WILD FLOWERS & WALKS IN THE BERNESE OBERLAND

8 days at GBP999 including flights
Tripcode: TWQ

Countries Visited: France, Switzerland

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Our Clients’ Reviews

Average Review Rating: from 5 reviews.

Bill Lewis

WILD FLOWERS & WALKS IN THE BERNESE OBERLAND
Written July 2009
The whole holiday was a true experiance. As a photographer the stunning views were spectacular.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Resting in a meadow one lunch time eating a sandwich. The field full of colourful flowers, the sun warm on your face as you look at The North Face of the Eiger with its snow capped sceanery. Amazing.
What did you think of your group leader?
One word Brilliant
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Take plenty of Memory Cards for your Camera
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Am thinking of going again next year as I enjoyed it so much
Sarah Carter

WILD FLOWERS & WALKS IN THE BERNESE OBERLAND
Written July 2009
This trip has spoilt me for other walking holidays! It was so wonderful to be able to look in detail at the marvellous flora with other enthusiasts and a particularly knowledgeable and delightful leader. Thankyou Carey for making it such an enjoyable week. An exceptionally nice group of co-walkers, too, and an extremely comfortable hotel room. I came home wanting to be back in the Alps
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
I was so excited to be the one who 'discovered' some of the flowers. I learned a huge amount from more knowledgeable fellow enthusiasts.
I also loved paragliding on our free day. What an experience!
What did you think of your group leader?
Carey was terrific. She knew a lot about the flowers, but was also on a process of discovery herself, so we all integrated very well. She set the pace exactly right and was very good company
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
Bring flower books
Is there anything else you would like to add?
I would love to go on other walking trips concentrating on the flora and fauna in other parts of Europe. On previous holidays my friend and I have often felt we were keeping people back because we wanted to stop to look at flowers etc. It was great to have it built in to the walking. The walking itself was just the right level, and because we were slow-ish looking at plants, we spent a nice long time out each day.
John Hopton

WILD FLOWERS & WALKS IN THE BERNESE OBERLAND
Written July 2009
This trip was a perfect balance of fine walking, exciting flower-hunting and great landscapes - with excellent planning and leadership for a very relaxing and enjoyable holiday.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Many inspirational moments. Finding new flowers. Identifying puzzling ones - sometimes days later! Getting good photos. Sharing the excitement and learning with the others - especially our enthusiastic leader. And always the Oberland views!
What did you think of your group leader?
Excellent leader. She was always in control, yet one hardly noticed it. No fuss, no conflict. The trip was posted as a mix of flowers and walking. Each day had been well researched and subtly scheduled to balance these objectives, catch trains when necessary, and provide well-graded walking in interesting and beautiful locations. All this had to satisfy a diverse group of individuals with a range of enthusiam for botany. Often the walkers had to wait for the botanisers to catch up - and sometimes not even at a watering-hole! Yet I was never aware of any problems with this. The whole trip was very relaxed and friendly. Thanks to Carey.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
On the "free day" I took the paragliding option. My first flight - at 73! Only 20 minutes, and I wished it was much longer. Still..... it was fun to land in the middle of Interlaken! Followed it with the train up to the wonderful alpine garden on Schyninge Platte. (Luckily I'd "done" the Jungfrau on a previous visit.)
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Just..... Go fr it!
Penelope Teutenberg

WILD FLOWERS & WALKS IN THE BERNESE OBERLAND
Written June 2009
A wonderful week of walks in a magnificent part of Switzerland. Memories include gushing waterfalls of clear icy water from the snow melt, meadows filled with a profusion of colourful alpine flowers, and the jutting snow capped peaks of the Jungfrau, Monch and Eiger. The walking was easy and leisurely, with plenty of coffee stops along the way.
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
There was no one highlight; every day brought more breathtaking scenery. THis part of Switzerland ticks all the cliche boxes - snowy mountains, houses with colourful window boxes, flowery meadows, rushing waterfalls and rivers, crisp clear air.
What did you think of your group leader?
The leader was excellent. She gave thorough briefings each evening and went out of her way to make helpful suggestions for the free day, readily answered questions and provided assistance and information throughout the week. She provided a great spread of lunch fillings for us to choose from each morning ( I enjoyed the picnic lunches and, after all, when you're out walking and stopping for lunch in meadows or woodland there is no alternative to a picnic lunch).
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
This may not always be the case, but our group fell into 2 categories - the majority who were there for the walking, with flowers "on the side" and the few who were there primarily for the flowers with walking on the side. This meant that those of us who wanted to keep up a brisker pace found ourselves having to wait at times for those who wanted to examine minutely every flower. Fortunately the walks are well signposted and with instructions from the leader we were able to walk on ahead. However, I felt at times this meant we missed out on hearing about the area we were walking through as the leader stayed at the back with the flower enthusiasts. It's a difficult juggling act and I'm not sure what the solution is.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
The hotel rooms were adequate; the bathrooms need upgrading. The food in the hotel was excellent, and the owner pleasant and helpful. However, it's a 300 year old hotel so was very creaky - I could hear every footstep in the room above me, along with all the occupant's plumbing noises! Wilderswil was a nice base as it's a quiet pleasant village and not nearly as touristy as Interlaken. I felt overall the hotel wasn't up to expectations given the price of the holiday.
Exodus needs to give the exact address of the hotel and instructions on how to find it for those arriving independently. I had to guess at the correct spelling of the hotel name and use the internet to print off my own map of the town to plot the route from the train to the hotel.
John Harrison

WILD FLOWERS & WALKS IN THE BERNESE OBERLAND
Written April 2009
Excellent weather, glorious scenery, varied walks. Hotel average, really needed air con, especially for rooms overlooking the village square. Hotel staff good and helpful. The Group Leader (Carey) was simply excellent and really tried to please all of the people all of the time (and succeeded!). Hotel food pretty good but packed lunches DIY and a little disappointing. However, all in all, a very enjoyable holiday!
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What was the most inspirational moment of your trip?
Simply the wall-to-wall scenery and the splendour of the snow capped mountains.
What did you think of your group leader?
Carey was magnificant! Helpful, knowledgeble and if she didn't know, she would find out. She tried to make each walk suit everyone by offering shortcuts and opt outs for those less energetic whilst adding more for those wanting a little extra. It is very difficult to please everyone all of the time but I think Carey managed to do just that.
Do you have any advice for potential travellers?
This was our first walking hol and if you havn't done one, do take the plunge! Walking in a group is a very enjoyable experience. Switzerland is a glorious if expensive place.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
For independant travellers, instructions for finding the hotel in Wilderswil were non-existant. A call to Exodus head office was of little help. The hotel name was incorrect and the full address was not provided. It would not be difficult to provide detailed instructions from the station for those arriving by train. A DIY packed lunch is pretty average for what is not the cheapest of holidays.