Name: Treasures of Turkey (Classic, Summer, with Anzac)
Brand: Insight Vacations
SKU: N/A
Price: 4125 USD
Availability: LimitedAvailability
Rating: 4.6 (1 reviews)

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Middle East Culture Trips & Packages

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Exodus Adventure Travels

Intrepid Travel

Explore!

Trafalgar

Insight Vacations

Collette

Costsaver

Sky Vacations

Charlie The Traveler

Odynovo

Globus

Contiki

I have a wonderful time met some amazing people and shared the adventure of a 
lifetime. I would have no hesitation in recommending this holiday to anyone 
who loves hiking/trekking
Getting to the summit


Mohamed Idali was a very well informed local guide from the Berber community 
who spoke good English. His extensive knowledge of the High Atlas put 
everyone’s mind at rest whilst in remote areas.


Drink lots of water to prevent altitude sickness


Get a good pair of walking boots

Mt Toubkal Climb

In the past my husband and I have travelled quite a bit but this was our 
first adventure travel as a family outside of European culture. Our children, 
aged 9 and 7 thought it was amazing (their word) and we had a great time too. 
We started with a few days in Essaouria (independently) which was a perfect 
introduction to the country and a chance for the children to acclimatise, 
then we travelled back to Marrakech for the start of the Exodus trip.

We were at little uncertain about group travel but it worked out very well 
indeed. The group mix of 5 adults and 5 youngsters (including ours, they aged 
7,8,9, 14 and 15)  was just right - a little like-aged company but not 
overwhelming so there was still plenty of family time too.

The itinerary was very good. We packed a lot into the week long trip - much 
more than we would have managed independently - but there was still time for 
playing round the (chilly!) pools and hanging out. I would have enjoyed an 
extra day in the desert, perhaps getting as far as the ergs (sand dune seas) 
at the expense of time in Marrakech, but overall it was a good taster. There 
was a lot of time in the bus on travel days but we stopped regularly for 
views, loos and refreshments so the journey passed quickly. The camel riding 
was a big hit - and pitched at the right length for our kids to love it but 
not get too hot or tired with the experience.

The accommodation and facilities were excellent throughout, with electricity, 
hot showers and (almost always) WiFi. Indeed, I would perhaps have rathered a 
day or two away from home comforts to enhance the adventure aspect of the 
trip - like a wild camp in the desert - maybe next time!

Our guide, Mohammed, was excellent. He was non-intrusive but also present 
whenever you needed him. He was interesting and knowledgeable on everything 
from change in political policies over the last 20 years to architecture and 
sustainable agriculture. He was also an amazing fixer, arranging extras like 
a visit to the Ouarzazate Kasbah with an excellent guided tour and a trip to 
another hotel's pool when ours was out of action due to renovations. His 
manner with the children was also brilliant. He was totally trusted and loved 
- my 7 year old was especially sad to say goodbye.

Overall, we loved the trip and although it could have been more adventurous 
for my and my husband's tastes, it was a pitched just right for the kids and 
was perfect introduction to adventure travel. It was fun and, at times, 
exciting trip - without the hassle and stress of organising it independently. 
It was good value and comes highly recommended.
My daughter loved the camel riding best of all - the desert was such an alien 
environment for them and wrapped in their 'Sahara scarfs' felt to be real 
adventurers. My son's highlight was the walk to the mountain village. For me, 
it was seeing my children' s reactions to being in an exotic environment - 
marvelling at palm trees, delighting at the snow covered High Atlas Mountains 
and supping mint tea with gusto!


Excellent. As above:

Our guide, Mohammed, was excellent. He was non-intrusive but also present 
whenever you needed him. He was interesting and knowledgeable on everything 
from change in political policies over the last 20 years to architecture and 
sustainable agriculture. He was also an amazing fixer, arranging extras like 
a visit to the Ouarzazate Kasbah with an excellent guided tour and a trip to 
another hotel's pool when ours was out of action due to renovations. His 
manner with the children was also brilliant. He was totally trusted and loved 
- my 7 year old was especially sad to say goodbye.


Do try to extend your visit with extra time in Marrakech or beyond. We had a 
few days in Essaouria before the trip started which gave the children time to 
acclimatise and us time to relax. Essaouria is much smaller and more laid 
back than Marrakech and the children were able to get used to the 
environment, food and people. They learned to haggle in the souk and came 
away with scarfs and tops that they enjoyed using throughout the rest of the 
trip. It was very easy to organise accommodation and bus tickets ourselves 
(we used Booking.com and Marrakech Tickets).


Travelling as a family in Morocco was such fun. The Moroccan people went out 
of their way to welcome with children and made them feel so special with 
treats, smiles and jokes. Go!

Great challenging trip but one that's well achievable.
Completing the optional extra peaks


Very good

A perfect holiday of exploration for anyone who is fit, adventurous, has a 
sense of camaraderie and can revert to the true nature of what it's like to 
really live , be at one and experience the wilderness of the surroundings and 
not be concerned with unnecessary luxuries we take for granted at home.
The cloud inversion and breathtaking views from Mt Toukbal and the optional 
summitting of Ouanakrim on our summer solstice with its isolation and equally 
jaw dropping panorama while watching the incredible dawn track us on our 
ascent.


Lahcen our leader was incredible. He was there for absolutely everyone on the 
trip, the novice to the experienced mountaineer. To watch him enable the 
least confident to flourish and for all to reach way beyond their own 
personal goals was humbling. His pacing was spot on, slowing the potential 
'bolters' from burning out and thereby encouraging us all to acclimatise 
slowly so that no one felt excluded from the chance of getting to the top.
People made their own decisions on summitting Ouanakrim, two 4000m peaks in 
24 hours with 03:30 am starts or similar is not for all but Lahcen ensured 
the decision was our own.
His local knowledge was incredible and we felt safe at all times with his 
skills and acute perception of any struggling. A true leader and mountaineer.


Be prepared for some basic camping and toilet facilities. The heat and 
destination meant some of us needed the odd emergency stop by a boulder 
(shrubs are very scarce at altitude) so forget the shyness. Take some hand 
sanitiser.
The fitter you are the easier it will be. You will be 'carrying' yourself 
upwards in heat and at altitude and despite any pacing 'extra baggage' is 
'extra baggage' !
Embrace the wilderness ,the cameraderie of working as a group and remember  
everyone of the group wants to have the chance to get to the top .
We found our filter water bottles extremely useful, we were guided on which 
streams to use, plastic disposal is a big problem for any country.


The camp meals were pretty amazing ! Always plenty of it and lots of 
vegetables. Vegetarian and Coeliac requirements were catered for. Bring your 
own snacks if you like .
Phone signal is very limited, a great way to escape .
The mules are part of the team and great entertainment!
Marakesh is a full on sensory experience after the wilderness.
Not showering was not a problem. For me.

Going on this trip had to be the best decision I've ever made regarding a 
holiday. Everything was perfect- the weather, the scenery, the route, the 
accommodation, the food, the guides. I've never been trekking before or 
climbed a mountain or anything along those lines, the rating Exodus gives the 
trip for difficulty is very accurate. It was a challenging trip, with two 
12-hr days of trekking (this only happened because the route had to be 
changed as the pass we were supposed to take was blocked by snow (we were 
also walking quite slowly as had an older gentleman in the group)) but it was 
certainly do-able and 100% enjoyable. The food was amazing the whole trip, 
the best food I have ever had- nobody in the group complained about the 
cooking, the portions were incredible also. There were 16 of us and there was 
always plenty of food available, they are very good at catering for different 
diets. Around 50% of our group was vegan or vegetarian (I am vegan myself) 
and I have to say I was worried before we started the trip that we wouldn't 
have enough food available but there were certainly enough! The guides and 
even the locals we interacted with were the most friendly group of people I 
have met, the were all lovely and easy to talk to- most had extremely good 
English and spoke around 4/5 languages themselves so very interesting and 
intelligent people. It also cannot be put into words or even captured in a 
picture how beautiful the Atlas mountains are, you'll just have to go and see 
them yourself!
Getting to the summit of Toubkal was just incredible. After 4 days of 
walking, finally being up there was so fulfilling. It was amazing to think 
that 'I just climbed a mountain'.


Our guide Lahcen Idblaaid really made the trip! He had so much knowledge of 
the area that you could ask him anything. He was extremely attentive 
throughout the whole trip, we never had to ask for anything because he would 
already have it covered. Even after our 12-hr summit day, when we got back to 
base camp he was running around making sure everyone had enough hot water for 
their tea etc- even though it was during Ramadan so he hadn't had anything 
himself the whole day. He also made sure that everyone was comfortable at the 
pace we were walking and that nobody needed any special assistance. When my 
auntie was struggling with the hills on a few of the days, he even carried 
her bag for her along with his own. He was altogether a very lovely and 
hardworking chap- I could not think of someone more deserving of a holiday 
themselves! Will definitely miss him!


They weren't kidding when they suggest you bring hat and gloves for summit 
days, I thought 'Nah I'm from England it won't really be cold' but it's 
actually quite chilly. Especially as we woke up at 5.00am to get an early 
start up Toubkal! I just wore my sun bandana instead of a wolly hat and this 
worked fine but I would recommend gloves, especially if you end up using 
crampons and ice axes as we did.

One of best holidays of my life and maybe even one of best weeks of my life. 
Everything was superb about it which has been stated in other reviews.
Seeing other people out of their comfort zones thriving in a new environment


Capable and held it together so well. Absolute gentleman too


Ensure you are fit and train for it.