Reviews

Your Words – We tell it like it is! Holiday Reviews by previous Exodus travellers

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14215 Reviews

4.7 out of 5

Reviewed April 2012

HIGHLIGHTS OF MOROCCO

Porters, 2 hour lunches in restaurants, punctuated by visits to shops where guide was on commission, not at all adventure travel.

Most Inspirational Moment

Thoughts on Group Leader

Amicable, but tour not what I had imagined, more suited to retired americans.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Take a guide book, be prepared to go and do stuff on your own.

Reply from Exodus

It is unfortunate that Mr Eylert believes guides are on a commission; please be assured that this is not the case with our guides. For the guided city tours we use local leaders who are not directly trained by Exodus and therefore outside of our control. I have passed these comments onto our supplier and they have assured us that guides are not paid a commission according to on shops they take clients to.

This is a busy tour with a lot to fit in over the two weeks. If you have your own list of places to visit and are unsure if there will be time during the itinerary then please ask our experts before departure. Due to the sheer size of Morocco, there is a lot of ground to cover for this trip yet it still includes the best view of the Sahara Desert’s sand dunes, a wonderful remote village in the High Atlas Mountains unique to Exodus and an opportunity to absorb the Berber way of life by sampling their home-made bread and infamous mint tea! In my opinion, there is much more to this trip than a guidebook can offer.

Reviewed April 2012

VIETNAM ADVENTURE

This was my first exodus trip and gave me an excellent insight into this fascinating country. The trip included lots of variety, from snorkelling in the east china sea to visiting Hoi Ann and staying in a traditional home in the mekong delta. The food was delicious and the group leader and local people very friendly. For me as a single traveller, the most challenging aspect of the holiday was travelling in a group with people i didnt know but this added to the experience.

Most Inspirational Moment

Visting the town of Hoi AnnSnorkelling in the East China seaOvernight boat trip to Halong Bay and KayakingRelaxing mud bath in Nay trangDelicious foodPassion of the group leader for his country

Thoughts on Group Leader

His passion and knowledge about the country's history really inspired me and I enjoyed hearing his entertaining stories and jokes. He spoke good english and was very helpful when any problems arose. He tried hard to make sure everyone in the group was happy, which is not an easy job.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Make sure you read about Vietnam so you know what to expect in terms of climate, food and acitvities. Some people on the trip go to Vietnam with different expectations and were not prepared and this is such a shame.

Reviewed April 2012

A WEEK IN JORDAN

Amazing history, great people, varied landscapes – you can find all these in Jordan and much more! One week can give you a taste of this country and you want to go back for more. Even tomorrow.

Most Inspirational Moment

Wadi Rum and Petra are two amazing places. We just fall in love and hope to be back there soon:* 2 days in Petra is a great idea - on the first day you learn what is where and you can spend the second day enjoying it! * Wadi Rum is great! It was more "Wadi Rum experience" than a real desert adventure, but this is what I expected from this trip. We are going to do Wadi Rum Adventure next time :-)

Thoughts on Group Leader

What I like about Exodus is that they are using local team leaders.Our team leader was great - very knowledgeable and approachable. Our group was not an easy one, but IMHO he did a great job. Also he definitely became more than just a team leader - he became a friend. Highly recommended!Regarding food: we always went with his recommendations and we were never disappointed! Comment to Exodus: you should make it all inclusive trip, as discussions over where to eat can split the group - I felt sorry for the team leader as some people on the trip were thinking that he is dishonest with them when it comes to recommendations.

Advice for Potential Travellers

* Trust your team leader! They know what they are doing.* Read Trip Notes.* Enjoy and smile!

Reviewed April 2012

CYCLING VIETNAM

Vietnam is an inspirational place to visit, the people are welcoming and open, the kids great you like brothers and sisters,the cities are a total culture shock and the landscape and coast is stunning. As cyclists dressed in our get up we must have looked like people from another planet dropped into a society which in some areas looks like it has not changed in hundreds of years. I felt by cycling, you touch, feel, smell and experience all aspects of life, it’s traveling on a human scale enabling you to immerse yourself in another culture.

Most Inspirational Moment

There were so many; us all collectively lighting a tribute to those who suffered in the war, at the sight of a village whose population was all killed one dreadful morning 45 years ago, was moving. It was like it happened yesterday because the landscape had not changed around the village and there were children cycling back from school looking and sounding like the children who were killed leaving for school that fateful day. Reaching some personal goals in terms of the cycling, getting to the top of hill top passes, cycling to the coast for the first time and jumping in the sea, the overnight train ride and seeing Hanoi for the first time after getting off the train. Halong bay was stunning and I got up at dawn to sea the sun rise over the limestone peaks. But the real inspiration is seeing the strength and energy of the Vietnamise people, after the war you think they would turn their back on people from the west, but they were happy to share their time with us and let us see how they live.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Lam, was caring, effective, knowledgeable and his fitness was inspirational on the bike rides. Every single arrangement he made for us worked and his recommendations around places to go and see we're always spot on.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Only go on this trip if you are a fit cyclist. I was on the margin of not strong enough and it was a tough challenge. It says it's mostly flat, somewhere, it's mostly hilly. We had a wide range of ability levels and e erroneous was supported to finish. But my advise is if you have not cycled over 70km in a day in the uk, you are going to find 100km in the heat very very tough. And oh yes train and train before leaving. You will enjoy it more if it's not painful

Reviewed April 2012

HIGHLIGHTS OF MOROCCO

An amazing trip that really did explore the highlights that Morocco has to offer. The mixture of cities, desert, mountains and the coast enables you to fully experience Morocco’s very different landscapes. Friendly people, yummy food and delicious mint tea also helped make the experience what it was!

Most Inspirational Moment

The auberge in Merzouga, literally right on the edge of the Erg Chebbi dunes, and the camel trek and night out in the bedouin camp was awesome! It was such a relaxing place to be after the hussle and bustle of the cities in the north, and had it not been a full moon (which in itself was great) i'm sure we'd have seen millions more stars. Do make the effort to get up early for sunrise, we did it both days and it was great, although suprisingly freezing cold!! The desert Berber's music after dinner was great too!Essaouira was also a favourite, a real laid-back and charming city. Make sure you resist tempatation and do all your shopping here...it's cheaper and you can get everything here (including the cool wooden soup spoons that you'll be using in the mountain gite!).Jemma el fna square, Marrakech - you must eat at the food stalls! It's an amazing experience, the food is piping hot and so much fresher than anywhere else we ate, plus hearing the banter from the guys working on the stalls "take a butchers", "see ya later aligator", etc. will have you in stiches! I can personally recommend stall 114!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Mustapha was great! A really friendly guy who seemed to really enjoy sharing his country, its culture and his Berber roots with us. He'll happy answer any question you have and do his best to help you with anything you need, including buying the music that was played in the minibus and teaching us the amazing Berber card game Bonjour Madame, Bonjour Monsoir! It'll be spreading across the UK soon!I have to mention Abdul too, our lovely driver who took us very safely on this wonderful tour! ..and always with a smile!

Advice for Potential Travellers

It's easy to change money in the airport in the baggage reclaim area, there's also loads of ATMs available, just tell the guide you need one and he'll find somewhere to stop.The meals worked out more than in the trip notes so be aware of that. We ended up having 3 course meals for both lunch and dinner on some days at the start which was both excessive and expensive, although cheaper than in the UK. I wish I'd spoken up sooner and asked for more cheaper places or supermarket stops for lunches! A few words of French would be really useful if you get the chance to learn some before you go, otherwise English and body language will be fine.

Reviewed April 2012

ATLAS DESCENT

An adrenaline filled, Perineum punishing, thigh stretching hootnanny of a trip. My first mountain biking trip, lived up to expectations in terms of the trade off between excitement and exertion. Would certainly consider scaring myself again with another downhill mountain biking trip. As ever the trip was well organised and the routes carefully considered to get the most out of each day.

Most Inspirational Moment

There were a couple of downhill rides on the tarmac which for someone with my pretty low technical ability were just superb in terms of speed and the views. But I think like many others the best part of the ride for me is the last 10K on the last day down to the Beach. From this point the Atlantic glistens and dances off your sunglasses, the road runs smooth, fast and sinuously down hill at a pace hugging the hill side before levelling out onto the coast road and then onto the beach. A quick pause for end of trip photographs with friends then a sprint into the ocean. Simply a great way to end a trip.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Liz Proctor - this trip takes me into double figures of experience with Exodus and so I feel I'm in a good position to say Liz was one of the finest guides I have come across so far. Liz understands keenly the fact that it is an adventure holiday and their is some risk involved, but never crossed the line into smothering you with health and safety vernacular, she explained how it was each day, what to look out for and what to do if got into trouble - then it was over to you. She was always there should you need help but never pushing it in your face. This plus her general aura of amiability, bonhomie and excellent knowledge/experience made her an excellent guide. She does however go like a greased whippet on the pistes so I wouldn't try racing her too much!

Advice for Potential Travellers

I undertrained for this trip, I neglected any climbing training, there are a number of ascents (fear not these are more than counteracted by the number of descents) so I would prepare for the uphills a little more before arriving. Also some of the descents can be a little technical and hair raising, a little practice of the basics (more than I had) would I feel be invaluable before arriving.

Reviewed April 2012

EVEREST BASE CAMP

Beautiful, challenging at times but very boring after 1pm…..

Most Inspirational Moment

When I left the main group and went off with another group member to Namche for something to do....

Thoughts on Group Leader

Generally a nice guy...

Advice for Potential Travellers

Kiss goodbye to all the luxuries that you take for granted... Take a BIG book as you'll spend most of each day sitting around in a lodge staring at the wall... There are no TV's... One or two lodges had a chess board and a deck of cards but I strongly advise you to take your own entertainment as there really isn't anything to do beyond 1pm on the average walking day.... Also the time WILL come where you have to use a squat and drop toilet so just get used to the idea now !! Oh yes and the bridges can be very scary so if you have a HUGE fear of hights then leave this one alone...

Reply from Exodus

Most day walks finish between 3 and 4pm. The speed and pace of the groups varies depending on the capability of the participants and the leader ensures that a speed is set to allow for acclimatisation. The teahouses are comfortable, yet basic but we believe part of being in the Himalayas is to enjoy getting back to basics, switching of the mobile phone and ignoring the tv. The investment in the solar stoves has been a great success, welcomed by the local teahouse owners. They are now able to boil water without the struggle of having to find wood and further pollute the environment with excess smoke created.

The evenings in the teahouses are a great time to play cards, read a good book and get to know your fellow travellers.

Reviewed April 2012

LAND OF THE TIGER

This holiday, whilst enjoyable, can be quite hard work with many very early starts.

Most Inspirational Moment

Our first sighting of a tiger at Pench. The park was nearly closing and we had seen this tiger lying in the undergrowth a few hundred metres away for a number of hours when it decided to get up and walk towards us. It crossed the road in front of the jeep turned left alongside the jeep and sauntered of into the jungle. Magical. We had several other close encounters at the other parks both in jeeps and on elephants but the first was the most memorable.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our group leader, Harish Kumar, was absolutely brilliant. His interest in wildlifeand photography along with his knowledge of the workings of the parks and his rapport with the staff enabled him to negotiate the best time slots and routes within the parks to maximise the potential for us to see tigers. His enthusiasm made the early starts worthwhile. When we were at Aggra my wife had a bad back and couldn't walk very fast and Harish made sure that she was ok and pointed out places where she could rest and wait for the other members of the group so that she didn't feel left out. His knowledge, experience, style, compassion, understanding and sense of humour made the trip.

Advice for Potential Travellers

You need to be aware of the number of additional game drives that are available at each reserve as these can add considerable cost to the trip. I would have taken twice as much money as I did had I known. ATMs are very thin on the ground and the one we stopped at refused to accept my debit card. My bank being overcautious more than the fault of the ATM but its something to think about. The other thing is if you don't go on the additional game drives there is nothing else to do. Two of the lodges we stayed at had swimming pools. My wife and I missed one of the drives and used the time to relax and read which was ok but not something we could do more than once. There is also time to relax between the morning an afternoon game drives. Also going on the additional drives increases your chances of seeing tigers which is, after all, the object of the trip.

Reviewed April 2012

KILIMANJARO CLIMB - RONGAI ROUTE

A well organised, well advised, well informed trip and everyone from the general porters to the exodus guys were just brillant. Managed to keep the group motivated given some pretty unsettled conditions and a last minute logisitcal detour via Kili airport instead of direct to Nairobi was quick thinking and personally very well received!

Most Inspirational Moment

Making progress and getting higher and higher was pretty up there generally, tuesday's camps views were good as were above some clouds but after that didnt see muchseeing Kili from the plane for the first time. And seeing it before and after the snow dumpgetting past gilmores point and then rest that followed and obv reaching the peak.All the porters deserve massive respect - esp the guys who assissted me back down, never forget that

Thoughts on Group Leader

Paul & Jim were fantastic. Offered encouragement, advice, kept everyone well informed and were great leaders. Don't think they could have done anything better.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Yes - go with Exodus!

Reviewed April 2012

THE TROPICAL SOUTH

A very pleasant introduction to Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The group we were with was a very good mix and added to the enjoyment.

Most Inspirational Moment

The temple visit to Madurai is a real highlight, and we were lucky to see part of the Painguri festival (not for the squeamish!)

Thoughts on Group Leader

The leader, Suresh Moni was excellent. Very knowledgeable and enthusiastic, and attentive to the diffferent needs of the group.

Advice for Potential Travellers

The hill walk at Munnar is not difficult, but with the heat was not attempted by all the group - some were fitter than others!

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