Hello,

I have been planning a a trekking tour in Nepal this summer. After some search on the internet, I found this company called Getaway! Himalayan Eco-Trekking

They are quite responsive and have answered all my questions. Now I need to send them a deposit to secure two spaces in June for me and my husband. I am getting a cold feet since I only met this company through the internet.

Has anyone here used this company before? If so, would you please let me know if this company is legit? Will they take my deposit and simply disappear?

Thank you in advance.
Irene

One thing I would definitely do, as part of your planning, and no matter which company you pick, is buy travel insurance that will mitigate your lost deposits if you have to cancel.

If you have not already done so, you might want to do some reading on the political situation there and then track it over the next few months. The king recently fired the whole govt and things are a bit unstable at the moment. There have been ongoing problems with Maoist rebels closing roads, calling for strikes and blowing things up for the past 6 months. No tourists have been involved in any of the incidents, but there are some warnings posted.
I'm not trying to discourage your travel there, but just be aware of the situation so you can make an informed decision.

The king even closed off the whole country for a while (just a few weeks ago). No flights in or out. I enjoyed my stay in Nepal, but I'd wait for a while before booking a trip.

Dear Irene,

There are a couple of sites on the internet where you can look up customer
reviews about a company. The largest such site I am aware of is Eopinions
(www.eopinions.com). They have consumer reviews for all kinds of products,
including travel.

Another site that provides extensive coverage on tour operators is InfoHub (www.infohub.com). I just found Getaway! Himalayan Eco-Trekking
that is listed there:

http://www.infohub.com/scripts/RANT_...&id_flag=1

Hope this helps.

I don’t know the company you mention, but can recommend two operators: Sobeck Mountain Adventures at http://www.mtsobek.com/ and Footprints Trekking at http://www.greenkiwi.co.nz/footprints/frames/np.htm. Both are reputable and have offered trekking for years. I have used Sobeck in Bali and -- in Nepal.

The summer months, esp July and August are very rainy in Nepal. I would avoid those months. Late September and October are better months for trekking, and June when flowers are in bloom at the beginning of the rains.

I am not a timid traveler, but I would not go back to Nepal now. There has been unrest for decades but it seems to have become much worse in the last year or so. I would suggest Bhutan or Ladkh.

Thanks for the replies. You made my mind not to go to Nepal now. You are right.