Helen returned in December from a trekking holiday to Torres del Paine. Here she tells her about her experiences on her trip and in booking with Swoop and our partners…
‘I had an amazing trip…I loved Chile, it is such a wonderful place. I could not have asked for more. In fact I loved it so much I have now arranged to take a 12-month sabbatical and am going back to South America in October!’
How was your experience of planning and arranging your trip with Swoop Patagonia?
I spoke to Luke on the phone 2-3 times whilst I was researching my trip to Chile. He had such fantastic knowledge and really took time to help me think through lots of ideas and options. I was really impressed by this as I felt it was going above and beyond what Luke needed to do as he would get no finical benefit from doing so. In the end this helped me lock down my itinerary and resulted in a fantastic trip.
What could we have done differently?
Nothing really. Everything you did during the booking, the little ‘gift’ prior to me going and the follow up work really well.
Would you recommend us to friends, family or colleagues for a trip to Patagonia?
Yes, absolutely.
What did you think of your itinerary?
The part of my trip that I booked with Swoop was the 7 day Full Circuit, and I can safely say this was the highlight of my trip! The trek was amazing and the beauty of the scenery was second to none.
It was fantastic: really well thought out, with a good mix of long days and short days which meant people could recover. We had some days that were fairly easy and then the odd day where you were pushed and hardened. I know the guide was concerned that I had not done any trekking before – and Luke had asked me how fit I was.
I managed the trek well but I was glad that I do go running and go to the gym, as the trip would not be good for people without a certain level of fitness.
The food we had was great considering the conditions we were all in. The refugios were rustic, but as I would expect, and to be honest – hope for!
How was your guide?
Our guide was called Mauricio and he was just fantastic. He is so knowledgeable, so energetic, so witty, and judged the group and everyone’s personality very well. He has been doing this job a while so has lots of contacts all around the tour, which he uses very well.
Nothing was too much trouble and he ensured all his guests had everything they needed. He also looked after the Porters very well and you can see how he worked to make sure the whole team were happy and content. I can’t rate him highly enough… a seasoned professional at all times. The group was great and worked really well with everyone just clicking.
Is there anything you would have changed about this part of your trip?
Nothing at all 🙂
‘So the whole crew and all the people working on the trek where fab and really made my trip as good as it could have possibly been. Thank you.’
