Simple stays with essential amenities. Typically guesthouses, hostels or hotels rated below 3 stars — clean, no-frills, and great for value-conscious travelers.
Comfortable and reliable 3-star stays. Expect private rooms, en-suite bathrooms, and solid amenities — a great balance between comfort and cost.
Upscale 4-5 star hotels and lodges. Enjoy high-end service, refined comfort, and premium locations — ideal for travelers seeking extra indulgence.
Another spectacular trip with Explore. I highly recommend this company. As a solo female traveller they have never let me down. Explore is 100 % reliable.
Cultural, religious and historic sites
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
An interesting destination with a fascinating culture.
The cuisine is delightful and this Explore trip gives you an insight into the preparation of the local food.
The flora is very colourful, but bird watchers will be very disappointed. There is more birdsong in my garden than two weeks in Vietnam.
The Vietnamese are extremely friendly and helpful. The traffic is daunting.
City sightseeing
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
On the whole a great itinerary. I would drop the Sunderbans though, since the chance of seeing any wildlife while sailing for hours up and down the middle of the river is unlikely, especially since the animals are behind a fence. We had an excellent tour leader, Kiran who is warm, very informed and energetic and who certainly went that extra mile in solving problems and caring for everyone. The local guides who travelled with us were also great, as were the drivers. The hotels in India were the Summit hotels, an Indian chain. They are clean and quite well organised. However since those in Sikkim were out of town we were forced to eat dinner in the hotels which produced the identical menu. It would have been better to have spent the bits of free time we had in Sikkim in the towns themselves.
City sightseeingWildlifeCruise
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Excellent trip and very good guide in AJ.
Only negative was hotel in Florence. Good location (change from original hotel) but was tired and cleanliness could have been better. Very cramped solo room 🙁
Highlights were Pienza and Castellina in Chianti. Great hotels, beautiful walks and really good food and wine. 😀
Walking tours
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Accommodation
Hotel
Age Range
16-99 yrs
Operated in
english
Destinations
Florence, Pisa, San Gimignano, T
Florence, Pisa, San Gimignano, Tuscany, Pienza, Montalcino
Fabulous week aboard the MS Isidorus. Swimming in crystal clear water and visiting lovely Greek villages. The Explore guide was excellent and conveyed his enthusiasm for Greek history, culture and food. Evia in June was beautiful- the gorge walk was a highlight- not at all crowded and much better value than the more well known islands.
Walking toursFood toursCruise
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Our accommodation in Rio Bamba was terrible, I felt I could not use the shower as it was so dilapidated. We only had one towel that had already been ripped in half. We felt it would have been hygenically unsafe to use the 'restaurant' and went out for breakfast. We were unsure why we went to Rio Bamba as it was not a nice place and it felt unsafe at night. Apart from 4 nights the accommodation was quite good. Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable and spoke to us for most of the time during the coach journeys. Nothing was too much trouble for him to do for us. The itinerary was very good apart from Rio Bamba (which should have been avoided) and a wasted last day in Quito. We could have caught an earlier flight to Quito, from Cuenca, the next day and not spent another day in a hotel that is a long way from Quito city which we had already explored.. Also it would have been better to have flown from Cuenca on the early morning flight to Quito then straight to Bogota and the to LHR.
Active and outdoorExplorer
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Alex the tour leader and country guide for Georgia is excellent and shares his wide knowledge of the Caucasus region in an easily understandable manner. Whilst both the country guides for Azerbaijan and Armenia also very good. The overall itinerary is very varied and covers lots' of different aspects of all three countries. I particularly enjoyed the hike up to the Gergeti Trinity Church with all the snow capped high peaks of the Caucasus mountains all around. The trip is fairly fast paced and covers a lot of ground, so you need to understand that it's a great introduction or taster trip to these three fascinating countries and if you want a more in depth experience then you'd need to go back and spend more time there.
Cultural, religious and historic sites
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Explore leader: for Sri Lanka only satisfactory. Not easy to understand, didn't seem to feel part of the group, didn't join us for meals, a poor communicator (relative to past explore trips)
For the dhoni Maldives cruise: Moosa was excellent in every way.
Active and outdoorWildlife
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
Kinzang was an excellent tour leader and along with our driver Ngawang made our trip very memorable. Kinzang was always informative and helpful, and Ngawang was an excellent and careful driver.
Our highlights:
1. The Punakha festival, which was a wonderful colourful spectacle. However you will be sitting for several hours on the paved stone ground so bring a cushion or mat to sit on.
2. Our walk up to the Tigers Nest Monastry. A challenging but rewarding trip. Kinzang was excellent and thoughtful in setting a pace to suit us all.
Bhutan is a beautiful country, with lovely friendly people.
Active and outdoor
Tour Type
Small Group TourSmall group tours usually have 8-12 participants and maximum up to 18 travelers
