Rough Guides Ecuador Tailor-made trips reviews

“Majo in Ecuador has been an amazing assistance to our customised 37 day tour in South America.”

“The initial work by Rough Guides to select and suggest local people/Companies for our trip was excellent. Having chosen Tamer (Authentic Travel), we were more and more convinced that he was a perfect choice - knowledge, experience, communication, professionalism, clarity and on top of these, his dedication to ensuring every element of our pre-trip and during the trip itself was the best it could be. When potential issues arose (as they always will), Tamer was ahead of the problem, solving it often before we knew about it. We travel a lot, and this is the best it can be! We do not say this lightly, having given some terrible reviews to those who can't meet at least the minimum to be expected. We would unconditionally recommend both Companies to everyone.”

“Deciding to use Rough Guides for our trip to Colombia was a great decision. Maria Jose and team were great from the start. The preliminary planning meetings were easy to arrange and the team listened to our requirements and planned a great trip. We were a bit nervous as the final itinerary was late getting to us, but everything worked out so well and was even better than described. The drivers and guides were top quality, always on time and very knowledgeable. In country support was very responsive and helpful- it couldn’t have been easier for us as a multi-site trip. If you are planning a trip to Colombia, we would recommend Rough Guides but would suggest you don’t need a guide for the Salt Cathedral or the Thermal Spa (Santa Rosa). Main sites are very busy first week of January so bear this in mind. If you like nature, we wish we had stayed overnight in Tayrona National Park so do look at that as an option. Would definitely use this team again. Thank you for a wonderful trip.”

“Our second experience using Insight Guides made for a worry-free trip that included Cusco, Lake Titicaca and the Peruvian Amazon: transfers were always on time, flexible if we wanted to change times a bit, and drivers and guides super friendly. Of the three contact people who coordinated itineraries, I have to single out Benjamin who was so helpful, friendly and responsive. Suggestion early on that we opt for Titicaca Lodge rather than another hotel was made by our initial contact, Jeferson, and was spot on: We could not have had a better experience on a floating island so thanks to Jeferson for that advice. My advice to others: Double check the details and really pin down exactly what you are getting. The promised cooking class in Cusco was not as billed, and just involved us watching a busy kitchen prepare local cuisine for lunch -- which was good but definitely not hands-on as promised. In the Amazon we had asked twice about the level of room we were getting; asked for Comfort which was an upgrade, were promised we were getting all Premium rooms but when we got to the Rainforest Lodge we were told we had booked a Standard which was super small. The lodge upgraded us to a suite which was nice and made a huge difference. Similarly our room in Lima was so small that we practically fell over each other -- even though we were told by Insight that all our accommodation was premium (it turns out we were in the smallest, cheapest room in that hotel). We worked with Benjamin to change hotels for our final two nights which cost a bit of extra but made for a much better experience. So double check every detail that is part of the itinerary and make sure you are getting what you think you should be getting for your money. The devil is always in the details.”

“We booked our Galápagos trip with Rough Guides and were in the very safe hands of Jef initially and then Benjamin in Quito nothing was too much trouble and our itinerary ticked all the boxes, from land based to sea based experiences, everything was first class. From airports, taxis, to boats and horses everything ran like clockwork. Benjamin’s service went above and beyond, always checking in with us on a daily basis and post trip as well. I would have no hesitation in using and or recommending Rough Guides for future travel plans”

“Jeferson took care of every detail from constant communication to follow up on drivers, hotels and tours. ”