits your expectations. Note that departure and arrival accommodation in our programs is in most cases of “Standard” or “Superior” level in large cities. Therefore, we have defined six categories of accommodation, ranging from bivouacs to luxury hotels: 

• Bivouac: in tents (provided) or under the stars: it’s for the traveler to decide;
   
• Basic: mainly hard-wall accommodation, indoor, often without heating, without bathroom and often without electricity. This accommodation consists of private homes (basic comfort), lodges (in the Nepalese sense), refuges, gîtes, at times monasteries… according to the itinerary and the possibilities of our region of immersion. While basic, such accommodation is full of the warmth and kindness of our hosts;
   
• Standard: hard-wall accommodation, indoor, possibly with heating and electricity, bathroom often shared. This accommodation consists of private homes, hotels, and hostels up to 2* as per local standards;
   
• Superior: hard-wall accommodation, indoor, with heating and electricity, bathroom most often private. This accommodation consists of private homes, hotels, and hostels as from 3* as per local standards;
   
• Character: accommodation of character linked to the history and culture of a place or its inhabitants, in most cases of human dimension and offering a customized service. This category includes Bed & Breakfasts “English style”, Cuban Casa Particular, and caravanserais in Iran, to name but a few. 
   
• Luxury: this accommodation stands for excellence and rarity, emotions, dreams. Our choices ideally blend into the spirit of the journeys that we propose: for example, African lodges, Asian palaces, South-American Estancias.

Most of our programs are scheduled for “Twin” rooms/tents, i.e. for two people of the same sex. However, on booking, you can choose, for a supplement, a “Single” room, i.e. a room you do not share. For some treks, this option is also possible for a private tent. On the other hand, there are situations where this option is not possible either because it is not proposed by the accommodation in question or because trek logistics do not permit it. All this information (availability, supplements) is marked in the program details.

 

Meals

According to the program, meals are taken in hotels, restaurants, lodges, or in camps in the midst of nature during treks and expeditions. In the latter case, a team of cooks prepares the meals, offering a varied and balanced diet consisting of vegetables, cereals, meat and fruits, dishes made up of local products, chicken, rice, corn, potatoes, cassava, tsampa, etc. 

We are extremely knowledgeable about expedition dietary needs: quantity and quality of daily calorie intake, proteins, lipids, vitamins, nutritional and gustatory qualities of lyophilized dishes, etc.

When you book, we ask you whether you have any dietary allergies or deficiencies.

 

 

Size of the group of participants

For some destinations, the number of participants is voluntarily limited to ensure better immersion and develop areas of freedom allowing greater flexibility of functioning. Departures are guaranteed as from 4 people, and groups only very rarely exceed 8. Our flexibility and enduring relationship with our local partners often means we can confirm journeys as from 2 people with negligible or even no surcharges. You will find all this information in the program details. 

 

Journey price

The price of a journey for a given date is marked on our website. It is based on a realistic flight cost and a minimum number of participants. Last minute or peak period bookings may generate supplements that we will inform you of when you consult us. The program details indicate a price “starting at”, as well as which services are included in that price and which are not. A specific quotation is drawn up for customized and tailor-made journeys. 

A very few programs (expeditions, cruises) may not include the international flight. This is because such journeys may assemble international groups from different countries, meaning it is impossible to quote a price as we do not know from which airport the participants will leave. For obvious practical reasons, programs in France and neighboring European countries are proposed “without transport”.  

 

Book as soon as possible

As a rule, we recommend you inform us of your projects at the earliest possible date. You will thus be sure to have a place on the journey and, more importantly, to benefit from advantageous price conditions for air transport. There is a hard and fast rule that almost always applies: the later a flight is booked, the more it costs. Likewise, some periods of the year are so-called “peak” periods (school vacations, festive season, etc.) and generate surcharges for air transport, particularly in the case of late bookings…

 

Optional supplementary insurance

In view of the nature of our journeys and expeditions, often in remote destinations and sometimes in extremely isolated conditions, we stress the importance for our participants to take out health and repatriation insurance (via their bank card, other personal insurance, etc.). Therefore, if the traveler has not taken out such insurance with us, we will ask him/her on booking for an insurance certificate stating the name of his/her insurance firm, the policy number, and the phone number of the assistance service, together with the contact details of a person of trust to alert, to ensure rapidity of action in an emergency.

We have set up specially for you three travel insurance contracts with Chapka / Axa Assistance for journeys of up to €15,000 and less than 60 days: these are the Cap Explorer offers, contract number no.2243705. You will automatically receive their leaflet when you consult or book with us, or you can also download it by clicking on this link. The following percentages are to be taken for the full price of the journey, including flights and supplements. This insurance only covers the policy holder for the duration and the dates of the journey he/she has booked with us.

 

Explorer assistance: 2.50 % of journey price

Subscription when you make your down payment and possible up to the day before you leave.

This insurance offers guarantees for search and rescue expenses, repatriation assistance and medical expenses, particularly for Covid-19, damage to baggage, interruption of your journey, and personal civil liability.   

 

CB complementary Explorer: 3.20% of journey price

Subscription mandatory when making the down payment, at latest 10 days prior to departure.

This insurance is proposed to holders of a premium bank card (Visa Premier or Infinite, MasterCard Gold or Platinum, etc.) that includes guarantees for repatriation assistance and medical expenses. It allows the policy holder to benefit from complementary guarantees and upper limits for cancellations, particularly due to Covid-19, journey modification, damage to baggage, and interruption of your journey. For programs requiring a guarantee for search and rescue expenses, this formula is not valid as it is never included in bank cards. 

 

Multirisk Explorer: 4.50% of journey price

Subscription mandatory when making the down payment, at latest 10 days prior to departure.

This insurance proposes guarantees for search and rescue expenses, repatriation assistance and medical expenses, cancellations, particularly due to Covid-19, journey modification, damage to baggage, interruption of your journey, and personal civil liability.

 

Booking and confirmation

First, we take the time to discuss with you the journey you have chosen. You consult the program details, and we reply to any questions you may have. You then book either on-line or using a form that you complete manually. Your booking is considered complete as soon as we have received your request (on-line or form), together with a copy of your passport, and the down payment for your journey.

You will then receive at the earliest possible date the confirmation of your booking either by mail, or in the post should you expressly request.

 

Payments and balance

You can make your down payment, normally 40% of the journey price, by bank card (that may ensure you benefit from supplementary insurance) either on-line or by calling us on+33 (0)4 78 37 88 88. You can also pay by bank transfer or check, and even by traveler’s checks.    

The 60% balance is to be paid no later than one month prior to your departure without any reminder from us and by one of the above-mentioned payment means. 

Some long-haul expeditions and journeys require down and balance payments, and have different due-dates. This is specified in the program details. As a result, on your request, we can agree on a specific payment schedule other than that specified in the program details. Please feel free to discuss this with us. 

Last but by no means least, we can also prepare a wedding or a wish list: your family, friends or colleagues help finance your journey, and we keep you informed of the progress of your kitty!

 

Travel documents

Normally, one month before your departure and only once you have paid your balance, you will receive by email all the information you need for your journey, as well as original documents, as per prevailing formalities: presentation time at the airport, program details, plane tickets, insurance certificate, etc. We can send you all these documents by post should you expressly request.