Reviews

Trails of Vietnam--Traveling During the TET Holiday

We were a group of 7 representing 5 nationalities. The size of the group bonded us quickly and kept it that way through out the trip. Couple with an excellent guide it was and will be remembered as a memorable trip.
Before booking a trip in January or February check to see when the TET holiday will occur and decide if potential deviations from the standard trip notes will have an impact on what you want to see and experience.
TET is not a festival, rather a holiday period for the Vietnamese people to leave the cities and return to the country to spend time with their families. Millions of people are on the move which starts with the Vietnamese New Years Eve. All told we experienced the impact from Day 5 through Day 13 of our trip. Some guide books will advise you not to visit during TET as you will experience closed businesses and the businesses that remain open often hike their prices. While the hotels are operating restaurants options are limited and may only offer a set course meal to serve to tourists. Our guide was constantly adjusting our schedule to accommodate for TET–substituting a cycle day for a kayak trip, locating someone to do our laundry while in Hoi An and of course picking our restaurants. On the plus side there was less traffic to deal with.

Vietnam Adventure

A busy trip that covered a lot of distance , seeing both north and south Vietnam .
Travelling prior / during and after Tet gave a different perspective to the country and people

The Lemosho route to success on Kili

Just back from a great trip. From the moment you land your African adventure starts. The Moivaro lodge provides a relaxing and comfortable start and end point, but your focus is inevitably on the challenge ahead. Our guide JT gave an excellent pre-trek briefing and throughout the trek provided support and motivation – always with a smile, a laugh or a song.
If you have even the slightest concern about altitude and acclimatisation, the Lemosho route is an excellent choice: the extra time allows for a gradual approach over the Shira Plateau, with some acclimatisation walks (going higher and sleeping lower). And it’s attractive.
Don’t expect to be trekking in splendid isolation on any route. Even on the supposedly quieter Lemosho route (which eventually merges with two other routes) there is the daily traffic of porters passing you every morning…and you get to recognise and chat with other groups as you pass each other on the way.
I hadn’t realised when I first chose my dates, that this trip was a ‘female crew’ trip. I’m so glad it was. Apart from the value of this scheme in providing opportunities for females porters and guides, having a mixed crew really added to the friendly atmosphere of our camp. All organised groups seemed to have moments when their crew sang for the clients, but for us this went to a different level. Not only did their voices (and smiles) really lift the singing, but you never felt this was a performance; it carried on even when they were in their own tent in the afternoons.
Oh, and although we were a small group, we all reached the summit!

Antarctica, Falklands and South Georgia

18 day trip with Quark Expeditions on the Ocean Diamond from Uschuaia to the Falklands, South Georgia and the Antarctic Peninsula with landings by Zodiac in remote bays where we experienced close encounters with the wildlife, especially penguins and seals and whales swimming alongside the boats. The scenery was stunning especially sailing close to the icebergs. We were superbly looked after on the ship and the cabins and public areas were warm and welcoming and the staff couldn’t have been more helpful. The food was excellent and plentiful and they catered well for my gluten free requirements as I am Coeliac. The expedition staff were knowledgeable as we had experts on penguins, ornithology, geology, whales, history, microbiology and photography. Praise goes to the captain as a mega storm was forecast as we were in the Falklands and we had to alter the itinerary to avoid it and though we hit some rough seas we missed the hurricane in the Falklands where the next 3 ships after us were stuck in the harbour there for 3 days. Ecology was a big concern and we had to have our clothing, rucksacks examined before each trip ashore to check there were no seeds and have them vacuumed, and boots and trousers were hosed down after each trip ashore then we walked through disinfectant.

AWESOME NEW ZEALAND

This trip is one of the best we have experienced with Exodus. The varied walking, landscape and experiences on the trip make it an amazing adventure. Beware though there are many long distances to cover (we did over 3500 Km in the 19 days), but Ian and Sonya made it very interesting with their local knowledge and frequent rest stops at interesting places. The highlight of the walking was of course the Tongariro Alpine Crossing which on the day we did it was truly spectacular with the Emerald lake just like the Guide books. The Abel Tasman Coastal walk again like the guide book pictures. The Diamond Lake and Rocky Mountain walk was tough but well worth it for the views. Other experiences met all our expectations – Sailing on Tasman sea, Jet boat on River Motukituki where at times we were in 5 inches of water, Helicopter to Fox Glacier (paid locally) and overnight on Milford Sound in Fiordland. Christchurch was sad to see but it is good to that they are beginning to get the city rebuilt. It is important to note that a few walks and experiences can be affected by weather. Although it was summer we dodged Storm Fehi – Tongariro was closed the day after we walked it, Windy Wellington was stormy Wellington, roads near Fox Glacier were closed due to landslides and they had had no electricity for 3 days before we arrived. However we managed all the planned itinerary except walking to Fox Glacier due to landslide. All in all an AWESOME trip

Spectacular trip!

A great escape from everyday life with the opportunity to try out many different snow activities plus free time to relax or experience optional activities. We were lucky enough to see the Northern Lights on 4 of our 7 nights 18-25 February 2018. Very tasty food and plenty of it. Comfortable rooms with underfloor heating. Overall a wonderful holiday.

Some lovely rides and not too strenuous

There are many great points about this trip;
– This trip combines riding in busy city traffic (which is mental, but exciting and often safer than in UK), with lovely rides through beautiful scenery (e.g. little villages, forest, coast) – much of it fairly flat and easy cycling. We went in Feb and the temperature is hot (30-35C).
– Food was a huge surprise in the fact that many of the hotels had great selection and great quality, and the meals in people’s homes were delightful and delicious – only the breakfasts were disappointing, but lunch/dinner was great. However, it is all Indian food, so don’t expect Western choices.
– Most of the hotels were in great locations, and of great quality (comfortable, modern, clean).
– The rides weren’t exceptionally long (20-25 miles, with a couple around 50), but in the 30-35C heat many of these were done in the morning and were more than long enough to see great things.
– With these rides being slightly shorter than on other trips we’ve done, there was lots of free time (e.g. afternoons) and a couple of free days which allowed us to experience far more of Kerala than on just a bike – a good mix of riding and free time.
– Minimal bus transfers (only 2 I recall), so most rides were door to door.
– The boat trip on the backwaters was delightful, and the photo opportunities are great.

The are 2 rides that are worth being aware of;
– The ride to Ooty is a gruelling ride of 17 miles up a 1,400 meter climb – the road is a constant gradient of 10-15% so it’s hard work. Even though you start the climb around 07:30, it doesn’t take long for the heat to kick in. However, there’s no pressure on how quickly you get up there, and you can opt out and take the bus if it’s too much for you.
– The descent down from Ooty is pretty much 20 miles all down hill, but the road is often poor (pot holes, poor surface, traffic on wrong side)) so riding fast is tempting but dangerous, so you need to watch what you are doing – but it’s a lovely ride through Eucalyptus forest and tea plantations.

We felt this trip was really enjoyable, and highly recommend it.

Fantastic

This was my first time on the type of holiday but from the moment we left the airport , I knew I had made the right choice in booking this holiday. The hotel was great, and the views spectacular. As someone who often walks alone I was worried that a group holiday wouldn’t be my thing, but there were plenty of opportunities to break away from the group if you wanted. I never felt rushed if wanted to take photos, or just admire the view. It turned out walking as a group was a lot of fun.
If I was to be really fussy I would say I would have prefered the evening meals to be a bit more basic, but there were options on the menu if you weren’t happy with the main menu. Breakfast provided a good selection, and I normally made a right pig of myself.

Tropical South - An Adventure

Our visit to Kerala and Tamil Nadu was a busy and enjoyable experience. There are several long journeys, but our bus was very comfortable (there were only 9 of us so we could spread out!) and there was so much to see on the way, the colourful towns, the traffic! the busyness of India. Cochin was a lovely start ; we arrived a day early. A tuk tuk driver gave us a grand tour of 2 hours for 100 rupees! The drive to Munnar was lovely through the mountains, but to describe Munnar as a beautiful hill station is stretching it – we thought it a most unattractive town. However the trek through the tea plantations and hills was wonderful. It is quite a strenuous climb and good grip shoes are essential. The picnic at the top was memorable. The rest of the trip unfolded with some visits not on the itinerary, a visit to a family brick making enterprise, heavy work in incredible heat, a school, a lovely temple on the roadside.

A week in Jordan

An interesting week with plenty of cultural experiences and great scenery. Our guide Zahair was full of local knowledge and a great ambassador of Jordan. The highlight was definitly the two full days in Petra. Early wind and rain had resulted in Petra being closed until late morning with a warning of flash floods. In the end all was well and our group enjoyed seeing the monastery, the high point of sacrifice, the Siq and lots of tombs and caves. Wadi rum was great but the Bedouin camp was a bit of an ordeal but rescued by the great evening meal. Lack of sleeping bags and vertually no running water made for a primitive and unpleasant wake up call in the morning. Aqaba was warm, the Red Sea had good snorkelling too. The visit to the Dead Sea and seeing Jordan’s Grand Canyon was not to be missed.

Most Inspirational Moment

The two days in Petra, especially the walk on the second day.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Zahair was attentive full of stories and had great local knowledge and a great ambassador for Jordan.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The week in Jordan was very interesting, varied and well worth a visit. However some of the accommodation was very poor and should not be part of the itinerary. Out hotel La Maisson in Petra was one of the worst ones I have stayed in for many a year. The shower cubicle was tiny, it completely flooded the floor when we showered. We had to mop the water up with the hand and bath towels each time. The breakfast was a matter of first come first served. The food was not replenished, tables not cleaned and no clean cutlery. Staff simply disappeared when perople asked them for anything. Our group were all put in the basement underneath the dining room. The noise from scrapping chairs, stamping feet and clanking cutlery began very early and was deafening and annoying. The coach we had all week was very old, pretty smelly and grimy. It broke down on the motorway 50 miles from Petra. The driver tried to fix it but to no avail. We waited 90 plus minutes for a replacement bus. Our driver was left overnight with the old bus. We endured a white knuckle ride to Petra along winding roads and hairpin bends eventually arriving at La Maisson at 9.30pm. Our old bus was repaired and we used it for the remainder of our stay.

Reply from Exodus

We would like to thank David for his feedback, although we are sorry that he was disappointed with the accommodation in Petra and the vehicle used for some of the trip. Many parts of La Maison Hotel have now been completely renovated and refurbished since David stayed there. We have spoken to staff at the hotel and reiterated the standards and quality of service that we expect, and we will continue to closely monitor all client feedback we receive about the accommodation and food to ensure that it meeting our expectations. We also regret that one of the vehicles was of a poor standard and broke down on the way to Petra. We have now switched to a different bus supplier and we are making weekly vehicle checks at the new supplier’s depot to ensure this situation does not reoccur. We hope this shows we have taken David’s feedback seriously.

Monica Princic – Product Manager for Jordan