Client Testimonials
 

                                                                                                                                                                                    (Photo courtesy of Paula Harrigan)

Hi James & Nicola,

From my Father & myself, thank you to you both for looking after us so well with our trip to Bhutan. We were so impressed with the level of service you provided for us in the preparation for the trip, and I must admit it’s a long time since we’ve been looked after to such a high standard.

The trip itself was fantastic & as you told us, it’s a magnificent and strikingly beautiful country. The people there are so genuine and friendly. The tour itself was fantastic, and even our fellow travelers couldn’t have been better. Food, accommodation and transport was of a high standard, and the guides were all excellent.

Thank you James & Nicola – we had a wonderful trip & we enormously appreciate all of your time & effort in ensuring that it went as smoothly as it could.

Thank you & best wishes to you both,

Steve & Phil     QLD Sept 2008

Hi Nicola and James,
Just want to let you know that I had the most amazing trip in Bhutan. the one night trek was an awesome introduction to trekking, I've been inspired to try longer treks now. our guide rinchen phenn tsho was excellent, he was so informative, helpful and had a great personality. the other members of the group were great, I hope to catch up with Wan and Bec here in melbourne when they come back from their travels and the guys Steve and Phil were great drinking buddies. we really enjoyed the super strong druk beer each evening...
so i was extremely impressed with the trip and I'm in the process of posting some photos on facebook. I'll be sure to recommend you to any of my friends and family that are interested in travelling to beautiful Bhutan. and of course when i have time to do a longer trek i will contact you again because i think Bhutan is a perfect place for enjoying the serenity of nature and a deeply ingrained culture that has not changed for centuries.
thanks so much, the trip was worth every cent!!!!
kindest regards,
Tonya        NSW Sept 2008

Dear Nicola & James,                                                                                                                        

We had a beautiful time indeed. Starting with the first day in Thimphu dzong where we had the surprise to attend the final rehearsal for the festival yet to come and ending in Paro dzong where we enjoyed the dance of the black hats. I did not expect seeing any of these dances so that was the cherry on the cake!

The twins have been the stars of Bhutan all along (everybody called them Nima and Dawa there – the Sun and the Moon), even the monks were fighting for getting a picture with them!!!

All the hotels were fantastic, Thimphu, Punakha, Dewachen. The hotel in Paro was maybe a bit gloomy and damp but apart from that, all went very well. Hot shower all along, when I was prepared to get all dirty for 10 days! The food was fantastic – we all came back with a bit of extra kilos, who would have believed! – what a pleasure to eat 100% organic vegetables… And I am afraid Saul and I became a bit addictive to chili and cheese and Red Panda beers…

Our guide, Bhin, has been excellent with the boys. I think Bhin discovered a few things with us – we suggested a few side trips/visits that turned out to be lucky choices as we attended a celebration of a new kitchen in one Thimphu small dzong by a very respected lama (forgot his name…). Even Bhin was impressed!  The boys have been climbing up Tiger Nest without any problems too.  Very safe place to travel with kids indeed. If you have any other customer asking about practicality to travel with young kids in Bhutan, do not hesitate to give them my details. I will be happy to provide information!

Bhin also managed to organize a white water rafting trip in Punakha in 2 days on our way back, and that was a fantastic experience (again, very safe for the kids too).

I left with lot of tears, as I know Bhutan is changing rapidly (one new hotel per month in Thimphu)  Douglas wants to take me back there in a few years to do a biiiiiiig trek as he loved the long walks everywhere!

I have been reading “A Baby in a backpack in Bhutan” while I was there and I picked up a lot of good tips (like seating in the back left side of the plane to enjoy the view approaching Paro airport).

I guess the only drawback is to see the country through a golden lens as being with a guide you only get one version of all facts. You sometimes see that not all is perfect, and reading the local newspaper teaches you about the tension with India and corruption appearing here and there. Bhutan is facing a huge challenge for keeping its culture and tradition alive in the near future….

Thank you for the professionalism of your organization, advices, help and all, we haven’t had one glitch of a problem during the whole trip.

Oh, and the weather has been pretty good (only 2 afternoon of rains that turned out to be fun as the boys loved walking in the mud!) although the forecast was planning for 2 weeks of rain non stop!

On the way back, we ended up booking another room at Bangkok Novotel airport hotel because we could not face 10 hours in the airport or a quick trip to Bangkok: that was a very good money spending as we all enjoyed the pool, the music in the bar, and a fantastic massage for Saul and I. Just what you need before boarding for another 9 hour flight.

Finally, shopping wise, I have to say that Thimphu Handicraft Emporium and the shop close to the school of arts are the two best places for local souvenirs as necklaces, bows and arrow, darts (I have been impressing a few locals with my skills at this game!!!), painting etc… I had a shock in Paro looking at the prices of things (sometimes 10 times more expensive than Thimphu!) and the poor choice! Australian dollars are also accepted almost everywhere now, expect in the local bars (for red pandas…) of course…!

Once again, thank you for organizing all this so perfectly.

Warm Regards, Aude, Saul, Nima & Dawa           NSW Sept 2008


Hi Nicola and James,
 
Wan and I had a tremendous time in Bhutan. It is such an interesting country that was rich in culture. So glad we went. The guide Rinchen Phuntsho looked after us very well and cared for us well during the trekking as well. He was very attentive and made sure that our safety was foremost. Wished I could see more area in the east. But may be next time. 
the accommodations were generally nice. In particular, the one in thimpu, phobjikha valley and olathang. 
I was very impressed with your company as well. the information and the prompt reply that you have provided were certainly great.

Thank you again, Rebecca & Wan        WA Sept 2008

Dear Nicola

Thanks for your email. We had a wonderful time in Bhutan, magical really. All the hotels were excellent but we liked the Amankora best. I think it was the isolated position and wonderful entrance over the suspension bridge. Bhutan's people are a global treasure and we hope tourism doesn't change them much. A highlight was talking to a bar man about love and compassion! Also, of course, the Tiger's Nest. We walked all the way up and down, more merit in that, and I had my mala blessed by the resident lama at the Tiger's Nest. An exhilarating, unforgettable experience.

Thanks for your service and I'm sure you'll be hearing from us again.

All the best

Sandra & Gerry    WA Sept 2008

Hi Nicola,

We had an amazing trip and everything went perfectly well. We absolutely fell in love with the country and thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of travelling there.
Our guide (Rinchen) was exceptional and definitely exceeded our expectations in all regards and was amazingly considerate and helpful with our children (both of whom adored him). In fact all people we encountered were great with the kids (to the point that we'd sit down to dinner and staff would swoop in and disappear with the baby so that we were able to eat without trying to juggle her on our laps as there were no highchairs).
Our 5 yr old soon realised she only need to look slightly tired while wandering around dzongs etc as Rinchen would immediately pick her up and carry her around on his back or shoulders. For your reference regarding future clients, at 5 yrs old our daughter was able to enjoy/appreciate the scenery and buildings/paintings etc.
All in all, an awesome and very rewarding holiday. Can't wait to go trekking there.
Thanks and regards,
Cindy    VIC Sept 2008

Dear Nicola and James,

First let me say that our Bhutan trip fully lived up to expectations from the tingles in my back as we came in to land at Paro to the fond farewells at the Indian border. Our guide, Phuntsho and driver, Kinga were thoroughly professional, took great care with our safety, went out of their way to give us so many good experiences and became our firm friends and companions.

Our accommodation could not be faulted and for the most part, our food was always interesting and I’d especially single out Singye Lodge and Wangdicholing Lodge for their imaginative chefs. Phuntsho ensured that we were able to sample some of the more bizarre local foods such as nakey the ever lovable ema datse and the local greens at Punakha, affectionately called ‘crow’s beak’.

Highlights included, on our first morning a fascinating archery contest; also in Thimphu, visits to the traditional medicine hospital and the nuns’ monastery were especially interesting. Punakha Zhong and the walk across the fields to Chimi Lhakhang, the scenery from Wangdi to Trongsa, the temples around Jakar, the walk to Thangbi village where we were invited in to a local house for a wedding celebration also got the thumbs up ! We enjoyed the atmosphere in Paro and the fabulous hike up to Tigers Nest and I’d even say that the last day’s drive to Phuentsholing was a highlight as due to the rains ,the drive took some 9 hours, as first we were held up by the police checkpoint near Paro, along with dozens of trucks, as they worked to clear the landslides, then engaged in a 70km race to reach the blocked area. The landslides were ever present over a 50km stretch, where visibility was poor and the going slow and both Phuntsho and Kinga said that they hadn’t experienced conditions like those before ,but we got through and we were impressed with the Bhutanese driving skills and ever present road etiquette. Certainly the Bhutanese and their amazingly beautiful country left a big impression and we were sorry to have to say goodbye---- even then, Phuntsho kindly negotiated our taxi ride from the border to Kurseong, near Darjeeling.

Thank you both for your efforts in organizing the trip and if we find anyone interested to go to Bhutan, we’ll certainly direct them to you

Kind regards

Pat and Peter        NSW Aug 2008

 

This is just a quick note to thank you for the tour, which was fantastic.  Sangay and Chengala, our guide and driver were terrific ambassadors for their country and ensured our stay in Bhutan was particularly special.  Hotels and food were great - very much appreciated both the hot water bottle and the wood stoves.

 
The trek was more challenging than I anticipated but was still a highlight, as were the people, places and landscapes of Bhutan.
 
Thank you again for organising the tour and I hope to be a repeat customer and will more than happily recommend you to friends.
 
With regards
 
Lesley        WA April 2008
 

I had a wonderful trip, with no problems at all. All arrangements went smoothly, good food, plenty of hot water, and the beds were comfortable. I feel deeply honoured and privileged to have visited Bhutan, was sad to leave and most probably love it for the same reasons you do. I have just been catching up with the election news online and will continue to follow Bhutan with great interest. My guide, who I had a lot of interesting political conversations with, was for the Druk party, so he will be pleased with their success.

 
My guide was Tshewang Rinzin, who remembers you both from your last visit. He seemed to know everyone eg at Tiger's Nest he knew the 10 year monk and got him to open up extra rooms that were normally locked, so I could have a look. He was a mine of information and never tired of answering my questions, bustled up kitchens if he felt that they were late, invited us into stranger's houses and schools to have a look, got passes to monasteries that weren't on our schedule, was happy to leave me sit in monasteries and at the tsechu for as long as I wanted, (finding me aussies or americans to sit with each day) and even arranged that we go up to Cheli La Pass the last day so I could see Jhomolhari (through the clouds) as views of the Himalayan range from Dochu La pass had been obscured by cloud both times we drove through. Mr Suress, my driver, was a lovely, gentle man.
 
There is certainly an advantage to going outside a group, as I was able to spend as long in Dzongs etc as I wanted and I always like to check things out thoroughly. I was able to go to the Paro tsechu on days 3, 4 & 5, which was fantastic, the audience being just as magnificently dressed as the participants, puts us to shame in our drab attire. I saw one of the Queens (2nd sister) on the last day.
 
 
Well I'm hooked. I would love to return in autumn (not this year as I will have to save, but I will try for next year) explore further west and to do some trekking. I discussed with Rinzin about trekking as he has taken groups, and based on my climbing ability to Tigers Nest, he thinks I would handle a 3 to 6 day trek okay. He mentioned the Bumthang area (2 night), Druk path (Paro to Thimphu 5 nights), Jhomolhari track 2 (6 nights) as suitable treks for me. So keep me in mind, any information would be most welcome.
 
Thanks for all your help and your excellent arrangements that has resulted in such a wonderful trip. I have lots of photos. Are there any areas that you would like more of for your website as I am happy to send them.
 
regards
Dianne      NSW March 2008

 

The trip was terrific. All the arrangements went perfectly and the guide and driver were excellent. If there was any critical comment it was perhaps that we were encouraged to see too much but in retrospect I am happy we were encouraged. I thought I would have liked to taste more of the local food until we looked around ourselves and saw that the local cuisine was not a major draw card. We met up with  Kylie Kwong (the Oz chef) on one of her whirlwind tours. We had an opportunity to meet a variety of locals…our guide was ever happy to arrange anything we asked. So many memories and lessons of life from Bhutan. We are hoping to repeat the trip  with the addition of a short trek next time and perhaps Indian entry and exits (will need a lot more time I know).

I met another customer of yours along the way (Diane) and we both sang your praises

All greatly appreciated

Cheers, David      NSW March 2008

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Bhutan. Your itinerary in our opinion was spot on.  Having the walk to 'Tiger Nest' left until the end permitted us to acclimatise and enjoy the walk to the top with too much trouble. We were able to go into the Monastery and witness the uniqueness of this magnificent structure.

We found the people, especially the children of Bhutan, to be naturally friendly and welcoming. We enjoyed the interaction with the Thangkha school students at Thimphu. If was especially interesting to see the people of Bhutan retaining their age-old customs and not being overly influenced by the influences of the western societies.

The guide supplied to us was excellent everything we could wish for and the driver was one of the best and safest drivers I have been in a vehicle with. Having witnessed the size and actions of other groups I would thoroughly recommend anyone travelling to Bhutan to travel in a small group as we did.

We were completely satisfied with your excellent service prior to our trip and could not fault anything. We will have no hesitation in recommending you to any of our friends who decide to follow in our footsteps. Thank you for your professional and personal service and a unforgettable experience of Bhutan.
Helen & Ian      October 2007

 

IT WAS FABULOUS. Thank you for all your hard work. We has a wonderful time and I want to go back! Everything ran smoothly, the trek was great though pretty tough. Thank you again.
Seona     VIC November 2007

My trip to Bhutan was lovely & thank you so much for all your assistance with my booking. Bhutan is such a beautiful country & I have started a one-women PR effort to get everyone I know to visit there & the sooner the better.

I was so impressed with the standard of hotels. In Paro , I even got to stay in the Royal Suite & to try a hot stone bath! The tour company actually hosted a party in Thimphu at the hotel with traditional dancing. My guide was very conscientious & very polite. The sights were incredible , particularly the 2 festivals I got to see in Thimphu & in the Punakha valley. I had a great time sitting with the locals & sharing food while we watched the festivals. Everyone was very polite & friendly. The Museum in Paro was fantastic, the temples & their history was fascinating & the countryside was beautiful.
Paula    VIC October 2007