Traveller Reviews
Read holiday reviews and feedback by Mountain Kingdoms travellers.
Traveller reviews of Mountain Kingdoms
Overall holiday rating: 5
Total number of reviews submitted: 1179
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Varied itinerary, excellent food and hotels
A varied itinerary covering over 2000 miles, exploring 7 of the 8 UNESCO World Heritage sites in Sri Lanka with five other like-minded travellers in the group. Food and hotels were almost all excellent, especially Lady Hill in Galle where the welcome and service were excellent. Our guide was informative and went out of his way to make sure all went smoothly. The highlights for me were the day spent visiting Sigiriya/Dambulla and the day on Nainativo exploring the Hindu Nagapooshani Amman Temple and the Buddhist shrine Nagadeepa Purana Viharaya.
Smooth from start to finish
Everything went so smoothly, from start to finish. All the guides were very knowledgeable and entertaining and all the accommodations and transportation were very comfortable. I could not have asked for a more enjoyable holiday. Well done Mountain Kingdoms!
In-depth exploration of Sri Lanka's hill country
We very much enjoyed this in-depth exploration of Sri Lanka's hill country. The walking was a mixture of fairly easy tracks through the iconic tea estates and some more challenging sections so the overall trip grading is about right. The scenery, from plantations to grasslands and forests was lovely and meeting so many local villagers on the way was a particular highlight. Our guide, Sujan, was excellent, very knowledgeable on history and wildlife, and our driver, Vigitha, was always reliable.
An abundance of highlights
Amazing Holiday. Highly Recommended with an abundance of highlights, beautiful country lovely people lovely food and amazing wildlife and scenery. Its absolutely a country I could return to in the future
Bucket list experience
A truly bucket list experience! I thoroughly enjoyed myself and thought Hameed (not sure if spelling correct) was fantastic. He was an asset to the company. I would highly recommend this outstanding trip.
Exactly what it said on the tin!
Loved everything! The trip was exactly what it said on the tin - a really good mix of seeing the best of the Silk Road cities of Uzbekistan & moderate level walking in two quite different (and beautiful) mountain areas. Nowhere was a disappointment & I was pleasantly surprised by the low numbers of overseas tourists (apparently the benefit of being at the end of the season). The Registan was indeed the highlight of the trip, not at all crowded and quite stunning!
Immersive tour of a fascinating place
Colours of India - what a good description of the holiday that weve just had. And not just colours, but sounds and tastes. I had never been to Gujarat, and what a fascinating place it turned out to be. My interest in joining a tour focusing on textiles was not in making things, as thats not my forte, but in enjoying beautiful things and the workmanship and skills that go into creating them. And the tour exceeded my expectations, with a knowledgable, passionate, energetic and thoughtful leader who was on hand to deal with any problems that arose, an itinerary that could be adjusted to suit prevailing circumstances, an excellent local guide, Pravin Danghera, who gave us insights into many aspects of Gujarati life and helped with everything from menu choices (the food was delicious) to strange beeps in the hotel room, and a calm, careful driver who kept us safe. The vibrant colours and the smiling, friendly local people we met will stay with meas will of course the glorious things that I boughtadded to which are the unforgettable landscapes, the birds, the animals encountered on the road and in the markets, and the wonderful local music played by such talented musicians. The tour was relaxed and never rushed, allowing us to immerse ourselves in the places we visited. There was only one place where we would have liked to linger longer, Rann Riders, had time permitted, but we understood the limitations. Well done, Sue Lawty, and everyone alongside you who made this happen. I hadnt heard of Mountain Kingdoms before this trip but will certainly be keeping an eye on future opportunities.
Gujarat - you can't not go!
If you love fabrics or sewing you will find heaven in Gujarat. You have the chance to watch fabric being made from scratch; spun, dyed, printed, woven, embroidered and finally worn. Throw the many wonders of India into the mix - exotic food, amazing temples and mosques or tranquil bird watching - and you cant not go!'
Absolutely fantastic trip to India
Absolutely fantastic trip with a superb guide Suraya (apologies if spelt incorrectly!) who had bottomless historical knowledge, he also took charge of a "tip kitty" which took any stress off us! The variety of accommodation was brilliant especially enjoyed the Korta Escape which was a rural farm and Castle Bijaipur Hotel where we were included in the family's Diwali Celebrations. We did an extension to Jim Corbett's Retreat which was superb and we saw a real, live, wild tiger!!
Couldn't fault it!
This was a great trip, the country is beautiful and the trip took in a lot of the diversity between the areas visited. We were very pleased with the itinerary which had obviously been well thought out and the accommodation wherever we stayed was of a good standard. We were with a group of 10 lovely, friendly people but one of the highlights of the trip was the group leader, Rey. Rey really made our trip with his knowledge, attitude and sense of fun, he went above and beyond on many occasions.
Exquisite scenery
We loved finding out more about the culture. We met some lovely local families. The scenery was exquisite.
Great memories
I had wanted to go trekking in Nepal for at least thirty years. As the trek progressed I knew I had made the right choice. Challenging, incredible scenery, three high passes, nice lodges, Everest basecamp and some quieter areas. Purna and his assistant guides worked tirelessly in looking after us with warmth and good humour. I will not forget the last night of the trek in Lukla where we all got up and danced with Purna, the assistant guides and porters to a catchy Nepali tune. Great memories.
Wonderful trek in Atlas mountains
For various, unpredictable reasons I ended up going on this trek alone. However, I still had an excellent, English speaking guide, a wonderful cook, 2 muleteers and 2 mules all looking after me! I was very well looked after and had a great time. The food was fantastic, especially considering the basic cooking arrangements. The terrain is very dry and arid but the scenery is quite striking and the night sky is wonderful. Don't expect anything other than very basic (squat toilet) or non-existent toilet facilities and you do have to be careful with water hygiene. I had no problems and I was provided with hot water and liquid soap at every meal time and filtered all my drinking water. All in all a great trek that was very well organised and enjoyable.
Friends on a shared adventure
This was once again a very well organised Trek from Mountain Kingdoms. The scenery was all we hoped for as we ascended the Langtang Valley. Our small group gelled immediately into a group of friends on a shared adventure. Our thanks must go to our trek Leader Durga, his assistant Ram and the porters who ensured we thoroughly enjoyed our 15 days of walking.
First ever trek - exceeded expectations
The trek far exceeded my expectations. It is also the first trek that i have ever done. The scenery is just out of this world. Whilst the 3 passes themselves are hard work, with adequate preparation they are fully achievable. The rewards are incredible vistas, and being away from the traditional circuit. The acclimatization built into the route was great, and so I would fully endorse the route direction (clockwise) as well as the trek duration. Bravo to the guides and porters.
No praise too high!
We had a wonderful holiday. We saw a lot of the country and a considerable amount of wildlife. The hotels were all comfortable and the food was good. There was quite a lot of travel in a small bus. This was inevitable if we wanted to see as much of the country as we did. The bus was comfortable and the driver was good. Our guide was fantastic. He was knowledgeable and enthusiastic about Costa Rica. He was happy to accommodate our wishes to get up early to go bird watching. No praise too high.
Friendly people
All the Japanese people were unfailingly friendly, helpful and polite.
It really was the trip of a lifetime
The scenery and nature of Patagonia plus the helpfulness of all the people we met made the holiday so special for us. All the flights and travel arrangements worked as planned. The accommodation and food were first class and not forgetting the Argentinian steaks and wine! The Estancia Cristina has the top billing from us. Together with the rest of our itinerary it was really a trip of a lifetime. Thanks to Mountain Kingdoms for all the arrangements, you were a pleasure to deal with.
Wildlife paradise with a great guide
There are regular guides, and then, there's Rey, our highly qualified naturalist guide, who always spotted in a tree, long before any of our group, 'anything that looks unusual or shouldn't be there' (his words). Monkeys, sloths, iguanas, and particularly birds, he found them all for us, and, with his 'scope and tripod set up, we could view, and photograph or video via our phones, all the wonderful creatures that make Costa Rica a wildlife paradise. We enjoyed walks in the volcanic areas too.
Comprehensive experience of Japan
We enjoyed the variety and comprehensive experience of Japan, it's history and culture.