G
Geoff
Sierra Leone
I was part of the first group that Encounters took to Sierra Leone so we were the guinea pigs for a new tour and this was rather apparent. The tour itself was run by Sierra Leone company "Tourism is Life" and also sold through "Oasis travel".
Firstly, the good. Our guide Peter was wonderful. He definitely had a passion for tourism in his country and seemed to know every inch of it. He spoke clear English, was professional, friendly and gave a personal touch to the tour with a willingness to share from his extraordinary life story. Also, given the absolutely insane itinerary on paper, Peter's willingness to adapt when the tour group started to complain that we were trying to see too many places was the main reason the tour was a success overall.
Now onto the itinerary itself. At one point I think we were told that a journey that actually took 10 hours would only take 3! There was a planned accommodation change every night. At one place (Banana island) if we'd stuck to the planned itinerary we would have had time to sleep on the island and that is it. Not even see it in daylight let alone enjoy any of the activities or tours available or even relax on the beach. We have all given our feedback in this regard though so hopefully next year they will cut an activity or two making for a more manageable trip.
There were a few other shaky aspects on the organisation side. The bus kept breaking down. Somewhat understandable in this part of the world but there were a few things that could have been done differently. Also I got the impression they didn't really know how to handle the situation where someone makes their own arrangements for a few extra days in the country - i.e. I was told I wouldn't get a transfer (fine by me, I made my own arrangements) but then met at the airport by someone who apparently actually had arranged a transfer for me. Nothing too serious but would be useful firming up what happens in this situation and providing complete information in advance as the rather confusing situation led me to think I was being scammed in some way.
A few tips for Sierra Leone would be useful to add to instructions:
- bring a back up supply of US dollars. Working ATM's are not that common.
- don't rely on time to do your laundry with the many accommodation changes. Bring fast dry clothes you can wash by hand yourself or enough changes for the whole tour.
Overall, I enjoyed the tour and the country is beautiful is fascinating but the company does have a few details of this particular tour to polish for next year.
Firstly, the good. Our guide Peter was wonderful. He definitely had a passion for tourism in his country and seemed to know every inch of it. He spoke clear English, was professional, friendly and gave a personal touch to the tour with a willingness to share from his extraordinary life story. Also, given the absolutely insane itinerary on paper, Peter's willingness to adapt when the tour group started to complain that we were trying to see too many places was the main reason the tour was a success overall.
Now onto the itinerary itself. At one point I think we were told that a journey that actually took 10 hours would only take 3! There was a planned accommodation change every night. At one place (Banana island) if we'd stuck to the planned itinerary we would have had time to sleep on the island and that is it. Not even see it in daylight let alone enjoy any of the activities or tours available or even relax on the beach. We have all given our feedback in this regard though so hopefully next year they will cut an activity or two making for a more manageable trip.
There were a few other shaky aspects on the organisation side. The bus kept breaking down. Somewhat understandable in this part of the world but there were a few things that could have been done differently. Also I got the impression they didn't really know how to handle the situation where someone makes their own arrangements for a few extra days in the country - i.e. I was told I wouldn't get a transfer (fine by me, I made my own arrangements) but then met at the airport by someone who apparently actually had arranged a transfer for me. Nothing too serious but would be useful firming up what happens in this situation and providing complete information in advance as the rather confusing situation led me to think I was being scammed in some way.
A few tips for Sierra Leone would be useful to add to instructions:
- bring a back up supply of US dollars. Working ATM's are not that common.
- don't rely on time to do your laundry with the many accommodation changes. Bring fast dry clothes you can wash by hand yourself or enough changes for the whole tour.
Overall, I enjoyed the tour and the country is beautiful is fascinating but the company does have a few details of this particular tour to polish for next year.
