Absolute Escapes Traveller Reviews

We chose the Herriot Way as it offered a slightly shorter route for our first adventure. We relied heavily on the route provided and were grateful for the extra details and comments which kept us on track. The luggage transfer worked like clockwork. Each hotelier was knowledgable and went the extra mile - one even washed our wet, muddy trousers and placed them in the boot drying room for morning. We were particularly impressed with the standard of accommodation as we assumed we might be compromised given we had a small dog in tow. The Herriot Way was a good way to ‘dip our toes’ but now we’ve got the bug and are researching our next trip.

They provided everything we needed for our first walking holiday. It worth paying for their expertise.

Absolute Escapes clearly know their stuff. Our accommodation was first class, evening recommendations spot on, and communication with their specialist was friendly and efficient. Not least, our walk on the South West Coast Path from Poole to Weymouth was incredibly beautiful. Thanks for organising the great weather too!

As above - couldn't be faulted. We'd highly recommended Absolute Escapes.

My partner and I went to Scotland at the end of September to walk for about a week. I had not taken part in a journey like this before, but my partner had. I was hesitant about the experience, but have come home raving about it and cannot wait to take part in one again. We walked for a few hours every day through glorious countryside and landed in quaint villages and towns with plenty to explore. Even when tired from the walking, we refreshed ourselves in order to get out to the pub. All of our accommodations were lovely and each host made us feel very welcome and comfortable. I would recommend every single place that we stayed! The walks themselves varied greatly from day to day and we were constantly in awe of the scenery. Even if we encountered rain, there was always a rainbow. We can't wait to go back!

Absolute Escapes was wonderful to work! I come from a travel industry background, so I can be picky. But everyone that I had contact with was helpful and friendly, providing all of the information we would need to prepare properly and get from point A to B each day. They booked the most wonderful accommodations for us along the way, and our luggage was carried ahead for us so that we only had to carry what we need for the day. I would book with Absolute Escapes again without question.

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We began in Edinburgh for five days, then began our driving adventure northward through the Kingdom of Fife, where we did a spectacular walk on the Coastal path. Our adventure through the wild countryside of Scotland took us all the way to Orkney, then down to the islands of the Hebrides and finally to the West Highlands. We walked nearly every day, rain or shine, and have indelible memories of the people, mountains, lochs, castles, cathedrals, ancient sites, and dramatic scenery of Sotland.

This was a complex trip and Absolute Escapes did a perfect job of organizing it in great detail for us. The driving directions, accommodations, sightseeing recommendations, and restaurant recommendations were all spot on. Plus, they were friendly and wonderful to deal with. We would highly recommend them to anyone visiting Scotland.

Our vacation was not fabulous, it was ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. Truly, every minute of everyday was perfect! Everything met and exceeded our expectation. Absolute Escapes did an excellent job - we are deeply thankful! Each one of our accommodations were superb. It was so exciting to see where our next place would be, and what it would be like - and, each time it was wonderful. What could be improved? NOTHING! I would recommend this company with no hesitation!

Our tour operator was patient, knowledgeable, professional and over the top! If she was out and I sent an email, someone else picked up the ball and responded accordingly.

Our family of five enjoyed our 10-day tour of various points around Scotland in May 2018. We hired a van from Edinburgh Airport, and set out on the tour, staying for a night or two in Callander, Oban, Fort William, Inverness, and finally driving back for a three-day stay in Edinburgh. We made several side trips along the circuit, and enjoyed the sights along the way. The itinerary provided by Absolute Escapes included suggestions and options, which gave us plenty of ideas. Our first stop was at the Kelpies, where we were surprised at how good the cafe food was; it made our first tourist stop a delight, setting the tone for the rest of our holiday. We went on to Stirling Castle and enjoyed a walk through the lovely town. Our first hostess advised us on points of interest as we traveled from Callander to Oban, such as the Drover's Inn. We loved wandering picturesque Oban, the ferry to Mull, and getting used to driving the single-track roads across the glorious Isle of Mull en route to Iona. Our stay at the Ben Nevis Guest House in Fort William was great, as was the local food, and the West Highland Museum. We enjoyed taking a gondola ride for a beautiful afternoon walk in the Nevis mountain range. On our drive up the Great Glen to Inverness, we stopped for a picnic overlooking Castle Stalker, then enjoyed a short boat tour on Loch Ness, before exploring Urquhart Castle. Although we enjoyed the accommodations and food in Inverness, we only did a little bit of shopping in town; instead we made the short drive to respectfully walk Culloden Battlefield and the Clava Cairns, then took a short drive dodging the sheep and admiring the coos. Driving back to Edinburgh, we diverted to Pitlochry and enjoyed our tour of the Edradour distillery (as well as the whisky samples) before returning our van at the airport and getting a taxi to our lodging in town. Very grateful to not have to drive in and around the city, we walked a lot and relied on the public bus and the tour bus. Edinburgh Castle, while stunning and a must-see, was more crowded than we expected, so we enjoyed parts of it and left without seeing everything. With so many other things to do and places to see, we split up our party according to our various interests, then re-convened for dinner. Among our favorite Edinburgh memories are: shopping, eating, the Royal Botanical Garden, the National Museum, Greyfriars kirk yard (we did NOT rub Bobby's nose, out of politeness), more shopping and eating, and wandering aimlessly off of the Royal Mile. We capped off our Edinburgh visit by sharing a whisky while enjoying the traditional music at Sandy Bells as evening fell. Our main regret is that we didn't have more time, so we will be working with Absolute Escapes again in the future when we plan a return trip.

We worked with a few people from Absolute Escapes, to develop the itinerary for our holiday, and handle the bookings at each stop. We advised them of our general plan and our interests, and they developed the detailed itinerary for us. Each person was extremely helpful and patient with handling our questions and changes. We have never been outside the U.S. before and we couldn't be more pleased with how well everything was planned out for us. We were very happy with their attention to detail as demonstrated in their customized guide, with clear directions, contact information for all lodging, and points of interest along the way. The lodging that they arranged was all excellent.

We had very good holidays with fantastic weather. As mentioned in web's provider, the level of the way was easy-moderate which was perfect for my first long distance walk. Logistics were perfect as well, very nice places to stay and good recommendations for dinner and for buying lunch, very useful. And we found local people very friendly.

Since our first contact with them, the people from Absolute Escapes were very professional. All the steps on the reservation of the holidays were clear and on time and the quality of all the selected local service providers during the holidays (b&b, taxis, luggage transport) was excellent as well. We will contact again Absolute Escapes for our next holiday in Scotland.

I can only recommend the Cumbria Way to other walkers, as it offers such a variety of different walks and landscapes and we also very much enjoyed hiking up some higher pikes during the two extra days we put in in Great Langdale and Kesick. Another experience that we shall certainly not forget was the so called "No Festival" in Great Langdale. Apparently there had been a musical festival there for over 20 years and just this year it was not going to take place. However, some of the musicians who had become friends over the years, gathered and met there anyway this year just to play music together for three days. It was great!

Absolute Escapes. Very competent and very friendly, indeed!

This trip was amazing!! We had perfect weather...the temperature was exactly what we like and the only rain we got was shortly after arriving in Wooler. It was a bit tough walking into Jedburgh for dinner after a long, jet-lagged first day, but we did find a restaurant with a great vegetarian option...the Cafe Royal Bistro in the Royal Hotel. The accommodations were all good with several standouts... the Templehall Hotel, The Mill House and Fenham Farm. All of them were extremely friendly and accommodating with great rooms and amazing food. One recommendation that Clare at the Mill House made was, since it's such a short day (we left late, walked slowly and still arrived at 13:00 and check-in isn't until 16:00-18:00), that you catch the bus in Kirk Yetholm for an afternoon in Kelso. If you're looking for amazing scenery from mountains to the coast, we would recommend this trip. Everyone at Absolute Escapes was very helpful and answered any questions we had. The trip packet was complete and we had no unpleasant surprises at all.

Very helpful. Always responded to our emails in a timely manner. A well arranged trip.

I achieved a long-term wish to walk the West Highland Way. I took eight days for the walk, and enjoyed every minute. The scenery is extraordinary, the accommodation was mostly excellent. Other people on the way were friendly and interesting to meet. A truly memorable eight days.

Absolute Escapes - very helpful and friendly. Most of the accommodation they booked was very good. The bag transfer was faultless. Definitely a company I would use again.