FAQ

Make sure to check your passport in good time before departure. Make sure it is valid for at least six months after homecoming and that it is complete and not missing any pages. No visa is needed for trips up to 30 days for most destinations, but it is your responsibility as a traveler to check what applies to your particular trip with, for example, the foreign ministry of the destination.

Visas are usually included in all Scuba Travel trips to Egypt. Please contact us for more information. Visas to Sudan must be purchased on arrival, and a visa may be refused if there is an Israeli stamp in your passport.

If you are traveling via the USA, you must report your arrival, even if you are only making a stopover, otherwise you will not be allowed on. You register by filling in all the information with a star on ESTA, it costs about US$ 17: https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/

The same rule applies for travel to or via Canada, although it is a separate notification than that for the USA. Canada's is called ETA and costs about CAD$7: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/visit-canada/eta/apply.html

Travel insurance is there to protect you during your trip
First of all, check your home insurance and find out what the conditions look like for you. As for lost luggage, lost wallet, missed diving days, missed connections and flights and medical transport and treatment, among others. All insurance companies have different rules and some are more favorable than others. Travel insurance applies from the time you leave home or arrive at the airport and the journey has started until you return home.

Here you can take out your own travel insurance with Gouda Travel Insurance - applies to you who are young people aged 0-69!
and
for those of you who have reached 70+, take out your travel insurance here.

Cancellation insurance is there to protect you if you have to cancel your trip
We recommend that you have some form of cancellation protection in case something happens before departure that means you have to cancel your trip. Sometimes your bank card has favorable cancellation rules that apply when you pay for your trip via bank giro or directly with your card. Most insurance policies also apply if a close family member or travel companion falls ill and prevents you from traveling as planned. 
If you choose to take out a separate cancellation insurance, most independent insurance companies such as ERV or Gouda take about 6% of the trip price as a fee, and you have to pay that together with the deposit. You cannot take out cancellation insurance later than 48 hours after the deposit has been paid. On the other hand, they often have more favorable rules in case of injury. 

Here you sign your cancellation protection with Gouda cancellation insurance.

En diving insurance may be necessary to cover any diving-related accidents. Many travel insurance policies cover diving accidents and incidents today. It is imperative to request specific information and preferably get it in writing and ask for it in English. If you need a more comprehensive diving insurance, we recommend it at Scuba Travel DAN (Diversity Alert Network). A Sport Member insurance is sufficient for recreational divers. It is especially important that your diving insurance covers passenger transport if you are on a liveaboard or at a destination that is far from the possibility of pressure chambers. 

Scuba Travel recommends that you contact your nearest vaccination clinic for more information.

Make sure to pick up prescriptions in good time before departure, as well as buy products you may need at your destination that may be difficult to get on site. This is especially important for those of you who are going on a liveaboard. Headaches, motion sickness and stomach upsets are common ailments. For our female travelers, we recommend also packing pads/tampons. For those of you who need medication, make sure you have it packed in your hand luggage and that you have a copy of the prescription with you, preferably in English IF the medication should go missing.

Airlines change their rules for how much luggage you can take with you regularly. Different tickets may also have different rules. It is therefore important that you keep track of what your particular ticket looks like. The easiest thing is to search on the respective airline's websites, where most, though not all, have described how much luggage you are allowed to have. Search for the airline name and "Baggage allowance".

Due to increasingly strict restrictions regarding baggage weight on the flight, each bag must be approved by the airline. Make sure to keep the weight and size of bags within the limits specified by the airlines.
We are happy to help if you need to book extra luggage, but do so in good time, we recommend at least 60 days before departure. It's a bit first-come-first-served and requests for extra weight can never be guaranteed if the airline believes other baggage needs to be prioritized or weight quotas are already filled. 

The "normal rule" - if there is one - is that you can bring a bag as hand luggage of 7 kg, a personal item, e.g. a small purse, umbrella, camera or computer and a checked baggage. The checked baggage is very variable between the companies and usually ranges from 15 - 30 kg for an economy ticket, but even there there are variations. Tickets without luggage are also available.
Tell us at the time of booking how much luggage you want and we will look at the right company and the right tickets. Otherwise, we choose the cheapest with a piece of luggage normally in our proposal.
The fees vary between airlines. Contact Scuba Travel well in advance of departure.

Regular flights:
When you have paid for your flight for regular international tickets and we have had time to issue them, i.e. booked and received the ticket number, we send them out directly by email via the booking system. We will also send them once we have received your final payment along with vouchers and confirmations for your dive trip. 

Charter flights:
Tickets from the charter companies usually arrive late. Expect 14 days before departure. As soon as we receive them from the charter companies, we send them out together with vouchers for your trip. 

If you are going on a liveaboard, all rental equipment must be pre-booked via Scuba Travel. There is usually extra gear in case something breaks while you are on the boat, but due to limited space the crew cannot carry extra gear in all sizes. If you wish to rent equipment, this must be pre-booked no later than two weeks before departure. Should you need to supplement your rental equipment after this, we cannot guarantee that it will be included on your boat.

If you plan to dive from land, you can rent equipment at any time during your vacation. However, we recommend that you pre-book your equipment to ensure that your sizes are available. On liveaboarder, the supply is often limited, so if you want to rent, let us know at least 30 days in advance, preferably earlier so that we can arrange it for you. 

Minimum equipment for diving at all destinations is as follows:

• Wet suit
• BCD 
• Regulator with octopus
• Dive computer
• Boots, fins, mask, snorkel
• Log book
• SMB

Read more in our links at each destination and you will find information about water temperatures so you know what type of suit to bring depending on how frozen you are.

Read more in our packing list on this page as well

A bottle, usually 12L or 80 cubic feet (11,1L), is usually always included wherever you go unless otherwise stated, as well as weights and a weight belt.

At each destination we have on the website, you will find a link that shows the current water temperature right now. In that link you can also see the average water temperature during different months of the year. Use that link and you will find the information about specific water temperatures and can choose a suit accordingly. 
We do not guarantee that the content is correct there but it is they link we use ourselves.

Tipping is always difficult to answer and we cannot give a conclusion on this question. Tipping is used in different ways in different countries. For us here in Sweden, we tip to show appreciation as a rule, In some countries such as the USA, tipping is expected as it is instead of salary for many. In some countries tipping is downright unethical and an insult. In some countries it is not customary to tip, but many do and of course it is appreciated. However, what and when you want to tip is ultimately always your own personal choice. 

On our website under each destination, we have written a short tip about tipping. It is not a conclusion, but see it as general information and then you decide for yourself how much, if and what you want to give.

The hardest question in the world to answer really. It is according to your personal needs and habits and something we cannot answer. We can help give prices for things like marine park fees, fuel surcharges, port fees, what they cost if and when they are to be paid on site, but what personal habits you have is difficult for us to put an amount on.
Many resorts and hotels accept cards, but if, for example, you want to go out to eat, do country tours, visit local markets, in many countries cash is often accepted on the spot. For example, if you also want to tip, it is in cash. 

Be sure to leave your flight details, insurance information and contact information for the hotel/boat operator and Scuba Travel to a family member/friend who is not on the same trip.