Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

King Penguins and their chicks, so funny! Gentoo chicks laying on my lapUp close and personal (about 8-10 feet away) from humpback whale swimming towards us - Awesome !Abundant wildlife behaviour to watch and photographFantastic scenery, weather and itineraryAmazing icebergsWatching Adelie penguins stealing stones from other nests, and looking so innocent when caught, just like on 'Frozen Planet' hilarious!Educational presentations by the Quark staff were so informative and very helpful, learnt so much.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Shane was brilliant and did everything he could to get us ashore, and succeeded as we managed 21 landings and zodiac cruises.  At the briefings he was inspirational in telling us to "put down our cameras and feel our surroundings, watch the animals, take photos with your mind", he was so right!  Shane even surprised us with a cruise round Cape Horn (which was unexpected).

Advice for Potential Travellers

If you thought you might like to do this trip, dont think anymore, DO IT! You will have a life changing experience. Wildlife in abundance, be on the first zodiac out and the last one back! Don't be tempted to have your eyes permanently stuck to the camera lens - just sit and watch it all happen around you !  Take a tri-stool like we did and just sit and take it all in.

Most Inspirational Moment

Reaching the summit was obviously a key moment in the trip as the thought of this was what sustained us through the long, dark and arduous final ascent.  Seeing the sunrise an hour or two earlier at Gillman's point was spectacular.  Asked about the most inspirational part of the journey, I immediately think of the local team - the guides and porters, for whom nothing was too much trouble, and for whom the ascent seemd the easiesyt and most natural thing in the world.  Their fitness and good humour was certainly an inspiration to me!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Abraham was outstanding.  He was knowledgable, experienced had advice on every aspect of the trip, helped prepare us for thoroughly for each stage, and when necessary was prepared to take every step necessary to help us succeed.  He offered to carry my backpack when the going got tough, and when I couldn't take another step without a lengthy rest, he was on hand to coax me onwards.  He organised everything thoroughly and the whole trip was as smooth as clockwork as a result.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take the extra day, if available, to acclimatise.  Take the Diamox.  Go slowly - remember it's not a race!  Drink as much water as possible.  Trust the guides' local knowledge.  On the final ascent, concentrate on not bumping into the guy in front!  I took my ipod, saved the battery for that last climb, and it was invaluable. Take lots of photos (and videos if you can) because the memory fades fast!  

Most Inspirational Moment

So many maybe seeing  the deserts and the jebels bathed in moonlight

Thoughts on Group Leader

Zuhair a credit to Exodus his  family and his country .The marshmallows he produced one evening whilst regaling us with tales of bad camels and their masters was almost straight out 1001 Arabian Nights

Advice for Potential Travellers

Sleep under the stars and dream on

Most Inspirational Moment

Looking down on the Treasury in Petra after a beautiful hike; getting up higher to the monastery in Petra; and a great boat trip on New Year's Day in Aqaba.  But mainly I have lovely memories of spending time with our guide, learning about Jordanian people, practising Arabic! and whizzing down windy roads perfect for cycling.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Sounds like a cliche but Zuhair was a brilliant guide.  He spent time with us explaining Jordanian history, explaining about the people of Jordan. He was open, kind and warm, and provided a lot of entertainment, teaching us to speak Arabic (habibi), dancing at safe stopping points on the route.  He went the extra mile wherever he could, enabling us to pack in lots of extras like the boat trip on New Year's day; arranging for us to eat Jordanian specialities at dinner and amazing local snacks throughout; or providing a surprise little treat around the bonfire at the camp in the desert.  He definitely made our trip special, as did our bike team, tourist police and bus driver - all of whom were super helpful and supportive if you couldn't make it up a hill, they were there to pick you up!! Speical note of thanks to Zuhair who made sure we had a taxi waiting for us after the desert trip, as we left the group to spend a few days in Aqaba before we went home.  Thanks again for everything.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take more warm clothes than you think you need - in December / Jan anyway was our experience.  I failed miserably to pack anything appropriate!! - would have really appreciated some fleeces, some bike gloves, a few hats; and more trousers. We also would have taken a bit more local currency for tips etc, as kept having to withdraw cash to top up the tip purse.  We were both pleased that we hadn't bothered to bring bike shoes - we didn't feel we were on the bikes long enough to need them.  It is also worth noting that you shouldn't expect amazing hotels throughout the trip - they were definitely clean, comfortable and well located but don't expect luxury!!!

Most Inspirational Moment

there were many - local kids enthusiastically greeting us on an island off Nha Trang; dinner in a busy local restaurant; people on scooters pulling up next to us while cycling to say hello; seeing the excitement of people in small villages at the sight of those crazy Westerners cycling through their country in the heat

Thoughts on Group Leader

Danh: Always smiling and happy, very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about his country. Really helpful and always willing to go the extra mile - literally! He told us at times we'd be cycling another 15km which turned into almost twice that distance.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for the heat in the South. We cycled in the mid-day sun (temperatures around 35 degrees C) with very little shade. Don't expect to be able to take lots of pictures while cycling - most people in our group wanted to cycle from A to B without stopping. Not really what I was expecting. Also, don't expect to have much time to yourself, even the free days are packed with activities. A typical day usually starts at 8am on the bus (or bikes) and you don't get to the hotels until about half 6 or 7pm. You'll just about have enough time for a quick shower before meeting up with the group for dinner.  The trip notes also mention about "predominatly flat" roads, but on most days there were a few long, steep hills to climb, so be prepared for that.

Most Inspirational Moment

Walk along the coastline to Cais do SardinhoLovely groupFinally good food in the last restaurant we went to as a group in Funchal

Thoughts on Group Leader

He was very much into walking. However, it would have been nice if he had spent a bit more time to form a group like organising a dinner on the first evening when everyone had just arrived and we were all left alone to meet only the next morning. Or for going for a coffee or a meal somewhere.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Please mind that in the mountains, temperatures may go from really hot to really cold.

Most Inspirational Moment

A Little Doggerel on the Occasion of the return of the Sixteen from Sri Lanka. (With apologies to J. Milton Hayes, Rudyard Kipling etc.) There's at least a hundred Buddhas on the road to Kandy Town, Where the locals all smile broadly as they wish us ayubowan. Yes! Welcome to Sri Lanka! We're here to see the sights! Just sixteen cheery travellers for sixteen days and nights. There's Graham, Neil and Jason, Big Andy, Jo and Steve - Two Lindas, Charlie, Rob and Kevin make a move to leave - Two Alisons and David, Ron and Anna swell the throng And Sujan takes us all in hand to jolly us along. We clamber over boulders, we march through Horton Plain, We trudge up dusty mountains and scramble for the train, We bounce through raging waters and creep through temple prayers And ride upon the elephants and sweat up rocky stairs. We cycle by the river, we wonder in the caves, We gaze at tea plantations and gambol in the waves, We picnic in the jungle and sample Sujan's fare And watch the whales and fruit bats (and the leopards - if they're there). We see the sea, the waterfalls, the forests and the plains, The pools and 'tanks' and rivers, the sun and (sometime) rains, The trees and crops, the flowers, the birds, the turtles and the crocs And thirty dusty elephants who bathe amongst the rocks. There's at least a hundred Buddhas on the way back home through Galle - Some are very short and fat and some extremely tall, But when we all wend homewards we won't forget this isle - 'A Land of Milk and Honey' - an island with a SMILE. (But what will we all really remember - ancient cities - distant views? No - Charlie dancing frantically in his hotel room in his sexy mankini ……)

Most Inspirational Moment

Watching the shadow of Adams Peak form on the clouds behind the peak.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Good, helpful.

Advice for Potential Travellers

1. The Adams Peak walk was tough, only 1100m of ascent but >5000 concrete steps. Is this one of the longest staircases in the world? It took 5 days after the hike before I could stride normally. My preparation with 600m of steps twice a week for 6 months wasn't enough preparation. We rushed up in 3hr15min; down in 2hr 15. Would advise taking it more slowly and resting more. It is difficult to gauge how far you have ascended when walking on a well lit staircase surrounded by darkness. There were 2 x WCs about half way up. So if you reach that point in under 2 hrs, you deserve a rest! Take your time and don't rush!2. Mosquitoes. Plenty about in Jan/Feb. We did use insect repellant and, at night, permethrin impregnated mosquito nets. We only got one bite each.

Most Inspirational Moment

Watching elephants in the river below where we were having lunch, whale watching though I did that with mySri Lankan friend, not with the group

Thoughts on Group Leader

Extremely over anxious, but appearred to know his stuff

Advice for Potential Travellers

If you do Adams peak don't rush; it is easily 'doable' in 3-4 hours sitting on the top getting cold waiting for dawn really left some of our party frozen. I was a bit slower so did less sitting around and did not get so cold but was able to easily keep up going down in the light- I had struggled to see my way at night the trail lights cast more shadows than light, I also recovered faster than those who rushed.

Most Inspirational Moment

Hard to choose......loved travelling through rural India......tigers were amazing........Taj Mahal extraordinary....people delightful.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Harish Kumar was an excellent leader. He tried very hard to accomodate everyones wishes and mostly succeded. Apart from the odd misunderstanding, usually due to language difficulty, we could not have asked for more. He was good company and steered us through the travelling with ease. Getting us all on the train with luggage was quite a task which he managed brilliantly!!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for extreme cold at this time of year. The suggested scarf, fleece and gloves were no where near enough to cope with the icy temperature in open safari jeeps at 5.30 in the morning! Thermal layers and warm coats/hats essential. Although we were provided with hot water bottles and blankets which helped. The food becomes very monotonous and is ,of course, very spicy! Meal times are quite eratic. Take biscuits/snacks and indegestion pills. Eat as little as posible for the first few days until you are used to the food. Use hand sanitiser constantly.Sheewee..(for ladies) available from camping shops invaluable when clean loos not available. Take travel disinfectant. Even the hotel loos are not always as clean as you might like.Be prepared to spend up to 12 hours a day in vehicles!