Undiscovered Destinations Traveller Reviews

Well panned itinerary, good accommodation, vehicles, drivers, guide and Vegetarian food highly satisfactory.

All qerries were promptly answered. Everything on or before time like LOI, and other useful information.

This holiday was chosen because apart from Samarkand, Bukhar and Khiva it also included Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. Itinerary was good and sites were excellent. However, it was not clear why Termez was included as we saw nothing there after a cramped journey of 280 miles (see below) and a further journey the following day of 170 miles to Dushanbe in the same vehicle.

UK operator, Undiscovered Destinations, carried out its function efficiently and did all it could to make it a memorable experience. Flight bookings were carried out to my exact requirements. UK operator was excellent. The fact that I have used this UK operator for a few years now shows that I am well satisfied with the service it provides - some of these journeys have been tailor made. However, the local tour operator in Uzbekistan etc had only reserved a single room at most locations in spite of the single suplement. UK operator specified twin. In Ashgabat (Margush hotel) a claustrophobic single was all that was available so I had to pay $100 cash to have the only other room available (suite). It was necessary to press the local guide to get the rooms changed. This is unfair on the guides. Vehicles were generally good but for 2 long journeys: Samarkand to Termez and then on to Dushanbe the next day; 3 people + driver + guide were crammed into a standard saloon car with luggage filling the boot, the rear parcel shelf and on the floor. It was totally unsuitable - particularly for 3 people aged about 70 who need to have room to keep their joints moving. Guides in Turkmenistan and Tajikistan were excellent but in Uzbekistan the guide was inexperienced (age 21), was often late and had to be pushed to give us a reasonable service.

Good accommodation, good transport, excellent local guide. To be recommended.

Undiscovered Destinations, trips off the beaten track that are suitable not only for youngsters but suitable for any reasonably fit adult. Very well planned and executed.

An excellent experience to discover such an exotic place, unique culture and wonderful, charming people. Madagascar is a charming country.

Undiscovered Destinations provided us with prompt, reliable information and helped us find the kind of tour we were searching for. They were efficient and friendly and a pleasure to work with. I would recommend them to others and would consider using them again.

Offerred a focus on the historical and cultural aspects of Georgia and Armenia

Both were very helpful, knowledgeable and accommodating.

There is no doubt that the best part of our holiday was that we were fortunate to have Andrei as our guide. He was fantastic and always went that bit extra to make what is a great tour into a fantastic tour. He was friendly, efficient, extremely knowledgeable and was proud to be Romanian so that journeying through the country was a delight. Consequently, there were too many highlights for us to single out any one experience as the most memorable. Every day was memorable and for all the right reasons. However, if forced to name one best attribute of the holiday as the most memorable, it would have to be the home stays and the opportunities it offers to meet the "real" Romanians and some very interesting fellow travellers.

Excellent.

A great trip to a remote, little-known area. Stunning scenery.

Undiscovered Destinations provide an efficient service and personal attention that is rare in the mass markets of today.

We travelled with Patrick then Ghislaine who were both excellent, extremely friendly, knowledgeable and professional. Nothing was too much trouble, they were attentive and very sensitive to our needs. The whole trip felt as if we were travelling with good friends. Patrick in particular was outstanding. We should also mention our drivers Giorgio and Mami who were equally excellent in their roles. The high standard of accommodation was a real surprise and very welcome. Anyone who thinks that they will have to lower their standards to travel in Madagascar will be pleasantly surprised, we felt that standards were at least as good as Africa. We have travelled a great deal and Madagascar has proved to be one of our favourite destinations. The people, the wildlife, the countryside were all fantastic.

Very Satisfied

The trip lived up to the description given in the brochure. What we could not do was due to forces of nature, ie, the weather. We were met and provided with all the necessary aids that were listed in the dossier. Transport was good; in fact the local ground staff could not be faulted. Overall, we were happy with the trip

Efficient and supportive where necessary. Provided all information requested in good time. Friendly and communicative. Thank you Undiscovered Destinations.

I paste here just a few thought that I wrote in my diary during the trip. There would be thousands of things to say about Sulawesi, but the very first is that I felt to be at home! I kept travelling from south to north, the landscapes changed quite a lot as well as vegetation, weather, habits, food and traditions...but everywhere I went I met friendly and smiling people. In some villages we have been asked to take a picture with them because they meet tourists very rarely! I was very lucky this time, more than ever, with the travel agency (UK and local ones) I contacted. They really do eco tourism, that means that we are out of the track of massive tourism and away from "all inclusive resorts". We visit villages that we reach on foot and we eat in their houses with them. Of course they have been trained about hygienic so that we don`t put ourselves under risks. And, at least so far, we enjoyed always their food without any problem or consequences. Our guide, Meriba, love his job and his country; he is also very smart with a long experience and, above all, a wise man. This combination gives him something special that he makes concrete in taking us into his world, natural and extra natural. So in a place he gives us information, but he also adds the philosophy or the religious belief that are beyond what we see. In Kambira, we visited a sacred place in the forest that had a high bread tree in the middle. That was the children tree. In fact, Toraja people buried, since five ago, the babies (age: when they died without teeth) in its trunk. They made a hole for each dead child, put him-her in the position that they had inside the mother, that closed it with a special wood and leaves. Toraja believe that these children through the tree reach quickly the Heaven and become angels. It was so moving... The colours that prevailed were light green for the rice fields, the dark green of the forest... huge thick forests, the blue with plenty of nuances of the ocean. I think that they do work as they do in chrome therapy because I feel so calm and in peace, deeply in peace with myself.

Undiscovered Destinations: very professional. I got all the answers as soon as I asked. I was very well informed before travelling. When I needed some changes of the programme, I was contacted by phone in order to make the things easier. I had no problems at all. Thank you very much to all the staff.