Reviews

Your Words – We tell it like it is! Holiday Reviews by previous Exodus travellers

Here at Exodus we thrive on feedback from our customers. It’s the only way we can ensure our trips continue to be the best they can be. So, for the real tales, twists and turns of the trip you’re interested in, look no further than the reviews from our previous travellers.

Simply use the selector below to search our trip reviews and start reading real feedback from real Exodus travellers who have ‘been there and done that’!

Lots of our clients also like to post handy tips and advice about their travels. It’s great to know what to expect on an Exodus adventure before you go, so make the most of their experience and you’ll make the most of yours!

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11 Reviews

4.3 out of 5

Sandra Stevens

Reviewed July 2025

Interesting but difficult trip

Beautiful views along the cliffs. Challenging cycle conditions with deep sand sections, rough gravel roads, and several steep climbs.

Most Inspirational Moment

Arriving at the final hotel after an extremely hot and dusty day.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Ricardo is knowledgeable and enthusiastic about his country. His English is excellent.

Advice for Potential Travellers

E-bikes with experienced cyclists struggled more than non e-bikes in the sand sections. 50% off road seems longer due to the slower speeds off road. Porto to Lisbon is €1200 less money per person. Still looking for that extra €1200 in this trip cost.

Reply from Exodus

Thank you for your feedback. We’re glad you enjoyed the stunning cliffside views and appreciate your comments on the cycling conditions. We understand that deep sand, rough gravel, and steep climbs can be challenging, and we’ll continue working with our local operator to ensure the route remains rewarding and manageable for all experience levels. We hope to welcome you on another adventure soon.

The Exodus Team

Melanie Osman

Reviewed May 2025

A beautiful week in rural Portugal

A delightful mix of road and offroad tracks for our 6 day route south from Lisbon. It was the perfect way to experience the rural and coastal beauty of SW Portugal in May. Our guide João briefed us each evening for the next days ride outlining coffee and lunch stops, the route and profile. Alex provided excellent support with the van to transport bags and provide cycle maintenance when required. João and Alex are local experts in the region and happy to share their experience and knowledge on all local matters, history, flora and fauna. Hotels and restaurants were of high standard throughout. I opted for an e-bike which reduced any worries about holding up the group. Highly recommend.

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling by the sea

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent

Advice for Potential Travellers

Book an e-bike if you have any fitness worries

Rachel Scandling

Reviewed May 2025

An unforgettable adventure along the Atlantic Coast

My cycling trip along the Atlantic Coast from Lisbon to Sagres between 18-25 May 2025 was an unforgettable adventure. The detailed itinerary notes provided ahead of the trip were easily accessible online, making pre-planning very easy. The accommodation was generally of good quality, offering comfort and hot showers after long days of riding. We dined at outstanding local restaurants that served high-quality food with extensive menu choices, including regional wines. The bikes provided were robust and well-suited for the varied terrain. The organisational and logistical support from Alexandre Conceição (A2Z) was proactive and efficient (nothing was too much trouble), and João Colaço proved to be an exceptional Ride Leader. My only less than positive observation would be the assessment of the ride’s grading. This is graded as an Activity Level 3, however, given the significant amount of off-road cycling, including stretches on sand, consideration should be give to recategorise this ride to an Activity Level 4. The trip documentation should also highlight that approximately 65-70% of the route involves off-road cycling, as some riders were unprepared /inexperienced with the technical aspects associated with off-road elements.

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling up a very high gradient to reach the Moorish castle in Aljezur!

Thoughts on Group Leader

João's ability to connect with every group member, regardless of their skill level, was exceptional. He kept both seasoned, technical riders and novice cyclists equally engaged and motivated throughout the tour. His infectious happiness and encouragement ensured that every rider felt valued and inspired throughout the journey. He was very well organised, conducting detailed briefings each day, ensuring the group were fully informed at all stages of the trip.

Advice for Potential Travellers

This is a fantastic trip, great way to get off the beaten track and explore Portugal's villages and towns, but be aware that a lot of this ride is off-road with some sandy tracks.

Susan Lucas

Reviewed May 2025

Lovely coastal views every day

Lovely coastal scenery with time to visit special sites and buildings. Excellent leader Joao with very helpful Alex in support. A lot more off road tracks than I had anticipated and I never really got to grips with them, but the group members really tried to help me. Very good range of decent quality hotels and I especially liked the more rural locations. Very enjoyable evening dinners in a variety of restaurants and mostly very good lunches – and I really enjoyed the picnic on the last day.

Most Inspirational Moment

Ferry trip on day 1.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Very professional and helpful. Easy to talk to and friendly.

Advice for Potential Travellers

I hadn't fully appreciated how much of the cycling each day would be off road. I had no mountain biking experience and I would recommend getting in some practice in advance .

Philip Murray

Reviewed October 2024

Great week in Southern Portugal

Really fantastic food on this trip. Excellent lunches organised by the tour company – almost too much food but it was all delicious especially the Octopus. Loved the cafe stops for coffee and cake with the many Portuguese pastry options. Scenery along the coast was stunning but this is a relatively small proportion of the cycling. Most of the cycling is on inland off-road gravel tracks with some on quiet roads. I did enjoy the cycling and for me riding more off road was great fun. Hotels were generally of a good standard – the setubal school was exceptional. Hotel vila park bathroom a bit run down. The Aldeia da Pedralva was very rustic (some folk will like this and some may not). Bikes of really good quality and well suited to the terrain. If the option was available I’d have given this trip 4.5 stars.

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling beside the cliffs

Thoughts on Group Leader

Riccardo was excellent.

Kevin Griffin

Reviewed June 2024

Fantastic week in southern Portugal

A great overall experience. Fantastic scenery, most cycling on quiet roads , off the beaten track. Really got to have an authentic experience. Exceptional hotel choices.. charming and sometimes quirky. Ricardo (guide) and Vitor (driver) were incredible… very supportive and couldn’t do enough to help. All restaurant choices were excellent. The cycling was straight forward… and there is a significant amount of off road cycling which I hadn’t done before but found to be very enjoyable and it has inspired me to do more.

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling across paddy fields in Portugal! All the fantastic coastal views with no-one else in sight!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Riccardo and Vitor were incredibly helpful, knowledgeable and passionate about their country. It was a pleasure to spend a week with them.

Advice for Potential Travellers

I highly recommend it. Be prepared to spend some time off road.. but you adapt easily and it’s very leisurely cycling

Gail Hopper

Reviewed May 2024

Super trip - well worth trying it

We did the Porto to Lisbon trip a few years ago and loved the country, Atlantic coast scenery and food, so felt we should complete the route. So pleased we did. It was quite different with an enjoyably more challenging route, a fair amount off road, on some sandy and gravel tracks which we enjoyed. Good weather, decent hotels and great food. In a small group with good company, and good organisation by our guide, it all amounted to a very enjoyable trip.

Most Inspirational Moment

Wouldn’t describe as inspiring, but enjoyed the fantastic scenery as we cycled along the Atlantic coast - often with the wind behind us. Being there in May we were blessed to see carpets of different wild flowers - beautiful! Good to reach the end in Sagres and visit the lighthouse at Sao Vicente - the start or end of route 1 - we’ve previously ridden other parts of it in the UK

Thoughts on Group Leader

Ricardo was a great guide. Organised and knowledgable. He wanted us to have a good experience in his country and on a part of the coast that he is passionate about. He regularly sought feedback during our end of ride debriefs each day which was good. He planned good restaurants for us to eat together and we didn’t have a bad meal all week. Vitor, his partner in crime was a lovely man. Considerate and hard working. They worked very well together for our benefit. Both showed great patience!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Understand that off-road biking can offer up a variety of surfaces and can be technically challenging at first. It may be easy to those of us who enjoy mountain biking, but for those less experienced, take the advice offered by the guide on day 1 and give it a go. It’s great fun and off road means no traffic. Two of our group acknowledged this was a first for them, but had great fun because they were willing to get stuck in.

Hilary Robertson

Reviewed October 2023

I have always found the trips to be well planned, well described, with excellent guides who are always friendly and helpful.

Most Inspirational Moment

The coastal scenery. The fun off road cycling. The visit to the distillery as it was such an interesting and personal account.

Thoughts on Group Leader

He was such a nice person to be with, and everything follows from that. Ticked all boxes.

Viv Morris

Reviewed October 2023

Setubal to Algarve

Although October, the temperature didn’t drop below 24 and was nearer 28, but cycling provided a breeze. Cycling beside a channel through rice fields, on cliff wide cliff paths, with beautiful sea views, over dirt tracks beside quiet main roads or through forests, or farm land or over flat cobbles through small towns, or up to a castle. Good restaurants chosen by the guides. On mountain bikes, (I had an e bike), we were on dirt tracks 30% of the distance which translates to what felt like 50% of the time as slower than on the roads. Good hotel swimming pools

Most Inspirational Moment

Getting my cycling nerve back (I’d crashed on my ebike earlier in the year and broken my wrist) and realising I could mountain bike over the sandy, rocky, bits when you had to use the skills demonstrated on the first day,

Thoughts on Group Leader

Ricardo was very helpful and keen to enable us to have a good experience. He is passionate about this section of Portugal, wanting to share it with others. Each day he asked for feedback on the trip as this was the 2nd time it had run, so they can improve the experience for future trips. He tried his best to make sure people’s needs were met, and looked after us well. Vitor, who was the support, looked after the bikes well. My only suggestion would be they make sure the e-bikes have a large enough battery to make it to the end of the ride and that even if it looks like it has enough battery charge, they are still charged every night. They did provide another battery in the vehicle half way through, but the first days ride was stressful not knowing if I was going to be riding on a heavy ebike without any battery by the end.

Advice for Potential Travellers

There are long sections that are off road, on loose grit, and sandy tracks, at times the bike ground to a halt. You are on mountain bikes for a reason. Ricardo gave us a lesson in how to ride over sand and down a short steep tricky section on day 1, so we knew the technique, the real thing didn’t feel quite so bad (I didn’t even attempt it on day 1 but did manage the real thing) and felt quite chuffed. I don’t like edges and drops, but the riding on the cliffs was fine, the paths are wide, and not near the edge.

Elizabeth V

Reviewed October 2023