Africa Walking Trips

I still can't believe how fabulous this trip was and that I was lucky enough to do it. The places, the guides and driver to introduce us to the culture and country. Loved every moment.

Well organised trip, lots to see and do and be part of.

Many (most?) of the hotels had issues with showers either not having hot water or flooding the bathroom floor. Except for the hotel in Essaouira, the hotels were somewhat isolated so we couldn't just leave our room and explore, we had to get taxis or just stay at the hotel. We did very much enjoy the lunch in the Atlas mountains - it was really lovely. The hikes were nice, but not really anything special. I don't recall seeing anything remarkable and maybe that was partly due to the 2023 earthquake which damaged many structures. The guide was more of an organizer than a guide. He was very nice and even organized meals when we were supposed to be on our own, which was good and bad. We found that for the second half of the tour we preferred being away from the group to do our own thing, so we begged off on the dinners. One thing that disturbed me throughout the trip was how animals were neglected or left to run wild. There were cats everywhere and at night there were dogs. There were starving horses pulling tourists in horse drawn carriages. There were mules carrying huge loads with sores on their backs where they had been prodded to keep moving. It was truly horrible and I could not get away from it unless I was locked up in my room. Another thing was that there was trash/litter everywhere, including most of the hikes. The logistics all went smoothly and we were transferred to and from the airport and the bus was fine if you didn't mind a safety issue that a few of the seatbelts would not stay locked. Overall I would not recommend this particular tour. I've gone on other tours with Explore that I have enjoyed and will try them again.

Great trip all around! The booking was short notice but our questions were answered promptly and the booking process and communication that followed was excellent. Once on the ground, everything was top notch. The guides were friendly, very knowledgeable and passionate, as well as very accommodating (pick up times, detours for ATMs, adding some excursions, etc.). The trip cover all the highlights along the Nile in a pretty short time so a bit of decompression time sailing on the felucca was very nice. I would consider adding a day in Luxor to have time to enjoy the river front and split some of the sights. It would also give an opportunity for sunrise hot air balloon ride without trying to cram this in. Overall I would not hesitate to recommend this trip to others.

Fantastic Group / incredible experiences

The overall trip as planned is lovely. However earthquake damage has had an impact. The very rough road over the High Atlas and the damage to the Tinmel mosque make for a long and less interesting day 3. That said the balance of the trip was very good. The hikes up into the mountains and village lunches are highlights. I can’t say enough about our guide Boubker. He was excellent. He was easy to talk to, knowledgeable, and very good at managing the issues that arise on any group trip. Our driver, Omar, was also terrific.