Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

I enjoyed learning about the people, who were all so friendly. The whales were unforgettable and amazingly acrobatic and the penguins were delightful.

Thoughts on Group Leader

We had the dynamic duo of Adonia and Ernest. They were both so knowledgeable, patient and kind. They did everything they could to make the holiday an enjoyable experience.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Arrive a day or so earlier, or stay later so you have time to enjoy Cape Town and Table Mountain.

Most Inspirational Moment

Jerash was our first opportunity to explore what is an amazingly well-preserved ancient Roman city. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see the gladiator or chariot display but the vastness of the site gave us plenty more to absorb. Jerash was just the teaser though because Petra makes that look tiny in comparison. We were not at all prepared for the vast awesomeness of it all and spent a good day there covering over 10 miles on foot. The site is a tourist trap but once you get beyond the treasury itself there’s plenty of room for everyone. Highly recommend making the extra effort to climb up to The Monastery. We also did the optional Petra by Night which we enjoyed the candlelit walk to but were a bit underwhelmed by the “show”. A few of us also enjoyed climbing up to the “best view in the world” (there were a few of those) at Little Petra. The less said about the hotel in Petra, the better. These trips are not about the accommodation, that said our two nights at our Red Sea 5-star hotel were enjoyed, by the kids in particular. The Wadi Rum was a magical experience with all the sand dune rolling, jeep exploring and sunrise watching we’d been promised. This definitely met expectations. However, we would recommend not interrupting this experience with the optional stargazing excursion. It’s a great experience in itself but being 45 minutes away by jeep it does rather distract from the isolated experience camping overnight in the Wadi Rum is supposed to deliver. Finally, the Dead Sea experience is just plain weird. Very strange indeed but an experience not to be missed.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Mekhled, our group leader, was great. Genuinely well informed and available for our needs at all times. He did his best to manage a group with a wide demographic, including children covering a fairly wide age-range. He engaged well with all. I think this may have only been his second family trip as a guide but that didn’t show.

Advice for Potential Travellers

As ever with these types of holidays be prepared for early starts and long journeys. Take enough local currency so that you’re able to pay in cash for many of the optional extras. Try to bring a day pack which you can use for the overnight stay in the desert, those jeeps aren’t well suited to carrying loads of suitcases! Perhaps pack a travel game or two. We didn’t need to bring our snorkel stuff. We dressed modestly (by western standards) in public areas and found the Jordanian people to be friendly and welcoming. We were more sensitive to local customs in rural and less touristy areas and we think this struck the right balance.

Most Inspirational Moment

I particularly liked the visit to Teotihuacan and walking along the Avenue of the Dead from the Citadel to the Pyramid of the Moon. Chichen Itza Was also spectacular.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Arturo Romero was excellent, very knowledgeable and worked really hard to make everything run smoothly.

Most Inspirational Moment

Crossing the high pass after getting up at 2.30am. It was hard but the views are worth it.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Sukman was a great leader. Always happy and smiling and kept our spirits high.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Hardest of all the treks in Nepal so need a good level of fitness. Also take snacks to keep your energy levels up.

Most Inspirational Moment

Etosha National Park was great and probably my favourite part of the trip! We saw so much wildlife there. Fish River Canyon was also very impressive and I really liked the Orange River canoe trip.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Jonathan and LeRoy did the best they could in sometimes tough conditions. They worked hard and were fun to travel with. No bad thing to say about them. Really nice guys both of them.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for lots of early starts / wake-ups and long days in the truck. Take some good reading or iPad with you to keep yourself entertained during the long drives in the desert. Good walking shoes will take a long way on this trip. And don't take this trip if you are more interested in Botswana or Zimbabwe or South Africa than Namibia. The first mentioned countries will be swept through on this trip.

Most Inspirational Moment

All the walks, particularly the final two days to the peaks, as well as meeting lots of different people - always inspirational.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Amazing - one of the best, if not the best! Jose has a great rapport with everyone and is so interested in the area, and keen to share the beauty of it with the group. He is an expert sandwich-maker, and provides delicious snacks for lunches, as well as refreshments in a designated room - people can help themselves throughout the day/night. Also, when my partner's walking boots broke on day one, he went out of his way to repair them, mid-trek, and took us to Benidorm to buy new ones - very kind and helpful.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The walks are great - you do need a good standard of fitness, and in some cases, a head for heights. However, Jose is very adept at knowing if people are up for certain walks, and will advise if not. Take walking poles, if you think you need them (we did, and found them brilliant, having not really relied on them before) and be prepared for changeable weather. Our experience - stunning, all week, but this could have been different, I think.

Most Inspirational Moment

Hard to choose, thoroughly enjoyed the cycling, seeing a variety of Indian life and cuisine, however the unexpected bonus was the amazing wildlife we saw on the safari. Two leopards AND a tiger, plus an elephant in the wild on our jeep transfer. We were especially lucky as it wasn't the best time of year to see exclusive tiger. The house boat was also a great experience, very relaxing and tranquil.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Safi was fantastic, as were Shibu (mechanic) and Franklin (driver.) Even though this was the first trip since the pandemic Safi had everything so well arranged. He organised an amazing variety of dishes for us to try when meals were included and always had excellent recommendations when not included. He even quickly realised that "least spicy" in Tamil Nadu was still a little too hot for myself and another member of the group and even got a couple of places we were staying to adapt their usual menu to ensure there was tasty food for everyone. The food in Kerala is generally milder and I found this fantastic. He arranged numerous local tea/coffee/drinks stops where we could try local delicious snacks or Franklin provided fantastic fresh fruit and snacks. When leaving we arrived at the airport at 1am Safi( who had taken a couple earlier) miraculous appeared through the crowds the instant the driver dropped us off and quickly whisked us through door security. He even went back to the airport at 4am to rescue 2 of the group who had their flight rearranged.

Advice for Potential Travellers

I am a road cyclist and bought some half and half cleats and shoes with inset cleats. These made cycling in traffic much easier as I could cycle unclipped, but cycled clipped in the majority of the time, especially on the climb! The shoes meant I could easily walk around at stops and when looking round villages, temples etc during rides without my usual road cleats that would have been slippy and noisy. I was very glad I had done some training beforehand, it definitely paid off on the climb. I adapted the Exodus training plan, doing some cadence and interval training as well as hill sessions on the turbo trainer. It is only the climb that really makes this a four. The rest of the days felt like a three. I did a mixture of the level 1 and level 2 strength exercises too. Ensure you have paper and electronic copies of all documentation. Get your visa in plenty of time and remember to do the self declaration form a day or two before hand. You also need to fill in a paper form before you go through passport control when entering India. These weren't obvious, there are some booths at the back of the hall that you get them from. A card like, Chase, is also good as we found it was readily accepted. However it did sting us on the ATM fee, fortunately we had taken cash as well as the exchange rate at money exchange was much better. ATMs weren't that available and the one outside the airport had run out of cash when we arrived, perhaps we were just unlucky.

Most Inspirational Moment

Getting over the pass with a chest infection

Thoughts on Group Leader

amazing leader and couldn't thank him enough for his patience on my difficult day

Advice for Potential Travellers

be prepared for hard and some long days

Most Inspirational Moment

Walking around the corner to see the Treasury at Petra Hiking up to the high place alter in Petra. The Night Sky in Wadi Rum. Diving the Cedar Pride in Aqaba. Mud bathing in the Dead Sea I know that is 6 but couldn't wittle it down any more

Thoughts on Group Leader

Fadi did an excellent job and managed somehow to keep us mostly pointed in the right direction. He manged to get every thing done and made the trip super easy for us all.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Great Trip. If you are a diver there is a dive centre at the beach so you can arrange a dive for yourself if you so desire. Obviuosly this is not part of the trip :-)

Most Inspirational Moment

Some of the landscapes in the Atacama desert are breath-taking, as are the salt flats. We never felt like we were on a well-trodden tourist route which made it feel very special.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Julia was superb. Flexible, open and extremely knowledgeable about all aspects of the culture particularly indigenous life. She was also excellent fun!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for long journeys and the effects of altitude. But go now!