Reviews

Cycle Kerala & Tropical India - Oct 2022

Great trip, well organised, lovey tasty food and very friendly staff and locals. Bike were appropriate to the trip and mostly trouble free. Houseboat stay was a wonderfully peaceful and restful period after busy actioned packed first week. Weather was better than forecast, not too hot for cycling and only used rain jacket one day.

A trip for your bucket list.

I have done many cycling trips with Exodus and without doubt, this is the best of the lot. If you want a good mix of cycling with plenty of time for afternoons by the poolside, this is the trip for you. The climb to Ooty is exactly as described on the tin and it’s tough. The rest of the tour is all within the average cyclists capabilities. Only one 4 hour bus transfer during the trip, the rest pretty much involved finishing the days ride at your destination hotel. The whole trip ran like clockwork and that’s no accident all thanks to our first class tour guide Joseph, Maneesh and Kam, our excellent bike team. We were a mixed group of 13 like minded people and it worked perfectly.

Wonderful experience

This was a fantastic couple of weeks. Joseph and his team are absolutely first class. The cycling is easy apart from that climb up to Ooty! Lots of magical memories.

Simply sensational

My husband and I had an amazing time on this cycling trip. From the start in Mysorevisiting stunning temples and cycling through manic traffic to the backwaters of Kerala and the tranquil pace to the national parks and tiger and elephant sightings it was a wonderful experience.
Safi and his team were first class guides – there to help in every way they could and to enhance each experience and always with a smile on their faces. Nothing was too much trouble and the added extra of being impromptu guests at an Indian wedding was an experience we’ll never forget.
The cycling was accessible to us as occasional cyclists and sometimes challenging. Climbing the hill to Ooty was certainly physically demanding but we had plenty of time and support on route and the midway tea point provided some much needed respite. The roads are, as described in the trip notes, mostly good but with some rough patches but taking our time we all navigated these without too much difficulty.
It’s hard to pick out the top highlights because there were so many varied and different experiences but for us the night on the houseboat (where we all dressed in traditional outfits) and seeing a tiger at close range were two. The food was also exquisite.
However, it’ll be the smiles of everybody we met and the hospitality of people who couldn’t do enough for us that we’ll remember.
We can’t recommend this trip highly enough,

Wow!

This really was a holiday of heightened senses: the most brilliant colours, the noisiest roads, the most intense flavours, the brightest smiles, the biggest views – and everything experienced in the thick of it, either from a bike or on foot. Vehicle transfers are few and far between, meaning there’s nothing between you and your environment (including a tiger, if you’re lucky enough to see one – which sadly we weren’t).

The great thing about Exodus at their best is that they can organise things we could never do on our own: not just carefully picked hotels and restaurants, but also temple and palace tours, a safari, a houseboat trip, a bespoke lunch in a bay of the Indian Ocean – and much more. That not only makes this trip great value – it also makes a lifetime memory.

And then, of course, there are the guides. The unfailing cheerfulness and knowledge of Joseph and our support driver Maneesh were a constant bonus that contributed to this being not only our best Exodus trip to date (it was our fourth) but one of the best holidays of our lives. Cycling aside, in fact, a highlight was a lesson in Bollywood dancing from Joseph – who is incredible at it!

Wonderful cycle trip through Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala

This was my first trip to India and it was a fabulous experience. I loved the cycling, which was mainly moderate with a few tough days, and we packed in so much that it felt like an amazing introduction to the country. We had wonderful guides, our group got on famously and the food was delicious. It was a very memorable holiday.

A Perfect Balance!

My first time using Exodus for long-haul…I’ve traveled independently all over the tropics so was reluctant about this, wondering if it would be worth the money, but compared to the European trips I actually think it’s great value & I loved this trip
It’s a perfect balance of cycling & sight-seeing with the best food I’ve EVER eaten in India, which I put down to our guide Safi. As a vegetarian, you can’t eat better than Southern India 🙂

Lots to do, heaps to see, great variety of landscape, architecture and more…people are warm and friendly towards cyclists here…use your bell in the busy areas and enjoy the glorious peace of the quiet out-of-town rides. The backwater trip was lovely & peaceful, most hotels very good & a few excellent.
I’m an experienced distance cyclist so wasn’t daunted by the itinerary…most days are leisurely, a few more challenging which keeps it interesting -without question, the climb to Ooty is a serious challenge so be prepared. That said, a few folks used the support vehicle, that’s what it’s there for so don’t be proud!

* Would definitely recommend *

An unforgettable experience

The cycling was challenging at times due to ascent and temperature but the local guides were realistic and supportive. The trip through three Indian states showcased the amazing friendliness of the local Indian people. The trip demonstrated the wildlife of Indian, the heritage of the area, history and heritage of the locals and the cycling challenges.
Recommended as a great way to see the real India. Please don’t see each day as a race and get into the Indian time zone and slow down and enjoy the time cycling rather than try and finish first.

An unforgettable experience

The cycling was challenging at times due to ascent and temperature but the local guides were realistic and supportive. The trip through three Indian states showcased the amazing friendliness of the local Indian people. The trip demonstrated the wildlife of Indian, the heritage of the area, history and heritage of the locals and the cycling challenges.
Recommended as a great way to see the real India. Please don’t see each day as a race and get into the Indian time zone and slow down and enjoy the time cycling rather than try and finish first.

Tough in places, but a great holiday

This is a really good holiday with chance to see some very different bits of India, from the illuminated palace of Mysore to the tigger reserve (we saw a tigger), to the 36 hairpin bends on the mountainous road to Ooty (1200m accent), the glorious tea plantations (that actually smell of tea), then Kerala itself, with its palm trees, beaches and backwaters.

If you are worried about the recent flood (2018), don’t be everything is open, schools, roads, hotels, pools, etc. In fact there is no trace of it at all and we stayed in places that had flooded.

You do need to be prepared, some parts (especially Mysore) are dirty, smelly and noisy. The driving in India is downright scary – you will find vehicles coming round bends on the wrong side of the road, but it all somehow works,and speeds are lower that the UK.

The food (I’m vegetarian) with very few exceptions was outstanding. Worth booking for the food alone.

The bikes were perhaps not maintained as well as I would have liked, and were a little heavy, but were mostly up to the job. Some sections of the cycling are tough! We had rain in the mountains were it got quite cold, but left it behind as we descended.