Reviews

Exotic trip with a few flaws

The itinerary for this trip was remarkable – saw oragutans and Komodo dragons in the wild, snorkeled, and enjoyed touring around Bali and the various islands. Did the Gili Trawangan extension and went scuba diving there. And Elly was a wonderful tour guide. However, there were some downsides, including the boat in the Komodo islands and some of the other transportation. The boat itself was not very comfortable, and actually a little dangerous in certain regards. The boat was not set up to accommodate the number of people on the tour, so was at times crowded and uncomfortable in the common area. There wasn’t just an option to sleep on the deck, but a requirement for a few people, as there were not enough cabins to accommodate the entire group. And when those deck sleepers needed to use a restroom in the middle of the night, they had to barge in to one of the cabins in the dark – no restrooms on the boat except inside the few cabins. The dining table where they served all the food buffet-style was crammed in a small room, with the stairs leading down to a couple of the cabins right alongside of the table -as you were getting your food, it would have been extremely easy to fall down them if you weren’t very careful. The refrigerator with all of our drinks was very often blocked by people sitting at the table, so there was major shuffling to do you when you wanted to get a drink. There was a low railing around the boat, which in rough seas would have been very easy to fall overboard.
there was only one support skiff with the boat that could only take half of us ashore at a time, so getting everyone onshore took forever. The local guide that accompanied us on the Komodo boat trip was not very good. He didn’t do any kind of assessment of everyone’s snorkeling abilities but instead took off on the first snorkel in a strong current, and didn’t look back to see if everyone was following, or try to keep the group together. People fell way behind and because there was only one skiff, that skiff couldn’t (nor ever intended to, it seemed) stay with the snorkelers. People were scattered over a large area in the water and in some cases, were told to just wait in the water when the first half of the group had already filled the skiff for the return trip to the big boat. It was a situation ripe with the potential for disaster. And the guide wasn’t around to stay with the people who had to remain in the water waiting. And if you wanted to jump in and swim off the big boat, the ladder was so high in the water that it was very difficult to get back on the boat – and there was no safety line deployed behind the boat to make it any easier, or safer, to get to the boat.

Other transportation was disappointing. The small group of us that went on the Gili Island extension had to wait over an hour at port the ferry terminal, after arriving back in Bali, for the driver to show up to transport people to the airport for thir flights. I stayed a couple extra nights in Bali before going home, and the driver that was supposed to transport me from the hotel to the airport never showed up at all – the hotel had to make alternate arrangements for me.

In closing, it was a wonderful, adventerous trip, but Exodus has some work to do to make it a little safer and comfortable.

What an amazing adventure with a great bunch of people.

I had booked this trip to visit Indonesia and see the Komodo dragons which did not disappoint. On the whole the trip was very well organised and the guide was exceptional.
However both the outgoing flight and transfer at Kuala Lumper and the return flight had very tight connection times. I have given some feedback to Malasian airlines as I do not feel that I should have had to run through a very large airport with bus transfer between international and domestic terminals to make my connection. The airline, knowing many ( at least 20) people needed this connection, should either have put on direct transport or guaranteed the flight be held to allow us to confortably get to the flight. Whilst reasonably fit,at 65 I expect this even without a 7Kg backpack I would struggle!!!
I also feel a little more time to acclimatise to the humidity and rest after the long journey before the first hike in the Jungle would have benefitted some of the group including myself. The Ecolodge at Bukit Lawang was anything but eco other than cold water which could easily heated by means of solar panels non of us could find anything eco about it. Whilst it was convenient for the jungle there were many other hotels close by that may have had better washing facilities. All the group felt a warm shower with sufficient water to actually wash, rather than a dribble , would have welcomed us to Indonesian heat better than this lodge.
On return to Medan there was bearly time to enjoy the pool at that hotel and to enable more sleep and avoid another early start, I wonder if there is not an airport hotel that would be more suitable.
There was one American lady on this trip who did not have the fitness required to be able to complete the trip without putting others at risk. Her deafness also caused some issues as she would rudely overtalk the leader and failed on many occasions to hear the istructions needed and Elly would constantly have to repeat them.

Primates & Dragons of Indonesia

It was a great trip. Exceeded all my expectations.Our guide Elly was brilliant and always on hand if we needed anything. The local guides that were used on various parts of the trip were also very good. On the 2 days spent in the forest in Bukit Lawang we saw Orang Utans within 20 minutes of leaving our lodge. Getting fresh local fruit in the middle of the jungle was a very welcome treat. Possibly the juiciest pineapple i have ever eaten. On the boat trip to Komodo and Rinca Islands the food was very good and fresh. Sleeping on the deck of the boat was great. Saw about 15 Komodo’s over the visits to the two Islands. the snorkelling off the both on numerous occasions was brilliant. Crystal clear waters where we saw loads of turtles and fish to rival the Barrier Reef. Bring an underwater camera, I didn’t and i’m sorry i didn’t. The only slight gripe i have was the walk to the volcano/lava fields. In my opinion this was a waste of time. Elly had asked us if anyone wanted to try Durian fruit. A few of us said yes, so Elly stopped at a stall selling it. Trying Durian fruit has been on my bucket list for a long time. It tastes as disgusting as it smells but I’m glad i tried it. Overall it was a great trip and one i would highly recommend.

Fantastic

From beginning to end this trip was one wow moment after another. The trip itinerary is well structured into 4 parts, all quite different. Trekking the jungle in Bukit Lawang and being lucky to see so many orangutan was unbelievably moving. The two very different stays in the chilled out beach town of Sanur and Ubud with its monkey forest (not on the itinerary but a must to visit). Flores islands were just stunning, loved the two nights sleeping on deck quite literally under the stars. The unexpected highlight of this trip was probably the snorkelling ….never have I seen such a variety of fish, corals and abundance of life underwater.

Inspirational Indonesia

I have been on several wildlife trips with Exodus and I think this is probably , all things considered the best one that I have been on when taking into account the wonderful support of the guide Elly and the great crew on the boat . The variety of activities on offer, the locations, the food and the hotel accommodation all had a part to play in contributing to that recommendation.

Exceptionally good adventure holiday

I’ve been lucky enough to travel on many small group adventure holidays over the years, and this is one of the absolute best. It features a well designed itinerary that balances activity and rest, an exceptional tour leader, and wonderful settings for wildlife viewing, scenery and culture. Although some of the walks are on the challenging side (at least if you’re unfit like I am), the days of travelling provide a good opportunity to rest up and to reflect on what you’ve seen. I finished the trip feeling both that I’d seen and done a lot, and that I was rested and had been able to relax – not something I find with many holidays where it’s either one or the other! The variety is exceptional, feeling like several holidays in one and yet all integrated well into an overall package. The standard of the accommodation and food was also really good. I’d very highly recommend the trip to anyone who enjoys this type of holiday.

Perfect trip

Loads of wildlife, orangutans, komodo dragons, snorkeling with huge manta plus monkeys, turtles, water buffalo, wild boar, deer.. The list goes on. Hindu temples and shrines, great scenery, food, an excellent guide, good local guides and transport, comfortable hotels and a group that gelled. A fantastic mixture of wildlife and culture.

WOZ - Sept.

Excellent trip, great group and great group leader. Guides also excellent. People very friendly and helpful. Went smoothly and fulfilled expectations.

Primates and Dragons June 2023

An outstanding tour giving a very good insight into a number of aspects of Indonesia and some amazing wildlife experiences. From the close up encounters with Orang Utans in Sumatra to the excellent viewing of Komodo dragons in Komodo and Rinca the tour delivered on its main two objectives. The second trek in Sumatra was challenging but the local guides gave adequate information to the group to allow a decision to be made but we had good viewings even on the simpler walks. In addition to this although I am personally a non swimmer the group also experienced close encounters with Manta Rays and turtles. There are a few days in transit which is inevitable given the variety this trip tries to provide and for our tour we had two boats one better than the other but as per the trip notes expect very basic accommodation but worth it for the benefits early arrival on the islands bring and the outstanding scenery around Flores and the neighbouring islands. Nice beach stay at Sanur which is not as hectic as Kuta but still provides ample nightlife. Ubud adds a nice cultural experience to the tour and a gentle trek in the mountains. I would highly recommend the optional cycling trip available from Ubud which is mainly downhill so doesn’t require any high degree of fitness. The cycling is fun but the bikes really just allow you greater interaction with the locals on the regular stops and to see the real Bali which can be harder to find these days. Another must do is the extension to Gili Islands. Absolutely stunning and a great laid back feel. If you want crazy nightlife it is available as is complete peace and quiet with everything in between.

Mismanaged, poorly prepared and mis-sold

If you are considering booking this trip, please do be aware of the following: – The “hike” on “local trails” on day two of the trip is, in actuality, a walk down the town’s high street past all of the local tourist hotels and restaurants. – Exodus do not check the internal flights with the airline. As such, you may miss multiple days of your trip should the airline reschedule flights as Exodus will not be aware. – Exodus do not check whether Rinca Island is open. Therefore, should the island close for construction works, as it did for two years during the pandemic, you will lose out on the dragons part of the Primates and Dragons trip. – Manta Rays, are not regularly seen at Manta Point, they are instead seasonal visitors to the area with sightings outside a few months exceedingly rare due to the roughness of the sea Unfortunately, our trip encountered all of these issues and more. Exodus utterly failed to deliver nearly any part of this trip as advertised and in the aftermath have deliberately misinterpreted our complaints, refused to take responsibility for their failings and refused to make adequate amends. This was our fourth trip with Exodus. After thoroughly enjoying the first three, we never want to travel with Exodus again.

Reply from Exodus

We appreciate you taking the time to leave a review, although we are genuinely sorry that you were disappointed with several aspects of your trip to Indonesia and that this has discouraged you from travelling with Exodus again. The regrettable issues your group encountered were the result of flight schedule changes, which affected the planned itinerary, and the unexpected closure of Rinca Island, both of which were outside Exodus’ control. We understand that our customer services team have been in contact since your return and I hope that they are able to resolve your concerns as we wish that, in time, you might consider travelling with us again. We, nevertheless, remain apologetic that your recent experience did not meet your expectations.

Kelly Reid, Product Manager