Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

There are so many highlights with not a moment wasted. Here's a few... The night walk over vertigo inducing hanging bridges in the tree canopy and coming face to face with a mother sloth cradling her baby hanging off said bridge. We never thought we'd get that close! The James Bond style speedboat race over rivers so wide you couldn't see both sides. The zip lining above a rain forest. I mean, what's more to say! The white water rafting. Awesome! Sloths. Toucans. Frogs. A snake. Etc. Etc. And, everything else too!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Alejandro was the perfect guide engaging with adults and children alike with the enthusiasm necessary to keep interest high (especially on the long journeys between destinations). The supplementary knowledge of a native Costa Rican added the local insights we wanted to lear about and we're sure we wouldn't have experienced many aspects of Costa Rican life (e.g. local dining) without Alejandro there to support us. Nothing was too much trouble.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Read the advice provided by Exodus. It's all pretty useful and relevant. Heed the warnings of rain. For the first half of our trip in December/January it rained a lot (perhaps more than expected). We found that swimming clothes and ponchos was a better option in many situations (not the jungle) than going for full waterproofs. Less to dry out because drying stuff out takes days in the humid environment. The rain is always warm.

Most Inspirational Moment

The walking thought the unspoilt and at times completely isolated parts of the countryside will be something that will stay with me for a long time, that was truly unique and in complete contrast to Kathmandu.

Most Inspirational Moment

There were many inspirational 'stand out' moments for me. These are a few of my personal ones. Watching the mating behaviour of a pair of Snow Leopards; the Oracles in a trance at Stok; having a local ask me if he could take a photo of me and his little daughter; the 'Street Kids' walking tour of Old Delhi. I loved standing outside the tent at 6.30am, watching the mountains light up while drinking a cup of steaming hot black tea. The rush up to the viewing platform when one of the spotters shouted 'Snow Leopard'. One of our crew demonstrating the correct way to slide down a frozen river on a flat stone.

Thoughts on Group Leader

This is my second trek with Valerie and she proved to be every bit the excellent leader on this trip as she did on the previous one. Knowledgeable, understanding of individual and group needs, Valerie's decades of experience in the region enabled her to be flexible with arrangements and cope with the changes forced on us by the Covid-19 outbreak at the end of our trip. Evenings were spent listening to her tell us about the region, the wildlife and the people. The crew she had picked were excellent and dedicated to the roles they played. They were clearly very loyal to Valerie.

Advice for Potential Travellers

In general, come prepared for cold weather. The nature of this particular trip means you will be standing around searching for wildlife or viewing and taking photographs so the heat normally generated trekking will quickly go. I found I was wearing a thick down jacket most of the time simply because although the sun can be warm, there is usually a cold breeze in the valleys and much of the time is spent stationary. If you're out all day, as soon as the sun disappears below the mountains the temperature drops very quickly. I wore thick winter socks for the same reason. The terrain underfoot was, in general, no harder than UK hills and a 3 season boot would probably suffice. We didn't need crampons but 'yaktrax' or similar might be useful as we had to cross a couple of frozen rivers. The Exodus kit list is a good starting point; vary it according to your own preference for cold weather. Don't skimp on the sleeping bag as this is your refuge and a good night's sleep is important. You don't need lots of changes of clothing because you don't end up sweating a lot and everyone is in the same situation. Exodus provide top quality spotting scopes (Swarovski) but you might want to bring your own, which can help with spotting and will enable you to digiscope. The nature of our encounters with Snow Leopards meant that big lenses were necessary because of distance and digiscoping would be ideal in these circumstances. Some great photos were taken with scope and mobile phone. Our encounters lasted a while, so a tripod (or at least a monopod) would makes things easier on the arms. But don't forget camera kit to cope with the amazing landscapes, villages and festivals too. Be aware that there is close scrutiny on the internal flights - all our camera kit had to come out of the back packs and was checked by the security people at Dehli before boarding the internal flight.

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing the pair of snow leopards on the first day.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent

Advice for Potential Travellers

Factor 50 sun cream and as many warm clothes as you can cram in your bag.

Most Inspirational Moment

We were walking high up above the clouds and came round a corner to see cloud slowly filling a valley below us to the brim. We watched as the cloud reached the top and then slowly started to flow over a ridge down into the next valley like a slow-motion waterfall. Everyone went quiet and just watched. Later on we reached the ridge and walked across it through the flowing cloud.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide, Andre, arranged a birthday cake for me which was a really nice thing to do and typical of his caring attitude. Andre knows a great deal about the fauna and flora of the island and stops the walks at intervals to point out items of interest, and to explain something of their history and ecology. it is clear that he loves the island a great deal. He sometimes played his ukulele as he walked! Andre is funny and cheerful but could be quite direct. Most people liked this and but a few didn't. Personally I think that he was very patient, cheerful, and almost inexhaustible with what was a large group in sometimes dangerous situations. On a small note I would say that Andre perhaps needs to carry flyers or written information for trips that he mentions for our free day. He kindly booked whale watching for a group of us but we didn't have a contact number or location for the company (Andre pointed to the place on Google Maps on his phone whilst we were in a bar the day before). Never the less we found it and it was a great afternoon (albeit I left my sea-legs on shore that day).

Advice for Potential Travellers

Exodus does warn that this holiday is not for vertigo sufferers and with good reason because sometimes the paths can be very narrow with sheer drops to one side and a rock wall to the other, and occasionally you may have to very carefully pass walkers coming the other way. The paths are by no means like that all the time, and in fact some of them are wide and dressed with stone, but you can't avoid the narrow stretches. The holiday is graded as Moderate and I think that is fair but potential travellers should note that it is hard on your knees because of the very steep ascents and descents. Andre recommended walking poles to relieve the strain but I preferred not to use them because they can get caught in the cracks in the bare rock that formed some of the paths. A couple of people dropped out with sore knees but they still enjoyed themselves by visiting attractions and meeting us in the evenings.

Most Inspirational Moment

Arriving at the Pacific coast beach for a swim and a hot sweaty day's cycle...

Thoughts on Group Leader

Superb..10/10

Most Inspirational Moment

Safari

Most Inspirational Moment

There are a few inspirational moments. Firsly finding that we had a great mixed group to share our holiday with. Some couples, singletons, siblings and lifetime friends, many who had been on previous trips and had advice and experiences to share from those. In particular two wonderful 70 old ladies who often headed up the group on our way up the hills gave me hope for another 15 years of these type of holidays. Along with the wildlife which was exquisite and varied I found the vegetation to be awe inspiring. I loved the Wilson Botanical gardens and the rides through the mountains as we descended from that area. Seeing the various different plantations from pineapple to coffee and bananas was fascinating. And finally our beautiful afternoons by the the beach first the Pacific at Agua Dulce and then the Carribean for our impromptu swim, which Roberto realised was a necessary addition to the itinery.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Roberto is an excellent locally based leader , who is fluent in English, with the skills to manage and rearrange the itinery to suit the group requirements and the ensuing pandemic that we sadly were having to contend with. He was prepared to manage finances for various meals to enable us to get the best out of our time in the country, a truly experienced and skilled leader. He patiently repeated his instructions when asked, and pulled us into line when needed. His knowledge of the country and the wildlife was exceptional and he sets the standard very high for all our future trips. His helper Jeyson was also a delightful young man, who is a valuable addition to the team. With Luis and his exceptional driving they are a formidable group.

Advice for Potential Travellers

As we were new to this style of trip, we hadn't thought through how it would work, it did perfectly but here are the things we learnt. Moving accommodation every night was an organisational challenge and being very prepared for this in your packing would help. 'Packing cubes is a recommendation I will take home from another guest'!! We set up early a group whatapp which enabled us to share photos and co-ordinate meeting in a timely manner this was essential. We had a fair degree of bus time and these journeys were made much more fun by having an inclusive group vibe, where everyone was helpful regarding possessions and spotting bathroom opportunities. Each person, couple is looking to get something slightly different out of the experience if everyone in the group is mindful of that it works brilliantly, as it did for us.

Most Inspirational Moment

So much culture! Impromtu detours courtesy of Sam which was so interesting and which if we were travelling solo we would of missed. For example the Hindu festival at a temple with elephants, magical. The tuktuk rides! The walk around the rural village.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Brilliant could not have wished for better.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Go with the flow!

Most Inspirational Moment

The Penguins! Both the walk along Boulders Beach in Simonstown, and the kayaking the following day were fabulous, and despite all the uncertainty and concerns over Covid-19, seeing the penguins instantly made everything better! I also really enjoyed the wine tasting in the Stellenbosch area - Stellenbosch itself is one of the most beautiful towns I have ever seen, and the visits to the vineyards were great fun.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Both Adonia and Ernest were great - nothing was too much trouble, and when our itinerary had to change they found other places for us to go. They were also amazingly helpful and reassuring when we were informed we would have to leave early due to Covid-19 - and despite that, we all still enjoyed the holiday very much!

Advice for Potential Travellers

If travelling in March, I would advise taking a windbreaker as it is surprisingly windy in Cape Town and surrounding area! It can also get quite cool at nights, so take a jumper or jacket too. Walking shoes/boots are a must for Table Mountain, and I'd recommend maybe sandals or shoes you don't mind getting wet for the kayaking!