Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

We would like to think that the most inspirational moment of our trip was our Vietnamese cookery course in that we would hope it will inspire us to try cooking Vietnamese recipes at home! However the most thought provoking moments had to be the trips to the Remnants of War museum in Ho Ch Minh city. the Cu Chi tunnels, and especially in Cambodia the trips to S21 and the Killing Fields.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Phuong Le is an excellent group leader. She was always on hand if we needed her and she did her utmost to make sure we enjoyed every moment. Her knowledge of the destinations, history and culture are excellent and she managed the right balance between taking to us and letting us relax on the various bus trips. She seemed very quickly to understand the characteristics of the various individuals in the group and has a great sense of humour which all helped the group to gel with one another. We will not forget her as a couple of her phrases have already made it into our daily vocabulary.

Advice for Potential Travellers

If travelling in August you won't need anything of the "slightly warmer in case it's chilly in the evenings" category, not even on the boat. Take plenty of lightweight tops as you might want to change during the day due to the humidity but there are options for laundry. We would recommend trying all the optional extras that are offered - nothing is expensive by UK standards. If you go to Cambodia you only need US dollars, not Cambodian currency.

Most Inspirational Moment

The most inspirational moment of the trek for me was the realisation that I had got to the top of Konga Ri. I’d had a few days of self doubt and I’d found the climb in deep snow tough. But when I got to the top of the mountain, dropped my pack and just took in the incredible panorama of Beautiful snow capped mountains, none of that mattered. I think the slice of cherry cake Tamchos, our guide, gave me at that point may have helped as well.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Valerie, our group leader, was more than a match for anything the mountains could throw at us. She was able to adjust the route and camp sites to deal with the delays caused by weather and still keep us on track. Her knowledge and experience came across in her confidence, which in turn gave us the confidence that we would complete the trek. Our group provided her with some challenges of her own, but they were all dealt with professionally and without fuss or drama. I certainly benefited from her advice and encouragement. And she has some great after dinner stories that made our experiences pale into insignificance!

Advice for Potential Travellers

The internal flight and trek weight limits mean you have to be ruthless with your packing. If I was going back this time next year I wouldn’t take a heavy down jacket (which I didn’t use) but instead I’d use a midweight one and several fleece and base layers. The river crossings are inevitable and cold and you need to wear some kind of protection for your feet as the riverbed can be sharp and uneven. I took cheap crocs but as there was walking between crossings and it wasn’t practical to keep changing back and forth, I would take a cheap pair of walking sandals next time (as did most of the rest of my group). I ended up walking in my light fabric boots, which was fine, but they took a full day of sunshine to dry out. If, like me, your previous treks have been the likes of Everest Base Camp and/or Kilimanjaro, know that this is physically and mentally much more challenging. I found it hard to accept that although we were climbing passes between 4800m and 5300m most mornings, we would descend again to camp much lower, losing the hard gained altitude. It’s the nature of the terrain and its good acclimatisation but it might sap mental stamina as well as energy. A good group dynamic helped me.

Most Inspirational Moment

Almost too many to mention but top days included: Cycling through Laheema National Park and Curonia Spit National Park plus the Witch Wood; smoked salmon lunch in the museum; onion soup cafe!; Trakai Castle; swimming in the lake by Trakai castle; organ recital in Riga Cathedral

Thoughts on Group Leader

Andrius was a great group leader - great sense of humour, enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the Baltics and through his story telling skills bought the history of the country to life. Was alert to the needs of the group and ensured that were able to do our choice of activities whether minority or majority. We were lucky to have him take us this beautiful region.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be relaxed, follow your guide's advice, go with the flow and take a swimming costume

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling the Curonian Spit and I really enjoyed the folk night in Vilnius contrary to expectations

Thoughts on Group Leader

Andrius held my interest from beginning to end with his extensive knowledge and great sense of humour.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take your swimming trunks and have the smoked salmon at the fisherman's museum.

Most Inspirational Moment

Sunrise from Uhuru summit.

Thoughts on Group Leader

John Seka was excellent. Very competent, caring and humourous.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Down sleeping bag as the 2 nights above 4,500m were very cold Take Diamox 125mg twice daily Wear very comfy boots as you will be wearing them for 6 days.

Most Inspirational Moment

There was some enjoyable cycling, interspersed with some unusual but very interesting sights such as the Hill of Crosses and the Nuclear Missile site in Lithuania, which were about as different as you can imagine but both worth seeing. The nightlife in Vilnius was also a lot of fun!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Andrius was an excellent group leader, with great local knowledge, a sharp sense of humour, and able to tell interesting stories about the history of the places we were visiting. He was well organised, and coped well with a couple of first aid incidents! Food choices were good (the smoked fish a personal highlight!) and having a plan B on the only day it rained was great as well, as it meant we cycled an alternative route, while still heading in the right direction for the final destination, which the group appreciated.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Go with the flow and you’ll have a very enjoyable trip

Most Inspirational Moment

Cycling through the villages around Peipsie lake

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Bring your swimming costume.

Most Inspirational Moment

Riding in Lahemaa National Park and along the Curonian Spit.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our group leader, Andrius, was very informative and explained the history and culture of the Baltic countries with candour and humour. He was very well organised so it all ran without a hitch and the pleasant extras were very enjoyable.

Most Inspirational Moment

Kayaking in Ha Long bay, then being taken to a secret beautiful beach to swim. We were all so delighted, and stayed for ages in the beautiful water chatting and getting to know one another.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Absolutely excellent. As I said above - Ashley was sweet, caring, capable, funny, knowledgeable helpful and enthusiastic. We all loved her. I particularly appreciated the fact that I could eat a whole variety of delicious food despite my severe nut allergy. Ashley explained it to chefs everywhere we went. In other countries I have accepted that I need to just eat plain, boring food. But everywhere we went, the cooks made special nut-free delicious food after Ashley had explained.

Advice for Potential Travellers

You have to go - it’s a beautiful country and an extremely well organised trip. Also, I worried about mosquitoes, but we hardly saw any.

Most Inspirational Moment

Lots..... The boat trip at Kas to the sunken city .Enough members of our group went so we got a private boat. Ephesus Capadoccia...scenery and underground city Gallipoli Antalya...lovely town Sunsets Whirling dervish ceremony and the Rumi mausoleum in Konya The theatre at Aspendos Others in the group would say the hot air balloon ride.....it is very expensive...195 euros.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Emir was a five star leader.Our group was very varied with some young people as well as a variety of older people with varying levels of energy but Emir tried always to keep everyone happy. He was always patient and was great fun. His English was excellent and his knowledge and love of his country while remaining objective was amazing. He was very stimulating to be with. If he didn’t know the answer to a specific question he researched it.....he was keen to know everything. I have come home determined to read up about Greek gods etc. A real people person.....he seemed to know lots of people on every stop and they all loved to talk to him. He took us every evening for a group meal and that helped us enjoy the Turkish food and order confidently. The driver was such a nice man but not much English.....frustrating not to be able to chat to him. We did learn a bit of Turkish in the end!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Don’t bother to take walking boots...strong trainers are enough. None of us did the Lycian walk although we intended to do it. It was too hot and only a two hour walk so not really worth it. The boat trip was a better option. It is hot in August....take light clothes. There were opportunities to wash clothes. Go early or stay to see Istanbul. Take a head scarf...long shorts were fine. They give you a skirt if it is necessary. Loads of ATMs and change places. All hotels had hairdryers. Take swimming stuff...lots of chances to swim in pools and beaches.