reviews
Read holiday reviews by Mountain Kingdoms travellers.
A lot packed into 2 weeks
This was our 4th trip with MK, I think that speaks for itself. It is great to know you're going to have excellent guides in the country and decent, or even great, hotel, food and transport!
Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage Trek
The immersion in rural Japanese culture, combined with trekking along an ancient route was excellent. Our guide was resourceful & versatile in face of new challenges.
Private Departure - Complete Patagonia - the holiday of a lifetime
We were really excited to join our friends on this holiday but we could not have anticipated just how stunning the scenery was going to be, how challenging but satisfying the walks or how much we would learn about local history, geology, wildlife, flora and fauna. The travel arrangements were all superb and we felt extremely well looked after by Mountain Kingdoms.
Just brilliant fun!
I very recently cycled the majority of this fantastic cycling adventure. From the first few minutes to the very end it was just brilliant fun! The bikes we provide in Bhutan are modern mountain bikes with disk brakes and good gear ratios. This cycling holiday is not a non-stop endurance exercise. It combines exciting cycling with meeting local Bhutanese people, seeing their culture and daily traditions, and visiting some of the kingdom's famous sights. You also get off-the-beaten-track and really close up and personal with their amazing scenery. It is such a thrill to whistle down the long descents from high passes and see friendly people waving and bowing to you as you pass by. The air is clean in the mountains and every leg of the journey is a fresh challenge. We were lucky inasmuch as we enjoyed wall to wall sunshine every day but if you did encounter rain you can always scramble into the back-up vehicle/s which stays behind you at a respectful distance all the way. Your Guide leads the route and is there to show you around and be an interpreter as well. In the many days cycling he had to mend only one puncture. You can if you want avoid toiling up to the top of the big passes and simply ride all the downhills. For instance the road down from the Dochu La Pass is all of 40kms downhill and never boring!! The hotels are of a high standard and there is plenty of time to rest and relax. The people in their cars and buses look at you with envy. Of course the 4th king (now retired), and the 5th king are keen cyclists and are often seen cycling the tracks north of Thimphu. The present king is very much involved with the 'Tour of the Dragon' - the annual cycle race from Jakar to Thimphu. There is little in the way of really busy traffic in Bhutan and certainly going east from Punakha there is very little traffic at all. I never felt traffic was remotely a problem. I would give this trip my highest recommendation for sheer excitement and pleasure.
Trekking in the Langtang Valley
Trekking in the Langtang Valley was undoubtedly one of the best things I’ve ever experienced! Flanked by high peaks, I followed the trail along the valley from Sybaru Besi to Kyanjin Gompa where the panoramic mountain views were truly incredible. Each night we stopped in simple tea houses where we received the warmest of welcomes from the lovely local people, as well as some very tasty dal bhat! The Langtang region was devastated by the 2015 earthquake, with many lives lost and houses destroyed, but the indomitable people have done wonders in re-building their homes and villages, and re-opening the trails. Now they just need trekkers to return to help them restore their livelihoods. I encourage anyone looking for a Himalayan trek, away from the popular trails, to go and experience Langtang – you may even have it all to yourself.
An unforgettable experience
The trip was everything we had hoped it would be and more! Cycling meant we saw the countryside and village life at close quarters, away from the standard tourist routes, and learned so much about the country from our local guides. The range of cycling conditions made for some interesting experiences, from sharing a road with cattle to off-road country tracks, all of which were great fun. Mixing up the cycling with a hill trek, train travel with the locals, wine tasting and sightseeing provided variety and some great photo opportunities. The Balloons over Bagan experience was one of the highlights, seeing the sun rise over countless monuments from the sky!
Private Departure - A holiday of a lifetime!
This holiday lived up to all my expectations - and more. An excellent guide; a trek that took us into truly spectacular, remote areas and such an interesting, exciting country to visit at this stage in its development.
Private Departure - An outstanding holiday
Mustang truly is Shangrila-la. The scenery is beautiful - something new around every corner. The Tibetan culture teaches you many many new things daily.
Fabulous experience!
A very challenging trek. Extremely remote although well worth it to appreciate the amazing scenery and closeness of the mountains. The Gunser valley and river are simply stunning. The viewing point at Janu was well worth the climb, with the frozen lake and surrounding peaks simply stunning. Be prepared for long days walking and some very diverse conditions. It is worth it though - Nepal at its best for sure.
A few Japanese cities, plus alpine trekking, historic villages and some temples - a great mix!
MK's Nakasendo Trail's gentle trekking trip gave us a taste of a few cities and staying in hotels, the challenge of reducing luggage to what we carried on our backs (letting our main bags be transferred very efficiently for occasional access, and which enabled such easy luggage-free public transport travel everywhere); and then what seemed a real privilege to be trekking in alpine countryside, with accommodation in small privately owned minshukus, inns, ryokans and even a Buddhist temple (surprisingly luxurious!). We were blessed with good walking weather, and the beginnings of autumn foliage, and could hunt out the occasional chrysanthemum display. Learning the etiquette of onsen-use involved ditching British reserve(!), but those hot communal baths offered a great way to relax after a day's walking, and we would then all assemble dressed in our yukatas and slippers for dinner. Thanks, MK, for another really well researched trip, and also for organising our Hiroshima extension, to which travel was easy in that we were by then public transport experts!