Reviews

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

Here at Exodus we thrive on feedback from our customers. It’s the only way we can ensure our trips continue to be the best they can be. So, for the real tales, twists and turns of the trip you’re interested in, look no further than the reviews from our previous travellers.

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54 Reviews

4.8 out of 5

Angela HORTON

Reviewed October 2018

Stunning views of Cinque Terre & Portofino

Moneglia, a small seaside resort, was a great base for our walking holiday away from the crowds of the more popular villages of Cinque Terre. The Hotel Piccolo was perfectand the staff were very friendly. Our room was spacious and clean with a safe and tea and coffee making facilities. We also had a small balcony where we could sit and have a beer but there was also a sun terrace with a jacuzzi and outside terraces facing the street to sit on and have a drink with our group. It was great to have access to the indoor swimming pool at the end of the day’s walk but unfortunately the sauna was never switched on.
Breakfast was more than adequate with a limited range of cereals, scrambled eggs and bacon, ham and cheese, bread, fruit, yogurt and cakes.
The daily walks all started with a trip to the train station to get us to the start of our walk.

Most Inspirational Moment

The views as we approached the Cinque Terre villages were stunning particularly on the walk from Corniglia to Manarola along the terraces. Our walk and time spent in Portofino Seeing the dolphin whilst walking to the villages. View of the villages from the boat.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Michela Wicks was an exceptional leader. She has a wonderful, warm personality with a great sense of humour together with great organisational skills, which ensured the daily travel arrangements by train at the start and end of the walks ran smoothly. She chose a good range of restaurants for the group evening meals but allowed flexibility for those that wanted to do their own thing. Michela was also happy to stay with the group at breakfast and dinner which gave us the opportunity to learn so much about her country. Michela went beyond the call of duty on our free day and gave lots of advice to different members of the group ensuring that everyone was able to achieve what they wanted. Michela also gave alternative options to members of the group who for various reasons had to miss some of the walks. Whilst they might have missed a walk she made sure that they still accessed the beautiful villages and had a wonderful holiday.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Read the trip notes! It's a level 3 which means you are going to need your walking boots and if you are not used to walking 7 - 8 miles a day, up and down hills you are likely to find it difficult. As the ascents and descents are 200-300 metres you may find a walking pole useful but practise before you go, you don't want to be waving it around injurying fellow walkers. It was very hot in October so a 1-2 litre water bottle is useful. There are generally places to refill at lunchtime.

nadia nashid

Reviewed October 2018

Ciquo Terre

Michela Wicks , is a great leader . Encouraging , up beat , Kind and Knowledgeable . Location of Hotel is good .

Most Inspirational Moment

Being able to climbe the mountain , from Monorolla

Thoughts on Group Leader

Fantastic

Advice for Potential Travellers

Early October was still crowded in the towns of Cinquo terre

Mary Jane Melink

Reviewed October 2018

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The town of Moneglia was perfect. Picturesque and away from the crowds, with the same charm and beauty of the other cities.

The Piccolo Hotel facility was great and the staff was wonderful. Helpful and friendly people.

Our leader Paul was also very good. He was knowledgeable, kind, funny and truly interested in making sure that everyone on the trip had a great time.

The hikes were beautiful and a nice combination of challenging and relaxing. The train to and from each hike added to the interest of the hiking.

It was a great trip and great experience.

Most Inspirational Moment

The views were inspiring.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Paul was a great leader. He worked hard to insure that all members of the group felt good about the experience and he recognized that everyone has different skills and capabilities. Paul was engaging and interested in getting to know group members and was willing to go the extra mile to be sure that everyone was taken care of.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Parts of the hike were challenging so be prepared for uphills, stairs and narrow trails.

Mary Jane Melink

Reviewed October 2018

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The town of Moneglia was perfect. Picturesque and away from the crowds, with the same charm and beauty of the other cities.

The Piccolo Hotel facility was great and the staff was wonderful. Helpful and friendly people.

Our leader Paul was also very good. He was knowledgeable, kind, funny and truly interested in making sure that everyone on the trip had a great time.

The hikes were beautiful and a nice combination of challenging and relaxing. The train to and from each hike added to the interest of the hiking.

It was a great trip and great experience.

Most Inspirational Moment

The views were inspiring.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Advice for Potential Travellers

Parts of the hike were challenging so be prepared for uphills, stairs and narrow trails.

Laura Milburn

Reviewed September 2018

N/a

Really enjoyed my first Exodus trip. The guided walks were well-organised and planned. The practical information provided was also helpful e.g suggestions of where to eat.

Most Inspirational Moment

Seeing the Cinque Terre with my own eyes having looked at pictures of them for so long.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Approachable, informative and well-organised.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Always pack water proofs even if you think that it is unlikely that it will rain in a particular country during a given month.

D D

Reviewed June 2018

Steptastic Italian Adventure

A well structured trip that takes in both the famous Cinque Terra villages, but also some less frequented and equally stunning hiking routes. There is plenty to do in this area and Moneglia is a good base, as it is lively without being overrun with tourists, which is sadly the case in some of the other towns nearby. Eating out most evenings means you get to experience authentic and varied Italian cuisine and the hotel is comfortable and welcoming.

Most Inspirational Moment

Most of the walks featured stunning views and numerous spontaneous swimming opportunities, which was great fun after a hot day's walking! Whilst it is good to have seen the Cinque Terra villages, I would not rate these as the highlight of the trip, unless you enjoy large crowds :-)

Thoughts on Group Leader

Paul was an excellent leader. His meticulous organization of the daily travel arrangements at the start and end of the walks meant the days ran smoothly and we were able to enjoy some free time for swimming etc after the walks. He also selected a good range of local restaurants for the evening meals. He went beyond the call of duty, helping organize activities for the free day and managing a group, whose different fitness levels made organization very challenging at times. An excellent advert for Exodus!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Whilst this trip is graded as moderate, the geography of the area means nothing is flat and most walks involve at least 200 m of ascent and descent, much of this on steps. Poles and proper walking boots are absolutely essential. It can also get very hot and humid, which should not be underestimated when climbing up steps, even if you are relatively fit. This is also first and foremost a trekking holiday and not just city touring with some walking thrown in!

Jane Byrne

Reviewed June 2018

Wonderful scenery and walking plus great food and wine

This was a wonderful week. The scenery is magnificent and the Cinque Terre villages are as beautiful as i hoped, despite the crowds you can still appreciate the unique atmosphere and architecture of these tiny villages. Several times we walked through lovely flowers or woods. The hotel is just across the road from a Blue Flag beach with safe swimming , lovely after a hard walk. Local food is tasty and affordable and especially good if you like anchovies and ice cream (not together!) The walking is strenuous going up the cliffs at the start of the day and down at the end, but there is plenty of time allowed and the “level” parts are well surfaced and easy. I really reccommend this holiday.

Most Inspirational Moment

1 Completing the walks without undue tiredness 2 The wine tasting 3 Lucca on the free day 4 The tasting menu on the last night

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent - full of knowledge about the local area, very helpful with suggestions and travel arrangements for the free day. Great sense of humour. Provided biscuits on the walks!

Advice for Potential Travellers

I find the "cliff" element of holidays like this hard to train for, but sessions on a step machine plus at long last learning to go slow uphill really helped. On no account should you miss the wine tasting - as a very occasional wine drinker I can honestly say this was like nectar and opened my eyes to wonderful wine. For the free day I reccommend Lucca - the train journey is worth it for the great historic old town with many impressive buildings and also art.

David Wells

Reviewed May 2018

Walking Cinque Terre and Porofino

A very well organised trip and excellent guide who was always decisive and unruffled when there were changes forced on her by weather or authorities. The hotel in Moneglia was very good, serving a good evening meal on the first night and a wide selection of breakfast food in the mornings. Moneglia was certainly quieter than the places we visited during week, so was quite restful. Travelling by train to each start point was enjoyable and quick in comparison to road travel around the area. The walks I would have said were graded a bit low at 3, certainly the steps and rocky climbs and descents needed a good set of knees and or walking poles, walking boots essential. Not a set of walks for trainers, though one did see idiots in insubstantial footwear attempting them. Wonderful views of the villages of the Cinque Terre and coastline as the walks progressed. Walk to Portofino was pleasant but the place was quite crowded even in May as we experienced . Three cruise ships anchored in the bay on one day would not have helped matters. If you don’t mind being organised by someone and can go with the flow this is an excellent trip. We did not have to pay for anything in terms of travel during the days apart from lunch on the those when packed lunches were not provided. On the basis on this trip which was my first with Exodus I would definitely consider other tours with them.

Most Inspirational Moment

Looking down on the villages of the Cinque terre from 600 metres.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent could not fault her. Organised, unruffled with a good command of English and great sense of humour.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Don't chance this walk without walking boots and if you have them walking poles and get some practice going up and down steps (384 just going up from Corniglia station to the village, ok one could have caught a bus up but where's the fun in that and at least you get a work out!

S D

Reviewed May 2018

Walks of the Cinque Terre and Portofino

An excellent week in every way – sunny weather, wonderfully scenic walks along coastal paths, through forests and across high terraces and a good hotel base in Moneglia where a number of restaurants offered a choice for evening meals. On the “free” day we took the boat from Monterosso to Porto Venere which enabled us to see all the villages from the sea and recognise some of the paths we’d walked.

Most Inspirational Moment

The views down to the villages from the hiking paths were glorious. The evening spent wine tasting was informative and Lucca’s passion for his subject was infectious!

Thoughts on Group Leader

Michela was very efficient and organised, ensuring we never missed a train yet enabling us to spend time in the places we reached. She was knowledgeable and helpful, patient and had a great sense of humour.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Walking poles were useful, especially for the knees on descents!

S Patel

Reviewed September 2017

So beautiful.

Such a beautiful week of walking made special by a great group and a fantastic guide.

Most Inspirational Moment

The beautiful views along the coast line of Cinque Terre and Portofino made every step along the trail worthwhile.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide Michela Wicks was fantastic. Although our main reason for going was to see the fantastic views, the trip was made even more perfect by Michela, who worked hard to make sure we got to each place in good time to make the most of our day. She made sure we understood what was expected on each day of walking and was clear about what we had to take on our walk. She made sure we stopped to drink water and because of this made sure we got back to our base town safely and in good health.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Follow the guides given by Exodus on making sure you choose the right level of walks for your fitness and make sure you listen to your guides expert knowledge to keep safe on some of the more energetic walks.

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