Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

The Inca Trail which was the reason for going. What an experience and fortunately the weather was good.however second would be learning about the anti plano and Lake Titicaca and meeting some of the local Imara Indians.  So many memories i could go on forever.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Carlos was excellent and very attentive. We were a little nervous i think at first and he sensed this and kept us entertained.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Use Exodus, read the trip notes and enjoy!

Suggestions

just a very big thank you for a holiday of a lifetime!

Most Inspirational Moment

The trail was the reason I booked it and I wasn't let down by it.  Amazing views

Thoughts on Group Leader

Really good.  Very knowledgable, could answer all questions and very patient

Advice for Potential Travellers

Do it

Most Inspirational Moment

seeing all the children welcome you to their villages

Thoughts on Group Leader

Al was fantastic he had alot of patience as i tend to linger at the back, i was always taking photographs

Advice for Potential Travellers

don't be put off trying to keep up with the group, you soon catch them up at the next stop and there is always somebody behind you to show you the way

Suggestions

This is a great cycling holiday lots of milage but well spaced out with lots of time to visit and chat to the locals

Most Inspirational Moment

Completing the 100km ride from Kandy to Nuwara Elia up a 2000m climb. As I’m not much of a cyclist it was much longer and steeper than I ever imagined. Also being about 10m away from a wild leopard when we went on the safari.  This apparently was a very unusual sight. Also, climbing to the top of Sigiriya Rock. This rewarded us with spectacular views of the surrounding countryside.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Suresh was always very helpful and put our comfort and safety above everything else.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The quality of the hotels we stayed at varied greatly from lovely to rather poor. Also everything seemed to close at 10.30pm, even the bars/restaurants/hotels, so if you want to eat and drink go early or go hungry and thirsty. Not such a bad thing when there are many 6am starts.

Suggestions

The holiday describes “Terrain and route: 95% tarmac, 5% unsurfaced road” which in my opinion is a bit of an exaggeration. Many of the “roads” for long stretches were nothing more than potholes in one particular direction. Whilst it no doubt had once been surfaced that was a long time ago and it had not been maintained. To be honest the unsurfaced roads were generally smother and nicer.

Most Inspirational Moment

 On the first walking day we went out on the Sao Lourenco peninsular. The weather was at its best and the volcanic landscape and the wild Atlantic added up to a breathtaking experience.  

Thoughts on Group Leader

Andre was knowledgeable and passionate about his island. He was patient and adaptive changing the itinerary when the weather intervened and spoilt the original plans.

Advice for Potential Travellers

It can rain in April (and presumably at other times) so be prepared for cold mountain tops and wet weather. All the nice wine from the supermarkets came with real corks so take a corkscrew!

Suggestions

You won 't have a lot of time to take photos on the walks so set to auto and fire away and sort out the rubbish later. The levadas are fantastic works of engineering and the tunnels on the walk to the waterfall are low so don't bash your head. Admire all the empty motorways linking the island's small villages by tunnel and viaduct. Enjoy your Euro Billions at work!

Most Inspirational Moment

Witnessing a tiger approach a small water hole along a dry river bed and then drinking from it only metres from our jeep. Then followed by a second tiger minutes later! Only 4 or 5 jeeps present making the experience even more magical.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Krishna was an excellent group leader: professional, knowledgeable and patient at all times. He brought so much more to the trip through his knowledge and love of his native country, enriching the tour with details of society, religion and food and drink as well as an incomparable knowledge of bird and wilidlife.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Enjoy the experience! It's a privilege to experience these animals at close quarters and worth taking some time away from the frenzy of getting the perfect shot to simply enjoy the presence of the tigers.

Most Inspirational Moment

Actually camping and experiencing EBC with other climbing teams. Summiting Kala Pattar, and Nantkarshang, both over 5100m mountains.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Val Parkinson - what can I say that hasn't been said already? Her enthusiasm for the Himalaya is infectious, Valerie is never to tired or otherwise occupied, to answer questions and talk about her experiences. She clearly cares about the Sherpa staff we had with us, and is clearly very popular with the Nepalese lodge owners, who all know her by name; the three sherpa's - Chewang, Lapka and Yuba were superb, and great company.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Lots - go slowly, you will get there; drink plenty of water, at least 4 litres a day. Last time I did this I didn't drink enough and struggled.

Suggestions

The holdalls provided are not fit for purpose, mine ripped before I had booked it into Heathrow. The strap came away and tore the fabric. Why not have some bags made to the same standard as Mountain Equipment holdalls, saw loads on thetrek, have one myself, never let me down.The luggage label for life - isn't. Mine broke, as did nearly everyone else's. We saw lots of other trekkers, identifiable by their hats, T-shirts, etc, all with their travel companies logo's emblazoned on them; how good would your trekkers look at Base Camp all wearing an Exodus T shirt.Also, a distinct travel label for hand luggage would be good, as fellow Exodus travellers can identify one another at the point of departure. 

Most Inspirational Moment

Petra exceeded my expectations. I was so pleased that we were able to spend two full days there to marvel at the history and explore the challenging landscape. The site is much bigger than I had realised and you cetainly need sturdy footwear and a lot of energy to get the most from it, but there were suprises round every corner and views to die for!The night in the desert will also stay with me, sleeping out under the stars next to the firepit after a truly amazing meal. Don't forget to take a torch!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Khaled was very well-informed about all aspects of his country and answered all our questions with patience and humour. His ability to organise us all without it becoming overbearing, meant that everything ran smoothly and we learned so much.

Advice for Potential Travellers

You will be in the sun all day at Petra, so don't forget to wear something very light, possibly with sleeves to protect you. Some necks got very burnt but those who had bought the light white scarves kept cooler and were protected. Whatever you wear, it will be a deep shade of Petra-pink by the end of the day, including your shoes!There seemed to be plenty of sleeping bags and blankets available to borrow at the desert camp, so perhaps a sleeping bag liner would be sufficient to take and cut down on that luggage.For the female travellers, don't take too many changes of clothing for the evening - clean pair of jeans and three or four prettier tops will be plenty. You might need a wrap from time to time but there are plenty of these to buy everywhere.

Suggestions

Jordan is situated in a troubled part of the world but we felt safe at all times. Our tourist policeman who had to travel with us at all times was funny and friendly and very useful when getting us through the heavier traffic and helping us over rougher terrain.I will carry the images of the arid landscape with me for a very long time - the rock formations, the desert, the camels, the enormous views and the closeness to all those biblical places we learned about in our childhood.

Most Inspirational Moment

From a cultural point of view visiting Herculaneum was fantastically interesting for me.  The "Walk of the Gods" down to Positano and swimming at the bottom was also thrilling.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our group was lucky in that we had a truly exellent leader. I have been on many trips and he was one of the best I have encountered

Advice for Potential Travellers

Read up about Pompei and Herculaneum and Vesuvius beforehand (Wikipedia is a good start).

Suggestions

Try the pastry " pastiera sfogliatella napolitena" which is a Naples speciality.  Three of us walked back up from Amalfi while the others took the bus. It took us 3 hours but was good fun. 

Most Inspirational Moment

Sleeping under the stars in the desert, after a satisfying dinner sitting round the campfire, and well-deserved after a few hours of walking and scrambling! Spending the days eating, walking and napping when it was too hot to walk around lunchtime. Standing on any three of the Rock Bridges we climbed up to. Walking up to the Monastery in Petra. A Bedouin turning up at the camp with a gigantic keyboard and staging a little party for us.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Danny was a walking history book (in a good way!) and knew everything anyone would ever want to know about Jordan. My favourite were his amazing (and according to him, 100% true) camel stories he told us around the campfire at night.

Advice for Potential Travellers

If you have a dust allergy, take lots of tissues and some anti-histamines! Take a few days before or after the trip to go to the Dead Sea - it's really close to Amman and pretty much on the way back from Petra.