Har Ki dun Trek by Himalaya Shelter

Amazing Har Ki Dun trek

The Har Ki Dun trek with Himalaya Shelter was an amazing experience. The trek organization was excellent, the food delicious, and the trek leader Ankur was highly attentive to the needs and safety of the group. His obvious love of the mountains made him a great companion on the trek. The home stay in a Gharwali village gave a tantilizing glimpse of village life. It was a privilege to be there. But most of all, Har Ki Dun is amazingly beautiful. Being in the Himalayas is sublime.

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Har ki dun

I had a great experience with Himalayas Griffon, I booked through sumit sir he guided me regarding thing to carry and hassle free pickup and trek was organised very well food was good, must give them a chance

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Har Ki Dun Trek - Pros & Cons

Himalayan Shelters was the ground operator for our Har Ki Dun trek. There were several things they did really well, but also some important areas that need improvement. 👍 Pros * Excellent food — we were provided around 4 meals a day, and the food was genuinely very good. * The staff were generally friendly and helpful. * Safety was taken seriously, and we returned safely after completing the trek. * The team maintained good punctuality and generally followed the schedule. * The homestays were beautiful and well located, and we enjoyed the local experience. * Our trek guide was knowledgeable, sincere and helpful. * Overall, the trekking experience and scenery were wonderful. 👎 Cons / Areas for Improvement * Tent hygiene was a major concern: The tents were extremely dirty and had water, insects and dirt inside. * The tent condition was poor enough that we could barely sleep for even an hour. Although we only had one night of camping, the experience was very uncomfortable. * Homestay hygiene could be better, particularly the washrooms, which were not adequately clean. * There appeared to be insufficient staff/caretaker support at some homestays. One person seemed to be handling multiple responsibilities, making it difficult to manage everything efficiently. * Better delegation and supervision would make a significant difference to the experience. * Transportation on the return journey was disappointing. We were handed over to another operator, Trek Up India, without prior information. * The vehicle was overcrowded, uncomfortable, had very little legroom and no AC, and we were covered in dust during the journey. * Wi-Fi was not working, as it apparently had not been recharged. While we understand that connectivity can be limited in the mountains, basic facilities that are advertised/expected should be maintained. * Our guide was good, but given his very young age and limited experience, we feel he would benefit from initially accompanying a senior trek leader. This would help him gain experience and confidence while handling groups independently.

Response from the operator: Thank you for such a detailed and honest review. We’re glad the food, the homestays, the scenery and your guide’s sincerity made the trek enjoyable, and that you returned safely and on schedule. We’re reviewing our camp setup, cleaning routine and homestay support with the team so each stay is properly looked after. Your feedback helps us get better, and we’d welcome the chance to make it right on a future trek. Warm regards, Bachan Rana, Himalaya Shelter

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Worst experience , arrogant guide ruined it for us

Nobody in their right mind should ever book through this company.. guys stay away!!!One of the worst experiences with this organizer. We booked Har ki Doon trek with Himalayan Shelter and i started noticing their weird behaviour the moment their guide Sandeep came to pick us at Dehradoon. This so called guide has zero people skills and single handedly ruined our experience of the trek , so much that we decided to cut short the trip and return early. Sandeep is extremely immature, rude and dominating who made me feel horrible for having a relaxed slow pace . He showed no concern for my condition and always put pressure to hurry. We could not even take a breather at beautiful view points on the way. One by one all seven of us were thoroughly pissed with his attitude. He never took responsibility, always deflected and became defensive and kept boasting abt leading foreigners..absolutely the worst nightmare. The trek itself is a beautiful route but it got spoiled by the guide who does not have basic empathy and guiding skills. The issue we had with the guide dwarfed almost every other problem we faced with this company. I would highly recommend everyone to simply avoid this company and not take chances with their precious vacation.

Response from the operator: Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re sorry the trek didn’t feel the way you hoped, and we’d like to give our side so future guests have the full picture. Har Ki Dun is a beautiful and generally easy trek, but the mountains need discipline. Our leaders set the pace and timings for safety, based on daylight, weather and reaching camp on time. On this trip, the group was late reporting on many occasions, which put pressure on each day’s plan. At the waterfall, the leaders’ guidance was not followed, and that is a real safety concern in the mountains. At Boslo, the group found the cold difficult and the schedule was changed, so our team had to make many urgent and difficult arrangements at short notice. We did this willingly, because guest comfort and safety come first. We never want a guest to feel rushed or unheard, and if our guide’s manner came across that way, we’re sorry. We’ll take your comments on communication and empathy back to the team. But a guide’s first responsibility is the group’s safety, and that sometimes means asking people to keep to the schedule. We’re glad you enjoyed the route and the scenery. If you’d like to talk this through, please contact us directly and we’ll gladly listen. Warm regards, Bachan Rana, Himalaya Shelter

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Har Ki Dun experience ho gaya Sun

Surprised to see that sometimes a good rating of trip advisor can also boomerang. During the Har ki Dun trek there were various hiccups like the tour guide wanting to exercising dominance of my way or highway (I know it better than you) , no stories or significance of the tour being shared, partial address of logistics on request of change in itineray, being made to weight till the mules bringing in our luggage , transport not organised on the way back the same day but a day later etc. The best part is no one from the agency took calls on the lat day and when after the trek a group member posted a review there were instant calls from the owner as to why a negative review is being written. Would not have written the above had it not been the audacity of the owner to react after the review instead of calling after the trek as to how it could have been handled better.

Response from the operator: Thank you for your feedback. We’d like to respond so other guests have the full picture. Har Ki Dun is a trek where safety and timing decide how the day goes. Our guides set the pace and the route based on daylight, weather and terrain, and that is not meant to override anyone. We’re sorry if it came across as insistence, and we’ll take your comments on communication and sharing stories of the trail back to our guides. On the itinerary changes and the return transport, last-minute changes in the mountains depend on road conditions, vehicle availability and weather, and they are not always possible to arrange the same day. We understand the wait was frustrating, and we should have explained the options to you more clearly at the time. On the calls: reaching out after a public review is not an attempt to silence anyone. Guest feedback matters to us, and we wanted to understand what went wrong. If our timing felt wrong, we’re sorry for that. We would also have liked to hear from your group on the trek itself, when we could have put things right. Please contact us directly and we’ll gladly listen. Warm regards, Bachan Rana, Himalaya Shelter

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