Reviews

Perfect weather in November

We had a wonderful week of complete contrasts – the busy-ness of Marrakech and the quiet of the Atlas mountains. The itinerary worked smoothly and was well balanced; there was nothing that I would change.

Adventures in Egypt

My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Egypt

This is a great trip - very colourful!

This was a really well -planned full itinerary with little down time and early starts every morning!

The traffic in Mexico City meant that journeys between locations always took a long time but Berto, our driver was very calm.  On the first day you are still recovering from the long day of travel but the visit to the Frida Kahlo House was very worthwhile and the canal boat “dodgems” at Xochimilco was great fun!

It was nice to get out of the City to the site at Teotichuacan the next day – the large pyramids are stunningly impressive but you can no longer climb them.

The best time was in Oaxaca as we spent 4 nights at the same central hotel and we had plenty of opportunity to soak up the festive atmosphere and see plenty of costumes and parades. The food is very good here and, of course, we learned how to make some salsas and mole.

We were lucky enough to spend time at the cemetery with a family where the son was playing the guitar and singing ballads to the dead relatives – very moving and atmospheric.

Monte Alban was my favourite archaeological site, partly because of the stunning views but Palenque was lovely because of its jungle location with the howler monkeys screeching in the background and the fact it was possible to climb the Pyramid of the Cross to have a view across the site.
Unfortunately, we only had less than an hour at Uxmal as we arrived late in the afternoon and our visit to Chichen Itza was quite short as we had to leave for the airport.

We did so many extras and Arturo always ensured we had good places to eat and drink!

The Road to Morocco

A 10 day trip to old capital cities of Morocco and scenic drives though the atlas mountains. One thing that is obvious from this trip is that Morocco is a big country. Much time will be spent on the bus, but it is comfortable and the scenery is fantastic and with suitable stops it is a good way to see the country. Marrakesh is a feast for the senses, Fez a warren of ancient alleyways, Ait ben haddou is like stepping back in time. Roman Volubilis was impressive and enjoyably short of other tourists. The riads in Fez and Meknes were particularly stunning and everyone we met was friendly and welcoming.

Mountains and imperial cities of Morocco

So well organised. Abdul lag was the best guide we have had on many adventures with lots if companies over the years. He was so informative empathic and quietly ensuring that the tour went without any blips. A truly master of his profession. Said the driver was so effortless in his control of the coach that we felt that we were on a magic carpet. The accommodation was just right for he ethos of the tour. The long drives were not arduous as the scenery was wonderful. Thank you for putting it together so well.

cycle kerala and tropical india

This was our first Exodus holiday and overall we had a great time. The cycling was varied, with great scenery and opportunities to get off the beaten track and see the real India. Safi, the tour leader, was good company and very informative and knowledgeable. He also helped us to cope with the intricacies of cycling on the roads in India, supported by our able driver, Franklin. We were hoping for a wonderful experience and overall we had a great time, marred by just 2 aspects: Firstly, the incident which resulted in our group being detained against our will for 5 hours by the wildlife park rangers/ police in Bandipur National Park, Tamil Nadu. This was for a minor infringement (walking just 5 metres off the highway into the forest), whilst being led on a walk to a local farmhouse. Whilst we accept that it is sometimes difficult to combat the apparent corrupt tendencies of certain local officials, who tried to extort money from us for such a minor infringement, the local guide (not Safi, I hasten to add) should really have known better. As a result, the most challenging cycling day, the ride up to Ooty, was rather spoiled: we were not allowed to cycle the bottom half of the ride and only 2 of us eventually climbed the top half, in the midday sun and with no warm up possible. We also missed out on what would have surely been a very interesting home visit. Such things happen! (Oh, and Exodus never actually called us back, after we phoned to explain our predicament; it was left to the local team of Safi and the hotel owner to secure our release from effective custody, with the support of local dignitaries, who travelled up the hillside to help us). The second thing was that the quality of the hotels was rather disappointing: some were shabby and very basic, to say the least, and half of the swimming pools were not fit for purpose eg the infinity pool at Cherai beach, that we were all really looking forward to (especially compared with the much better quality we found in Rajasthan on the second half of our holiday), We were so looking forward to this being the first of many potential cycling holidays with Exodus, but are left wondering if we should perhaps look elsewhere in future, given the quality of the accommodation provided.

EBC - An excellent experience

My recent trip to Everest Base Camp was an amazing experience which completely exceeded my expectations. The scenery was breath-taking, the sights & sounds of Nepal were stunning and the company of the group & guidance of out leader all made for an unforgetable trek. Although I knew what to expect from research & reading – seeing 6000, 7000 & finally 8,000m snow capped mountains with my own eyes was something I will always remember.

Mexico Day of Dead Festival started 27 October 2022

Very good trip overall. The local guide was extremely knowledgeable, highly motivated. The hotels were variable good to very good. The bus was somewhat crowded. I managed to find some vegetarian selection at each location. Local people were quite friendly and ready to help, despite my very limited spanish.

Brilliant Nature

Brilliant guide Well organised trip Good drivers

Close-up views of Himalayas on a leisurely trek

Excellent trip, well organised and executed, very good guides and porters. We felt very well looked after. Lead guide and 3 assistant guides, 6 porters for 11 clients. Great close-up views of Himalayas. Accommodation very basic but actually better than expected. Twin rooms on 7 nights, quad rooms on 3 nights. Very basic ‘bathrooms’. There were always showers available even if the water wasn’t always hot. Washing facilities not always in same building as bedrooms. Hut food much better and more varied than expected (porridge / muesli with hot milk / eggs any style with toast or local bread, tea / coffee). Food very cheap (400-600 NRs), imported bottled / canned drinks comparatively expensive (beer 600-900, soft drinks 300). Expected tips are more than trip notes suggest. Very gentle pace with long lunch stops (1-1.5 hrs) and 1 or 2 drink stops each day. Plenty of toilet opportunities (huts). Lots of long ascents and descents on stone steps but no problem even as someone who totally bust an ACL 8 months earlier! With a high ratio of guides to clients and lots of rest stops, everyone doesn’t have to walk at the same pace.