Madventure - Oxford

Sharon Baird

Well this trip was on the life changing platform. A unique opportunity to travel the whole of the island perimeter route including the western fjords and an option to go into the heart of the island to Askja volcano crater, has landed in my memory as an epic venture along with my best memories of travel.

With Kevin and Claire leading us we were in extremely safe and enjoyable hands. Camping the whole way round made Iceland affordable. So many highlights and sharing the over landing experience with the group just made it great. Who wouldn’t want to do it?

I think a big thank you is in order for Leanne who helps from my own experience and huge swell of feedback from all on the trip, in the booking and preparing us for the trip. Plus Claire and Kevin on the trip.

The founders of Madventure have a winning formula here. Please don’t go unless you are willing to get stuck in to all events, highlights and practicalities of camping daily and moving on.

Take good kit- it’s Iceland.

Enjoy xx
Sharon July 2024.

Matthew Greenway

Travelling across the Silk Road, and the countries Madventures was able to get us into was a phenomenal experience and a wonderful way to travel. Rosanna our guide, had unwavering optimism throughout the trip, even when the going got tough. Her logistical skills of getting us out of difficult situations as well as her intuitiveness to people’s problems were phenomenal and for a guide such as her, I felt it was extremely well priced. Martin our driver was equally fantastic and quite frankly superhuman with the way he drove and fixed the truck at breakdowns including one particularly bad breakdown in Tajikistan which left him separated from the rest of the crew for a few days which I imagine was very tough.

To see the countries I went to from Istanbul to Beijing, Madventures is an extremely cost competitive option to go with. While I did feel visa costs and the cost of many of the activities were not always transparent and therefore I blew my budget, I still thought overall it was well priced for what you get.

The food when camping was consistently very good, however often when camping in rural areas with limited ingredient options, I feel as though the Madventure policy could be less strict. Everyone can eat a vegetarian meal every now and then. It’s cheaper for the budget and it was really hard to find meat sometimes when shopping. I also feel as though on long drive days, a long lunch stop with long waiting times for food to come is a waste of time.

Despite all this, my Madventures trip was really worth while. As the only teenager on the truck, I found it a really life changing experience and i would recommend a Madventures trip to anyone of any age. I’m already looking forward to the next one.

Fiona Eldred

I had an amazing trip along The Silk Road overlanding with Madventure travelling from Istanbul to Beijing and then onto Chengdu and Tibet. This was a real adventure.  The trip gave  the group an amazing opportunity to travel along the Silk Road to places I always wanted to visit but would have found it difficult to as a solo traveller.  We had an excellent driver, Martin and a great guide Rosanna. We also had  local guides who shared lots of information.
There were so  many  highlights,  including  camping next to the Great Wall of China,  staying in hostels in  Samarkand and Khiva in Uzbekistan, travelling along the Pamir Highway and staying in yurts in Kryghistan.  Rosanna shared information about places of interest, tourist attractions at each of the places we stayed in.  There were lots opportunities to visit UNESCO and religious sites in the historic cities where we stayed in hostels and hotels. We camped in the countryside next to lakes and up mountains where we were able to hike to waterfalls and monasteries.

We received incredible hospitality from the people we met on ourvjourney including flowers from the locals in Iran.  Our truck also attracted  attention.

This is a trip for people who  enjoy camping, staying in hostels as well some amazing hotels in Chima.  Expect to spend hours on the back of a truck but it so worth it.  You need to be  flexible and adaptable and  enjoy camp cooking and meeting new people.  There were times when we had to dig out the truck, help change the wheel or use other forms of transport when the truck breaks down. However the group always worked together

Overlanding  for me was  a new  experience where I cooked a camp meal in the rain in China  and then slept in a yurt with twenty of my fellow travellers as it was too wet to pitch our tents ....and everyone loved the food and slept soundly. Character building.

Early mornings and long journeys are part of the trip but I extended my trip and travelled on to Tibet which was well worth the visit.  We drove over the Tibeaten Plateau on the 318 Highway and stayed in Lhasa and the Tibeaten Everest Base Camp.

Overlanding allows  budget travellers  to visit the amazing towns, cities and UNESCO sites along The Silk Road.

Michaela Williams

Did the tour of the Caucasus and 5 Stans and honestly was the best thing I’ve ever done! The detour into Iran was 100% worth it and eye opening in just how wonderful and kind the people of this country are. We had the amazing Rosanna as our leader and equally amazing Martin as our driver and as a person who’s been on many tours before (tho this was my first over-landing) they are hands down the best at what they do. I feel like we got way more than I was expecting for the price I paid for this trip. We had a major breakdown and had to navigate half a country and a border crossing without the truck and Rosanna took it all in stride, keeping moral high and the group in good spirits despite the many adversities we faced. It was truly an adventure and I can’t wait to be back exploring more countries with Madventures 🙂

Joseph Grech

One of the best overland trips i have done recently, having a professional crew always there to give us a perfect experience. The truck was well maintained and equipped. Iceland did not disappoint either with great landscape and idyllic campsites. Wildlife was great too with plenty birds and whales.
Will definitely travel with Madventure again.

cjazzheighton

This is a trip I will never forget! We travelled with Madventure in 2022 on their 2 week Iceland tour and can confirm this is the most in depth trip of Iceland out there! The Icelandic ‘summer’ was tough this year and we experienced rain, snow and hot sun all in the one day but the trip leaders made it work! Make sure you bring extra layers as you never know what weather you’re going to get. Camp locations were stunning and facilities in almost every one were great. We had a few upgrades into hostels along the way to keep us out the wet (optional!) which were fairly priced for Iceland. Everyone helped with setup and pack down of the communal tents and with food prep when needed, more hands makes light work was certainly true on this tour. The food that was prepared was beyond expectation for typical ‘camp’ food and was enjoyed by everyone, sometimes 2nd or 3rd helpings if available! Iceland is an incredible country and we were able to drive through lava fields, around stunning coast lines, gorges, beaches, ride electric scooters through main towns, swim in geothermal pools, watch puffins, see seals as we took a boat through icebergs and made great friends along the way. I couldn’t recommend Madventure enough, especially Karen, Leanne and Nicola. Thank you for everything! We can’t wait to see you again somewhere else in the world ❤️

Emma Phillips

Two weeks camping in Iceland with Madventure - what an experience! We had breathtaking landscapes, incredible wildlife, very soggy weather and lots of laughs. Claire and Kev were the best crew and were on hand for all of us at all times. The truck was full, which I've never experienced before but the group were amazing and I felt right at home from the start. Could have done with a little more sunshine - but hey, that's Iceland for you. It just made the sunny days even more amazing. Bringing your own tent to sleep in was not a problem and after the first night it goes onto the truck for the duration, not back in your suitcase so it's just a question of getting it to site and back again.

I have so many amazing memories of this trip and group of people.

I'm already planning my next Madventure for next year!

Carole Cuthbert

I have just completed the Iceland trip. What an incredible experience! The Madventure team was phenomenal. Karen's people management skills, amazing cooking, outstanding leadership, diplomacy, and all-round wonderfulness; Leanne's efficiency and adaptability, passion for Iceland and geology, and fabulous personality; Nicola's bubbly spirit, super vegetarian cooking skills (as I heard but did not experience), and spirit of adventure, all made for the trip of a lifetime in an incredibly beautiful country. We had a fabulous group of people, who all made the absolute best of really bad weather. I am a Madventure convert for life now! Cannot wait for the next trip in December.