Reviews

Marvellous Islamic architecture.

The visits to Samarkand and Bukhara were the principal things I wanted to see apart from Khiva which I did on my own before the main trip. Exodus booked the flights for me and I booked the hotel in Khiva myself.

Amazing, Extensive, Exhausting Trip

If you want to see classic Silk Road architecture then go to Uzbekistan.
If you want to see amazing mountain scenery then go to Kyrgyzstan.
If you want to see both of the above plus three other countries in Central Asia, whilst experiencing a wide range of ‘best of’ activites plus a few off the beaten track sights, all crammed into three hectic weeks, then the Five Stans trip is the one for you.

My expectations were high, but this trip surpassed them.

Hot and hilly

Dramatic hills and lovely Albanians

Excellent Service@ Mount Blanc by Group Leader & Hosts at Chalet Chamonix !

Paul
Our tour guide/leader was easy going, well versed with the hikes and always had a smile on his face. Paul was also very helpful, I left my phone behind in one of the refuge , he went out of his way to get the phone collected from a colleague which saved me half a day !

Thanks a ton Paul, really appreciate your help !!

Claire/Liz,
Again excellent hosts, well kept Chalet,clean and tidy rooms, three course dinner served at 730pm was fresh and delicious !
Both of them also gave brilliant suggestions on things to do on a off day!

Thank you Claire/Liz, you both are very good hosts !

Regards,
Amit Bhutani

2019 TMB Trek

Our recent TMB was excellent. Not only did we have spectacular weather to go along with the stunning scenery we had two top notch guides in John and Emily. The pace John set for the 14 trekkers was bang on; resting when called for and pushing us as we needed to be coupled with a great 👍 sense of humour. Emily made certain out campsite was setup each evening after our long treks and cooked us fabulous meals given we were camping ⛺️. Her energetic personality provided a welcome spark especially at the beginning of the day. G Adventures in Peru 🇵🇪 were really great 👍 too but Exodus our did them with respect to quality of the guides and the excellent dinners. A little more variety in breakfasts and lunches is strongly 💪 recommended for sure. I would also suggest stretching the tour to 14 days given there are currently some extraordinarily long days of trekking. Another trip of a lifetime for me. Thanks John and Emily! 🥾

Excellent trip

I loved this hiking holiday!! We had some serious hiking on this trip. Long days, some days with really high mileage and good ascent. Our hike leader was excellent, she really knew the area very well and was extremely helpful with practical tips throughout the trip.

Great experience and would definately use exodus again

A brilliant trip all round. The cycling was very moderate on good comfy hybrid bikes through a variety of landscapes. The cities in the countries were interesting and vibrant. The group were a fantastic bunch of people and our guide was superb. Very informative , humorous , inclusive and clever with his little extras.

Fascinating History

We really enjoyed our introduction to these three countries.

A trip of a lifetime

We did the TMB in July – 14 trekkers from Canada. John and Emily were our guides and they were amazing. I can actually say I learned how to walk again in the mountains with John’s careful guiding instructions. By the end of the trek, we were able to trek straight up 4 km with a verticle of 1500 m. There is no way we could have done this without our amazing guides. I cannot say enough about Exodus and the people who work with this amazing organization. They are truly professional and we are well into planning our next group trek for July 2020 to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Can’t wait!

Why Gorilla and Masai Mara Reverse Camping is Better.

This is a trip that’s worth every single buck. I’ll list the pros and cons though.

Pros: Gorilla tracking is physically demanding. So is waking up very early every morning, travelling long distances and camping. Wildlife in Masai Mara is fantastic, no other national parks measure up to it in terms of sightings during this trip. When at the beginning of the trip energy level is high, better to do the gorilla tracking etc. Then in the end of the trip be rewarded by extraordinary wildlife viewing in Masai Mara.
The crew was really great (except one) but Albert (chef) requires special mention because he was funny, kind and fed us amazing food. Stoney (driver) was very helpful and was always helpful with information.

Cons: In some camping sites there is no Wi-Fi or internet, if we were informed before could tell our family not to worry if they didn’t hear from us on certain dates.
The truck was too old and dusty, some of the windows were difficult to open and close. We even had a breakdown close to Lake Bunyoni and that was only the beginning of the trip! Although Gilbert arranged alternative for reaching the campsite soon.
On the days of long drive, why we stopped for lunch (sandwiches) which required preps and thus wasted time is beyond my understanding. There were days when we were given packed lunches (when went on game drives). Why couldn’t the same be done which would have saved time and effort of the crew? Especially as bread in Uganda was horrible.
The water pump was the most inconvenient thing ever! After a certain level it required one hand to hold the bottle, one to hold the neck of the pump and another to actually pump water! I’ve only two and one of crew member who was basically Man Friday, got annoyed because I was asking for help. He also tried to sell me wildlife photos (I’m a photojournalist and was travelling with pro cameras) but I didn’t encourage him.