We are 3/4 of the Herron family, Brad, Terri, and Taylor (unfortunately the other 1/4 of the Herrons couldn’t make this trip). Brad is the dad and a sixth grade teacher in Missoula, one of his subjects being social studies with a focus on ancient history (including China!!). So Brad is our resident history geek. Taylor is the older son, a full-time software engineer and part-time jazz musician in New York City. He is a rabid pro soccer fan and also enjoys cooking and learning about new cultures. Terri is the mom and the reason China even got on our radar. She is an accounting professor at the University of Montana and accepted an invitation to teach a two-week course at a university in Shanghai. We decided to take advantage of her opportunity and tack on a week of travel as a family. Having never traveled to Asia, we turned to Adventure Life to put something together for us, starting and ending in Shanghai. We are happy to share some of experiences and impressions about our six-day jaunt around China.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
1 day ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.