Evergreen Lodge, Yosemite

Hi Lisa,

The safari trip was excellent! The stay, the food and the people were all very nice. We were happy to have Ryan and Stanley as our game drive guides they brought us up close to the animals and Ryan gave very good information throughout.

Would definitely recommend to friends who are interested in safaris :)

Also, thanks much for your help, particularly keeping the room for my Brother and his wife they’ve enjoyed the safari very much too!

Best regards,
Woan Chyi

Woan Chyi L reviewing Cape Town & Kruger Safari on 16 October 2019

Driver-guide: Very punctual, except for pick up for airport when he was delayed by >30 mins due to road closures. Vehicle very clean and well maintained- plenty of water and supplies of clothing for religious sites, tissues, postcards etc. Very good at understanding what level of conversation we wanted. Happy to stop for paracetamol, supermarket etc. Took us to signal box at railway since we were early (which was very interesting)

The Walawwa: Lovely place to arrive at and get a bit of rest. Great pool, lovely rooms and food etc. Peaceful oasis so close to town.

Wilpattu Camp: Wonderful food- really enjoyed trying lots of new things in excellent surroundings.Felt like the place had not been visited much recently (which I don’t think it had due to the terrorist attacks) so our safari guide had been brought up from another park and did not know the park too well- it worked out well though and we saw all the animals we hoped to see so no complaints on that front. We did feel that we should have been told about extra things we could have done- when we commented on the great food on final day we were told that they could have done a cookery demo for us, but it was too late at that point. It worked well for us but clients should probably know that they are likely to have multiple wildlife in their tents (eg frogs)- didn’t bother us at all, but others it might do. We were given a questionnaire to fill in at the end whilst all the staff were standing around, which wasn’t ideal as you felt a bit of pressure! Felt really well looked after here!

Water Gardens Sigiriya: Beautiful suites with plunge pools- quiet and peaceful with lovely big swimming pool. Food good

Jungle Beach: Beautiful location on beach. Rooms good. Food a bit limited I would have liked a bit more variety ideally.

Camellia House: Lovely location- beautiful views. Food OK but service below average- our food orders were wrong a couple of times and even pre-ordered food was delayed. Tea factory tour was only an hour and that was the main reason to be here. It was interesting but quite brief seeing it was the main attraction according to our itinerary. Also, we were taken there in a minibus which didn’t have seatbelts on all seats and was quite smelly- not up to the standard of the usual transportation. Rooms were described as having panoramic views- one did have amazing views but the other one definitely didn’t.

Galle Face: Lovely old hotel- but it did have some problems (leaking ceiling and ‘smuts’ coming out of air conditioning.) Weather very bad (spectacular storms). It was a shame the street food tour couldn’t take place but totally understandable given the weather, however we enjoyed our dinner here and free drinks/canopes!). Good choice at breakfast.

Pippa R reviewing Sri Lanka Highlights - Classic on 30 September 2019

Once again you organised a really good holiday for us.
If there was one criticism it was that there were too many flights. I don’t know whether you could do Bangkok first, Chiang Mai, then fly down South?
Your drivers and Guides - all really good. The variety of transport on the tours in Bangkok and Chiang Mai; we all loved.
Tamarind Village - Our room was a bit of a squeeze, with the 3 of us and 3 big suitcases.
Lisu Lodge- I enjoyed our time here. Going forward I would suggest only 1 night or they need to have some more activities. I liked how we ate on the floor, the food was really good. Staff very friendly. We liked the cycling, tea plantation, trekking and white water rafting.
Riva Surya- good location.
Elephant Hills- we loved looking after the elephants, the lake was also a really good experience. The guides were informative and looked after us well. The resort locations and tents were perfect.
Santiburi - amazing; we upgraded to a beach bungalow which was fantastic. The hotel is in a stunning location, the facilities and the service was impeccable. Sam has some private Thai boxing lessons, which he loved. We had cookery lessons and used the paddle boards. A perfect end to quite a busy holiday.

Natasha L reviewing Thailand Family Adventure on 24 September 2019

We had a fantastic time and all the arrangements worked perfectly.
We were very impressed with the quality and service levels of all 4 locations visited and it was truly a holiday of a lifetime.
Thank you to you and to Lisa for giving us this experience.
Particular highlights for us – really the whole experience, but of particular impact:
Breathtaking scenery at Cathedral Peak Hotel
Rhino Ridge game drives incredible, thanks to guide (we had their head guide, Hala, who’s knowledge, enthusiasm, kindness, interaction, ability to spot wildlife was out of this world)
Luxury of Rhino Ridge (shower, food, views, service)
Immersion in nature, torch lit meal on last night and beach trip at Kosi Forest Lodge
Level of service, quality of food throughout

Catherine F reviewing South Africa Safari, Beach and Wetlands on 04 September 2019

We had a fantastic time. Thank you and it went smoothly in the main except for British Airways!

The trip had the right degree of luxury and relaxation (for me) and adventure (all of us).

A few points:
Driving directions to Umlunghi Lodge were slightly wrong. The driving directions should read at the 4th roundabout take the first exit and turn right over the railway. We loved it there. Anton, Bianca and her son and Harriet were very informative and entertaining. The snake talk and handling, night walks and seeing scorpions and the walk in the bush and "bumping" into a giraffe were really special. The kayak trip to Makuzi pan that the lodge organised was good and Tomaz was very informative and kept a respectful distance from the hippos.3 nights was plenty.

Rhino River Lodge game reserve was incredibly luxurious and we felt very looked after. The lion siting in camp the day we arrived sent an extra frisson of excitement down our spines. It was easy to forget there were predators that could attack us with all that luxury. The staff and guides (Karl) were knowledgeable and invested in their set up. We saw rhinos with baby, cheetahs with young, porcupine, Genet, wildebeast, Impala, Lion with young, buffalo, a puff adder, ostrich, zebra and giraffes. 4 nights was also plenty.
They all served great food but I felt Ghost Mountain Inn topped the lot. The variety was amazing. We arrived at 10.30 but could not get into our room until 2 ish. The service was not so personal I guess because it is larger (far more than 50 rooms). We had been a bit spoilt at Rhino River! My daughter and I had some treatments at the Spa and loved it. We also went on a large boat trip on Jonzi and had a closer encounter with a large bull hippo and also a hike up Ghost Mountain with Patrick who was very informative and passionate about his people and his country. Isaac the other guide there took us on the boat trip and pointed out the sugar cane harvest on the way. he was very informative also.

Lastly, Lalaria Lodge was fabulous and we all piled into the surf of the Indian Ocean. There was hardly anyone on the beach. It was "too cold" according to the landlady. The view from her terrace was of the ocean and whales breaching in the distance. I could have sat there all day. She very kindly provided us with a Scrabble board of her own for us to play. We took a Microlight ride from Ballito over the coastline in the hope of seeing whales and dolphins but no luck. If we had stayed longer we might have gone on a boat trip from Durban. We had a meal at a restaurant called Mozambique which was great fun with vast portions, plenty of carbs and fresh seafood!

The value of the Rand to the Pound was excellent and therefore we felt that we got excellent value which also played a large part!

Katrina P reviewing Value KZN Bush & Beach Safari For Families on 02 September 2019

We had the most incredible time thank you. We loved Karen Blixen camp and felt part of a family there, it was incredibly special. And Breezes was very relaxing.
We can't fault all the transfers and the moment we were greeted on the tarmac at Nairobi airport we knew we were going to be well cared for.

Thank you so much to you and all the Tourdust team for making it such a happy and memorable trip.

Zoe A reviewing Masai Mara Safari & Kenya Beach on 27 August 2019

Hi - now back.
In short it was a great holiday with very very little to fault. Location on Lopud was perfect for family and accommodation was exactly as you said ‘simple’ clean and comfortable hosted by a wonderful friendly local family ...all 1min walk from the front. Great breakfast that was straight from the garden in part and always abundant.
Our guide Nina was excellent always putting our safety first and adapting the itinerary to suit weather. She was a great host with the two families in our group and went out her way to keep us informed and even take photos to share when we were out on the water.
Transport arrangements were spot on - always there waiting at airport or ferry! Slight confusion that it wasn’t a TourDust sign but that was quickly solved.
Kayaking was a great adventure and a challenge some days but worth it for the stops on other islands and opportunities to swim, dive and explore caves. I suspect it could be a long day if your child is too young or not such a ‘water baby’ as once your in the kayak your in it! It is also a hefty bit of exercise on a two person kayak if the child in front isn’t up for paddling! I was fine except on one or two occasions where it was a bit of a struggle and I had to persuade him to do some more paddling for me.
Finally, your service has been great since we got in touch especially as it was a last minute decision for us to go. The speed in responding to queries on a personal basis and quickly was really great (very unusual these days!)
All in all a great holiday - my 11 year old had a great adventure he will talk about for years! So will I....
M. Cameron

murdoch C reviewing Family Sea Kayaking Holiday in Dubrovnik on 08 August 2019

We had a fabulous holiday thank you! Everything went very smoothly - accommodation was good, breakfast fantastic! The kayaking was great - really well thought out schedule with plenty of rests and time to relax. Lovely meals out.

Just wanted to add that our guide Nina was excellent. She worked really hard to ensure the whole trip went smoothly and that we were all happy with the pace, including giving the boys plenty of opportunities for jumping in off the cliffs!!

All in all a great trip! And all the admin side of things has been very efficient throughout.

Thank you so much!!

Kate T

Kate T reviewing Family Sea Kayaking Holiday in Dubrovnik on 05 August 2019

Hi, just back home now as stayed in London last night. It was fab! We loved it! Amazing all round- Thankyou. Best holiday ever!!!

Accommodation great at both places, guides lovely, staff great. We saw more animals than ever expected: giraffes, lion, elephants, water hog, wilder beast, impala, white rhino, crocodiles, hippos in lake Sybia, monkeys in trees at Tonga.

Beach beautiful, but a bit windy, waves v rough but didn’t deter my boys. We snorkeled which was fab but too rough on day we booked to do ocean experience.

My boys swam in all pools!!!

Weather better than we expected!

Must go and do some laundry, but hope that helps?

Best Nicola

Nicola B reviewing Luxury KwaZulu Natal Safari & Beach Holiday on 24 July 2019

Hi Lisa

We had an amazing holiday.

Everything was fantastic.

The transport wa spot on, great drivers, all on time, vans really comfortable and water supplied, a really nice way to travel, and you also get to hear all about the local area. Both companies were excellent.

Virgin - was a brilliant airline, not sure why I haven't used them before, SO much better than BA.

Rhino ridge was amazing from start to finish. We has a great female safari guide, who we got very fond of. The wildlife is more sparse but as its more challenging to find we enjoyed this, the surrounding are spectacular. Our guide had great knowledge of the birds. walking safari was excellent and highly recommend. The rooms were superb, very comfortable.

Thonga beach lodge staff were brilliant, the whole place was amazing, the range of activities excellent and again out guides excellent. The food was wonderful. Again the bird guiding and general guiding was brilliant. We really enjoyed the cultural side of our visit, seeing the local communities and church etc. My only comment on thonga for future guests would be if they can afford it maybe to go for a lodge with a ocean view, our lodge was great , the childrens was quite cramped and low down with a very damp musty smell - not that they noticed it, but I think if people were expecting luxury they might not get what they wanted... saying that it was fantastic for us. The lodge staff were amazing and went out of their way for us.

Oyster box was a phenomenal hotel and quite a shock to be back in the world after Thonga - but really worth the stay - we loved it, they Kindly gave us a room for the next day as we had a late flight.

The whole experience was brilliant and really well organised- thank you. We ALL loved everything!

On reflection:

we loved having transport rather than driving, it meant we could relax , sleep and find out about the country from the driver.

If we changed anything, I might spend a little less time at the beach and maybe take in another safari region also. We were repeatedly recommended the Phinda private game reserve (andBeyond) so maybe we would have spent a couple of nights there, in addition, local guides and the tour people said it would give good variety to the Rhino ridge.

However we were 100% happy with what we did, we really look forward to our next safari !!!

Best wishes

Ali

Alison D reviewing Luxury KwaZulu Natal Safari & Beach Holiday on 23 July 2019

Fantastic holiday - I think we all really enjoyed ourselves. California is really relaxing, the people we met were lovely, and the scenery is amazing - so huge.
flight - using San Jose airport was a joy. Out of the airport within 30 mins of landing.
car hire - very straight forward.
Copilot - useful. We did download Google maps too, but sometimes the GPS worked better with co-pilot than Google maps (although may have been the phone)
Argonaut hotel - Great location, pleasant staff. Included in resort fee is discounted bike hire (if you get up fast enough to get them) - that was a bonus.
Drive to Auburn - long! we didn't manage to avoid San Francisco rush our - our fault. But a very good idea to get there the night before the rafting, meant the rafting day was much more relaxed.
Holiday Inn - as expected. Nice pool and breakfast was good (and cheap). We quickly learnt that it is really difficult to get food in US after about 8:30 at night, esp in less touristy spots. In n Out Burger an experience.
White water rafting - Our fellow rafters and helmsman (Conner) were good company for the day and we had a great time negotiating rapids, jumping in the water and taking in the scenery. It was all safe without over doing the briefings. Would have been good to have some photos which were only available straight after the trip, rather than on a web site. Nearby Marshall Ward state park was good for non-rafters.
Resort at Squaw Valley - The hotel was amazing. Beautfiul setting. Buffet breakfast in Cascades was a fabulous extravagance - a real treat.
Mountain biking in Tahoe - tremendous. Great bikes, fantastic guide who managed to accommodate both 50+ year old parents and v fit teenage boys. And local knowledge of guide set us up for the rest of the day - recommending places to eat in Truckee and places to visit on Lake Tahoe.
Drive from Lake Tahoe to Yosemite beautiful - well worth going the eastern route so enter Yosemite from East. The drive through the pass was amazing, definitely worth emphasizing that people should make the most of it.
Tenaya Lodge - hotel was a little tired. But we appreciate that Yosemite was getting full by the time we booked. And in fact, it was prob a good thing we were there - as we were out of the smoke in the valley. (The Ferguson Fire began the day we arrived). Sadly after the drive through on arrival, we saw little Yosemite scenery. On the plus side, Tenaya Lodge was cooler than the valley and had less bitey insects.
Walking in Yosemite - guide was excellent. Offered lots of options, and was very informative. Also very personable.
Santa Cruz - great hotel. Lovely city. Organic supermarket, farmers market, Olita's on wharf - all great. The Mystery Spot was hilarious. The surf school were generous and allowed us to keep the boards for several hours after the lesson, as the waves were not that great the two days we were there.

Andrew C reviewing The Ultimate California Adventure on 26 July 2018

Here are 4 write ups on the White Water rafting trip we had in July 2013
From my 14 year old boy:
To put it simply I have never had so much fun in my life. For the first two days I enjoyed a break from the otherwise high tempo country of America. We saw animals that none of us had seen before, swam in waters in which all of us had a ball and lay in the perfect heat of the Utah sun. This incredible experience of food and rest was then followed by the grand finale of white water rafting! The anxiety and nervousness soon turned into a thrill so extraordinary that I have sworn to myself that I will feel that incredible thrill again. Looking back, it was probably the most perfect three days that I can remember. So I mean this genuinely when I say, you must go on this holiday!
From my 12 year old girl:
It was so much fun. We saw coyotes, bears, river otter and more. The people were so nice and the food was amazing . The first two days were calm, but then on the last day we hit the rapids! That was the most fun. We bounced up and down, up and down and got completely soaked. It was a moment I will never forget.
From my 11 year old son:
The scenery was absolutely fantastic, and the water was calm and slightly warm. This was to begin with but after that we got into fantastic rapids. I was scared to begin with but the sparkling feeling in my head and the butterflies in my tummy gave me a great sense of achievement when I had done it!
From me:
There were five of us and we had two boats and two brilliant instructors for three of the most incredible days. Calm waters as we either sat in the boats which carried all our food and equipment or we gently floated with our feet out in front of us as we past the million year old rocks of changing earthy colours. The tempo changes: the water becomes white, we all put helmets on and then the rapids begin and our stomachs reach the sky, it really was seriously scary, I looked around at my family and they were all having a ball. Time disappeared fast and we all felt so pleased with ourselves as we had completed the last rapid. I felt rather proud! We were fed like Kings and we all played our parts in making the three days incredible ones we will never forget. Tracking the stars, searching for scorpions and spotting bears all added to the whole experience.

Camilla D reviewing Grand American Family Adventure in Utah on 06 October 2014

Following on from our conversation yesterday - I just wanted to reiterate how delighted we were - and what a huge success the holiday was. It was a bit of a monumental trip for us - and it is not easy travelling with the various ages of the children - but it went very well. The advice and recommendations were great - the hotels were all as you described, and in the right place etc (although as I said I would not have stayed in Yosemite Lodge)
The journey was well paced, the satnav guide was invaluable (although I used the free version - even so I would not have known about it without you mentioning it and it was a godsend)
It was great. And you were incredibly patient with my endless badgering and questions - for which many thanks.

The rafting in particular was fantastic. The guides actually forgot our tents - which was quite funny - Kit clearly felt a thin nylon tent was protection against mountain lions, but once we established that the tent made no difference - he was fine. The food rafting was delicious - although I have to say spectacularly wasteful. 35 pancakes for 6 people for breakfast??? With bacon, fruit, eggs etc etc as well? The children were appalled at how much was thrown away - but I guess that is a the company's thing..

The only thing it would have been good to have been tipped off in the notes about was how much nicer the food is in Yosemite village - rather than the dreary depressing hotel canteen. Maybe other guests would try the dining room - but there was such a long wait for a table - we didn't bother. The buses are very good - and the food options are much better in the village - which we didn't realise until the second night - the guide told us actually. I would definitely put that in the notes for other guests - we didn't try the formal dining room - so maybe that is good - but bypass the canteen.

We loved the arches park - having never heard of it - it was mind blowing. And the wonderful platinum hotel in Las Vegas was fabulous. Great location, gorgeous rooms, esp after the motel style dark rooms in Moab and Gouldings.
I had been toying with the idea of sitting in a launderette in Monument Valley - but figured the Navajo prices would be astronomical. Imagine my delight to find I had not one but TWO washing machines and dryers - complete with washing powder - in the hotel/apartments in Las Vegas. Perfect. We left LV with completely clean clothes, ready for the rest of the holiday. A small but very delightful point!

It was all great. Thank you so much for your efforts, and patience, you definitely gave us a holiday perfectly tailored to US - fitting the older children in really well, and pacing everything so perfectly. I will be in touch again!!

Kathryn M reviewing Highlights of America's South West on 06 October 2014

Some highlights: I really enjoyed the rodeo - I had expected it to be touristy & tacky, but I actually thought it was great. Boulder - although we didn't do too much there, the drive up was amazing & we really liked the lodge & the peacefulness (apart from a huge storm!). The Burr Trail Grill next door was excellent - really lovely & friendly staff & the best apple pie ever. We went to Willis Creek, 12 miles south of Escalante - this was a slot canyon that you can walk through easily & choose to do as much or as little as you like (the slots are 100metres long, so it's easy to walk out or turn back when you've had enough). Particular highlight for everyone was the Fiery Furnace Walk - Mike was absolutely fantastic with Rory & Lucy. It was perfect for Rory as he loves rock scrambling, so Mike encouraged that. Lucy was very nervous, but he helped her overcome her fears. & he was a very interesting person to spend some time with - I think we finished near to midday! We really liked Red Cliffs in Moab & I liked Moab itself - nice to get some fresh fruit & veg after too many burgers!

Some things we'd probably change: I know I said I didn't want to go to Vegas, but I didn't ask the children & I think they might have liked it! It would probably have saved the longer flight & connections from Seattle & it looks as if the drive from Vegas is similar in distance as from SLC.

I think Beverley would have liked longer in some places - we're used to holidays where we stay in one place, so living out of a suitcase was a little different for us.

I'm also in two minds about the rafting. We were not helped by the weather where we had storms & rain all night until around 9am. Lucy got very cold so didn't enjoy it after the first 2 rapids. Rory however, really enjoyed himself. Overall though, it just seemed that it was a 2 day trip that could have been condensed into 1 day. Again, I think if the weather was different, we would have enjoyed chilling out a little more, but as it was & for the price, it was a little disappointing. We met another family while rafting who had booked through you - they were from Hampshire.

Overall, great adventure, good places to stay, amazing scenery, we met some interesting people, saw some amazing storms (hail the size of golf balls! We were told August is their 'monsoon season') & had a great time, so thank you for putting it together for us. Hopefully we'll be back some time for another adventure…I'm still sizing up Toubkal with Rory in a year or two.

Beverley C reviewing Grand American Family Adventure in Utah on 06 October 2014