Any expierience with this company: Getaway Himalayan Eco/Trekking? Im planning a trip and this guys meet the exact dates that I want to go but have no idea of the quality of the trip.
Any comments would be appreciated.
Cheers,
Ron
Any expierience with this company: Getaway Himalayan Eco/Trekking? Im planning a trip and this guys meet the exact dates that I want to go but have no idea of the quality of the trip.
Any comments would be appreciated.
Cheers,
Ron
Hi Ron,
Did you get any feedback on this?
I am also really interested in travelling with Getaway as they have the route, dates and prices I have been seeking.
Comments would be more than appreciated.
Rgds,
Fernando
We did a private overland 8-day tour from Lhasa to Kathmandu April 10-17, 2010.
We had an awful experience! And really want to warn others. Getaway may have "the best prices" but there is a reason for it and had we have known, we would have spent more money to have not made our experience a complete waste.
Everything up until tour (when they received full payment) was great--the communication, the document preparation, etc. To make a long story short--we were nothing but scammed the entire trip.
Our guide Nima was extremely unprofessional and untrustworthy. From the start, he would not give us a receipt. He made excuses everyday throughout the trip for this and kept promising it would come-- but it never did.
He did not follow the itinerary, which left us worried everyday as to whether we would see all the things we were suppossed to and we constantly had to discuss this with him.One example of the dishonesty: he told us that our tickets to Potala Palace were 'unconfirmed' for each day that we were in Lhasa. We did not understand what this meant or how this could be possible since this tour was booked months in advance and therefore there had been plenty of time for the travel agency to "confirm" the tickets. His response was that we could see it "next time" we were in Tibet. We told him we probably will never been in Tibet again and that there was no way we would leave Lhasa without having seen Potala Palace! Suddenly the tickets became confirmed and we were allowed to go after much stress. When we did go to Potala Palace, he also informed us of a new "restriction" for foreigners where we could only spend only one hour there.
Throughout the trip--sites on the intinerary were closed or had some sort of time restriction or other issue. We would end up in different places instead of those on the itinerary. We began to realize this was likely so our guide could pocket the entrance fee money for himself. He would often leave us alone at sights so that he could go home early and when he was there he would rush us through, provide no information & discourage us from taking photos or looking around.
We had to have our guard up constantly as our guide was constantly lying and always look for ways to cheat us. He tried to insist that we pay for the hotel for the one extra night in Lhasa that we had already paid for. Our hotels did not seemed to be pre-arranged as we had expected. One day, our guide took us to 3 different hotels--likely bargaining for the cheapest rate. We spent one night in a freezing cold hotel room with no plumbing, no running water and no electricity. Although we did a "budget tour" I think this hardly qualifies as a 2* hotel by western standards. Sites were closed, permits were too hard to get, and our guide would forget to tell us about "free" breakfasts. He would request our passports often and we did not feel comfortable providing him with them since he was so disorganized and we had no idea what he could possibly need them for. Everything seemed to be a mess. We didn't know how much of it was the fault of the travel agency or the guide himself.
We felt like this put a huge damper on our trip and we were not able to enjoy it the way we had wanted to. We did not learn anything useful or interesting and came away with no more information than what we started with. The tension of a guide trying to cheat us constantly and having no one to depend on was wearing us down. For the amount of money we paid for this trip we expected much better quality service and at least suitable accomodations.
Our guide also discouraged us from brining too many oxygen cans, saying that we would not need it. Because of this, we both became very sick each night with altitude sickness symptoms. The poor service, despicable accomodations and altitude sickness made us miserable for the entire length of the trip and we requested that we just end the tour an extra day early to get it over with, but our guide refused to comply saying that this was not possible.
On our last day we were taken to a border town in the morning. To us this was just a waste of a day as there was nothing to see or do there. The following morning, we were to be taken to Kathmandu. Other tourists were being picked up in jeeps and we expected the same. Instead we had a run down old taxi with a teenage driver--we were afraid the entire ride on the dangerous, windy roads.
Based on this experience, I cannot imagine how this company has had such a good reputation and would not recommend it to anyone. IThe phone number they give you to call for problems--never actually reaches an actual person. They have no real address or phone number to contact them and are an all around shady establishment.
I emailed them once I returned home. Surprisingly, they responded and promised that they would refund me for an extra hotel night I had paid for but did not receive. Of course, they did not--and all further emails went unanswered, assuring me that the guide as well as the agency itself is a scam.
In this part of the world you are dealing with expert scam artists. Be VERY careful about you who do business with and DO NOT trust anyone. I would recommend looking into Global Expeditions. The people we had met were scammed a little less than us--had a guide trained in Altititude Sickness with all the proper equipment and seemed to be a bit more professional and reliable.
Just came back from trip to Tibet organized by Getaway. 10 days with overnight near EBC. Rongphu Monastery Guest House is being overhauled so we have spent the night in a warm tent camp about mile south. Great atmosphere.
Overall great trip. From airport pickup in Kathmandu to airport drop off all aspects of our trip ware handled according to itinerary.
Our request to wake up at four AM and drive to Pang La to watch sunrise over Himalayas was met with enthusiasm. Two other couples joined us. It was very cold and windy at the top but well worth the effort.
Hi
My husband and I have just returned from our trip Lhasa to Kathmandu via Everest Base Camp with Getaway Himalayan Eco-Trekking. Right from the beginning they were very organised, prompt, reliable and efficient We had an awesome time thanks to a great itinerary and an excellent guide, Tashi. We cannot speak highly enough of the service provided and the experience we enjoyed.
We travelled by private tour (ie two of us in a Landcruiser 4WD with driver and guide) and chose Standard accommodation. The extra cost from a budget tour we thought was well worth it. The guide was knowlegeable about each of the sights and the local culture and was attentive to our every requirement.
Just returned from Kathmandu-Lhasa-EBC trip with Getaway and would thoroughly recommend them. Before the trip they were quick to respond to any queries and once we got there it all ran incredibly smoothly.
We chose a standard private tour and had a brilliant guide in Tibet. Again, he was friendly, flexible and very knowledgeable about all the places we visited. We requested a couple of changes in the itinerary which he was more than happy to arrange - and he was quick to step in if we were unsure of anything.
All in all, it was a great experience - and remarkably stress-free thanks to the excellent organisation.
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My wife and I just got back from an overland tour of Tibet from Lhasa to Kathmandu. I read the long comment above and we did experience some of the issues faced. However, when traveling to Asia or any country with a much different culture, one has to expect the unexpected, understand that there are overbearing, big-brother government rules that we as free people don't have to worry about in our countries, and that "budget accommodations" may mean a tent or a shared bathroom or a dirt hole for a toilet. That being said I do think that that the Tibetan Guide should have communicated with you and followed the itinerary. When we started our trip we were briefed on all of these issues as the company in Kathmandu was obviously affected by the negative feedback, so in a sincere way I thank you for keeping these guys on their toes. I am happy to say that we were picked up at the border in a 4 wheel drive vehicle, and we had the most amazing Tibetan Guide followed the itinerary.
The company in Kathmandu seemed a little shady ay first contact. They only wanted a cash deposit and had a phone number that didn't ever seem to work; however, the company was very responsive by email and sent us all the pertinent information. They were also registered with the Nepalese Government tourism board and I found the owners name in several independent travel publications and he was the one who responded with us directly.
Before reading the review above, I wondered why Getaway was so adamant about having the guide stay on the itinerary, “make sure you review the itinerary with the guide every day to make sure you are on track.” The bottom line is that Getaway has very little control over the guides in Tibet. The Tibetan guides are government guides that have to escort travelers, fill out the government paperwork and permits and make sure we are not wandering around taking pictures of sensitive infrastructure and military bases and are not trying to excite the locals in freedom movements. The Chinese control over Tibet is very tight and everything you do as a tourist is documented and timed. Permits have to be obtained for especially sensitive sites such as Potala Palace, because of its historical and political significance. It was the same situation as above, we did not get our permit to visit the palace until shortly before our visit and yes there was a one hour time limit (which I agree was weird and limiting) If you went over the time limit you were fined, and all guides were quickly passing through the palace to ensure compliance.
This was actually the same for everything we did in Tibet. We would have a checkpoint at one point on the road and were given a time to be at the next checkpoint, if we arrived in under the time limit we would be fined – this also served to regulate speeding on the highway. In many cases, we had to surrender our passports to the authorities, including at Potala Palace. This is something that is a necessity and your guide is trained and licensed to do this service for you.
All regulations aside the trip was amazing and Tibet will never let anyone down. Our guide and driver in Tibet were not only professional and knowledgeable, they were exceptionally friendly and genuinely good people who really wanted to make sure we had a great time. Our guide never let us out of his sight and answered every one of our questions with assurance and knowledge. He took care of us when my wife and I were experiencing altitude sickness, giving us hot tea and making sure we did not move around too much and taking us down to lower elevations when things got worse for us. He tucked us in at night in our Mt Everest tent and brought us into his own home to serve us butter tea and “Zompa.” He always had a smile on his face and was always willing to do anything we ask.
The review above also felt that the Chinese border town Zongmu was a waste of time with nothing to do. Stopping there is more of an operational issue than a site seeing stop even though its physical location in the river gorge is breathtaking and the ensemble of shady currency changers, truck drivers, Nepalese Porters, Chinese prostitutes, Chinese soldiers, and Tibetan onlookers is an interesting site. The stop over definitely helps if you arrive there late in the day so you only have to dine there and do laundry or whatever general tasks you have to do before you cross back to Nepal. Also, the guide will probably be picking new tourists up for another tour. In Zongmu I do suggest upgrading to the best hotel- the budget hotel there was a little shady and had a shared bath and condom packages on the counter, haha.
At the border we said good bye to our wonderful guide, and entered into the chaos of Nepal. We were met by a local porter who walked our bags across the border and to a “transport” to Kathmandu. What we thought would be a two-hour routine drive to Kathmandu quickly became a harrowing adventure across several landslides. We knew that our guide was somewhere on the other side but we had no idea what it would take to get there. We first took a ride in beat up car to get to a series of mudflows with overturned tractor trailers, then walk two kilometers through small villages to another landslide where we had to wade through knee high rushing water to a another car, which we found our seats on the luggage rack above. After driving another 2 kilometers we came to another landslide that we crossed hopping from rock to rock on a razor thin edge some 500’ above a rushing river. We then took a ride in the back of a tractor trailer truck with a number of tourists and made several stops to pick up locals including a large group of Nepalese soldiers who didn’t seem concerned with the fact that the only road to China was blocked by landslides. When they got off they all sat under a tree and had tea, while everyone in the truck negotiated another landslide. At this point our getaway guide met us and helped my wife trudge through knee high mud across an active mudflow. Seeing the earth continue to move from high above through our path, I quickly moved across being helped by a local porter. We both made it across barefoot from having lost our shoes in the mud. We were safe for the time being. Feeling relieved we finally got in the vehicle that would take us to Kathmandu . Within a few minutes we approached another landslide which had just occurred in the last 30 minutes or so. Our driver and guide got out to assess the path across and were met by a number of irate villagers who wanted money to help clear the path. What we then learned was that the villagers had caused the slide to impede our path. Loud shouting came to blows as our driver was attacked by one really angry villager. There was a good fight for a few minutes but our guide prevailed and the angry villagers left while we all got out and moved the large boulders off the road. Finally we were off and on our way to Kathmandu.
Reflecting back on this adventure really put in perspective that no matter what kind of tour you book in these parts of the world, luxury or budget, you are always subject to the local conditions, political establishment, infrastructure (or lack thereof), and accommodations. Giving the circumstances I think Getaway did a great job organizing the tour and did their best to make sure it went as smoothly as possible. The real shining star was our tour guide in Tibet. His value far exceeded the price tag of this tour, being not only a guide but a friend and a caretaker as well. I also give a lot of credit for our Nepalese guide who led us out of the landslides-he has to go to the border almost every day to deal with this. Thanks Getaway for the memorable trip.
Edited: 10 years ago