My wife and I took a three week tour of Madagacar with Exoticca in December 2023 We were both angry and upset that what should have been an amazing trip was blighted by a number a significant issues which put our health and well-being at risk. Journey times We wereaware that the roads in Madagascar are in a very poor condition when we decided to take the trip. However, it would be reasonable for us to expect some degree of accuracy in the journey timings given in the itinerary. In fact, what we discovered was that these timings were systematic underestimates, such that all journeys were 25% longer in duration than indicated in the tour literature. This left our pleasant and helpful local guides, who must have been well aware of this, in the invidious position of having to lie to us from the start of the trip. As an example, the journey from Antsirabe to Morondava was listed in the itinerary as “between 8 and 10 hours”. In fact, the outward journey took 13 hours and the return journey 12! Had we been made aware of the actual trip durations we probably would not have booked the holiday in the first place – and I know that this is true of many other people on the trip. On returning I took a look at some similar trips offered by other companies who cover the same journey and all estimate that trip to take 12 hours. I bitterly regret not doing the same research before we booked with Exoticca, but I didn’t realise it would be necessary to check the accuracy of journey times from a reputable tour company. This is simple dishonesty. Meals Not only were the journey times listed in the itinerary wildly inaccurate, they also allowed no provision for us to buy adequate food during the trip. Once again, nowhere in the trip itinerary was it explained that there would be no meal stops but rather stops at service stations to make use of the limited toilet facilities with the opportunity to buy snacks and crisps only. Vehicle condition Whilst our driver was magnificent, the vehicle he was piloting certainly was not. The coach provided had no air conditioning – or if it did, it was not working. At one point the guides asked us to shut the windows to allow them to turn the air conditioning on which we duly did. We realised fairly quickly that the temperature inside the coach was rising to an unbearable level and then it was back to opening all the windows and letting in the hot air again. If you are going to transport people on a coach for 12 hours I think it would be reasonable to expect that air conditioning be provided. Journey health risks Collect together a group of holiday makers and put them in an inadequately ventilated coach for a ridiculous number of hours each day in a very hot country. Provide no opportunity to buy adequate nutrition and offer toilet facilities – whilst better than afforded to the vast majority of the population – which are frequently dirty and without handwashing opportunities. It is no wonder I think that 19 of the 20 people in our party experienced some form of gastro enteritis during the trip. No Relief Driver It is completely unacceptable that anyone should be in charge of a vehicle driving 20 people with no adequate break for up to 13 hours at a stretch. Our driver was superhuman – but he needed to be given the demands placed upon him and he should never have been put in that position. Nor should we as passengers have been put at risk in that way! Lack of contingency planning and risk assessment I was unfortunate enough to get the worst case of gastro-enteritis amongst our group. I became dehydrated and delirious and was unable to stand . As we were near a city our group were able to divert to allow me to see a doctor. What particularly concerned me was that the guides seemed to have no plan of action for this scenario. In fact they said to my wife “I don’t know what we would have done if we’d been out in the country somewhere”. This was less than reassuring! I considered myself fortunate that I was able to reach a doctor but have no faith that the outcome would have been as good had my illness occurred further away from a city. It also seemed that they had no plan for splitting the group in this situation, so the rest of the party were left kicking their heels in a hotel for two hours before some of them rightly rebelled and demanded that they continue on with their long and arduous journey. It was only because we were able to pay the doctor to drive us to the hotel in his own car that we were able to re-join the party. Excursion descriptions We visited Isalo National Park – a trip rated as “active” in the itinerary – which should have meant we would be required to “walk for a few hours on comfortable terrain”. In fact the ground conditions were quite difficult. The path certainly wasn’t level and definitely could not be described as comfortable. We were being asked to walk on a narrow slippery path up a rocky ravine. This wasn’t an issue for me – I was able to undertake the walk but my wife struggled and was very disappointed to have to stop halfway and wait for the rest of the party to return. She was not alone in having to do so. One lady was unfortunate enough to fall and fracture her ankle! We all understand accidents will happen. However, by failing to provide an accurate description of conditions Exoticca are preventing people from making appropriate decisions for their own protection. Given the isolated nature of this National Park I have to wonder whether any contingency plans are in place should someone injure themselves more seriously to the point where they are unable to walk or perhaps suffer a head injury. I worry that occurring out here so far from medical assistance any such accident might well prove life threatening. If you're considering travelling with Exoticca I would say think again - they are cheap - but this is at the expense of your health and safety. we have submitted a complaint to ABTA