Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

Watching the condors soar over Colca Canyon was great, and the Corpus Christi parade we were lucky enough to see in Cusco made the experience of the city even better, but there is nothing to beat the feeling you get when you first enter the Machu Picchu complex and climb up to the viewpoint to get the iconic postcard view.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Carlos our tour leader was very knowledgeable and could answer pretty well any question we threw at him.  The tour he gave us around Machu Picchu demonstrated his knowledge and passion for his country's history and culture.  There were only nine in our group of which four were vegetarian, and it took him a while to catch on to the fact that he needed to recommend restaurants with a good vegetarian selection, but other than this he was the perfect tour guide. 

Advice for Potential Travellers

The days are quite long and the starts early; for us breakfast was at 7am five times and earlier than that another five times.  The earliest start was on the first full day when our wake-up calls were set for 4.30am, especially tough for those on the group flight via the US who didn't get to the hotel until after midnight.  But the bus was very comfortable (with a very acceptable on-board toilet) and in the main we reached our overnight stops by 5pm, which gave time to relax and unwind before a leisurely evening meal.

Most Inspirational Moment

Making it to the Dead Woman's pass. When I looked at the terrain profile after the first day on the Inca trail, I thought I'm never going to make it. But, it turns out that it looked way more difficult than it was.Another highlight was going swimming in Paracas and watching the sunset while being in the water. Simply stunning.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Holger was great. He was not only very helpful, he also has very good historical knowledge that adds value to the overall Inca experience on this trip.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Walking poles, walking poles, walking poles. I normally don't use them, on the Inca trail I wish I had.Knee protectors also come in handy. When you go to the Ballestas Islands, make sure you're 'water-proof'. We got completely soaked - but it was worth it.  

Most Inspirational Moment

The elephant orphanage and the old capital of Sri Lanka, Polunnaruwa.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Roshan was fantastic. There's really nothing to add.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Our game drive in the National Park got extremely dusty. A dust-prove cover for your camera and lenses is highly recommended. I wish I had brought mine.

Most Inspirational Moment

Of course Machu Picchu was the star of the show, but there were many wonderful surprises around every bend in the road. I got up a couple of times in the early morning hours and saw the moon and a skyful of  stars - all enveloped in a peaceful silence.  I enjoyed the diversity of beautiful flowering plants and saw a perennial lupine for the first time. I was also impressed by all the other sites we saw on the way and intrigued by the speculation that they are connected. As an agricultural journalist, the farming and experimental sites were another source of interest.  

Thoughts on Group Leader

Disnarda Aragon is a real gem. She's knowledgeable, calm and a good manager with a great sense of humour. She's also very proud of her country, its people and produce. As someone who comes from a developing country, I appreciated the fact that she encouraged us to support the local economy by buying hand-made local items.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Don't forget to bring: a headlight, a sunhat (they sell nice broad-rimmed ones in Cusco), sunscreen, insect repellant, coffee or black tea and powdered milk, if you absolutely need your caffeine fix. If you are not a very strong walker, bring a walking stick. I've never walked with a stick, and I bought one for 10 Sol at the beginning of the walk and came to rely on it right through the hike. Bring a couple of hundred Sol to buy water during the early parts of the hike and for tips for the cook, his assistant and the porters. You don't need to bring any food: the cook and his assistant feed hikers really well. Also, prepare for a lot of nice surprises at mealtime. (If you have any food preferences or intolerances let them know when you Do ask your group leader to arrange a specialist tour after the hike. Believe me, they can. I requested Disnarda to arrange a visit to the peasant farmers between Cusco and Urubamba and she, a driver, a friend and I ended up spending a wonderful morning with people who still live off the land and enjoy the satisfaction of growing their own food. I even tried my hand at cutting Lima beans with a sickle. It's hard work, though. (I can also think of other tours I would have loved to do, e.g. a visit to craftspeople or small local markets. We did visit the municipal market in Urubamba, but it would've been interesting to visit on a Sunday when all the farmers take their produce to their small local markets.)

Most Inspirational Moment

Wow, where to start! We have been truly blessed with all the events we witnessed. Here are our highlights: We have spent a day with a cheetah mum with her 6 almost grown up cubs, we have seen thousands upon thousands of wildebeest cross the Talek river, we have encountered 3 leopards of the same family at the same time, we have witnessed lionesses carrying their tiny cubs to a new den, we have followed 4 male lions patrolling their territory and whilst doing so crossing a river, we have seen an elephant family slide down a steep river bank to cross to the other side, we've seen amazing sunsets, and if all that wasn't enough we have seen a cheetah mum carrying her tiny 2-3 day old cubs.

Thoughts on Group Leader

This is our 5th trip with Paul to the Masai Mara. He may not be everyone's cup of tea but we like him. He is a great teacher and not shy to tell you when you are 'mincing', he can tell you a filthy joke or two, and 9 times out of 10 his decisions have been the right ones. This man never stops! He has such an enormous amount of energy, and his huge enthusiasm and love for the Masai Mara and its inhabitants are extremely contagious.  

Advice for Potential Travellers

Just go with the flow and you'll love it!

Most Inspirational Moment

Hard to pick as these were in abundance on our trip ... Lion carrying her cubs, crossing a river at the same time as four male lions and the early start of migration to name a few.

Thoughts on Group Leader

I've never paid so much to be insulted so frequently! But, if you can take the rough with the smooth you will be amply rewarded with photographic opportunies that would be difficult to surpass. Paul's teaching methods are tactless, brutal and uncompromising but highly effective. His method helps you get the most out of the opportunities that arise during the week. You will learn quickly and are unlikely to make repeated mistakes, which is a bonus when you see once in a lifetime events that you will want to capture on film. Paul is a consummate story- and joke- (mostly of the explicit and un-pc variety) teller. We haven't laughed so much and no offence is intended.

Advice for Potential Travellers

As others have said, there are some long days so go prepared with plenty of layers (including a fleece or two) for cold mornings and something to cover up in the midday sun. The laundry facilities are very efficient so you can pack light. I took a sarong, which was great as an extra layer & for sun protection but it came into its own as an instant dark room to help view the LCD screen on the back of the camera and to wrap round the lens when driving in dusty conditions. Take some sweets for the long days out on safari, preferably without wrappers e.g. wine gums, as the wildlife quite rightly takes priority over having breakfast or lunch at set times out in the bush. Kitcheche Mara camp was fantastic. The food was delicious and plentiful. Service was excellent and the tent was luxurious with great views. It goes without saying the guides were great and very knowledgable.

Most Inspirational Moment

On our first walk, out of a cloudy Switzerland onto the Col de Balme, when the cloud lifted and we had our first views of the Mont Blanc Massif and the Chamonix Valley. Thereafter, apart from one cloudy day, the chance to see the mountains, glaciers and valleys on all the walks was inspirational. The flower meadows were pretty spectacular as well.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Oliver was an excellent guide and companion. He is very knowledgable and a fund of absolutely awful, but very funny, puns and jokes.

Advice for Potential Travellers

As Exodus warn, be prepared for all weathers in the hills. We had everything from 5 degrees in sleet to 28 degrees in bright sunshine, and used all our various layers on several occasions. If you are used to hotel accommodation, the chalet rooms are a little smaller - clean and comfortable, but smaller. We had previously done the walks on Classic Dolomites and White Villages of the Sierra Nevada, and this provided a similar degree of challenge, perhaps a little more challenging on the one day when the  temperature was 28 degrees - enough for us.

Most Inspirational Moment

An amazing opportunity to walk in the Alps and enjoy the views.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Mel was a fabulous guide. She was very knowledgable about the route (having done the route over the last 4 years), managed the group dynamics very well, supporting us on the 'tough' days and with her extensive knowledge of botany and geology was always able to show us something new regularly and answer our questions. She carried a small plastic digger (and some Snicker bars) to explain glaciation - far better than any geography lesson i have ever had before).

Advice for Potential Travellers

It can be wet in early Spring but worth it for the flowers.The two rough camps are just that! Not really very nice. The other 'comfortable' camps were all great.

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing a total of 6 beavers swimming in a river so near a townWalking amongst beautiful and sometimes rare/protected flowers in a dramatic landscape 

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent - I am so impressed by his ability to explain not just all the fauna and nearly all the flora but also the complicated history of Transylvania in English.Despite a lot of rain and the varied abilities/aptitudes of the group, not to mention a great deal of driving,  he remained cheerful, unflappable, endlessly helpful and considerate.One small example - I was particularly keen to see alpine plants, especially the rare Dianthus which I understand is native only to the national park we were in but the leader took time and effort to explain to me that in the weather conditions it was not possible to get high enough to do so.  

Advice for Potential Travellers

Go as soon as you can in case EU food regulations, the need for modernisation of the economy and changing aspirations of young locals change it forever.

Thoughts on Group Leader

The guide was very knowledgeable (I wasn't keen on his sense of humour) and went beyond the call of duty in looking after us.  However, we're even thinking of doing the snow shoe trip in October with the same guide. The staff were fantastic.   

Advice for Potential Travellers

The walking was strenuous (I haven't done much exercise this year so did suffer from stiff legs by day 2) which is what we wanted and the Antipodean mountain goats that we had as company were more than satisfied.