My AAT Kings' guides were in their 20s/30s which I liked, friendly, knowledgeable and extremely professional, ie, we had a guide at the front and at the back of the rim walk; five guides in total for our whole bus. Even though it was a large bus not a minibus, half the group did the easy base walk and half did the more challenging rim walk so it felt like a manageable group. The rim walk started with a steep climb up 500 steps. This is fine for fit people and it gets easier at the top. It was boiling and there's no shade. You must have three litres of water to do it so take refillable bottles to avoid buying plastic ones. The walk is stunning, a highlight of my month-long trip in Australia, if not the best thing I did. It is featured in the film Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and they do it in stilettos!* *Wear hiking boots After the walk we swam in an outdoor pool at a camp-like resort. Take a packed lunch if you want more time in the pool. There's changing rooms and a shower.

This was a great trip. Well planned and the two tour operators were great. It was a full day, early start but was well worth it. If you can do the rim walk of the canyon, the views are spectacular. It's the first 500 steps that's the difficult part after that it's uneven but much easier to walk on. The garden of Eden was breathtaking. Good value trip and two great tour operators who both had a vast knowledge of the area.

Very well organised. King's guides were excellent - very friendly and informative. Would have rated it higher except the breakfast was nearly cold. Also, someone had forgotten to turn on the urn so no tea or coffee. A pleasant experience after the day before's disaster and the subsequent lack of empathy displayed by the staff member I spoke to in Berlin.