Reviews

Most Inspirational Moment

Hard to highlight just one: Cycling through rural villages (approx. 50% of the cycling). Exchanging hundreds of 'hellos' with local children and people as we cycled through their lives. Visiting local markets. Cycling through the Friday night rush hour with the locals in Hue - and surviving! (It was a challenging experience, but our guide looked after us well). Sharing a little of the fun with local people as they prepared to celebrate their New Year. The water buffalo that expressed such joy and excitement when it was let off its rope to play in the river (running back and forth and rolling in the river like a puppy! I didn't know water buffalos did that!) The homestays. Experiencing the process of getting clothes, shoes and prescription glasses tailor made in Hoi An.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Anh was a brilliant leader - well organised, great sense of humour, knowledgeable, part of the group, excellent English and such a pleasure to spend time with. Anh handled the boisterous nature of our group with ease and everything was organised to perfection without any fuss.

Advice for Potential Travellers

I was unsure of the following before I went, so hope these pointers help: You will need: Lightweight walking boots or shoes (heavy boots unnecessary) Silk sleeping bag liner (not a sleeping bag) Cycling helmet (must be worn, but are provided by the bike hire company if you prefer not to take your own) Padded seat cover or padded cycling shorts (recommended, not essential, I'm not a cyclist and suffered even with my padded seat cover!, but most people seemed to experience at least some saddle soreness!) Walking sandals were fine for cycling (I didn't need trainers) You won't need: Additional sleeping mat (those provided at the homestay are fine) Mosquito net (all provided where needed) Currency - VND is the preferred currency, but most places also take US dollars. Credit cards can be used in towns and cities. It's quick and easy to get laundry done whenever you stay in a hotel for 2 nights - this cuts the amount of clothes needed (and eliminates the whiffy socks after the hike!) Would recommend a massage at the hotel in Hoi An if you get chance - excellent for a very reasonable price.

Most Inspirational Moment

There wasn't one particular moment. The whole place is inspirational, although it's hard to see how the changes currently taking place are going to have a positive impact on all Cubans. It's hot. It's humid. There's music everywhere. The rum based drinks are fab. The men are a bit too forward. The sea is so blue and the sand so white. The renovations of the old colonial buildings are starting to make things look a bit Disney-like. It all makes for a really great, interesting trip, and I'd go again in a heart beat.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our leader was Laz, and we had Guille as mechanic and Eduardo as driver. They were a great team, and I think we all really enjoyed being in their company.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Try and keep loads of ten and 25 centavo coins to give to the toilet attendants. Take some long sleeve tops for cycling - even wearing high protection suncream some of us got burnt. You might need ear plugs as Cuban cockerels, pineapple sellers, etc. etc. start early! Immodium might be a good idea too, as there were a few dodgy tummies among the group!

Most Inspirational Moment

top of the highest mountain on Madeira - group photo!

Thoughts on Group Leader

absolutely excellent - very informative, funny and mostly encouraging.

Advice for Potential Travellers

get blisterplaster and get fit, fit, fit!!!!!!!!

Most Inspirational Moment

The people. Their happiness and their welcoming attitude.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Anh was very well organised, funny and always had a positive attitude. His English was also very good.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Follow the guidelines on The Exodus website an you'll be fine. I didn't use the mosquito net as they were provided in the homestay.

Most Inspirational Moment

I loved going up Vesuvius and inside the crater to see and learn all about the history of the volcano. It was well worth getting a guide to take you inside the crater.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Clair was brilliant and set a good pace on the walks and had a good local knowledge and the fact that she could speak Italian was a bonus. She also went the extra mile to help us gain a group discount on the ferry to Capri even though she was not organising the trip on our free day .

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for steps, up and down, and lots of them. If you use walking poles, they would be useful especially on the steps down

Most Inspirational Moment

Having tea with our driver's mum in her home to see what Jordanian life is about. And being mugged by an excited group of teenage girls at Ajloun to have our photos taken with them (which I get were on Facebook in nanoseconds!). Otherwise, ticking the 50 year old bucket list by seeing Petra!

Thoughts on Group Leader

He was highly knowledgeable, charming, great sense of humour - and sorted the broken loo in our hotel bedroom on the first night (early hours in the morning) - even though it wasn't his job, we could have gone to Reception. He took us to some great restaurants and generally worked hard to make it a memorable holiday.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take something warm to put on i.e. jeans as well as cotton trousers, pair of leggings (ladies only?!), gloves and a thicker jacket than a fleece. It was cold at night and sometimes in the day.

Most Inspirational Moment

We actually saw the big five as well as seeing a black Rhino which was fantastic and totally unexpected. We were up close and personal to all the animals and we saw some amazing and rare birdlife which was a bonus.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our leader was very passionate and knowledgable about his country and what it contained, from the smallest of grasses to the biggest of animals. He was able to answer any questions we had and he made sure we packed as much in to the time we had.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Be prepared for some long drives in the bus, it is very comfortable and well worth the time spent as we covered a lot of ground and saw a lot of the country. Early mornings are also part of the trip this is to ensure you see and do as much as possible while you are there.

Most Inspirational Moment

It was wonderful to walk through the Italian vine yards and learn about the local history - we were very lucky with the weather as well which made for gorgeous views across the countryside.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our group leader was fantastic - she shared a lot of knowledge about the local area and places we visited, she was organised, very sociable and always worked hard to accommodate everyone.

Most Inspirational Moment

Climbing the rock fortress at Sigiriya was a definite highlight, as was coming pretty much face to face with countless elephants on the game drive near Polonnaruwa. The kindness of the people we met was definitely inspirational.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Absolutely brilliant -hugely enthusiastic, friendly, cheerful and informative. Neelaka made everyone feel immediately at ease, and took care of all of the little details for us. We couldn't have asked for a better group leader.

Advice for Potential Travellers

If you can afford the trip, don't hesitate to go!! It is definitely worth taking up the guide's offer to set up a "kitty" to cover tips for all of the meals and hotel staff, and for buying bottles of water every day - this makes life a lot easier. Although it is tempting to just sit by the pool (or the beach towards the end of the trip) when there is any free time, we would recommend fitting in as many of the optional activities that you can. It is also easy to organise your own activities - at Ahangama, we organised a group trip by tuk tuk down the coast to Weligama, and had a superb afternoon of surfing (or trying to surf!).

Most Inspirational Moment

A group of us being given a Salsa lesson in the HQ courtyard! It was really, really fun not least because the Cuban staff found our attempts hilarious enough to film, ( although I hope I'm not on YouTube) and you could see why when 2 staff gave us a demonstration of how it is really done.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent. He was good fun without being ingratiating and obviously very knowledgeable about the local area and wildlife. when things didn't go quite according to plan he simply improvised, re-organised and calmly resolved any issues. We learnt a lot about the revolution and it's effect on the Cuban way of life and I finished the holiday feeling a great deal of respect for the Cuban people.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Learn to Salsa and get some cycling practice. The cycling isn't too difficult but over 25 miles a day can be a challenge if you're inexperienced.