Eastravel Traveller Reviews

Travelling across Sri Lanka with a private guide, experiencing archaelogy, wildlife, walking, history, culture and even time for the beach

From the moment we first met the team at East travel they have been fantastic. Their knowledge, organisation and communication has been first class. They took the time to build a holiday to meet our needs and helped us plan a very special trip. I simply cannot fault them at all and would happily recommend them to anyone to use

Landed in Kuching, met by driver/guide, very helpful & informative visited Bako National Park, Semenggoh Orang Utan sanctuary, neither of which were actually that great, but no fault of guide or tour operator. Flew onto Mulu Natinal Park for the bats & caves, interesting impromptu night walk with guide. Flew on to Kata Kinabalu, stayed at the Shangri La's Tanjung Aru Resort in a club room, wonderful hotel & surroundings, sunset deck. Visited a couple of islands locally then onto Sandakan & Sellingan Island for the turtles laying eggs & releasing newborn hatchlings. Onto Sukau Rainforest lodge, absolutely beautiful lodge & surroundings, wildlife viewing from the river. Finally 3 nights of R & R at Gaya Island off Kota Kinabalu. Brilliant holiday & very well organised through local operator Borneo Eco Tours.

Very helpful in choosing itinerary & managed to include a few extras which we weren't expecting & at a very competitive price

Everything went to plan. Buisnessential class travel out of this world. Malaysian people so helpful and friendly.

Nothing too much trouble. Excellent. Ý

It was truly a holiday of a lifetime, filled with diversity, culture, comfort and beautiful hotels. We were lucky enough to travel tp 4 different areas of Thailand within our 3 and a bit week holiday and we were spoilt with choices and options given to us. We stayed in Bangkok at the Banyan Tree, Pattaya at the Avani, Chiang Mai at the Tamarind Village and Koh Samui at Tongsai Bay. After Thailand we travelled and visited Dubai enroute home and stayed at Hilton Jumeirah - The Walk. Each hotel was fantastic and of the highest standard. The staff courteous and kind, thoughtful and the hotels were generous in helping us celebrate with Fizz, gifts, upgrades for our wedding anniversary. We went on several excursions which were incredible and well structured. We did the grand palaces in Bangkok as well as the the River Kwai and trip on the death railway (VIP is recommended), we had drinks on the top of the hotel - views were incredible. We went on Elephants and cart rides in Chiang Mai, as well as visited temples near and far. And in Koh Samui we went by speed boat to the Anthong Marine Park - this is a must, we even saw dolphins on the way back to the hotel. All transfers were included for our travels and there were no faults what so ever. There is so much to say but i can't honestly say in words what a wonderfully amazing trip we had and we didn't have to a thing - everything was organised for us and an incredible job it was.

Eastravel was one of three operators we went to for quotes before we decided on who to go with and the reasons for choosing eastravel are simple; Knowledgeable - they provided us with different perspective, professional and local knowledge of the places we were going Insight - Having had at least one member of staff visit each place we planned to go to, this filled us with confidence. Enthusiasm - they listened, understood and tailored our holiday to our wishes. Everything was concise, streamlined and simple. I highly recommend eastravel, especially Cathy. They are a wonderful, small and local company who offer big ideas and wonderful packages to suit everyone. We are so so glad we chose to work with them on our trip of a lifetime.

We went to Sabah, in Malaysian Borneo in eraly May 2017, spending time at Sandakan, Selingan island, Sukau and Borneo Rainforest Lodges, and ending on the coast at Kota Kinabalu. The hotels and Lodges were very good, perhaps surprisingly so at the rather remote Lodges, which were small, intimate and friendly, with excellent service and facilities. There was a full programme of activities, with river trips, jeep 'safaris', and forest walks for wildlife spotting. The guides on these activies were knowledgable and amazingly good at finding the animals, birds, insects and plants. They made sure that we got really good views of all Borneo's 'Big 5', and much more besides - seeing orang utans in the wild, turtles coming ashore, and the bat cave were probably the highlights for us. Overall, the holiday was a real experience that we'll remember for a long time.

The itinerary was prepared by Cathy at East Travel in Ipswich in consultation with us, and adjusted to reflect our preferences. All of the arrangements, including flights, connections, hotels, excursions and activities worked perfectly, so that we didn't have to worry or wait for anything. We couldn't fault it!

We had an amazing holiday visiting the River Kwai area, staying in the Jungle Raft Hotel and visiting the River Kwai Bridge and Railway, Allied War Cemetery and Museum and Hellfire Pass. We were met at Bangkok Airport and transported by private car to the Kanchanaburi area and our hotel via long-tail boat along the river. First sight of our hotel lit by kerosene lamps was beautiful. Our driver both to and from the area and then our tour guide the following day were so helpful and friendly. Both spoke excellent English. Despite arriving late in the evening the hotel still provided us with a meal on arrival. No wifi, no electricity but a visit from an elephant also wanting feeding at breakfast time made the day start with a smile. We enjoyed 2 nights here in the jungle before a private transfer back to Bangkok airport for 12 nights on Koh Samui at the Imperial Boathouse. We treated ourselves to a Boathouse Suite nestled within the well attended gardens, close to the pools and beach yet still very quiet, secluded and private. Our only problem was with breakfast - what to actually choose as the selection was so good. You were also very rarely bothered by flies and mosquitos as the hotel sprays the grounds regularly to prevent this. We were visiting Thailand during Songkran and spent a day very wet but happily joining in with the water celebrations with local Thai people of all ages. All good fun and thoroughly recommended. We spent a lot of time relaxing on the beach, having massages and trying out our favourite foods but also explored the island, it's temples, waterfalls and views. We tried out Thai cooking ourselves, visiting the food market to select our ingredients and prepared a 3 course meal - all supervised obviously! We love Thailand and met some lovely people during our stay. I'm not sure that I've been to a friendlier destination.

From our first enquiry to Eastravel we found both Cathy and Dorothy so helpful and knowledgeable and patient. Having been to Thailand before, we had very specific requests for what we wanted to do and where we wanted to go. Our agenda was not to be found in a 'normal' travel brochure. Eastravel had been recommended to us by friends who had booked flights to Thailand through them for many years. After several conversations and emails and some very helpful suggestions they tailor made our holiday to suit us. All we had to do was turn up at Heathrow and everything else from then onwards was arranged. All flights, transfers, guides and accommodation perfectly scheduled and organised for us. We have no hesitation in recommending Eastravel to anyone who wants something stress free and a little different.

We had 3 weeks holiday in South Africa, Victoria Falls(zimbawabe) and Dubai. Whole holiday was put together by Eastravel. It was extremely well organised with particular attention to every detail. We will certainly ask Eastravel to organise our next holiday.

Eastravel were exceptionally good at booking flights, hotels, guides etc. They kept in touch regularly about booking etc. I shall certainly recommend them to anybody who wants a tailor made holiday.

Arrangements worked perfectly and we liked all the places we staid with possible exception of the home stay (as sound between rooms was intrusive and there was a large group). The visit to the fruit farm in Tamil Nadu was very special. We loved the early morning trek through tea plantations above Munar (excellent and fascinating guide). We lreally enjoyed Kerala food. The service at Greenwoods, Periyar was superb and delightful. We loved the water and night on the boat.

Dorothy and her team at Eastravel were excellent. Very efficient and responsive.

The holiday was a surprise for my husbands birthday which was organised in complete secrecy. Our first destination was Singapore for a 3 day stop over but wow it was amazing, from exploring the Botanical Gardens to the Marine Sands Bay Hotel, the Bay Gardens and of course the Long Bay in Raffles it was a perfect start to our 5 week adventure. Next we flew onto Australia landing in Sydney which was spectacular and the start of our journey through Australia. From Sydney we drove to the Blue Mountains to explore the rain forest wow you can't discribe the scale its mind blowing. We then flew to Melbourne staying for 3 days before starting a five day drive along the Great Ocean Road stopping over at some truly amazing locations such as Port Fairy, Cape Otway, The Grampians before traveling up to Adelaide. While in Adelaide we visited the Adelaide Fringe Festival one of the largest festivals in Australia as well as taking in Kangaroo Island. From Adelaide we flew to Alice Springs picking up a 4x4 to travel through the outback to Kings Canyon and onto Ayers Rock which was memorable from the silent supper, star gazing and the field of lights it is an experience that will never be forgotten. Next stop Cairns or Palm Cove to be precise a beautiful location from here we went out to the Great Barrier Reef, explored the coastline up to Port Douglas as well as Cairns absolutely stunning. We also went on the Skyrail over the rainforest which an experience again beyond words and then to return by train down the mountain was awesome. We then flew from Australia to Dubai staying in the Harbour area which was superb the whole experience again magical. Dubai was our last destination before flying home. This brief summary of our experience which only touches the tip of our holiday of a lifetime and we can't express enough our thanks to Dorothy of Eastravel for her help in making this dream possible.

Dorothy Heng of Eastravel what an amazing, knowledgeable, professional and wonderful person who listened to our requirements and then put together an amazing holiday which will we remain a truly wonderful memory.

Dorothy Just back from Harbin, China...... temperatures ranging from -15 day time to -30 night time With the correct clothing, a winter wonderland! We went to the Harbin 31st Annual snow & ice Festivals ( the largest in the world) Brilliant by day .... spectacular when lit up at night This has been on my Bucket list for a very, very long time ( and it exceeded all my expectations!) The pictures just don't do it justice, from the craftsmanship in the smaller sculptures to the scale of the main structures, truly impressive! Our tour included other sites on my bucket list, including Beijing - Forbidden City, summer & winter palaces etc. The Great Wall Xi'an - Terra cotta Army & the Muslim street market However it was Harbin that stole the show for me! *:) happy It was a trip of a lifetime, that I would recommend to everyone. We will all remember & talk about it for the rest of our lives The whole trip (including Visas, Hotels, Guides & Transfers ) was organised by Dorothy at EASTRAVEL, Ipswich. who listened to what we wanted to do & see, and made it happen. Thank you Gary (plus.... Julie, Kerri, Peter, Paula, Hannah, Jazz, Kevin, Ross & Helen)

Dorothy at Eastravel listened to our wish list and organised everything from start to finish.(Visas, flights, hotels, guides, entry to attractions, internal transfers & even skiing.) the holiday Couldn't have been better or better organised. Thank You Dorothy Gary