Ian

Dear Simone,

Thankyou for your email re our recent tour of the Kimberley with your organisation. I thought I would just write down a few thoughts re ’the trip’.

1. Overall organisation:-
A very efficiently run company with good responsiveness to queries and an ability to be flexible re times by which things needed to be ‘locked in’. ie deciding which optional trips to undertake. All staff that I had any dealings with were helpful, competent and prompt.

2. Itinerary:-
An ambitious schedule obviously designed to try and showcase as much of the area’s diverse attractions as possible in the available time. This is very attractive and I commend the planners for the choices made as to which areas to visit, bearing in mind that different people will have varying opinions on what is a ‘must see’. Given the area to be covered is quite large and that the allocated time is limited, choices have to be made as to what to see and how much time is spent at each venue. I feel that a good compromise was struck on this tour.

I personally would have preferred more time in some locations investigating local flora and fauna, and less time in swimming holes, but I am aware that this is a minority view. Having to travel long distances meant a lot of time in the bus/truck looking out the windows. This is great for general ’scenery’ viewing but frustrating if something interesting is observed, as the vehicle can’t just keep stopping!

3. Campsites/accommodation:-
This is after all a camping trip and as such, a degree of compromise is obviously required re comfort. Overall the campsites were adequate, with some being better than others, particularly in the area of ablutions! The tents were serviceable and roomy and, as they were already set up for us at each site (with one exception) I found them to be more than adequate and easy to use. I felt that the (supplied) ’swags’ ie combination mattress, sheet, pillow and sleeping bag and cover were a good idea. These could be rolled up into a bundle and transported from place to place on our bus. It would seem that most people found them to be quite adequate, although I found the padding to be a bit thin. I also found the nights a bit cold for me, even though I was wearing numerous layers of clothing. That being said, I did manage to get a reasonable amount of sleep most nights.

4. Meals:-
I found the meals to be of excellent quality, quantity and variety, although they were predominately ‘western’ style meals that may not appeal to all tastes. A vegetarian option was always offered.

5. Tour Guides:-
For this trip we had two staff (Liz and Phil) that acted not only as drivers and tour guides but also cooks, first aid officers, general fonts of information re the area, geology, flora and fauna, and indigenous people and were all ’round friendly and approachable. I can not speak highly enough of the professionalism of them both while at the same time they were very pleasant people. They put up with my tardiness on the walks, my endless questions about the flora and fauna, and my grumbles with tolerance and understanding. I felt like they were old friends after only a few hours acquaintance .

In summary i would highly recommend this company and this tour to anyone that has always wanted a ‘Kimberley adventure’ but has neither the equipment, time, knowledge or experience to ’self cater’.

Best regards