Wildlife Tours of India - Tiger Safaris, Photo Safaris, Nature Treks

Guest Name: Rick and Lynne Bronson
Tour Taken: Bangalore - Customized,Luxury Rajasthan & Classical India Tour - 23 days

We wanted to write and send a big thank you to everyone at Compass India who made our journey through India so fantastic. All the detail you worked out with us in the preceding months was just perfect, and there wasn’t one part of it we would have changed.

From the very first hour when JD met us at the airport and Sipi drove us to the hotel, everyone we met contributed to ensuring the trip went with clockwork precision. The Compass felicitation person was always there to greet and farewell us, and the guides provided were all good. Some we developed a closer relationship than with others, but that is just due to different personalities – they all did their job very well. The person we spent the most time with in India, and who we hold very dear, is Sipi. We enjoyed his quiet sense of humour during the 16 days we were together, and even though English is not his strong point, and he is not a professional guide, he certainly guided us through our journey with far more than his excellent skill as a driver. We very much appreciated his care and consideration.

Our return to Delhi felt a bit sad as we felt our trip was more or less over, but all the surprises you had in store for us made our last few days in Delhi just exceptional. Compass’ generosity in arranging for JD to take us to Oh Calcutta for lunch was a big thrill. We also enjoyed coming back to the office and talking about our trip in person with you all. Telling our friends at home about our experiences will be different because they haven’t experienced them, but being able to share our excitement and our queries with everyone at the office was special.

We must say a special thanks to Jasvinder for her generosity in inviting us to go back to her home with her for tea. It was so kind of her to share her family and her experiences with us, and to teach us a little of the Sikh culture, of which we had little experience. We loved Jasvinder’s bubbly personality and sense of humour, and the warm hospitality of Jasvinder and her family was a very special part of our Indian journey.

Thanks once again to you and to Compass India for everything you have all done for us. We will cherish the statue of Ganesh to whom we will credit all future prosperity, the beautiful scarf which is exactly the right colour for me and the turban which we have hung on our wall with our travel souvenirs.

We look forward to planning our trip to Bhutan, Kashmir and southern India with you, but will take Compass’ advice to leave it until after the election, so we can be more confident of safely travelling to Kashmir.

Warm regards,
Rick and Lyn

Guest Name: Bill & Pam Aitkins
Tour Taken: Bangalore - Kumarakom - Cochin - Goa - Mumbai - Kolkata - Ranchi - Kolkata - Jaipur - Ranthambore - Agra - Delhi

Hi

We have finally arrived back home after our stop over at KL.

For Bill & myself the trip was very very good, wonderful in fact.  You did a very good job on our itinerary, and all your people who met us in all cities were very helpful, informative and friendly, the services provided were excellent.  All the guides were very knowledgeable and professional. We cannot speak highly enough of Pawan, he was most helpful and we thoroughly enjoyed the dinner that he took us to.  Thank you to yourself and Compass for the very thoughtful gift you presented all of us on our last night in Delhi.

The hotel standards were of a very high quality, and the services at all hotels (except Peerless Inn in Kolkata) was very good.  The services at Peerless Inn hotel was not good, there was probably just three employees in the dining room who had any idea of service, which was disappointing. However, Saikat was very helpful and friendly he went out of his way to arrange for Philip to go and see a soccer match, which was very special experience for him. He took us for a lovely meal on the Floatel Restaurant.

The only other concern for us was the room we had at the Park Hotel in Delhi, the hotel it self was very good the services could not be faulted, but for future reference you should request your clients are not in rooms over the “Disco end” of the hotel, we were 726, and had to request a change after no sleep till almost 4.30 am for two nights, but we must say as soon as we complained they moved to a much quieter room.

The location of the Park was brilliant, we loved the shopping.

We were especially impressed with Zuri in Goa, Joaquim was a great friendly person and made our stay in Goa all the better. The Trident in Mumbai, was 1st class and Shamila our guide was very friendly and took us to the best vegetarian restaurant, she loved the hair cut my brother Philip gave her, (he has his own hair salon in Perth). Shahpura House in Jaipur was unique and Mr. Singh (in the dining room) was a great friendly character, which made our stay enjoyable. The house boats in Allepey was a highlight of our trip, the crew on both boats were very friendly, helpful and the meals they provided were excellent, plentiful and tasty!!

Agra and the Taj Mahal was top of everybody’s list, and the tour guide there was excellent, he made sure we got the best pictures of our trip there (forgotten his name). In Delhi Ravi took us on an unforgettable tour to Chandni Chowk in rickshaws.

The stay in Ranthambore was very good, hotel was excellent, safaris', visit to local village and guides were excellent, only disappointment was not seeing a Tiger.

The coaches were very comfortable and well maintained, though a couple of them may have been too big for our group.

The drivers were all excellent, especially Tularam and his assistant Titu.

All in all Anupama we thank you for arranging the most enjoyable holiday to India, and we will gladly recommend your company to all our friends who want to go to India.

Best wishes,
Bill & Pam Aitkins
(William Aitkins Group)

Guest Name: Linda Martinez
Tour Taken: Bangalore - Kumarakom - Cochin - Goa - Mumbai - Kolkata - Ranchi - Kolkata - Jaipur - Ranthambore - Agra - Delhi

Hi

Thanks for your email, we are settling back in Perth, having all those happy memories of our travels around India.

Both Phil & I were very impressed with Compass. It was all so organised for us, having compass reps. meet us in each city, making us feel so welcome, & the tour guides were extremely friendly & very knowledgeable. The hotels we stayed in were of a very high standard, clean, comfortable, & excellent service.

The transport arrangements were excellent as well. Very skilled drivers, comfortable, air conditioned coaches/ cars/buses. We really didn't have to worry about anything, knowing Compass were looking after us! And we have already recommended your company to a client who is interested in going to India at the end of next year. We have given them your contact details.

Many thanks once again Anupama,

Kind Regards,
Linda & Phil Martinez
(William Aitkins Group)

Guest Name: Adrian Findlay
Tour Taken: Kolkata - Jaipur - Ranthambore - Agra - Delhi


Thank you so much for a wonderful holiday.  We will be happy to give you some feedback.

KOLKATA - Peerless Inn was located close to the New Market which is good but most of our group found that at breakfast each morning the restaurant would forget to make some of us the eggs we ordered or forget to serve us some tea, or the tea was weak and awful and we would have to request  them again after waiting a considerable time.  However the Manager tried to rectify this and apologised each morning.  I would rate this hotel a three star.  Our pick up from the airport was good and all transport provided was excellent.  Drivers were all very obliging and polite and very patient.

JAIPUR - Shahpura House was absolutely beautiful.  We all enjoyed this very much and would stay there again.  Dining was excellent, Mr Singh looked after us at each meal we had there and the food was also excellent.  The rooms was wonderful and the staff were very helpful.  Definitely a five star. Driver, Tularam & Tito his assistant were excellent.  The bus was great.  Both the driver and assistant were very helpful and looked after us.  We all became quite fond of the two of them by the end of our journey.  Please wish Tito a happy marriage for us. Guides for our tours were also very good and looked after us especially with the vendors and of course they were full of information on the sites we saw.

RATHAMBORE - Pugmark Village was a nice hotel, staff were wonderful, dining was excellent.  Mosquitos were terrible but I guess it is a jungle area, however, a suggestion might be for them to burn mosquito coils around the balcony area near the bedrooms so the mosquitos do not enter into the bedrooms, or perhaps some netting over the beds so we can sleep without being bitten. Guides were excellent once again and looked after us well.

AGRA - Clarks Shiraz was also a nice hotel, dining was good.  The Taj was indeed a beautiful building and I am glad we made the journey from Perth to see this wonder.  The guide we had for the day was very informative and helpful and looked after us well.  The bottles of water were appreciated on the bus and also the little bag of shoes and water for the day.  All the sights we visited were wonderful.

NEW DELHI - The Park was definitely an expensive hotel but was well situated, rooms were good.  Staff were polite and helpful. We were sad to see Tito and Tularam leave us but the other drivers were also good. Our guide in New Delhi was very good and helpful.

I hope that this will be of help to you.  We would like to thank you again for such good organisation and we know that this must have taken alot of work and appreciate it.  I will be passing on your information to my sister-in-law who wants to come to India in 2013.  There will be a group again as there is to be a reunion in Kolkata.

I would say that I loved SHAHPURA house the best.  Adrian and myself only did the trip from Kolkata so I have given you our views only.

Regards
Charmaine Findlay.
(William Aitkins Group)

Guest Name: Mr Mark & Mrs. Kay Ethel Curran
Tour Taken: India Highlights with Tigers, Elephants and Aurangabad 17 Days

Dear Compass India,

My wife and I would like to thank you for the wonderful service provided by your company during our recent trip.

I can only say that you and your staff far exceeded any reasonable expectations we may have had in relation to service, the quality of accommodation and the general experience of our trip.

Beginning particularly with Anchal, every member of your staff that we contacted was invariably helpful, polite, cheerful, creative and just basically nice.

The comfort of being met at every airport and assisted to our hotel was beyond value.

In many cases, and in particular during the fog delays in Jaipur, the local agent went far beyond what would be generally expected, managing to reschedule lost flights with a different airline, thus ensuring our eventual arrival in Kochi when it would appear that many others in similar situations did not.

In every case, the accommodation provided was excellent and of a higher standard than expected. Where hotels were not ultra-modern and 'international' in style, they were more traditional and provided other attractions. I am thinking of both Ranthambhore and Kochi where the hotel design seemed to capture the unique feeling of the location. Even the slightly faded splendour of the Fariyas in Mumbai provided as a bonus a spectacular view of the harbour, complete with dhows!

The drivers provided were beyond praise. Their skills were awesome and their even temperament, so essential for the type of driving they were doing, excellent. Their English skills were sufficient for the task and they were invariably considerate of our needs in relation to things like toilet stops.

The guides arranged were excellent. We appreciated the fact that the guide in Ajanta had a masters degree in history and that the guide in Mumbai was able to give us what was effectively an oral history, having lost a close relative in the attack.

We had three outstanding experiences during the trip, including that in Mumbai. The others were a 'close and personal' meeting with a tiger in Ranthambhore and the incomparable experience of the Taj Mahal which defies all explanation and expression.

Again, many thanks
Kay and Mark Curran

Guest Name: Ms. Harshini Priyanvada Fernando & Mrs Nilamani Ariyapala
Tour Taken: Colourful Rajasthan with Taj Mahal 9 Days


We would like to thank you and the Compass team for organising the 9 day "Colourful Rajasthan with Taj Mahal" tour for us.
It was memorable, excellent and incredible. We enjoyed every moment of it.

I have come back wanting to learn more about your history and culture.

I am a frequent traveller and this was the first time I had selected a tour company from a website and not by recommendation. I was not sure what to expect and was quite anxious when I arrived in Delhi with Sujatha and my mother. Well, my fears were put to rest from the time we met Rahul at the airport and I am sure his strength was put to test when he had to help carry our heavy luggage up to my friend's 3rd floor apartment in Delhi, not once but several times.

It was great to have the company representatives in each city meet us at the hotels. It made the check in/out activities simpler and easier. They were always punctual, friendly and extremely helpful.

All our tour guides including Rabi, Rashid, Rajiv and Pintu were very friendly, courteous, helpful, knowledgeable and professional.

The phone calls from the Delhi office during the tour were very much appreciated.

Rajayshyam, our driver was an excellent driver and did not take any risks throughout the trip. We felt very safe with him at the wheel.

He was very accommodating and helpful. The car was always clean and no request was ever too much trouble for him. He was always happy to point out places of interest on the way. The cultural show he took us to in Udaipur was a fitting "grand finale" to our tour.

The only hotel we found not up to our expectations was "Ranbanka Palace" in Jodhpur. It was of course a really beautiful place. However, not having the facilities to make a cup of tea or coffee was a disappointment. Also we were not impressed with the leaking taps in the bathroom.

A big "thank you" to Ajay & Bhuvenesh in Jodhpur/Udaipur for their assistance when my mother and I were hit with a stomach bug.

The highlights of our tour were the bicycle rickshaw ride through the streets of old Delhi and the elephant ride at the Amber Fort Palace.

My mother, Sujatha and I will not hesitate to recommend your company to any one who wishes to tour India.

Best regards,
Harshini Fernando

Guest Name: Ms. Fatma Shiraz Kassamali, Mrs. Anis Ladha and Mrs Razia Gulamhusein
Tour Taken: Kerala Tour with Blue Hills and Culture 13 Days


We are back from our trip to India and wanted to thank you for the arrangements.

The car was good and had no trouble at all. The driver Vishwanath was excellent. He had good knowledge of the areas which we were visiting - about the people, their customs, food, different products etc. This made our trip an enjoyable one and a good learning experience for us all. And he was always on time.

There are one or two points which were a bit disappointing though. We liked the "houseboat" stay very much and we should have had 2 days there rather than at Thekkkady. Especially as our flight was early in the morning and we didn't get to visit the villages which we were looking forward to as the driver of the houseboat had to get us to Allepey very quickly.

Also it was very sad to hear about the boat tragedy in Thekkady and we understand why our trip was cancelled. But this had happened quite some time back before our arrival and we would have appreciated if you had let us know beforehand and that way we could have gone to the houseboat one day before.

The hotels and their service was good in general though the one at OOTY AND MYSORE needed some internal maintenance. They looked good from outside.

I just thought of writing these points to you so your company is aware of such issues which may help in future planning. I would be giving your company name to others who would like to visit South India.

Thanks again and "A Happy Year 2010" to you all.

With warm regards
fatma

Guest Name: Sharon


I have now been back in Australia for 4 weeks.

Want to take the opportunity to thank you for your help in planning a wonderful holiday in India.

There were many highlights.

Compass looked after us very well in all stops. The accommodation you chose was excellent…especially City Palace Udaipur…amazing!

The activities were well chosen by you and well paced the car was SO clean and comfortable, and the driver outstanding...he deserves a special mention

I will certainly recommend your company to others in Australia as I consider the deal you put together afforded us a higher level of service and style than would have been available in the alternatives that I had researched via local companies.

Well done and thanks so much, Will be happy to act as a referee if someone else who stumbles over you on the internet requires reassurance in terms of your service offerings.

Sharon

Guest Name: Jagdish


We all arrived back home safe and well, but tired. We enjoyed our trip.

The North Tour was exceptional and although hectic, we managed to visit most of the places we had earmarked.

The hotels were all excellent and so was the driver and his assistant.

We would have loved to spend an extra day both at Jaipur and Haridwar.

May I just make one observation regarding the charity collectors at haridwar. For tourist's sake the authorities in charge at the ghat should limit the number of organisations collecting for charity. Maybe this will be good for tourism and as you are very much involved in the industry you may wish raise this matter with the appropriate authorities. Also there are too many priests touting for business. It appears that they want you to perform a pooja ceremony either out of guilt or fear!!!

We arrived safely in Mumbai on Xmas day. It appears Air India did not ring you regarding the alteration of our flight number and time.

The South Tour was just as memorable, but I must confess that Tulip Star was a big disappointment. The room facilities were abominable. They will only give us one towel for the double room, no hand towels etc. We had to request for these amenities on a daily basis, if not once but twice to the duty managers, before they would accede to our request. They also did not offer sea facing rooms, but after complaining they allocated one room, and another the next day, but as we were settled some of my party did not want to change. Anyway I was responsible for changing from Sun and Sand to Tulip Star!

Goa and Bangalore was relaxing. Although I personally still prefer to spend more time in Mumbai (but not at Tulip Star). The guide and drivers were all very helpful.

However the family did some useful shopping in Mysore and Bangalore.

I will have no hesitation in recommending Compass to my friends and family here in Sydney if they wish to use the services of a tour operator.

We ourselves are planning to return in two years time, provided our health is OK.

Regards to you and to your staff

Jagdish

Guest Name: Robyn Fenwick

Hi

Well it has taken four weeks, just to get home and get back to work and all those mundane things that you have to cope with after a bit of time away.

Well to start off, Thank you for a wonderful holiday, everything you said would happen did, all our planning (mostly yours)

went off wonderfully and you made our trip one of a lifetime!!!

The accommodation was excellent, drivers were well informed and accommodating to our needs and transfers were all arranged all with a minimum of fuss to us. A special thanks must be given to "BOB", our driver for 17 days. He was so helpful and friendly, while being very professional in all his dealing. Nothing was any trouble to him in the way of helping us out, so if you could pass that on to him it would be very much appreciated.

I feel that by taking your advice on the places to visit and time needed in each location we used our allotted month very wisely, thus without your help I am sure we would have muddled around for the month missing so many things. It is without a doubt to best way to go to still be able to travel independently, but all the little things organized. In saying that I would like you to know that it is especially noted that all those little things that you had covered really made the difference in my trip, actually it is without a doubt the best organized trip I have ever been on.

So Dujay, thank you so much for all the planning, and putting together a great trip of India for us and if ever anyone would like to contact me in regards to a trip they are planning with you I would be more than happy to relay to them of the wonderful time you gave to us in our country, and I can not recommend you enough to any person interested in travelling in India.

Thank you once again and if I can be of any service to you it would be a pleasure.

Kind regards
Robyn Fenwick

51 Denison St

Tamworth

N.S.W. 2340
AUSTRALIA