 | Home > Expedition & Overland > Any experience of Atlas Overland? |
 
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324  
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Hello folks,
Does anybody have any experience of the trips run by Atlas Overland? We're considering their Pyrenees trip in August '13 but it would be with our kids who'll be 8 and a half. I'm particulary interested in time spent driving and distance travelled each day. On our first trip to Morocco ten years ago some friends of ours took children of a similar age so I know it can be done, but I don't want to subject ours to some sort of hardcore off-road marathon. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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1st Jul 2012 4:47pm |
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| shazzy90 Member Since: 17 Dec 2010 Location: tyneside Posts: 489 |
i have been with atlas overland on three trips,alps pyrennes and morocco,and find the trips are of a 5 star rating every day is planned to perfect driving times,with very good routes plenty to see and the back up is second to none.
on every trip i have been on i have had the misfortune of breaking down and never been left on my own . the trips always have one back up vehicle and sometimes two,as i say i have broke down every time ,the support i got was far beyond the call of their duty ,from breaking injector to a fuel pump in morocco ,they never failed to get me going again,whether it be a road side fix or arranging parts being flown in from the uk ,on overnight services,they never failed me ,and NEVER LEFT ME , i also find on the trips you will always meet up with new and more importable people who have been on trips with atlas before as we know the trips are good and keep coming back. it took me three years off research before i booked my first overland trip hearing all different horror tales that had happened on trips with tour groups,but then i went with atlas like all things we buy if you find a product you can trust you will buy again,and this is what i find with atlas,maybe not the cheepest out there but i think they have been around the longest and are good at what they do |
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1st Jul 2012 6:31pm |
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| ben_j85jty Member Since: 02 Sep 2008 Location: Bicester, Oxfordshire Posts: 491 
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Atlas Overland gets another 5 stars from me.
We went with Pete to Corsica in 2008 and having traveled with a number of other operators, he is one that I would reccomend wholeheartedly. Not sure of the other trips, but Corsica was about 6 hours driving per day, with one rest day in the middle. We had a family with us who had a 2 year old and 2 dogs with them and as far as I know there were perfectly happy with the way the days were laid out. As for support, Pete normally travels with either Alex or Carrick who are both able to offer basic repair help and advice, which in my opinion is all you should need. If it is serious enough to be out of the capability of those guys then you want it in a garage to do it. I went on one trip with a mechanice as support - when one of the other cars alternaot broke, he couldn't be bothered to help out, saying it was an easy job and we could manage - we did, but felt a little peeved to say the least. 2002 Defender 110 DC |
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1st Jul 2012 7:14pm |
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| Peter Girling Member Since: 01 Jul 2012 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 9
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Hi Darren,
Glad to hear that you're thinking of joining one of our tours. We've been running our Pyrenees tour for 10 years and it's a fantastic trip. Loads of off-roading on spectacular tracks & trails. The scenery changes every day from the lush forests of the Basque country, through the rustic smugglers tracks into and out of Andorra (no customs for us) to the high pastoral routes criss crossing the French/Spanish border. All of our campsites are family-run and a warm welcome is assured. Regarding support, we have two modern expedition vehicles equipped to deal with most situations from mechanical breakdown to technical recovery. Both vehicles are equipped with satellite phone, UHF radio, duplicate GPS navigation sets and comprehensive expedition medical equipment. Our staff are employed by us, not agency drivers and are fully qualified expedition guides. We've just completed our 30th Saharan expedition and have clocked up over 40 European adventure tours. In the case of mechanical breakdown, we aim to fix most problems on the track. If this isn't possible we will endeavour to recover the vehicle to the nearest road. As an example last year we have recovered a Camel Trophy Defender from the Tunisian desert back to mainland Europe. We also recovered a terminally ill Land Cruiser 400 miles from the Ksar Ghilane dune field back to France. Breakdowns are not uncommon on tour and we would never leave anyone to fend for themselves. Over the years we have done about every job possible on a Defender including puncture repair, wheel bearing replacement, UJ replacement, shock absorber and spring upgrades, half shaft replacement, fuel tank and pump replacement, lift pump replacement, brake system full fluid change, Puma vacuum pump replacement, as well as a whole load of field repairs to customers' vehicles and equipment. all of this was done either on the track or on campsites. We've carried out this work at 45degC in the Sahara desert and at minus 10 in the Arctic. We make no charge for our labour - it's all part of our service. We have a network of favoured garages who have dealt with major repairs from cylinder head to transmission problems. We have a UK back up network and can arrange for parts to be DHL'd anywhere. One recent repair was to a Discovery 2 with a ruptured airspring. When the local French Land Rover dealer couldn't be bothered we flew out a complete set of springs and shocks from the UK and had the car back on its' wheels in a couple of days so our customers could continue with their holiday. Our staff are trained in crisis management and our customers safety is our top priority. We were involved this year with the medical evacuation of a customer back to the UK even though they were on their way to join our trip and technically not our responsibility. For our UK trips we liaise closely with Rights of Way offices and the Ministry of Defence for our Salisbury Plain weekends. Sorry if I've gone on a bit but I believe we provide an excellent service and as 70% of our customers re-book year on year we must be doing something right. If you'd like any further information on any of our tours, please don't hesitate to contact me. Happy trails, Peter Girling Managing Director Atlas Overland Adventure Tours |
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1st Jul 2012 7:43pm |
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| GREENI Member Since: 22 Aug 2010 Location: staffs Posts: 10381
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You best get your wallet out and sponsor the forum
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1st Jul 2012 8:46pm |
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| bm52 Member Since: 04 Apr 2010 Location: Kent Posts: 2189 
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just what i was thinking...........now i am thinking about my holiday plans for 2013. any chance the camp sites can have tents with solid roofs, a soft bed with ensuite and room service  BM52 |
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1st Jul 2012 9:12pm |
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| Peter Girling Member Since: 01 Jul 2012 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 9
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Hi Guys,
I'm quite happy to contribute to the running of the forum. Just wanted to assure you that we look after our customers. If you want tents with solid roofs etc. I'm sure we can provide. Full English breakfast too? Happy trails, Peter |
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1st Jul 2012 9:52pm |
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| BigMike Member Since: 13 Jul 2010 Location: Lancashire Posts: 2253
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Care to expand a little on the landcruiser episode? |
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1st Jul 2012 11:12pm |
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| Peter Girling Member Since: 01 Jul 2012 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 9
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Yup,
Rear diff blown. (7 teeth stripped from crown wheel as we later found out) Removed rear prop, locked centre diff and continued in front wheel drive. However we were worried about putting all the strain on the front axle in the dunes so towed it out. Put it on a straight bar up the pipeline piste north to the tarmac and then arranged a towtruck to Tunis port. Happy trails, Peter |
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2nd Jul 2012 12:44am |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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Thanks for all of the feedback, folks. It all sounds very promising. Peter, I can only assume that the electronic version of your ears were burning
Mike, the ukLANDROVERevents trip is a very different proposition, whereby you stay in a chalet for a week and do day trips out into the mountains. Not what I had in mind at all, I'm afriad. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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2nd Jul 2012 7:06am |
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| Mick Clark Member Since: 20 Dec 2009 Location: Hertfordshire Posts: 75 
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Darren,
We have been on six trips with Peter and have been very impressed with the organisation and care that is taken to ensure that everyone is looked after and has a great time. The trip to the Pyrenees for an eight year old will be and adventure that he will remember for the rest of his life. Book the trip, you are in very safe hands and enjoy yourself. Mick & Anne. |
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2nd Jul 2012 7:23am |
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| bpman Member Since: 21 May 2008 Location: Oslo Posts: 8069 
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Mudrut run Pyrenees tours - a couple each year, PM Ian and find out when the next one is running, I believe late summer
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2nd Jul 2012 12:18pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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Thanks, folks. Still considering options, but it does sound very good. Oh, and we've got twins, so it'll be a boy and a girl 
Not in the school holidays, I'm afraid. We've looked at the details of quite a few companies now and there are only a few that offer trips in late July/August, which is a must for us. We've looked at Atlas and spoken with them at shows a few times over the last few years and always been pretty impressed, but it's only now that we're ready to consider a trip of this nature with the kids. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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2nd Jul 2012 12:59pm |
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| d j hutton Member Since: 30 Jul 2009 Location: Dorset Posts: 1044  
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I did one a while back with Landtreks and they were pretty good, nice people as well. Ours was single campsite based but most of them are overnighting at several campsites (or hotels if you prefer)
Worth an email as they seemed pretty accommodating when we did ours. DJ 1989 200tdi 90 csw 2011 110 usw Orkney grey Buy British 🇬🇧 Defender Clothing Designs available at http://www.rangesports.com/acatalog/Defender-Stuff.html |
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2nd Jul 2012 2:03pm |
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