Reviewed 15 Aug 2010 by Anna Haberka
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
I found Safari very special but also the visit to the tea plantations and Sigiriya, Moreover I liked the Galle Dutch Fortress and botanical gardens in Kandy. For me personally, very memorable was the dinner when I was celebrating my 30th birthday. In the hotel where we stayed it was live music and I got a birthday cake.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Don't take too many clothes with. You will have the possibility to buy the jumper and raincoats for the "World's End" trip a day before for a very competitive prices.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Definitely
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
This was really the best holiday I ever been to! Actually, it was the best time in my life. Our travel guide (Mr Ajith Bandara) was the best organised I ever met. He made this holiday very special. The trip was beyond my (high) expectations. All of them were more than fulfilled. I came back from holiday totally relaxed, with plenty of beautiful memories and loads of energy! It also changed my attitude towards my life and helped me to appreciate small things, be more happy with what I have and smile more often, as people in Sri Lanka do.
Reviewed 12 Aug 2007 by Ann-Marie Holmes
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
This was a very fast paced holiday that packed in a lot into the 14 days. The most memorable moments for me were in seeing a herd of elephants up close on safari, watching orphan elephant babies being ordered 2 by 2 to be fed with milk through a funnel at the transit home, and the sheer sense of elation that came through the (tough) ascents of rocky pinnacles to observe sacred spots/ruined citadels and witness the truly magical views across the lush green plains.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
The itinerary understates the physical exertions of this trip and does not detail the hike/bike/ etc distances. The weather is invariably very warm and humid indeed. Undertaking a ~16km hike across undulating terrain, and a joint 25km bike ride across rocky ground followed by 12km canoe on another day (particularly in monsoon conditions) is not something that should be undertaken lightly! The first 4 or so days involve climbing 100s of steps and a bit of scrambling to rocky outcrops (well worth it) but on 4 successive days. The pace of this holiday is relentless and demands a good level of physical fitness. Very active outdoor enthusiasts will love it. For everyone else, I would recommend getting into training-I opted out of the hike and bike ride knowing the climatic conditions would defeat me. Take a mosquito net-many of the guest houses/cheap hotels do not have them. If you want a break from the exertions of bike and canoe at Bentota, take a tuktuk for the day and visit Bevis Bawa's brief garden, have lunch at Geoffrey Bawa's Club Villa and then view his Lulaganga residence in the afternoon- really nice contrast to the wildlife and temples visited earlier in the trip.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
I hope so. We went into a coconut plantation and watched a worker tap toddy. He was a man in his 50s, incredibly lean and had done the job daily throughout his life. There were no safety harnesses and he had fallen a few times...it really gave us an insight into the working life of many Sri Lankan labourers. We also visited a farm which we were able to go into and watch demonstrations of spice grinding etc. We felt humbled by what we saw and I wondered whether the 500 rupee tip our leader gave her would really make that much difference to her quality of life... Minimized impacts on the environment-difficult-most days spent on private lengthy air-con diesel bus rides, although we did walk and cycle...
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
6/10. Very enjoyable. Marred by some poor quality hotels/guest-houses and lack of free time to wander and take things in at one's own pace.
Reviewed 22 Apr 2006 by Mike Simpson
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Most memorable - really this was a negative issue. I spent a lot of time nauseous with travel sickness from the bus! But the most memorable positive thing was the Sigria mountain view and cycling.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Tips - come prepared to accept that there is a lot of time spent in the bus travelling.
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Locals etc - yes, although probably no more than any other travelling group.
4. Any other comments?
Stars - well due to sickness only one star. That apart then 3 stars. We felt that there was insufficient time for general recreation and activity to offset the demands of the bus. camping was disappointing I was expecting a prairie type scene in the stars. General- well organised but demanding.
Read the operator's response here:
I am sorry that you experienced travel sickness on the bus! Please be advised that we are already planning to amend the tour itinerary in 2007 to reduce the travelling and increase time for general recreation. We'll also be visiting some new exciting parts of Sri Lanka in this amended itinerary so do look out for this fantastic trip on responsible-travel.com website later this year.
Thanks for the feedback, and all the best for your future travels.
Reviewed 21 Oct 2005 by Mari-Clare Bonner
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
As this was our (my boyfriend & I) first trip to Sri Lanka and also our first time travelling as part of a tour group, most things on our trip (which was booked through Responsible Travel) will be memorable and exciting for us. Personal highlights were climbing the steps to the ancient rock fortress at Mihintale during monsoon-style rain; the views from Mount Sigirya; seeing the elephants bathing at Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage; the view from World's End Lodge; the scenery & tea plantations in the Hill Country; & drinking Lion beer during a thunderstorm with our tour group whilst camping in a rubber plantation! We also did our own excursion on the last day to the turtle hatchery near Bentota which was also a nice experience. But overall I basically liked sharing our Sri Lankan experience with a great group of people and an excellent tour leader.
2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
I actively sought tips from other travellers on traveller forums before I went on this holiday, and I found this to be a great source of specific information. The online consultants were very helpful too, so I would recommend to other travellers to check out the forums before they go. One person actually posted a last minute message on my thread on the forum recommending that I bring a pair of leech socks - obviously I panicked, bought a pair of leech socks, was laughed at by the rest of the group but ended up getting a leech bite anyway! I think the leeches only appeared because it had rained heavily the day before but I appreciated being made aware of them as a possibility by a traveller who had already been on the trip!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
As I become more aware of the concept of "responsible travel", I am more conscious of the impact of my holiday on local people/the environment. Obviously the environmental footprint of a long haul flight from the UK to Sri Lanka is pretty significant, but I would hope that by spending money on a holiday in a tsunami-affected region such as Sri Lanka, where communities rely on tourism for income, that my holiday is benefiting local people in some way, even if it's only through employment e.g. at hotels, restaurants or as tour guides. I tried to buy small souvenirs that I thought might be helping local people/businesses i.e. from a small spice garden, a wood carving workshop, a tea plantation, the elephant orphanage and the turtle hatchery.
4. Any other comments?
Between a **** and a *****? It has definitely made me want to do similar trips in the future.
Read the operator's response here:
We would like advise travellers that we removed Pinnewala Orphanage from our itinerary half way through 2006 following concerns from a number of our passengers. It does not feature in our present itinerary for Sri Lanka but instead we include a visit to the Transit Home on Day 11.
