Reviews

Your Words – We tell it like it is! Holiday Reviews by previous Exodus travellers

Here at Exodus we thrive on feedback from our customers. It’s the only way we can ensure our trips continue to be the best they can be. So, for the real tales, twists and turns of the trip you’re interested in, look no further than the reviews from our previous travellers.

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14440 Reviews

4.7 out of 5

Helen & Joe Winkler

Reviewed June 2018

Great Trip

We had booked this trip to mark our 40th wedding anniversary and it did not disappoint.

The travel arrangements all worked very well and our accommodation was of a very good standard.

We had a brilliant guide, who introduced us to a series of memorable experiences, including our first taste of authentic Japanese cooking.

The trip lived up to our expectations and was very much in line with what had been set out in the Trip Notes.

Most Inspirational Moment

In no particular order...... Seeing Mt Fuji appear through the clouds Travelling on the Shinkansen......seriously quick! Seeing the contrast between the countryside and the built up areas as we travelled around Walking The Philosophers Path in Kyoto.....very peaceful Seeing the macaques at Yukanada...the babies in particular were very entertaining Experiencing early morning rush hour on the Tokyo Metro Appreciating the cleanliness of the country...no litter to be seen anywhere Feeling welcome in a strange land

Thoughts on Group Leader

Misa is an excellent leader and nothing was too much trouble for her. She went out of her way to make sure that we all enjoyed our time in Japan. On arriving in our hotel room in Kyoto on the first evening, we found that she had left us a card and gift for our anniversary. The daily arrangements for travel were a masterclass in organisation, always done with a smile. Misa gave up her own time to make sure that we could all make the most of our free days. Some of the group found the food choices challenging, so Misa put a lot of effort into finding dishes to suit their dietary requirements. We learned a lot about Japanese culture and history from Misa and her charm and grace was simply an extension of how we were received by Japanese people in general.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Realise that the food in Japan is totally different from what you are used to. Read the Trip Notes carefully and bring your own snacks and/or be prepared to shop in the local small supermarkets. We had never eaten Japanese before and found that most things were delicious. Everywhere you go, the toilets are spotless. Most do not have hand dryers or paper towels, so do as the Japanese do and carry a small towel or flannel with you for hand drying. There is quite a bit of walking and steps, so make sure you have your walking legs on!

Rosalind Jarvis

Reviewed June 2018

Amazing bears

Overall a good holiday. The best things for me were seeing the bears in the wild and the local walks around Magura. The high alpine scenery, the flower filled meadows, the limestone gorges, were beautiful.

The guest house is pleasant and food good. Breakfasts are help yourself, semi-continental with a egg option, using this good selection to make packed lunch. Generally I thought the evening meal food was very good, the staff seem to work tirelessly preparing them and must be commended. Though on one or two days, whilst portions were perfect for my small/normal appetite, I think a large man may have been left a bit hungry. Honesty bar for beers and wine works well.

Negatives – we had mixed weather and the leaders Thomas and Katrina rejigged the week’s schedule. The rain entirely spoilt the horse and cart ride/walk to the monastery day. Out of exodus’s control yes, but not quite sure why the leaders insisted upon us starting this activity if they knew how rainy it was in the valley below the guesthouse. Perhaps a bit more leeway to add in a visit to an indoor place or town would be sensible here?

Secondly, Exodus should reconsider the addition of the cable car and high alpine walk. This involved a near two hour transfer there and back (4 hours in total driving), and a less inspiring walk at the top (think Dartmooresque scenery) than those around Magura itself. The restaurant on this day was good but game orientated. I would entirely leave this option out and add in another walk around Magura.

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing the bears in the wild was brilliant. I would have been happy to see one or two, but we saw 10-15 in a three hour period including mother and cubs. Secondly visiting the fortified church, having local schapps and cake with a very different type of priest. The beautiful scenery around Magura for walking. Observing some of ongoing traditional farming practices.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Thomas, and Katrina (who owns the guest house), were very knowledgeable leaders about the local history and environment. Katrina would accompany us on some of the excursions e.g. bird watching (where we saw a pelican!)

Advice for Potential Travellers

This is certainly not a walking holiday for anyone who does a reasonable level of walking - I found this frustrating. However, if you are not a walker, the nature of some of the shorter (10km walks) makes them a little more challenging than normal. There is also a considerable amount of time spent on mini-buses transferring between activities due to the location of Magura in the mountains, which I didn't appreciate on booking. Magura is a peaceful location, there is no other source of evening amusement apart from the guesthouse and a local "bar" (read cabin on stilts).

Theresa Wareham

Reviewed June 2018

Fabulous trip

Really interesting, active trip with plenty of interesting food & wine experience, history, culture and lovely group of people. Led by an excellent tour leader.

Most Inspirational Moment

The cookery demonstration & practice. This was in a beautiful environment & we had excellent tuition in preparing the food for our lunch. And then eating our food in a delightful outdoor courtyard in the warm sun was just wonderful.

Thoughts on Group Leader

He was great. Really friendly & good fun but also efficient & very knowledgeable. I’d happily go on a trip with him again.

Advice for Potential Travellers

You do need a reasonable level of fitness. There was quite a lot of walking to do & a couple of the people in our party struggled a bit. It does say about good health & reasonable fitness in the tour details but this needs to be emphasised at the booking stage.

Jenifer Knox

Reviewed June 2018

My daughter Jane's and my wonderful holiday

My daughter Jane and I enjoyed a most wonderful holiday in Sicily last April 22nd to 29th.
There was so much to see and do and Rosario looked after us so weii from meeting us in Palermo airport til we said goodbye at Catania. He went to so much trouble to find us lovely restaurants with delicious food. He helped us understand the menu and it was lovely for our group to dine with the local people.
Our tour was amazing and Rosario and his colleagues had such a wealth of knowledge about all the wonderful places they showed us and their history.
The opportunity to visit the farm and see the cheese being made and of course taste it was wonderful. Also to see the Masala wine being made and taste it. The market, the olive farm the winery and wine tasting was brilliant. The cookery class was amazing and it was great to learn how to make the dishes and then be able to eat them.
The hotels were all excellent and Guiseppe was an excellent driver and all our travel was very comfortable.

Most Inspirational Moment

We enjoyed it all. My daughter loved the mosaics at Piazza Armerina. I found Mt Etna breathtaking. I also loved Palermo and the valley of the temples. Taormina was wonderful too. We certainly got our food adventure and the wine to accompany it with the added bonus of seeing the wonderful sights and learning the history of the beautiful island of Sicily.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our group leader Rosario was amazing. He was very kind, thoughtful understanding and patient. He had so much knowledge about all the places we saw and explained it all so well. He made sure we had plenty of comfort breaks and opportunities to have coffee granita, ice cream etc aswell as the food tasting which was arranged for us. This was very much appreciated by us all. He arranged for us all to have our evening meal as a group if we wished and that was a great help for us all to get to know each other and made the holiday extra special because we all got on so well. Our sincere thanks to him.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Wear comfortable footwear the streets are beautiful but very steep and uneven.

David Morton

Reviewed June 2018

Superb week away!

This was my first cycling trip, and the week was fantastic! On the morning of Day 3 at breakfast, we were commenting to each other that we could not believe we had only been cycling for 2 days. Seeing the history-packed cities of Verona, Vicenza and Padova briefly during the day and staying only 1 night, we promised to return to each city for at least a few nights in future.

Most Inspirational Moment

Probably the most dramatic part of the trip, despite not being actual cycling (though that was good overall), was taking a catamaran ferry from the top of Lake Garda at Riva del Garda southbound to Desenzano. Being on the water is always wonderful, and this 3-hour trip calling at gorgeous lakeside towns I had never heard of, let alone visited, was captivating. One could tell at a glance that these were all and each extraordinary places of beauty and resonance that have crafted lovely summer memories for thousands of visitors over at least a few centuries.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Michele was a terrific leader and host for the week. Being a native of Vicenza, he knows the entire Veneto region very well and his high energy levels, good cheer and ready smile kept us all motivated and made for a wonderful trip. Martino's friendliness and support from the van was much appreciated. We enjoyed time with both guys during stops for delicious Italian food at lunchtime.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Make yourself go and do at least a few cycling days of 30miles/50km in the several weeks before you go! I thought, "No problem, I'm in reasonable shape and this just a #3/moderate rated trip" and didn't do much pre-trip training. While the trip was still pleasant overall, as per Exodus' advice, one will appreciate it much more having been "in the saddle" for at least a moderate period, and significant daily duration, before travelling.

Keiko Tanioka-Man

Reviewed June 2018

Memorable trip

Cathedrals, Temples, Churches, Monasteries, ruins scatter over beautiful ‘picturesque’ landscape of rolling green hills and mountain top, and a view of Mount Ararat or Mount Kazbek, ahhh… Well organized itinerary.
I thoroughly enjoyed the trip with a company of like minded, well traveled and mature people from various countries.

Most Inspirational Moment

Karahunj (Zorats Karer) - the Armenian Stonehenge (Yey)!!! and walk up to Gergeti Trinity Church in Georgia, definitely.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Well organized and knowledgeable in many respects. They love their respective countries and enthusiastic to introduce us their land with pride. They both looked after us so professionally, even though they both very young. Armenian guide (Rafik) is a young man of intelligence and made us smile with witty sense of humor. Thanks for taking us to Karahunj (was in my bucket list last few decades, accomplished!), afternoon tea at Molokan Village, Lavash bread making demo. Georgian guide (Nino) is always cordial with beautiful smile. Thanks for ‘Daily Reminder’ each night so that we can prepare for what to expect the following day. You somehow managed not to lose any of us during the walk to/from Gergeti Trinity Church!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Bring your own scarf for ladies and long pants for gents esp. in Georgia. If you forget, you may be able to borrow at the entrance of churches free of charge. Bring comfortable walking shoes. Always ask if you can take photo before you enter the religious monuments. If you like history and cultural experience, briefly research where you are going to visit beforehand so that you can enjoy and appreciate it more. Both countries were cross-road of many different cultures, religions and empires along the silk roads over the centuries, made them uniquely distinct place with beautiful scenery.

Sharon Whitbread

Reviewed June 2018

Wonderful first experience of walking holidays!

Really enjoyed this trip, our guide, Liz, was excellent, the walks were well planned and we were able to explore this beautiful region, the Garfagnana area, which we had not visited before. The agriturismo experience was another first for us, our hosts were warm and welcoming and the food and home-produced wine was plentiful and tasty, it was a lovely environment. We were lucky to be with a very friendly group of fellow walkers which added to the experience and we have arrived home feeling very refreshed and keen to book another Exodus trip in the near future. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone who enjoys walking and beautiful countryside.

Most Inspirational Moment

I loved it all!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Liz was very enthusiastic and planned our days well, taking into account weather conditions and everyone’s needs. She was very attentive to each person on the trip and the holiday would not have been the same without her.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Book this trip!

Jane Hoskisson

Reviewed June 2018

Loved every minute....even the rain!

This trip was to celebrate a big birthday for a dear friend, and it was truly one of the best ways I can imagine to usher in a new decade. We are casual cyclists so it was great there was nothing too daunting in terms of distance and elevation – and I was so distracted by the stunning scenes that I did not mind the odd view stop on the steeper bits.

Most Inspirational Moment

I will never forget turning the corner and seeing beautiful Lake Garda - truly magical, and I thought it could not be topped - that was until Michele took us to look at the roof tops of Venice. Breathtaking!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Michele and Martino were a great team, and I think Michele's local knowledge shone through in terms of his recommendations for restaurants every evening. He's a passionate Italian Ambassador, and for sure the trip was greatly enhanced by his local knowledge and passion for this beautiful part of the world.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Bring a sense of humour if it rains!

Graham Ritchie

Reviewed June 2018

postscript

Sorry, I meant to add that Exodus should perhaps delete the reference to the “library” on the cruise from the Trip Notes. The library consisted of 16 dog-eared books left behind by previous travellers. Only one was in English.

Most Inspirational Moment

n/a

Reply from Exodus

We would like to thank Graham for his feedback. We are, however, sorry to learn of his disappointment with the selection of books on the cruise. Our local operator has advised us that there are usually more books available, but sometimes a number of books end up in clients’ rooms and in other areas of the boat, such as the sun deck. Our local operator has also confirmed that they plan to add more books to the library, in order for clients to have a greater selection. John Penge – Product Manager for Africa

Graham Ritchie

Reviewed June 2018