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The title does not reflect how ‘bird’ focus sed the trip would be. We saw 120 different bird breeds and only a handful of mammals, these latter predominantly in the grounds of the lodges we stayed in! That is a minor quibble, trip was well led, mostly comfortable (the roads/tracks left a little to be desired) and overall most enjoyable. Eric our guide was excellent on spotting birds, reptiles and near invisible mammals but uninformed and uninterested in plants.
The close up presence of hummingbirds (again, in the lodge gardens!).
Excellent except for the plant quibble above. He filled our 'rest' day with well led activities including the wonderful viewing of Quetzals.
No. We experienced perfect weather but other friends have either frozen or boiled. Be prepared for all eventualities and expect lots of very early rising to see wild life.
A wonderful way to see Sri Lanka. The route captured everything from wildlife to culture to coast.
Our Guide and Team were all exceptional, we couldn’t fault them. A fabulous experience coupled with the opportunity to meet a super group of people. A good blend of moderate and challenging . A little less traffic, fumes and “excitement” on one or two of the roads we could have done without…
The 1500m climb to Nuwar Eliya Cycling alongside elephants and monkeys
Loved him. Exodus is lucky to have Neelaka . I have filled out a separate review for Neelaka.
Get fit and do the climb. Much better than taking the train......
The tour leader Sujee; the driver Madhawa and assistant Kalinda made this 15 day holiday and experience never to be forgotten. I for one will never forgot the moments when the bus would suddenly stop to speak to the ladies picking tea, the farmers drying the sweet corn on a road; visiting the potter and his wife; buying and trying fruit from a young lass who was watching the stall for her father, who wants to go to university; to watching the wild life and views. Listening to Sujee telling us about the country, the people, the wonderful education system, the rural areas, the cities and the religions. Stopping on route to get lunch from a local person or place, simple and lovely.
Visiting Temples, walking up to Lions Rock early in the morning going through the water gardens. Going to Hurulu Eco Park, on an Elephant Safari, fabulous well worth paying that little extra. The walks, just brilliant, particularly the Horton Plain, worlds end 6 mile walk, down ravine like paths, waterfalls, views and yes it was warm. It did take me a few minutes to realise I had to pace myself as the air goes get bit thinner at 14,000 feet. The cycle ride along the rivers, seeing people working, stopping off for tea etc;
Kandy was lovely and we did get free time to wander and enjoy the sights ourselves including a ride on Tuk Tuk and ‘fried’ ice cream (wow).
Oh and the Spice and Herb Garden with back massages at the end!
Up into the highlands of Sri Lanka and the stay at a rather quaint old colonial gentlemans club. Then down the Indian Ocean for a couple of days swimming and relaxation.
Finally the food, just fabulous mind you we were catered for and they did dumb down the chilli, beautiful flavours and the Samosa we had in a tiny place in the middle of no where was one I will never forget
A highly recommended trip and no I didn’t do Adams Peak, I enjoyed my nights sleep instead:)
Meeting the people, enjoying the scenery and being able to bring those memories home
Sujee was very good and passionate about his country and all it has to offer. He was also grateful that people visit his country and the benefits it brings to the people. And believe me we saw plenty of evidence of this on our trip..
My advice would be to have a certain level of fitness for the walking and cycling. You do need to be fit for Adams Peak.
2 weeks in Paradise – wildlife bliss in a beautiful country with a great group and the best guide imaginable ( Jorge )
Too many to list , but include watching a mother humpback whale nurse her baby at Drake bay, being surrounded by a huge pod of dolphins chasing a large shoal of flying fish , seeing a magnificant resplendent quetzal glowing in the sunshine at the top of a tree in sagrevre cloud forest , watching a sloth move slowly along a branch with a baby clinging onto her and waking up to the sounds of the howler monkeys and birds in the forested areas
Having Jorge our guide was actually one of the biggest highlights of our trip . His incredible knowlegde and passion for wildlife and his country was infectious. He was cheerful ,patient and good humoured at all times , and went out of his way to accomodate everyones interests . He worked very hard to ensure we all saw as much wildlife as possible , and could spot birds and animals we would never have seen , and get his scope focused on a rare bird in seconds so we all could see it clearly . We all thoroughly enjoyed his company and sense of humour and he was very generous with his time adding in extra nature walks if we wished. We were all very sad to bid him goodbye at the end of the trip - thank you so much Jorge !
Take plenty of deet and also some local currency ( Colons ) despite what Exodus advises . It just makes buying coffees , drinks and snacks easier as each bar will convert colons to dollars , but the rate of exchange will vary widly from place to place . Most of the group had an extra 24 hrs in San Jose at the end so we could fly on the only direct flight to Gatwick . At the end of the trip it was strange being back in a city after such being immersed in such variety of nature for 2 weeks. If you wanted and had time to visit a nearby volcano, plan this beforehand as its too late to do once you return to San Jose . We visited the National Museum , which was well presented in an old fort very interesting and covered the history of Costa Rica in an intersting way - it really summed up all Jorge had told us about its history .
To call this an adventure is a misnomer it was just a trip followed by hundreds of groups following a well established route. Far to comfortable no sense of the unknown or unexpected. Perhaps as a 75 year old I am harping back to the days of Penn Overland. The majority of Exodus trips now seem to be aimed at the middle aged and upwards who have no idea of true adventure and are not prepared to endure a bit of discomfort.
I think once again I am 30 years to late.
As far as this trip is concerned avoid Manuel Antonio NP, its surroundings are just like Blackpool. How can you go a so called jungle nature walk when you meet people in swimming costumes on the same route, just ridiculous. What’s wrong with Carara NP instead. Luckily I was in Costa Rica for some additional time and visited this NP, also a few volcanoes which seemed to be avoided on the trip itinerary.
The realisation that perhaps I should seek destinations more remote, to day getting more and more difficult.
Exceptional, his enthusiasm was infectious.
Do as much research as possible
This was the most inspirational trip and I can’t speak highly enough of the country, its wildlife and its people. This trip ensured that we spent time in a variety of ecosystems that were all so diverse and each had so much to offer. Our brilliant guide Johnny made sure that we had every opportunity to maximise our time each day to experience as much as we could in every location. Our focus was birdwatching and we saw the most splendid variety of beautifully coloured birds of all types, including the quetzal, as well as many other animals including sloths, monkeys, crocodiles, coatis, agouti, iguanas, snakes , frogs and so on. The accommodation , mainly in lodges, was fabulous . It was always well located and often in lovely grounds and gardens with many opportunities for seeing wildlife before we even set out on our daily itinerary. We were also with a great group of people which made the trip all the more special.
Seeing a 3 toed sloth at close quarters in Tortuguero National Park but there were so many other experiences that I will saviour such as the hot springs at Arenal, the hanging bridges at Monteverde, the wonderful environment of Esquinas Lodge, the sound of frogs at night, the multitude of hummingbirds especially at Sevegre and the general beauty of the countryside wherever we went.
Johnny was just brilliant. I think he must know every bird in Costa Rica by sight and sound and made sure we had every opportunity to see as wide a range as possible. But his knowledge does not stop there - his knowledge of all the wildlife, the different environments and the country in general is encyclopaedic and he is so keen to share it with you. He never seemed to stop working and took us out on many additional walks early in the morning and late at night . He was so well organised, could not do enough to meet our every need and had a lovely personality and sense of humour so that we felt at ease with him from the very beginning. It is no wonder that he won tour guide of the year in 2017.
Just go for it - it is a trip you will never forget.
If you want a relaxed birdwatching trip to Costa Rica this is the one.
It is hard to pick one highlight from this trip as there are so many. Lots of wonderful birds..........macaws. toucans, resplendent queztal,not to mention good views of sloths and snakes. The forests are fabulous.In San Jose the National theatre is a must.
Johnny,our leader, and Olmond our driver, were both excellent.Johnny has a fantastic knowledge of all aspects of Costa Rica.He is a tenacious bird watcher as well as an attentive leader.
The title of this tour describes the itinerary. We explored archaeological sites galore, toured historical city centers, visited local artisans, and ate lots of Mexican (and some Mayan) food. The hotels were all comfortable, and the baños mostly had toilet paper and soap. We had opportunities to swim and to visit a cenote.
Walking into the church at San Juan Chamula with its thousands of candles ablaze.
Arturo was our professor, our concierge, our maitre d'hotel, our friend. It was a pleasure to explore Mexico with him as our guide. He's the best.
The first week of the trip is spent in areas at relatively higher altitude, so the weather was cooler than I expected. With the second week, we hit warm weather. I found my walking sticks helpful for climbing the pyramids at the archaeological sites. Comfortable shoes, of course, are also important.
We wanted a holiday where there was plenty of opportunity to see wildlife, and this lived up to our expectation. Whale watching (saw blue whales and pilot whales), lots of colourful birds, mammals and reptiles too – the bio-diversity, especially of birds, was staggering. We had a naturalist with us who was really good at spotting and identifying birds – that really made a difference.
The hotels we stayed in were all different with their own character, and with one exception, were of a high standard. Loved staying in the rainforest and doing yoga at the beach. Enjoyed Sri Lankan food and especially having tropical fruit every day and fresh fruit juices. The group of people we were with were all great.
Looking across a lake and seeing herons, cormorants, pelicans, storks, crocodiles, water buffalo, kingfishers.......just so much to see, all in one place. Hearing the birds and frogs in the morning. Seeing orphan elephants running to be fed. Doing yoga looking at the sunrise over the sea.
The group leader was excellent - knowledgeable, organised, helpful, friendly, sense of humour. He told us bits about Sri Lankan history and society, which were really interesting and took care of all our needs.
Take binoculars - it's much easier to appreciate the birds if you can see them properly!
5 days very easy snowshoeing over well walked trails.
The optional trips were good in particular the hire of a snowmobile in Ruka plus the short dog sledding experience at the Arctic Circle.
Accommodation was basic but found that the underfloor heating in the bedroom section was not up to it as the room temperature dropped to +10 with warmest being +14.
Would have rated it as Excellent if there had been more chance to walk in virgin snow instead of keeping to previously walked trails. Also lack of fresh fruit at Basecamp.
Seeing local men using fishing nets below ice on frozen lake...a rare chance to see them. The heavily snowed forests and the peace and quiet. Seeing the Aurora Borealis from the frozen lake a few minutes walk down from Basecamp locale
Else our Finnish guide was excellent throughout, friendly, informative, caring and thoughtful.
Ensure you hydrate sufficiently with warm drinks during outings. Basecamp food was good but is completely lacking in supply of fruit such as apples, oranges or bananas. I’d advise people to take dried fruit with them.