Pura Aventura Reviews

Thank you for this. I'm delighted that you enjoyed Argentina & Antarctica so much. As for questions, we like those, it means that you are travelling prepared and that's invariably a good thing! All the best, Thomas

Thank you so much for this, I wish I could phrase things as well as you! Thank you too for your further feedback on email, it's always great to get as much detail as possible, there's always room for improvement. All the best, Thomas

Thank you for your comments, from your scores I'm guessing that you loved Antarctica! All the best, Thomas

Thank you so much for your detailed feedback, it's always very helpful. As you say, in Puella (a hamlet in the middle of the Andes half way between Bariloche/Argentina & Puerto Varas/Chile) there's a choice of 2 and you were in the better one. The food's never a highlight there but there's no excuse for the towels. As for the Patagonico in Puerto Varas it's most odd since that's a 5* hotel which are usually has been spotless when we've visited previously. Your experience obviously falls short. As with the Natura in Puella, we've fed back your comments and will let you know updates. What we do in circumstances such as these is to highlight the problems with the hotels, ask for an explanation and seek assurances that issues are resolved. If we have these then we monitor the subsequent guests' experience very closely to make sure that things have been put right. Where they have not, we effectively run a '2 strikes & you're out' rule. Hopefully this gives you a real sense of how important these comments are to us. However, onto the positives! I'm delighted that we managed to minimise the impact of Argentina's General Strike and keep you on track for an exceptional trip overall. All the best, Thomas

I know from our conversation how much you enjoyed your time in Chile and Argentina. Your flexibility in the run up to your holiday was much appreciated. Hopefully repaid by us delivering the best possible trip. It's been a pleasure dealing with you both. All the best, Thomas

Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback. Yours was one of those trips which made us green with envy, I'm delighted that it went so well. Here's the (unedited) email you refer to for others to see: "We can not thank you enough for a really fantastic itinerary that you put together for us. At every stage everything worked well. There was always someone to meet us at he appointed time and the trip went like clockwork. Our guide in Cusco and for the Machu Pichu trail, Carlos, was very nice, really excellent company, so knowledgeable and explained everything in an interesting way that really bought things to life for us. The French couple, Antoine and Clarisse, who walked with us were so pleasant and we all got on well together. The walk itself was demanding but we made it and that was very much due to the excellent organization of porters, cooks etc. The clever timing of our walk meant we hardly saw any other trekkers on what was was otherwise somewhat of a highway. From Trujillo and north to Cajarmarca was stunning and made so by the enthusiasm of Jose whose knowledge seemed to have no limits. He could have made anything interesting and the sites he took us to were breathtaking. The driver William also deserves a special mention as he navigated us over spectacular passes and through the chaos of Peruvian traffic and downpours. We really enjoyed staying at the Humming Bird Bungalows, at Leymebamba, a very nice change from hotels and we are sure others would enjoy it too. Lastly, the Aqua cruise was magnificent. The accommodation, food, guiding and staff generally were without fault. Every little thing had been thought about. For example, our very last visit was to the Manatee rescue centre. As we arrived a toilet break was offered and at the same time another guide sprinted off in the direction of the loos - we thought he must have been desperate! Infact, he had gone to put toilet paper, soap and fresh 'aqua' towels ready for the guests - that was forethought and service! Jackie and Jose Luis were there at the beginning and end of our fabulous trip and tried hard to ensure all went well in Lima. Hernando our guide for the Lima city tour was also very knowledgeable and helpful and we managed a good day on our own with trips to Pachacamac and Museo Larco, fab. We didn't make it to MATE, the Osman (sic) Collection, to Chavin or to Colca Canyon, as you know, so plenty to return for another year! I hope from this that you will realise we had a wonderful trip that lived up to everything you promised and, indeed, more. Thank you so much"

I am very disappointed that you did not enjoy your holiday as we would have expected and wanted. We work very hard to ensure that we set expectations accurately for all of our holidays, and we always welcome feedback. I would mention firstly that we firmly believe that we did provide a full and detailed response to your comments - your letter to us was approximately 1,000 words long; our reply was over 2, 200 words. We ultimately felt that the issues raised were very subjective rather than being indicative of actual faults of this holiday itinerary. Suffice to say that in the 10 years since we created this route, I can't recall any other client who has expressed a similar opinion. That is not to say your opinion is not valid - of course it is - but there comes a time when beyond our very detailed response to your letter, there really isn't much more to be constructively said or done. Regarding your comments on the route walked, I would reiterate from our correspondence that our description of the route was accurate (as you acknowledged). The overwhelming feedback over the years is very positive: of course, as with all of our holidays, we always aim to discuss the suitability of the holiday for any prospective clients. The fact that this holiday was not ultimately the right one for you is, as I say, a source of great disappointment to all of us here. All the best, Thomas

Thank you. I am delighted you enjoyed your holiday. All the best, Thomas

Delighted that you enjoyed yourselves again this year, and yes, the Picos de Europa really are quite stunning...mind you, next time we might try to tempt you to the Pyrenees or Cabo de Gata! Thanks for your kind comments. All the best, Thomas

I'm delighted that this all worked out so well for you and the family, it's an amazing range of destinations and experiences to see in one holiday! You are being very kind with your comments about us though in fact I know we have you to thank for being so flexible. There were a couple of very late changes to hotels (highly unusual circumstances, outside our control). Whilst Sarah here in the office made sure that these resulted in upgrades for you, your trust & flexibility was absolutely critical for us so thank you. All the best, Thomas