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.

Simply use the selector below to search our trip reviews and start reading real feedback from real Exodus travellers who have ‘been there and done that’!

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441 Reviews

4.7 out of 5

David Berry

Reviewed July 2023

Great walking holiday!

As older walkers, on our first organised walking holiday, we weren’t sure whether we would be able to keep up with the youngsters. Pleased to say that some others were slower, and our various minor ailments didn’t stop us enjoying all the walks. The hotel was lovely and traditional and the family atmosphere shone through. The meals were good and the packed lunches substantial. The hotel BBQ was excellent! The walk up Vesuvius, the walk to Amalfi and the Walk of the Gods were all spectacular. A good holiday and we’ll be looking to do another one with you.

Most Inspirational Moment

Walking the rim of Vesuvius with no safety rails, but with a very experienced guide.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Our guide for the week, Severio, was good and stretched us, although it took a couple of days to get used to him. He had excellent local knowledge, and his good connections meant that we experienced good coffee, ice cream, restaurants and the best specialist guides for Vesuvius and Pompeii.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Follow the training regime that Exodus provide - it certainly helped our fitness, and therefore the enjoyment of our holiday.

David Martin

Reviewed July 2023

A very enjoyable trip

The holiday is based in Bomerano-Agerola, up in the hills above Amalfi. This means it’s away from the tourist crowds of the coast and cooler as well. The hotel is a friendly family-run establishment with good, though fairly small rooms that, in places could do with some refurbishment (like the slightly odd and unreliable means of flushing the toilet!). Meals are provided in the large dining room and are mostly very good, though perhaps a bit heavy on carbohydrate. E.g. on one day we started with a pasta salad, followed by a pasta dish and then a main course containing potatoes. The walks are good, though the long descents on staircases became something of a joke in our group. There are some wonderful views and there is considerable variety from day to day.

Most Inspirational Moment

I had always wanted to visit Pompeii, so the day visiting Vesuvius and Pompeii was a highlight. The walk around the crater of Vesuvius was really special, though quite scary at times. I was glad of walking poles and strong boots. We all returned covered in grit and volcanic ash.

Thoughts on Group Leader

The guide was excellent in most respects. He had clearly taken time to explore the whole area very thoroughly and took us on paths that some of the other groups missed. He was very knowledgeable of the area and gave us sensible advice when there were options. E.g. he warned us that the island of Capri is very touristy so those who chose to visit on the day off knew what to expect (and still enjoyed it). His instructions to the group were not always as clear as they could have been, which led to confusion on a couple of occasions.

Advice for Potential Travellers

1. The trip notes advise long trousers for walking. There was only one walk (the walk to Amalfi) where the undergrowth, for a short distance, had the potential to scratch legs. The weather was too hot for long trousers and most of us walked quite happily in shorts. 2. The notes also advise proper walking boots and walking poles. In both cases I would strongly agree. Walking boots with ankle support help to protect against twisted ankles and worse on the uneven ground and walking poles support where the ground is unstable. Also, for those with weak knees (like me) up to 50% of your weight can be transferred to poles. 3. For anyone travelling, like us, by train to Italy this is an invaluable website: https://www.seat61.com/Italy.htm.

Jill Cartwright

Reviewed March 2023

Wonderful walking trip

This was our first organised walking trip. We thoroughly enjoyed spending time with such an interesting group of people who were great company – they were inspiring and entertaining! The walks were accurately described in terms of difficulty and the scenery was stunning. Hotel Due Torri staff made us feel welcome and served us delicious, home cooked , authentic Italian food. The guides who led us up Vesuvius and round Pompeii were knowledgeable but imparted their knowledge in an interesting way, adding humour to their commentary. Our main guide, Veriano, who accompanied us every day was superb.

Most Inspirational Moment

Being taken to Veriano’s special places which were beautiful and serene.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Veriano was born and bred in the area and was therefore passionate about all aspects of our trip, from the stunning scenery to the local customs.. His extensive knowledge and great sense of humour made the trip informative and enjoyable. He was very patient when some of us occasionally struggled to keep up and was very encouraging. We were all sad to leave on the last day!

Advice for Potential Travellers

Read the trip info carefully. Take plenty of cash for tips. Check flight details up until the day of departure in case the departure terminal has changed - you will not automatically be notified by text or email.

Marion Kinnear-White

Reviewed March 2023

A great Italian coastal walking holiday

Stayed in the excellent family run Hotel Due Torri – lovely meals and friendly cookery demonstrations. Meals were lovely – food intolerances well catered for. Comfortable rooms, warm. Bomerano was good to walk from to Amalfi, Ravello and Positano. A thoroughly enjoyable holiday for us – first time with Exodus and being in a group; we woud definitely consider going with Exodus again.

Most Inspirational Moment

So many inspirational moments : the views; the other people in our group; the Italian food; the Path of the Gods; the trips to Vesuvius and Pompeii: I even inspired myself by keeping up with the walking and getting over leg aches and a blister.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Veriano was an affable guide whose local knowledge certainly added value to the trip - we found out more about local history, cuisine, nature and geology on the trips - just the right amount of information. Veriano did all he could to keep us safe, give clear information, good organisation and help everyone find what they wanted to do on the free day. He helped the group to gel and we appreciated his guiding.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Walk down lots of steps before you go and be prepared for steep and rocky paths.

John and Sam Myers

Reviewed January 2023

Christmas on the Amalfi Coast

Excellent in every respect except the gradient and terrain for the walks is not clear enough in advance. For example a 500m climb or descent over a period of 5 hours sounds reasonable except, in reality, the climbs and descents are very steep and in the case of Monte Tre Calli (on our first day) the surface is very rocky with loose stones – quite challenging although we managed it. The other walks were much more in line with our expectations. However we had a wonderful week, the hotel and food were excellent and the cooking demonstrations were great fun. We’re sure to travel with Exodus again in the future.

Most Inspirational Moment

There were highlights every day, hard to pick just one

Thoughts on Group Leader

Nico our guide was excellent and very informative throughout, a great ambassador for his country.

Sue Howard

Reviewed November 2022

Excellent respectful Guide Paolo

We had the most wonderful fun packed holiday with a great crowd of people who all quickly became a team. Paolo our guide was very kind & thoughtful & you felt very safe under his leadership scrambling over rocky places on the walks. The hotel quite basic & initially we were very cold at night with no heating (November) but after a couple of days of begging this was rectified. The hotel staff were warm & friendly & again as with our party you sensed teamwork within this family run business. I would say that although the holiday is graded leisurely/moderate it is obviously an activity holiday & you are on the go most of the time. Arriving back at the hotel around 1700, briefing, dinner & then off 0815-0830 the following morning. On my return home I immediately searched for my next holiday with Exodus!!

Most Inspirational Moment

The stunning thought provoking views from the top of the mountains. I wanted to phone my family to share the moment

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent. Extremely diligent & interesting with his knowledge

Advice for Potential Travellers

Do some preparation for climbing & descending mountains. I live in a flat area so am not used to using muscles for descending many steps which you need.

Ray Sharman

Reviewed November 2022

Not as expected

A mixture of amazing and unfortunately, poor/dangerous. The amazing – The views and the landscape. The poor – 1. Organisation of the 3 groups. 2 of the 3 groups had a minimum of 3 solo travelers in except my group which had me as the only solo amongst all couples. Not a disater by any means, but definitely had an effect on the holiday for me. 2. Only being allowed an hour or so at Herculaneum on route to the airport. No one could understand why the driver couldn’t have allowed us more time. Especially as we arrived at the airport 4hrs before the flight and on route to the airport, after leaving Herculaneum he offered us an unscheduled stop at a ceramics factory. The Dangerous – 1. Private coach drivers driving us from A to B to and from the walks. Talking on the phone while driving a coach along any road, let alone the extremely narrow roads of Amalfi is dangerous. One driver actually held the phone in one hand as he drove the coach full of people. 2. Being led walking as a group along busy narrow 2 way roads with no walk ways for pedestrians, through car tunnels and walking on the wrong side with the traffic rather than against it. Unbelievable.

Most Inspirational Moment

The views and landscape

Thoughts on Group Leader

A nice person for sure.

Advice for Potential Travellers

If you're a solo traveller, ask for a guarantee that you won't be alone in a group of couples when there are other numerous solos on the same trip in other groups. Expect functional accommodation.

Reply from Exodus

We would like to thank Ray for his review, although we were sorry to hear the concerns that he raised about the trip, as Walking The Amalfi Coast is one of our most popular tours and usually gets great feedback. The organisation of our walking groups in Amalfi is done on the basis of including a mixture of twin and single rooming clients in groups of equal number, which we usually find works well, though we understand Ray’s disappointment in being the only solo traveller in his group, and going forward we are considering allowing different-sized groups if it improves our customers’ experience. We are aware of the issue that Ray’s group had with the driver who took them to Herculaneum; we use a trusted local transport company and the drivers they provide are usually excellent, but we do not tolerate a driver being on the phone while operating their vehicle and we have assurances that this individual will not be hired to drive Exodus groups in the future. We understand that Ray would have appreciated more time in Herculaneum, and though we would say that our groups give generally very positive feedback about this optional trip and the time they spend there, we are sorry that this was not reflected in his experience. Finally, we are sorry to hear that Ray was worried at points during the walks, as we understand that the routes we take mean that our groups do briefly walk alongside the roads in Amalfi. We have not been made aware of similar concerns in the past, either by clients or by the several Exodus staff members who have done this trip, and are confident that our tour leaders, who go through extensive group management training and are well used to navigating the roads around Amalfi, keep our groups safe at all times during the walks, but we will continue to monitor feedback in this regard.

Gary Blinkhorn

Reviewed October 2022

Beautiful scenery and good walking.

Had a fabulous week walking the Amalfi Coast. Great guide and the most amazing scenery on a range of different walks. Whilst not lengthy or technically difficult some of the walks were challenging in terms of descent via steps and exposure for anyone with no head for heights. Great organization throughout and the family run hotel was very good with excellent food and service. My bonus was a week in October in Italy with fantastic weather and great company. Highly recommended.

Most Inspirational Moment

The Walk of the Gods.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Excellent skilled, knowledgeable and extremely hard working.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Make sure you are up to these walks as you will descent several thousand steps during the week and the Amalfi Coast is steep and rugged.

Tony Darroch

Reviewed September 2022

A Magical Week

What a magical week: walking one of Italy’s most spectacular coastlines in the company of a really great group led by our wonderful guide, Veriano. After a day ascending mountains or volcanoes, descending stone stairways connecting sublimely picturesque towns and villages or traversing ancient mule paths on The Path of the Gods, we would return to a warm welcome and great food from our hosts, the hospitable Acampora family, and their first-rate staff.

Most Inspirational Moment

Walking The Path of the Gods, justifiably the most famous walk on the Amalfi Coast, taking in terraced vineyards and historic towns along the way, with fantastic photo opportunities framed by the dazzling views of the Tyrrhenian Sea .

Thoughts on Group Leader

Veriano was the ideal leader, a popular local lad whose unbounded enthusiasm, knowledge of the area and easy manner engaged and relaxed the group, who gelled from day one, sharing in Veriano's love of the landscape and delight in the scents of the region's wild herbs and the size, taste and many uses of the lemons. Fresh lemonade complemented our packed lunches, and a demonstration of limoncello making (with tasting) preceded our last dinner, at the end of which Veriano gave us all a glass of his excellent home-made lemon liqueur. That evening was enlivened by a song and a poem members of the group had written for our group leader, eloquent testimony to the esteem in which we all held a man with humour, willingness to join in the fun (including singing sessions) and commendable professionalism and empathy in charge of the safety and wellbeing of a disparate group of walkers.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Before you book, read the trip notes about the number of steep steps which need to be negotiated if you have dodgy knees.

Ann Wood

Reviewed September 2022

TDA 220903

The trip was brilliant – wonderful scenery, good food, great company and an amazing guide

Most Inspirational Moment

The scenery was just magnificent. But importantly it was brought to life by our guide. The walks were great and allowed us to come off the beaten track.

Thoughts on Group Leader

Veriano was excellent - knowledgeable and passionate about the area. Sharing with us some of his special places made it even better. He really could not have been better.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Some of our group found the walking hard. While I think the trip was appropriately graded and the walk were not challenging it is important that anybody wanting to do the trip has a good basic level of fitness and has been walking recently.

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