Local Payment
What you get for your money
Travel Style: Discovery Tours, Adventure Tours, Overland Expeditions and Antarctica
Local Payment
The cost of each Tucan Travel group tour is divided into two separate payments. The first amount is paid directly to your travel agent before you depart for your tour, and the second amount is the “Local Payment”. The Local Payment is a portion of the total tour cost and must be paid directly to your tour leader in US dollars cash, or euros cash in Europe and Cuba. This payment is due at the pre-departure meeting on the afternoon or evening of day 1 of your trip at your joining hotel.
How to find US Dollars and Euros
What does the Local Payment pay for?
The Local Payment is a predetermined fixed cost which covers a portion of your tour’s day to day group expenses and local costs. This helps cover expenses like some picnic lunches, local guides, hotels and included excursions (but not tips). Tours with local flights in the itinerary have higher Local Payments to cover their cost.
Why do we have a Local Payment?
There are several reasons why we structure the payment for your tour in this way. We have found that the vast majority of travellers prefer to pay a predetermined fixed cost to cover day to day group expenses. Paying this money locally ensures tour leaders have a supply of money if access to banking facilities is limited or non existent. Having a Local Payment also allows us to keep the cost of our tours competitive and save on operational and administrative costs, so we can pass the savings on to you.
Paying the Local Payment
For most tours this amount must be paid to your tour leader before departing the joining hotel on the evening of day 1 of your tour at the pre-departure meeting. For Discovery tours and Adventure Tours in Peru that travel to the jungle first, your local payment will be collected when you meet your tour leader in Cuzco. For Discovery Tours and Adventure Tours in Peru with an internal flight on day 2 your local payment will be collected when you meet your tour leader on day 2.
Please remember the Local Payment is a compulsory non-refundable amount and is a component of the total tour cost. It is best to bring US$ cash with you or € Euro cash in Europe and Cuba and this should be in small denominations. However some banks will change US$ travellers cheques into US$ cash in Latin America. Over the counter cash advances and Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) are also available. Information about how to obtain US$ cash in joining cities is available on our website. All joining hotels have safety deposit facilities at reception.
Please note: notes will not be accepted in some places if they are torn, folded or marked, so please try to get new notes if possible. Your tour leader may not be able to accept such notes for your Local Payment, so please make sure the machine dispenses good notes or visit a local bank before you meet your tour leader.
In South America you will have problems changing the US$100 CB B2 2001 series notes as there have been fraudulent notes released with these numbers and it is therefore better not to bring them. Tour leaders will not accept these notes. The serial number is located in the top left hand corner and bottom right hand corner on the side with the President’s face. This serial number starts with CB and then a few more numbers and then directly under that B2. At the bottom of the note near the signature of the Treasurer it says which series of notes it is and it is there that it says 2001 series.
Please note: Local Payments are not the same as Local Funds. The Local Fund applies only to tours in the Budget Expeditions travel style.
