Jaco Island & East Coast

Jonty Crane

a year ago

Established in 2005, Eco Discovery are one of the longest running and most reputable tour operators in Timor-Leste. They are Timorese owned and operated. I've been on multiple trips with them, from day adventures, to an 8 day epic crossing the country on foot. They are well organised, responsive, and know Timor-Leste as well as anyone. They can organise pretty much any type of trip, and have the greatest experience of any Timorese operators in running hiking trips.

Delan Adikari

7 months ago

I booked a couple of tours with Eco Discovery, and they made my experience of Timor Leste even more enjoyable. I was in Timor Leste for work and contacted a few local tour companies to ask for suggestions in my off time. Some didn’t bother to respond whilst others were very late with response. However, Edna from Eco Discovery was one that responded promptly and after some initial emails used Whatsapp for discussions. My schedule had the challenge of being free around work schedules, but I mentioned to Edna some places or things I would like to visit or see and also took upon her suggestions and feedback. I found Edna to be very easy to communicate and plan with in that she was very honest and straightforward with her responses, and when I finally had locked in dates, she was very quick and meticulous to organise everything including guides, accommodation and paperwork for border crossings and much more. Timor Leste is not widely known for tourism worldwide yet but has some hidden gems and I was very happy to get a taste of this in different regions. The country is not the cheapest for travel and tourism as they use USD, and for me it was added costs of solo travel. Fortunately, Eco Discovery could accommodate solo travellers, whereas some other organisations would not. Cost plays a part in decision making, but so too does safety and experiences and I felt I would get a good overall combination of these with Eco Travel and I was not disappointed. I booked a 2-day weekend where I visited Maubisse and climbed Timor Leste’s highest mountain Mt Ramelau. Edna was the guide and Andrew the driver. I then did a 5-day tour, which went from Dili to Jaco Island, Baucau, Balibo, and across the a few borders and then into Oecusse before returning to back to Dili. It was thought such a schedule in the time available was not possible but Edna who organised all as well as came along as guide put it all together. The driver JP was also excellent and had great local knowledge in Oecusse and West Timor regions. Edna was also helpful in answering other queries from SIM cards, to souvenirs, to best places to dine, shop, travel in Dili, and even tourist activities in Dili and Atauro Island which I self-did, but she was happy to answer questions and make suggestions, and I must thank her for this. I have taken away lots of great photos and memories from my time in Timor Leste thanks to Eco Discovery and I highly recommend them for others to have the same.