Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing cheetahs ,leopards, wild dogs, and all the other animals- Having elephants wandering around our camp... The okovango- Beating a hasty retreat from a rather cross elephant - Discovering I like birds - Space light & warmth of Botswana

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take a scarf - the long drives got a bit windy - def take binoculars- It says there are ATM s at Victoria Falls which is correct but not one had any money in them so take small dollar notes (Not a big deal but don't rely on them) Otherwise the trip notes are comprehensive ..

Most Inspirational Moment

The scenery

Thoughts on Group Leader

Brill! Both Radu and Liz were great

Advice for Potential Travellers

Enjoy it

Most Inspirational Moment

Reaching to the summit

Thoughts on Group Leader

Superb, Considerate , Helpful

Most Inspirational Moment

There were many wonderful experiences but of these I would say seeing the sunrise over the Taj Mahal, the beautiful city of Udaipur with its lake, temples and palace and being lucky enough to see tigers in Ranthambore will probable live in my memory the longest.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our leader, Naveen was truly excellent. I have regularly been on trips of this nature for 30 years and can honestly say that he was up there with the very best leaders I have travelled with in that time. He was always helpful, always retained his good humour, was a mine of information and totally organised. He showed us things and gave us experiences that were not part of the itinerary such as taking us to a local school and introducing us to some of the street foods. He took us to some really excellent restaurants and also to where the locals eat. He really made the trip an enjoyable and fulfilling experience.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for an awful lot of bus travel and very limited free time for shopping etc but you will see many majestic sights and experience a very different culture. Be prepared for crowded streets with constant noise, to see poverty and to adapt to not having the personal space we have in the West. In Ranthambore, on the advice of someone who had previously visited, we asked Exodus to book a jeep for our party rather than the standard canter as they are more flexible. It is thanks to this that we saw tigers as the rest of the group, travelling in a canter, did not.

Most Inspirational Moment

So many highlights, having a shot of Jim Beam on reaching the viewpoint at 'Mirador Britanico' on day five. The views of Fitzroy and Perito Moreno Glacier that take your breathe away, soaking up the vast landscapes and enjoying the journey, exploring cosmopolitan Buenos Aires to the large quantity of ice cream and steak I consumed!

Thoughts on Group Leader

I'll repeat again Tomas is a legend! Always on the look out for people's well being (include those not on the group!), from simple things like pointing out open zips on rucksacks to dealing with angry people in dorms, that was a simple misunderstanding (nobody from the group I must add!), to carrying peoples bags. His knowledge and spoken English were both excellent and he had many an interesting story to tell of prior jobs and life experiences. After the trip extension I caught up with him for my final evening in Buenos Aires and again he was hard at work attempting to address flight issues for the next group (caused by the G20!), I don't think I seen a harder working guide. Socially he got to know the group very well and our sense of humour, and I hope that we, and the group, stay in touch.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Highly recommend the trip extension to Iguazu Falls, particularly if you have time to see the falls from both sides, Argentina and Brazil. Note - I packed 3 bags, one for this extension (t-shirts, shorts etc), one for Chile where you have to carry everything and one main rucksack for the rest of the trip. Worth nothing that you are not carrying all your stuff as much as you think in Chile.

Most Inspirational Moment

Trekking back from Kasbah Oliver

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide (Mohamed) was really excellent, always attentive to everyone's needs, and always very interesting and insightful in explaining us everything that we saw and was going on around us.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Truly recommended

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing so many animals on our 2game drives and zip wiring over 8 gorges at Storms River,!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Absolutely great,knowledgable,careing and informative.

Advice for Potential Travellers

If you are single go for it you'll be fine.

Most Inspirational Moment

We walked to the top of the Todrha Gorge and a nomad family were camped there. The group were invited to share tea in their tent and we were able to ask questions about their lifestyle. I found this quite special. There were lots of highlights - I loved walking around the medina in Fez, walking on our own in the Sahara, the sheer variety of all the sights we saw. There were a few more demanding days in the Todrha Gorge and High Atlas, where it was pretty cold and windy, so having a full day in Essouria with no planned activities was much needed by the time we got to it.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Lachsen was an absolute 100% star. Everything perfectly organised and he made sure we were all aware of what we would be doing every day, start times, when luggage needed to be out. He told us so much about what it was like to live in Morocco, as well as information on the history and geography of the country. Special mention too for Ibrahim, our driver, who had long days and some tricky driving conditions (flooded roads!) to contend with. The local guides were also very good and had great senses of humour.

Advice for Potential Travellers

We went late October/early November and I don't know if our weather was typical - it was never what I would call really hot - very warm and pleasant certainly - but once you got to altitude at the Todrha Gorge and High Atlas it got very cold and sometimes windy. The accommodation there is also more basic than elsewhere, so I wished I had packed more cold weather gear.

Most Inspirational Moment

The first time we saw a tiger. What an unbelievably beautiful moment that was. The first tiger we saw on this trip was in Kanha (we saw 2 cubs in the distance in Pench but they were spotty little blurs) was a male tiger named Chota Munna. Another jeep had seen him cross the road and pass into the forest when we arrived. We just saw the bushes move and thought we had missed our chance. After 20 minutes or so of alarm calls and driving around the area he was believed to be moving, there he was, all of a sudden, strolling through the clearing and then crossing the road in front of us and continuing down the road for a good 5 minutes or more. That just blew my mind. To see this amazing animal walking through his home in all his glory was magnificent. We were to be blessed twice more in Kanha. Once more that day as we were leaving the lunch area a female tigress Choti Mada was walking down the road, we were one of only 3 jeeps to have been lucky to see her. On our last morning drive in Kanha, we had what our tour leader Vijay described as a once a year sighting. We heard alarm calls, and then there she was the beautiful Dhwajhandi (daughter of Choti Mada), she crossed the road, scenting as she went and passed into the grassland, we sat and waited for quite some time and were super lucky in this time to also see a Sloth Bear bounding across the grassland, after the bear passed we sat and waited on the other side of the grassland, listening to her roar, most jeeps gave up and left, but we insisted on waiting, we knew she was there. And then, alarm calls, the remaining jeeps all started their engines and we went further up the grassland road to where the deer were now running and calling, and then she was there, strolling through the grassland and past the deer. She walked across the road near our jeep, stopped for a bit, then continued at this point she was behind us and we got to watch her and she sauntered down the road, scenting as she went, rubbing herself on a tree and then eventually going back in to the forest. This whole experience lasted over 2 hours. We were so incredibly blessed to have witnessed this amazing sighting. I will forever be grateful for this trip. We also saw 3 more tigers when we were in Bandhavgarh, Spotty, Solo and Tara. All female tigress. We were lucky to see Tara twice. In all we saw 8 tigers if you include the cub blobs, 2 sloth bear and so many deer, birds, monkeys etc. It really was the trip of a lifetime. I won't be coming down off that high for sometime.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Oh Vijay was just truly wonderful. He is the best group leader I have ever had. He was so knowledgeable, passionate and committed. Every time we saw a tiger, it blew him away too, which was really touching. We were lucky to only have a group of 7, but he just did a marvelous job. I would 100% do another tour in India if Vijay was the leader. His passion for wildlife and knowledge of birds was phenomenal. He is a complete asset to your company.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Pack thermals. It's only cold in the morning game drives, but you will need it, that and also some sort of windproof jacket. They give you blankets, but don't rely on them. You will need something else to keep you warm in the early mornings. Another thing you should 100% pack is something to cover you nose & mouth as the dust is pretty crazy.

Most Inspirational Moment

Too many as each area we visited gave totally different experiences. The Tongariro crossing was not to be missed- fortunate with the weather but there was snow in the craters at the plateau with high winds on the crater edges. Geothermal valleys. Walking up to the terminal face of Fox glacier (despite no polar bear!) Cruising the Milford Sound-seeing the penguins. Walking through the indigenous tropical forests. Walking in the snow at the foot of Mount Cook and crossing glacial torrents in full flood. Walking at night on a Glow Worm trail- like thousands of LED lights- quite enchanting. Sobering walk through the disembodied Christchurch- still recovering and has not regained its soul yet.

Thoughts on Group Leader

All this could not be achieved without the excellent guidance, support and knowledgeable expertise of our two guides, Chris and Rich who both complemented each other- one being a Kiwi and the other a Devonian export. Nothing was too much trouble for them in trying to accommodate individual interests, adjusting the activities according to the prevalent weather conditions and providing a constant supply of snacks to sustain us upon our activities. They appeared to have a magical influence over the weather and visitors, providing a narrow window of opportunity that allowed us to visit volcanic landscapes and geothermal valleys without the crowds or rain that would normally be expected. Their energy and enthusiasm to share their knowledge of the islands and its peoples went without saying. They were quick to ascertain the abilities of each individual member and gave optional activities when needed. The entire trip was skilfully organised and despite the long distance driven by both of them, they were able to protect themselves from being on constant demand.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for long travelling. Be prepared for Vivaldi weather (four seasons). If you are reasonably fit and used to mountain terrain, all walks should be within your grasp. Make the most of your time.