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★ ★ ★ ★ ★

If you are looking for winter walking of substance, look no further

Walking Holiday on the Captivating Cape Verde Islands

If you are looking for a winter walking holiday of substance, look no further than this excellent adventure with KE. I found Cape Verde to be a hidden gem of a destination for a winter trip. It is conveniently located not too far from the UK but feels a world away from cold, dark January in Edinburgh. The trip is a game of two halves. The first is fast paced: by day six, you will set foot on four different islands, undertaking three internal flights and a ferry journey on the way. You will have ... scaled the highest peak of the archipelago - Pico de Fogo - and seen a very diverse range of landscapes. And you will be on your fifth different bed for the night. The second half sees the trip settling down on the spectacular island of Santo Antao where you will undertake a series of coastal and mountain hikes which are surprisingly diverse when you take into account the comparatively modest size of the island which you are on. Overall, the walking is reasonably demanding: with almost no flat ground involved, the cumulative and descent over the course of the trip are in the order of 9,000 metres. So walking poles are strongly recommended. The scenery ranges from high, barren and freshly minted volcanic terrain to agricultural fields where coffee, mango and bananas are abundant. This is a well-organised and well-led trip. The accommodation is generally simple, but there's always everything needed for a comfortable stay. The hosts are friendly and the food is hearty and wholesome. Worth noting that the descent of Pico de Fogo is a run down a steep lava field. This makes for rapid progress which is gentle on the knees. As suggested elsewhere, take gaiters in order to keep the stones out of your boots. It is also pretty dusty, so a good idea to take something to cover your mouth and nose. A KE buff is a good start, but if I had my time again I might go further and take a proper dust mask as my lungs felt a bit inflamed for the rest of the trip. In terms of other tips, one thing to be prepared for is the first two days of the trip. If you are on the group flights, you are likely to arrive in Cape Verde at about 1am on day 2 and then be on the 7.30am internal flight to Fogo. There'll be a short walk that day, but best to get as much rest as you can as day 3 begins with at dawn with the ascent of Pico de Fogo. I have been on a good number of KE trips now and my view is that Cape Verde more than holds its own, especially if your circumstances are such as you are looking for winter walking.

By Michael from EDINBURGH | 13 April 2020

Nov 2019 - Sikkim Kanchenjunga

Sikkim - Beneath Kangchenjunga Trek

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By Robert from Edinburgh | 08 April 2020

Nov 2019, Alan Chan

Sikkim - Beneath Kangchenjunga Trek

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By Robert from Edinburgh | 08 April 2020

★ ★ ★ ★

Forests and frozen lakes

Finland Wilderness Snowshoe Adventure

This is a great introduction to snowshoeing, largely flat trails and relatively short days. I'd done snowshoeing trips in the mountains and this is very different, the scenery is less dramatic, all forests and great expanses of whiteness. Crossing the frozen lakes and having lunch round a fire, surrounded by three feet of snow were all great new experiences.

The group is very international, only three British people on our trip, though all the others spoke excellent English and we spent a ... lot of time translating the names of obscure wildlife into French, German and Spanish.

The guide was great, very knowledgeable, laid back and able to cope with a very varied group. The food was good solid winter nourishment though we didn't see a fruit or vegetable all week. the wilderness cabins were not that remote, the food was delivered by car, they were pretty well equipped but you do have to be able to cope with no electricity and running water.

Overall it was a great trip and Finland is a really worthwhile winter destination.

By Fiona from Barnet | 18 March 2020

Julian Alps, September 2019

Across the Julian Alps to Triglav

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By Bruce from VICTOR | 18 March 2020

Pyrenees, February 2020

High Level Pyrenees Snowshoe Holiday

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By Bruce from VICTOR | 18 March 2020

Mera Peak Trip October 2019

Mera Peak

By Luke from London | 15 March 2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Superbly guided wildlife walking holiday

Costa Rica Walks and Wildlife

Our guide Joe ensured that we had a memorable holiday and we experienced the wildlife and natural beauty of Costa Rica. The trip was superbly organised and we sampled delicious food and numerous treats along the way. Joe was enthusiastic , informative and fun to be with. He had boundless energy and made sure the whole group was included in everything.

By Chandraprakash from Rochford | 14 March 2020

Superbly guided wildlife walking holiday

Costa Rica Walks and Wildlife

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By Chandraprakash from Rochford | 14 March 2020

Assorted Photos from February 2020

Kerala and the Cardamom Hills

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By Andi from North Yorkshire | 02 March 2020

Day 5 - Abondance to Vacheresse

Snowshoe Traverse of the Chablais

By Adam from Mamer | 01 March 2020

Snowshoeing in Bulgaria

Bulgarian Snowshoe Adventure

By Geoffery from Ilford | 23 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Breathtaking

Costa Rica Walks and Wildlife

You will experience some inevitable discomfort ... accommodation is not 5* hotels, but every effort is made and the experience and wildlife was amazing!!

By John from Derby | 19 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★

Watching active volcanoes’ eruptions up and close

Guatemala's Magnificent Seven

In the dead of winter where walking holiday choices are more limited than in summer, it was awesome to watch active volcanoes’ eruptions up-and-close, at sunrise, at sunset, and during daytime’s volcano walk. With a few exceptions, most walks were in the woods, however, and significant amount of time was spent in vehicle transportation; so one would need to set up expectations properly. Room for improvement: 1. The Jan-2020 trip was the first time where the order of days was changed. While ... the change decision was made back in Oct 2019, KE’s website (the “Map and Itinerary” tab) was not updated until Jan-2020. Even after the update there were still discrepancies. For example, ascent of volcano San Pedro on Day 9 was replaced by ascent of Maya Face (with tourist police escort) because San Pedro was deemed unsafe (even with police escort), and it has been “unsafe” for some time. Another example: Ascent of volcano Acatenango was actually done in the morning of Day 13 instead of in the afternoon of Day 12, partially because morning has fewer clouds. 2. Our hotel room in San Pedro by Lake Atitlan had mold, where we stayed three nights. We had to open window for the night and change our pillow position away from the wall to reduce the smell of mold. 3. This program’s cover photo on KE website does not truly reflect the key selling point of Guatemala’s volcano walk and some update may be needed. The current cover photo shows a sea of clouds surrounding volcano Aqua as viewed from Acatenango’s base camp, where Aqua is not an active volcano. While it looks nice and interesting, the real attraction is ACTIVE volcano (Fuego) eruptions. I’d be disappointed for the entire volcano walk if I only saw dormant volcanoes without watching active volcano eruptions up-and-close.

By Jin from Lisle | 14 February 2020

KE Adventure reply

Thank you for your review. We are glad you had an awesome time in Gutemala. Note that our website will always show the itinerary for the current trip but in case of updates, you can download the specific itinerary ahead of time for any date, from the 'Dates & Prices' tab. The change from climbing San Pedro to the Maya Face was made due to an incident which occured immediately before your trip. Our guides will also make small changes to the itinerary which are in the group's interest, such as switching a climb to a morning ascent when the forecast is for cloud in the afternoon. We are sorry to learn about the issue you had in one of the hotels and we are investigating this with our local agent. If it is not rectified, we will not use this hotel in future.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Fun Trip!

Italian Cross-Country Ski Short Break

I had never been cross country skiing before (nor downhill for that matter) but I have to say that I really enjoyed this trip. First, we had an outstanding instructor (Emily) who really took the time to help each of us progress. She took us from complete beginners to being able to ski a beginners track on our own in 3 days. She made sure that we had just enough breaks to keep us going and she also did a great job choosing the places where we had lunch. Second, we had a great group. Everyone was ... friendly and I think we all really enjoyed one another's company. Third, the hotel was excellent. The rooms were clean and spacious (for Europe) and the spa was quite enjoyable. Dinner was at another hotel and I thought the food was quite good. Breakfast was fine and lunches were taken in different restaurants depending on where we were) and were generally very good with the third day being the highlight for me. Finally, the structure of this holiday works well for beginners.  You progress (comfortably, I thought) each day as you gain skills and confidence. Great trip!

By Benjamin from Franklinton | 12 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★

Excellent and Varied Trip

Kerala and the Cardamom Hills

An excellent and varied trip but don’t underestimate the amount of driving (our guide seemed reluctant for any stops en route) or the heat. We stayed two extra nights in Kochi and would definitely recommend that if you can manage it, both to get over the flight and because it’s a lovely place to wander round. It also made it easier to see the local Kathakali show – the Tissa’s staff can arrange tickets. The tea plantations are beautiful and the trekking gives plenty of wildlife spotting ... opportunities although some of the trails are quite rough and overgrown and several details in the itinerary need updating. The temple at Madurai is stunning but note that no electronic equipment (cameras or phones) are allowed inside following a fire early 2018 (they can be left in the shop across the road). The Periyar walk is a full day affair - we got close to elephants but this is not guaranteed so suggest you treat it as a lovely walk with the possibility of seeing something exotic. The houseboat was great and we added an extra day in Kovalam which allowed us to explore the nearby fishing activities (e.g. Vizhinjam Harbour – we walked there and got a tuk-tuk back).

By Reviewer from North Yorkshire | 11 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

A great trip – varied and action-packed.

Kerala and the Cardamom Hills

I would agree with most of the positive comments already made by others but am adding the following tips from my personal experience: I would recommend that people arrive at least one day before the trip start as the first day is fairly full on with arrival late morning, city tour in the afternoon followed by visit to see kathakali (play) in the evening. It’s very easy and cheap to get the regular air-conditioned bus directly from Kochi airport to Fort Kochi and then tuk tuk to the hotel. ... Don’t expect the trip to run exactly as in the trip notes. The bus journeys often ended up longer than stated which had knock-on effects. Our guide, Senthil, coped with this really well and kept the holiday running smoothly whilst still taking on board our requests, making his own suggestions, and always with a smile on his face! Most places in Kerala don’t sell alcohol, this includes most of the hotels we stayed at, or anywhere at all on a public holiday or first of the month! It is possible to find a beer with a little planning, and by asking your guide in advance but still not possible to drink it in restaurants of hotels without a license. The camping was great but very cold at night (in January) so take a good sleeping bag and a lightweight down jacket for sitting outside in the evenings. The food whilst camping was probably the best on the trip, and the beer flowed thanks to our camp staff collecting it daily along with the fresh food ingredients. There was lots of wildlife so well worth taking binoculars, camera with zoom and a bird book. There’s not a great deal to spend your money other than souvenirs or beer/wine. Our total tips came to about £130 pp so well worth taking quite a bit extra in cash. Sterling is fine and can be changed at many of the hotels. ATMs are not common and a bit unreliable and the exchange desk at the airport charged me a bit of a hefty commission.

By Peter from Derby | 11 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Geology playground

Walking Holiday on the Captivating Cape Verde Islands

I've not been on a trekking holiday with so much variation of scenery. The itinerary is well planned and gives one a flavour of all that is Cape Verde. Even a paddle in the sea on a black sand beach is included. The scenery is stunning and if geology is your bag, then you will be amply satisfied with this trip. We had the whole trip in glorious weather with temperatures approaching 30deg C. Very hot in the valleys but cooling once on the various hill tops and volcanoes. Fogo ascent amazing - ... never been on a volcano's caldera in a caldera! 

By Reviewer from Chelmsford | 10 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★

Successful summit of Kili, despite horrible weather

Kilimanjaro Lemosho Route

Was very happy to summit Kili with KE -- the trek arrangement, over the Lemosho route, with its extra days, was critical to proper acclimatization and ultimately making it without AMS. As with my previous experience, KE did a great job organizing and really appreciate that everything is included. The weather (unfortunately NOT under KE's control) was terrible -- although the dry season, it rained every single day, almost all day, so it was a wet week in tents. Lesson: Even if it's supposed to ... be dry, be prepared! I gave only 4 stars this time because I was not completely impressed by the local partner, as I didn't think they were as well organized and equipped as other KE partners. I got the impression they were new and didn't seem familiar with KE or it's way of working. The individual guides and porters were all great, very friendly and hardworking. The logistics of getting to/from the gate were a bit strange, as we shared a bus with the whole team of 24 and made many stops picking up or dropping off members. If I were to do Kili again (not planning on it), I would definitely go with KE and with Lemosho. Despite the rain and mud, it was a ultimately a great experience!

By John from VIENNA | 10 February 2020

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Well organized trip by KE.

Kilimanjaro Lemosho Route

The leader of the team Dismas and all his crew were exceptional from start to finish. Me and my wife were in a group of six and unfortunately the weather was extremely wet the whole trip, which made it hard work for the team, but they were always friendly and helpful. My wife was ill and unfortunately couldn't summit but the remainder of the group did, partially because of the crews help and experience. The down side, KE advertise that they use three man tents for two people but our tents were ... too small. Two people two kit bags and two ruck sacks didnt leave any room to move.

By Reviewer from Norwich | 03 February 2020

KE Adventure reply

Thank you for your review. We are pleased you enjoyed your holiday and are sorry to hear that your wife was unable to summit. The tents you used were Vango Mirage Pro 300 Trek, which are 3-person tents.

Latest from our Travellers

97% of our customers rated their holiday Good or Excellent

If you are looking for winter walking of substance, look no further

Nov 2019 - Sikkim Kanchenjunga

Nov 2019, Alan Chan

Forests and frozen lakes

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Pyrenees, February 2020

Mera Peak Trip October 2019

Superbly guided wildlife walking holiday

Superbly guided wildlife walking holiday

Assorted Photos from February 2020

Day 5 - Abondance to Vacheresse

Snowshoeing in Bulgaria

Breathtaking

Watching active volcanoes’ eruptions up and close

Fun Trip!

Excellent and Varied Trip

A great trip – varied and action-packed.

Geology playground

Successful summit of Kili, despite horrible weather

Well organized trip by KE.

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Latest from our Travellers

97% of our customers rated their holiday Good or Excellent

If you are looking for winter walking of substance, look no further

Nov 2019 - Sikkim Kanchenjunga

Nov 2019, Alan Chan

Forests and frozen lakes

Julian Alps, September 2019

Pyrenees, February 2020

Mera Peak Trip October 2019

Superbly guided wildlife walking holiday

Superbly guided wildlife walking holiday

Assorted Photos from February 2020

Day 5 - Abondance to Vacheresse

Snowshoeing in Bulgaria

Breathtaking

Watching active volcanoes’ eruptions up and close

Fun Trip!

Excellent and Varied Trip

A great trip – varied and action-packed.

Geology playground

Successful summit of Kili, despite horrible weather

Well organized trip by KE.

Get our latest articles and promotions straight to your inbox

KE 2305 Online Reviews

97%

Your Wishlist

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