Europe 8-Day Tours and Trips

The Hike/Barge trip across Scotland was wonderful. The barge was very comfortable and the staff knowledgeable and friendly. We all interacted like family. The food was amazing and a real surprise. There was a choice of hikes most days depending on how challenged you wanted to be or if you wanted to take it easier. It was also very comfortable to just stay on the barge if you wanted a half day or full day off hiking. The hikes were beautiful.

A seven day walking trip starting/finishing in Dubrovnik, visiting Sutjeska National Park, Sarajevo, Neretva river canyon and Mostar. The trip encompassed a mix of strenuous and easy day walks, visiting a remote mountain village, and exploring and understanding the volatile history of the country. An overall highlight was discovering the beauty of the landscape - so many mountains, forests, lakes and rivers. Accommodation ranged from the basic, Socialist-era style hotel in Sutjeska National Park (though perfectly comfortable and adequate), to the small, comfortable and more modern hotels in Trebinje, Sarajevo and Mostar. Travel was in a 12 seater van, driven by the personable Gvard, from Sarajevo.

An excellent, well organised trip, with stunningly beautiful coastal rides and some challenging climbs, a great group of people where all got on very well , excellent tour guide Michele and fantastic support from Ado,

I did this trip in early June. Our route took us through a variety of gorgeous landscapes – cliffs overlooking the ocean, small towns with roosters crowing, a medieval town encircled by fortified walls, beach towns painted bright colors, pine forests, sand dunes, and marshes. I believe there’s no better way to appreciate that kind of scenery than by traveling on a bike. We were a group of 16 guests – Americans, Britons, and Canadians – and three Portuguese guides. I traveled to Portugal alone and had a roommate assigned to me. She was lovely, and, really, all of us hit it off. I think this kind of trip attracts like-minded people, and the tour leader, Ruben, told us at our initial briefing in Porto that many of us would become friends. He was right. The first night, Ruben led us on a walking tour to a port tasting. Afterwards, the group split in half and went to two different restaurants Ruben had recommended. After that, most of us had our dinners together till the end of the bike tour. The food was always great, thanks to Ruben’s recommendations. He always sent us to places with excellent hospitality. All three of our guides were highly professional – well-prepared, helpful, supportive, friendly, accommodating, flexible, and organized. They kept us informed, entertained, hydrated, and roughly on-time. Every briefing was clear and succinct. We understood where we’d be riding the next day, what time we’d leave, and roughly what time we’d arrive at the next hotel. Ruben was a font of information about Portuguese history, culture, flora and fauna. He held forth on topics ranging from Portuguese royalty to the efforts of environmental activists following the devastating forest fires of 2017. Margarida was a strong cyclist and reliable sweeper, and clearly cared deeply that everyone had what they needed and enjoyed themselves. José drove the van with the bike trailer and reliably had our bags waiting for us in the lobby each time we arrived at a new destination. Every time we saw him he was smiling. They prepared healthy and delicious picnic lunches for us on a couple of occasions, and it was obvious they’d put a lot of thought into them. Anytime there was a problem, such as a mechanical issue, our guides were equipped to handle it. One day, during a coffee break in Nazaré – we had a coffee break most mornings, which I loved – I watched Ruben fix the electrical connection on another guest’s e-bike after they had taken a small spill. I have a bad knee, so I requested an e-bike from the start. A few others decided along the way to switch to one. When we started in Porto, there were four e-bikes out of 16. By the time we got to Óbidos, I think there were 10 e-bikes. Portugal A2Z, which is contracted by Exodus to run this tour, has its headquarters along the tour route, so I guess that made it easy enough for our guides to switch out the bikes overnight on request. Overall, this tour was everything I expected after reading the itinerary, trip notes, and reviews on the Exodus website. I found the price reasonable, the guides excellent, the scenery stunning, and the hotels clean and comfortable. I will always remember how much fun I had on this trip and the great people I met. I definitely plan to book with Exodus in the future.

It was a trip of a lifetime. Iceland was beautiful, the people in the group were fantastic travel companions. The extra excursions were memorable. Wish there had been northern lights.

This was an excellent week spent in the peace and quiet of rural Andalucia. We were very lucky with the weather with only one stormy night followed by a damp morning, but because the tour was run with some flexibility this day was taken to visit Seville rather than walking. It was a fun and interesting group, and there was plenty of laughter alongside the exercise. The walks were varied and enjoyable although not desperately strenuous.