Reviews

A real adventure for the whole family

This was a jam-packed trip, taking in city life in Cape Town and experiencing the wide variety of wildlife on the coast and in the reserves. Our tour guides were friendly and informative and happily shared all of their stories and knowledge with us on the journey. There were so many highlights and our family enjoyed the changing scenery from the coast to the Karoo and everything in between. Thanks to Petro we sampled a real variety of food and drink and enjoyed trying lots of new things. We were very sad to leave and will return to explore more!

Kenya and Tanzania Adventure

It was an absolutely amazing trip. We saw the Big 5 plus their babies. We also saw the Ugly 5. Plus thousands of zebras and wildebeests and hundreds of different gazelles.

Obrigado Portugal!

A really good introduction to Portugal indeed! When I booked this trip, naturally the first thing I did was read the reviews like we all do!
The trip starts in Porto and ends in Lisbon – with many unique small town overnights in-between. Most people mentioned that it was very fast paced – however I feel that Exodus has really taken the time and effort to improve this trip in recent times as I felt very relaxed and had ample free time to explore on my own and with some friends I made in our group!
My personal highlights were Porto (worth an extension) and Batalha Monastery which no matter what camera lens you have, cannot actually describe the unique, intricate architecture and design – you have to see it to believe it!
Our guide Mariana was very cheerful, informative and very passionate about her country and sharing that with us was wonderful!
Prepare yourself for big portions of food (lots of cod) and ample Port Wine! If you are not into Port a good old Imperial “beer” also does the trick!
There is an optional “fado” dinner at a local’s house on the last night that was very interesting… Also expect big city life when you stay in Lisboa!
Overall I would recommend this trip to anyone who wants a overview of Portugal and all that it has to offer.

Worth the Ride!

This was our first time on a biking tour with Exodus and we would highly recommend it!! Biking through small historical towns, UNESCO sites, scenic natural beauty, – amazing! Our guide, Jan, and driver, Lubos, took great care of us and Jan’s knowledge of the historical political scene during the Cold War made the tour so much richer. Worth the ride!!

Beautiful Island...fantastic holiday

South Evia is such a lovely island, and this hiking holiday shows it off to it’s best advantage. George was a wonderful guide, and went above and beyond what I expected, made everyone feel safe and gave an insight into the area as he grew up around there. Highly recommended this hiking holiday.

Wonderful wildlife

Hotels
The hotels were clean and the staff were friendly. Some of the hotels were run on solar power or generators which were turned off around 22:00/23:00. Turned back on about 5:00, remember to take a torch with you. All the rooms were a good size. Some hotels did not have hot water, although a bucket of hot water could be provided. The hotels provided bars of soap, some of which had been used by the previous occupants. Net curtains were provided in some of the hotels. I would recommend always wearing mozzie spray at all times, and taking sufficient toiletries for the duration of your trip.

The roads are awful, making all journeys long and uncomfortable. Arriving at the hotel after an early start, given our room keys and told we needed to order dinner. I understand the need for ordering as they needed to freshly cook the food. There was no time to wind down before eating.

Food
Breakfasts were simple, bread, jam, fruit, and eggs. There was enough food provided to start your day.

Lunch was non-existent on many days. Several days we had chips and cereal bars
On the occasions we did stop for lunch then it was a tourist type restaurant where the food was more like a main meal. There were no light lunches and we ended up with a plate of chips (French fries). For the majority of our journey there are no places to buy snacks. At least 4 of our journeys resulted in a picnic lunch of the bus. One hotel offered us a packed lunch of omelette or sardine sandwiches which are not to everyone’s taste.

Dinner. All bar one was taken in the hotel as there are very few restaurants around, and none outside the main towns. There was a limited choice of food in the hotels and most people on our group had upset stomachs. The food was overcooked and the meat/fish was tough.

Roads
Are terrible, potholes that you could fit a car in. The journeys on the 4×4 and the bus were very uncomfortable and the proposed journey time in the trips notes were under estimated. We had three journeys of 12 hours. The state of the roads means that after your early start to the day that you are unable to have a ‘nap’.

Transport
The bus and 4×4 were in a good condition, albeit that our bus needed to change a tyre and to fix a slow puncture. The tread on the tyres would not pass a MOT.

As we were a small group (8) then we could spread ourselves around. It did however make slow progress due to the road conditions

We had sufficient room in the 4x’s however we were thrown around due the road surface, which was mainly mud. The drivers were very mechanically minded and could fix problems on the cars and quickly change tyres.

The very long days did detract from the overall experience of the trip

Wildlife
There is abundant wildlife which our guides managed to find for us. We were able to take many, many photographs. The wildlife and in particular seeing lemurs in the wild was the main reason to go to Madagascar. There were a lot of them and we saw many different types. The mouse lemur is the cutest.

Walking
There is a lot of walking on uneven ground as the animals are living in their natural habitat. Be prepared to scramble through the undergrowth to get ‘that’ picture.

Begging
Madagascar is a poor country and not set up for mass tourism. Be prepared to see a lot of children begging for sweets and money as you travel through the countryside.

Fantastic time - Mont Blanc Highlights

Mont Blanc is truly spectacular. Our guide Adrian was exceptional and fun! He changed our hiking schedule as necessary to ensure the best experiences and amazing views . We stayed at Chalet Chalupa in Les Houches. The short bus or train ride into Chamonix was very easy, with our guide showing us all the necessary stops. Our hosts were kind and always helpful. The only improvement I would suggest is offering two dinner options.

Mont Blanc Highlights

Just home from a fab week based in Les Houches, where we felt so at home in a comfortable, happy environment, meeting people from all over the world. Laura, our chalet host looked after us so well with good home made food, suitable for physical demands of the trekking.

Wonderful week in Chamonix

Just returned from a wonderful week in and around Chamonix. Our group leader Adrian was fantastic at selecting the perfect route for weather condition and amazing views. He enhanced the group experience challenging and entertaining us. The chalet was comfortable with a lovely bunch of people and a kind and helpful chalet host Laura .

Disappointing

I want to try to write a balanced review, so will start with what we enjoyed and what was good.

We stayed in Chalet Chocolat, which was comfortable and well located for going into Chamonix. We especially liked having the use of the hot tub in the evening after hikes. Trip organisation was good overall, with smooth transport to and from Geneva. Our group leader, Maria, was kind and personable; we were unlucky with the weather but he did a good job of keeping the mood upbeat and looking after a group of varying fitness levels.

The chalet experience overall unfortunately ruined the trip. I don’t know what was going on with the hosts (I won’t name them as I don’t want to single them out), who have some glowing reviews from previous guests, but it just seemed as though they had had enough and didn’t want to be there. They did what they were required to do but nothing more. Surly, unfriendly and generally as though they couldn’t be bothered and that we the guests were kind of annoying. Perhaps our expectations were too high, I’m not quite sure. Mealtimes were rushed, with it feeling as though we needed to just clear off the table as soon as possible so they could tidy up. One evening they had friends staying and were having their own little social gathering through the kitchen window – on that occasion they were in such a hurry that the main course got slammed down before we had all finished our starters. The food was sometimes nice but on the whole quite uninspiring. My vegetarian options were especially poor and on two occasions given to me burnt, with no apology or offer of an alternative. We had to constantly interrupt them from being on their phones to ask for small things like some more water for the table. One day we ran out of milk – again with no sort of apology, just “here you can have this oat milk instead”. These are all tiny things that it seems silly to complain about, but against the backdrop of the experience everything just mounted up. On the final day, no goodbye or anything, just a request that we be out of our rooms by 8am so that they could start cleaning. Exodus perhaps needs to look at giving their chalet hosts a bit more ground support – this couple seemed deeply unhappy in their job and I would always look to the company in a situation like this to find a way to make things better for everyone!

Honestly, for price point of this trip we expected a much better experience. We have stayed in chalet accommodation previously for far less money and had a lovely time. Based on the experience this time around we are unlikely to book with Exodus again.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Go into Chamonix and buy snacks and alcohol from the Super U - much cheaper than the honesty bar in the chalet. Multipack crisps are charged at €1.50 per packet and a small bag of fruit and nuts is €3! There is no proper drying room but you can use your bathroom heater to create your own quite effectively. Take a hairdryer if you like to have one - there was one in the chalet but only because a previous guest had left it there.

Reply from Exodus

Thank you for taking the time to submit a review about your recent Exodus holiday, Laura. We’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed the hot tub after your hikes and that the trip organisation, including transport to and from Geneva, was smooth. It’s great to know that Maria was a fantastic group leader, maintaining a positive atmosphere despite the weather challenges. However, I’m truly sorry to learn that the chalet experience did not meet your expectations. Your feedback regarding the hosts’ attitude and overall service is concerning, and I want to assure you that we take this feedback seriously. We share your disappointment in hearing that your experience with the hosts, did not align with the high standards you’ve come to expect from Exodus. Creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere for our guests is of utmost importance to us, and it’s disheartening to learn that we fell short in this regard. While we understand that our hosts typically receive positive feedback for their service, it is troubling to hear that their demeanour during your stay felt distant and unfriendly. We recognise that our hosts juggle many responsibilities behind the scenes, and while their busyness may have affected their engagement with guests, it’s certainly not the impression we want to leave with our travellers. Regarding your concerns that the crew seemed unhappy or unsupported, I want to clarify that many of our crew and leaders are longstanding members of our team, returning season after season, which is reflective of the supportive environment we strive to provide for our crew. Please rest assured that these matters will be thoroughly investigated, and we will take the necessary steps to remind our hosts of the importance of actively engaging with guests. We believe fostering a more inclusive and friendly environment is crucial to enhancing our guests’ experiences, and we are committed to addressing this issue moving forward. Thank you once again for your constructive feedback. We are dedicated to improving our tours and providing memorable experiences and hope that you would afford us the opportunity to welcome you back for a journey that truly reflects the high standards we aim to uphold.