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The Naturetrek Tailormade team has enjoyed a great year creating incredible bespoke wildlife holidays all over the world, and we have many tailormade tours in the pipeline for 2018.
Below we have compiled feedback from a variety of tailormade tours that have run this year from clients who have enjoyed a wonderful selection of wildlife, lodges and expert guiding around the world! Many thanks to those who have allowed us to share their feedback … which we think speaks for itself!
Client feedback from 2017 tailormade tours:
Madagascar Tailormade – Helen & Peter R
The travel arrangements worked like clockwork. Excellent itinerary using good accommodation. Fantastic sightings: 19 species of lemur, a tenrec and many excellent birds. Gracious, reliable and helpful driver – had a big impact on how much we enjoyed and understood the areas we drove through.
Uganda Tailormade – Elizabeth & Philip P
Jude Ainomugisha (our guide) was outstanding. He has exceptional spotting and identification skills and went out of his way to look after us throughout the trip. Our best trip yet with Naturetrek. Nothing we would change in this itinerary. Everything worked well, and there were many highlights. The gorilla trek was very well organised and delivered a great wildlife experience that we will always remember. We felt the rangers and porters really wanted us to see the gorillas, and they were extremely helpful in getting us there despite the difficult terrain. We were delighted with the range of wildlife we encountered: 289 bird species (172 lifers!) and 37 mammals and reptiles – making this our most productive tour ever. We knew Jude would be a great guide because he asked us for our ‘top 20’ target species at the start of the tour, and by the end of day 2 we had already seen 9 of these! Other highlights: fine Shoebill sightings in 3 different locations; African Finfoot x 3 on Lake Mburo; Chimpanzees; tree-climbing lions (3 different ‘tree-fulls'); Marshal Eagle (up close); Denham’s Bustard; the sheer spectacle of Murchison Falls from above and below; and, on the last day, great views of a Papyrus Gonalek in little more than a roadside ditch, close to Kampala.
France’s La Brenne Tailormade – Mike R
The ability to custom the tour entirely to our requirements and particularly to birdwatch at a pace which suited my father worked particularly well. Special mention to Jason Mitchell, whose wealth of knowledge about the wildlife of the local area, and constant enthusiasm, helped ensure a particularly successful and memorable trip.
Zambia Tailormade – Peter & Janice J
A little apprehensive as this was the first time we had travelled without a Naturetrek guide, or meeting up with one at the destination, but the airline ground staff were waiting to direct us to the next flight at each airport – superb service. We both found it difficult to walk more than two hours in the early morning but the camp staff were more than happy to arrange a Landrover/Cruiser to be waiting for us so that we could continue with a game drive for the rest of the morning. As we chose not to walk between camps on transfer days we were able to enjoy a game drive to our next destination. Camp staff were very friendly, welcoming and the wildlife excellent – never more than three other vehicles viewing at the same time! Pleased that each camp was aware of dietary requirements and never needed reminding.
Uganda Tailormade – Claire S
We felt that Naturetrek had generally interpreted our requirements well and devised a fantastic programme for us, given the constraints of time. There was always so much to see – we certainly had no time to get bored!
Nepal Tailormade – Susan B
The hotels were very good. The guides were excellent. The food was delicious. Nepal is a very friendly country. The scenery was brilliant. The organisation was very professional. The birds were plentiful.
Brazil Tailormade – Jane H
We enjoyed seeing the wildlife and appreciated the knowledge of our guides. Paulo in the Pantanal was excellent in all respects. Our guide in Cristalino Lodge was superb. Alex in Rio was very enthusiastic and welcoming. We enjoyed the location of Pouso Alegre and, considering how remote it is, the wifi was better than at home and the meals were lovely. The tour of Rio with Alex was breathtaking and the buffet at the waterside restaurant was excellent. Our best wildlife moment was the Giant Anteater who came within 5 feet of us and the whole incident was captured on Paulo’s phone by our excellent driver, Antonio. The airport hotel in Cuiabá was friendly. Although we did not need a pick up on arrival, our previous driver, Juciano, decided to meet us. We enjoyed the warmth of the Brazilian people we met. The Porto Bay Hotel was superb and one of the best hotels we have ever
stayed in! We had not expected such luxury. The balcony overlooking Copacabana Beach was unexpected. Our second favourite wildlife encounter was the 4 Jaguar sightings. Very exciting and memorable.
South Africa Tailormade – Anna M
The itinerary for a tailormade trip for two people worked extremely well. The Blyde Canyon worked well at the beginning, followed by excellent rest camps ending with the marvellous Cheetah Plains. The driving distances were fine as many stops could be made on the way. Both Nic and Myke excelled as guides: both very knowledgeable and keen to find birds and animals for us. The staff at Cheetah Plains were very attentive, food delicious, site magical and the visit to the LiveSafari headquarters was unexpected and delightful and we thoroughly appreciated this gesture.
Malaysia Tailormade – Richard & Heather D
Our guide, Mano’s, knowledge and ease of company was outstanding. He was receptive to our interests and experience, and a great teacher. We enjoyed learning so much about the birds, country and environment. We ate superb vegetarian food from a wide range of restaurants, all arranged by Mano.
Tanzania Tailormade – Richard & Sue D
Everything ran like clockwork. The guides and camps were exceptional. The unrivalled game-viewing without any other vehicles in the vicinity was the best we’ve had in Africa. This was a safari for people who have already experienced previous trips – perhaps not for the first timer, but for us it was just amazing and we would certainly like to do it again.
Ecuador Tailormade – Helen & Peter R
The standard of guiding was first class. Andres was fantastic at spotting birds and pointing them out to us. His knowledge was exceptional. Both Andres and our driver (Luis) were very good company. The mix of birding (430 species), wildlife spotting (Spectacled Bear, Giant River Otter and several species of monkey) and culture (city tours) worked well. The mix of habitats (cloudforest, Andes, Amazon) was very interesting – our 3-week itinerary was an excellent introduction to Ecuador. All of the tour administration worked well.
Our dedicated tailormade team would love to help you to create lifelong wildlife travel memories and, if you would like to discuss your ideas further, please do join Tailormade Holidays Manager, Georgie Head, and Hannah Lette at our Mingledown offices in Chawton, Hampshire on Thursday, 25th January (6.30pm – 8pm) for an evening of mulled wine and nibbles to talk through your tailormade holiday plans. We look forward to hearing from you!
To discuss a tailormade holiday with one of our experts please call Georgie Head on 01962 733051 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.