Choose a Challenge Avis 

The whole experience of this trip has been incredible, well organised and memorable.

Throughout this trip there have been beautiful landscapes, cultural exchanges and great traditional Moroccan food and drinks.

Choose a challenge have created a thoughtfully prepared trip which allowed extensive trekking and a range of perspectives through the Atlas Mountains, from the picturesque town of Imlil to the incredibly rewarding summit at Mount Toubkal over 6 days.

In addition to this, the extension allowed a well-deserved relaxing trip to take in a variety of Moroccan terrains and mountain ranges, with the thrill of camel riding.

Guides and porters have been helpful throughout and have engaged socially as well as gone above and beyond to be welcoming and attending to dietary needs, especially Abdou who has been very friendly and knowledgeable during both trek and extension.

Overall, a great experience and opportunity to make many new friends and learn about local culture while raising money for charity.

Please disregard the previous review from George pearl. I also attended this high atlas challenge alongside George and completely beg to differ alongside the other people that took on this challenge. To “correct” what the last review said I’ll follow the same order
1.food
The food served during the trek was classic Moroccan dishes such as chicken tajin and Berber salad. The food was prepared cleanly and properly and could been seen so at each camp. The guides always ensured that there was more than enough food for everyone to ensure each participant could go about their day with enough energy. As regard to the food poisoning comment, All participants that did end up feeling unwell knew and have agreed it was due to the altitude as if it was food poisoning the person/persons would have been unwell for a number of days constantly getting sick so the sickness can not be blamed upon the food. It was perfect.
2. Luggage porters
Again George seems to be the only one with a problem with the luggage porters. Luggage porters were friendly helpful and always made sure nothing was left behind. After having a bag for ten years maybe the porters aren’t to blame and also accidents do occur and as a human being you should be allowing of that.
3. Accomodation
Hotels and hostels were very splendid and helped with every need you had. As for the tents, the tents where in perfect condition protecting from rain and wind they where not as he so graciously put it in “tatters” and as for climbing in and out of a tent, you are not staying in the ritz how else would you expect to get in and out of a tent. The tented accommodation was a perfect and again any problems that might have occurred the guides took care of it straight away.
4. Guides
Regarding to these guides as “fine” is and insult each and every one of them looked after and made sure every person on that trek was ok including George himself when his “food poisoning”(altitude sickness) had affected him. The guides were very knowledgeable and in the evenings would sing with us at the campfires, play cards, laugh with us and just have an all around good time. Abdul and his team are a credit to themselves.
5. Kit list
The mandatory equipment list was perfectly fine. Although choose a challenge are an excellent company they however are not god and cannot control the weather. If a down jacket hadn’t have been put on the equipment list and if he had reached the summit and it was cold he would’ve complained about not having one. The wild does not accommodate you and you must prepare for every worst scenario.
6. Sight seeing during trek
Contrary to the previous review I personally saw 3 waterfalls. And to comment on the views some of the most incredible picturesque views I have and probably will ever see in my life. We came across wildlife plants and people we would never see. The sight seeing was incredible.
Extension
The extension is advertised as a Sahara extension and if you had of checks any maps you would’ve seen how far from the Sahara we would’ve been, another stupid statement from George. The extension was absolutely perfect providing with everything it said on the tin, if you would rather not have stopped for short breaks it would’ve been breaking the law as a person carrier in Morocco must have a 15 minute break every 2 hours
Overall myself and every other person who went on this trip is truly satisfied and delighted with how it went Abdul his team and choose a challenge should be proud of themselves

1 star for the main trek, 4 for the edge of Sahara extension.

Starting biggest to smallest issues on the main trek:
1. Food Poisoning/Safety. The challenge was intended to be the trekking in the Atlas mountains, instead it was a challenge against food poisoning. It is abundantly clear that CaC did not properly vet the operator in Morocco who conducted the expedition, and as a result around 80% of the group became ill. I myself did not manage to summit toubkal due to the appalling food hygiene as on the morning of the summit I vomited 4 times and was stuck on the toilet with diarrhoea. When booking with a large company that advertised at a university, I at least expected that the food would be safe at a bare minimum. I was incredibly disappointed that I did not manage to complete the trek due to no fault of my own.
2. Luggage porters. When told to bring a rucksack, I expected that the porters would understand that you are meant to pick them up by the handles, not the straps attached to the front of it. As a result my rucksack which has been absolutely fine for around 10 years was destroyed by the porters with several straps being pulled off, causing the bag to fall apart. It was also picked up by a zip, pulling that off, and a knife was clearly put through the top of it.
3. Accommodation. The actual hotels and hostels are fine, the tented accommodation however... The tents were in absolute tatters, held together with duct tape and not put up properly with many clips missing, guy ropes not pegged in and broken zips meaning you had to crawl out of the tents.
4. Guides. Although most were fine, Hamid was incredibly rude, Fat shaming myself on multiple occasions, and harassing some of the girls.
5. Kit list. A lot of the "MANDATORY EQUIPMENT" was completely unnecessary, such as the listed down/ski jacket. It was never so cold that you couldn't manage in just a t-shirt, let alone need a down jacket. When a lot of this kit is expensive, it is expected that they at least check you will need it for this experience at this time of year.
6. Sights seen during trekking
When advertised, waterfalls and other various things were promised that we would see on the route. Instead it was basically just skree and mountains.

Extension:
It is a lot of travelling which could have been better communicated exactly how much each day, but the views, hotels and places for food have all been excellent. Abdou has been exceptional on this.

EBC Trek November 2024

I've just completed the EBC trek and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I knew I was in safe hands with Buddha from the start. He was very knowledgeable and always happy to help and answer any questions I had. He made the experience very enjoyable and was friendly and approachable. I would highly recommend the EBC trek with Choose A Challenge!

brilliant trip and lovely staff, had one of the best experiences of my life with the marathon. couldn’t have asked for a better experience really! 👍

It has been an immense pleasure and privilege to be part of the Budapest team this year with Choose a Challenge!!!! I had the best time and so has everyone that I have spoken to ☺️ The organization went so smoothly and it is absolutely amazing to watch so many students tick a marathon off their bucket lists🥇 An absolutely tremendous achievement!!
Loved the people and the city and most importantly the staff that made it all possible ❤️❤️❤️

Amazing trip! Amazing everything!

Budapest is a stunning city to be running a Marathon in, and the itinerary of the race itself is super flat - which makes it perfect for beginners!

All the staff were very supportive and made sure everything ran smoothly and the dinners were super tasty! (big shout outs to Katja for operating everything!!)

Would recommend to anyone who’s ready to step out of their comfort zone and push their boundaries!

Amazing trip, had the best time and such a great achievement! All organised really well too!

Banging trip. Best uni experience I've had so far.

Such an amazing experience for the 2024 Budapest Marathon! Great team leaders would most definitely go again!!

Budapest Marathon 2024 🏃🏻
Signed up with Choose a Challenge who came to Loughborough University offering the opportunity to participate in the Budapest marathon (with some fundraising). It has turned out to be an unforgettable experience shared with an amazing group that took the ease out of the challenge. The organisers were extremely friendly, knowledgeable, enthusiastic and provided support throughout. Would highly recommend and may go back for future challenges :).

Completed the Budapest Marathon with choose a challenge and definitely was high value for my first marathon experience.

Our experience was a very special one to me, we had an absolutely amazing time thanks to our sherpas Rudra and Sunam. Always being patient with us and very good to talk to. They were fun and talkative, always checking on everyone and keeping us engaged and happy in difficult circumstances. Would definitely recommend this trek to anyone as long as they go with Rudra and/or Sunam.

Just completed the trek to Everest Basecamp and it was an experience of a lifetime. Our guides Rudra and Sunam were insanely knowledgeable and extremely kind throughout the expedition providing solutions to all kinds of problems. Our team of porters were also very friendly and the whole trek was successful. Would definitely recommend to anyone!! JAM JAM

Incredible experience, would 100% recommend. Special mention to our guides Pralhad, Prem and Ngima who made the trip extra special. Memories to last a lifetime.

Avoid Choose a Challenge – Disorganised, Unfair, and a Complete Nightmare

I recently travelled to Tanzania with Choose a Challenge to climb Kilimanjaro, and it was, without a doubt, the most frustrating and disorganised experience I’ve ever had. From shocking payment discrepancies to chaotic on-the-ground logistics, this company failed in almost every aspect of providing a professional and enjoyable trip.

1. Payment Discrepancies and Last-Minute Stress
Two months before the trip, I received a phone call from *Choose a Challenge* informing me that I was £3,060 overdue—on top of the £515 and £265 deposits I had already paid, as well as the £2,700 for the trip itself. They told me I had to pay this amount within a month or I wouldn’t be able to travel. While I admit I misunderstood the fundraising process (and that’s partly my fault), the entire situation was handled with no clarity. It would have been helpful if someone had ensured we fully understood the payment structure earlier on.

Thankfully, I was able to pull together the £3,060. However, upon arriving in Tanzania, I discovered that many of my fellow travellers had not been given the same ultimatum. Some only had to pay around £400 of the fundraising target. I ended up paying a total of £6,540, while others on the same trip paid as little as £900. This blatant inconsistency and complete cheating has left me disgusted with Choose a Challenge. It is abhorrent.

2. Total Lack of Organisation Throughout
The disorganisation didn’t stop with payments. During our two-day safari trip, we had no idea where we were staying and were shuttled around by drivers who spoke little to no English, leaving us entirely in the dark about our plans (we had not even been told hotel names or anything before our trip so we were completely at the mercy of the guides). The accommodation in Zanzibar was equally appalling. The hotel was unsafe, with no locks on the windows and keys that could open any room. This felt like a serious breach of safety, especially given the amount of money we had paid.

3. Bribed Reviews
After climbing the Kilimanjaro we relaxed for a celebratory dinner where we were told that we would get a free drink if we left CaC a 5* review. Being uni students, most people happily accepted. Do not trust these reviews.

While the on-the-ground staff were friendly, they were insufficient (apart from the crew on the mountain, they were fabulous) in terms of organisation , English skills, and communication. For the amount we spent, we expected far more professionalism and basic competence in managing such a high-cost, complex trip.

The only redeeming part of the experience was our Choose a Challenge supervisor, Cyrus, who was an absolute delight and the sole positive aspect of the company. Other than him, this is easily the worst company I’ve ever had the misfortune of dealing with.

Rudra and Sumon were so supportive and made sure everyone was okay. They always had a smile on their faces and making everyone laugh. They made this trip easier and more fun. For me, they helped me acclimatize well, looked after me when I was ill and always checking up on you. Their positive attitude helped so much when things got tough.

We all had an amazing time on the Everest Base Camp Trek. Everything was well organised and ran smoothly, and whenever an issue arose, Choose a Challenge and our guides were on hand and incredibly helpful. Special thanks to our guides - Pralhad, Neama, Breem and Buddha - who went above and beyond and helped to make this an unforgettable experience. I cannot recommend this challenge enough!

What an incredible experience! Met the most incredible people and saw insane veiws throughout. A massive thank you to Bhudda and Perna our guides during the trip. Their knowledge was endless and passions plentiful. Also a thank you to the porters that took our bags up and down the mountain. Without this team of wonderful people this trip wouldn't have been possible or nearly as fun. Thank you so much for the incredible experiences, laughs along the way and memories of a lifetime.

An incredible experience with incredible people. Buddha our guide was amazing taking care of all of the group ensuring everyone made it, showing excellent leadership skills and charisma. Purna, the porters and the rest of the team were fantastic ensuring the team bonded and uplifted each other throughout the whole trek. The views were incredible but our group made this an experience of a lifetime. Looking forward to the next trek we take as a group.