Asia Farm and plantation visits Trips

The Walking in Sri Lanka trip was very well put together, travelling to a number of key sights without feeling too hurried. The walking elements added a lot to the trip, with time spent looking around, enjoying the countryside and talking with guides and other members of the group of 14. The accommodation was well chosen for convenience and a taste of the real Sri Lanka rather than "international" hotels that could be anywhere. The leader, Su, was very knowledgeable and able to put things into context very well. He suggested restaurants which were very good and arranged a number of picnic lunches which were very tasty. There were a number of early starts, but there was always time to recover later in the day. The drivers were brilliant and drove both on narrow windy roads and in city traffic with confidence and made me feel safe all the time.

As stated in the trip notes, this is a fast paced tour that covers a lot of ground. There are some long drives although there are often stops to visit somewhere of interest. Overall the tour was excellent, there was plenty of variety in the programme. The only disappointments were that Puducherry was oversold and there wasn’t much French heritage to see and the trip on the houseboat in the Kerala backwaters was a cruise on the lake and didn’t venture into the canals. The hotels were very good, the final hotel in Mamallapuram was more basic but this was more than offset by its location in the centre of the town. Replacing the overnight train journey with a daytime express train is a good decision by Explore. The food was delicious throughout. We had an excellent tour guide. This tour would be ideal for someone visiting India for the first time.

This is one of the best trips I have been on with Explore in a beautiful country. The guide was excellent, the walks were good, lots of wildlife and visits to some of the main sites in Sri Lanka. Would thoroughly recommend although the steps up and down to Adam’s Peak were challenging and there were plenty of leeches on some of the walks.

Had a great time in Kerala, with a fabulous bunch of fellow Explorers and a very knowledgable guide in Sam. Weather was kind, despite rain being forecast for the whole trip, only one heavy shower which was quite welcome in the very hot and humid conditions which made the cycling a little tougher. Accommodation was of mixed standards, had more cold showers than hot! Often welcome tho. A/C or fans throughout and much needed. Backwaters just as expected, lush and green, teeming with flora and fauna, binoculars useful, also enjoyed blowy coastal rides and the start of the trip in hippie vibe resorts of Kovalam and Varkala, excellent restaurants overlooking beach and lots of shops selling clothing and fabrics. Trip ended in Fort Cochin, iconic fishing nets ‘Cheena Vala’ didn’t disappoint along with architecture left by Dutch and Portuguese, nice feel to the place - an excellent trip with lots of good and cheap food, a few G and Ts too.

Thank you to all concerned for a great trip Food and beer prices need doubling as service charge 10% and VAT 18%. Night under canvas listening to animal noises ruined by local very loud party until 2am Lion Rock. the walk into the rock itself is not easy as very uneven ground and lots of steps. definitely need walking poles if at all unsure on balance. Grand Hotel, Nuwara Eliya. Lots of staff but very slow service in bars and restaurants. 2 nights in Galle with own time to explore old town would have been much preferred to 2 nights at Bentota. Jeep ride around Colombo started well, but monsoon rain meant that we were all drenched, and commentary stopped. street food was just picked up from 3 men standing in side street. I had images of a street food market. the food itself in a cardboard box was just rice with a small amount of chicken, and a sweet sauce and chilli sauce, finally eaten in our hotel room. A sad end to a great trip

We had a fantastic trip with Mimi as our tour leader. The quality of the hotels was great (particularly at Kandalama and Galle) and Mimi was a great guide providing the right amount of information needed and answering questions comprehensively. We loved the itinerary but would have welcomed an extra day in both Nuwara Eliya and Galle to give a bit more relaxation time and also a change to see more of these places. We loved all the extra stops now mentioned in the trip notes and felt well looked after throughout. Thank you so much for a great trip.